Prospect Profiles: Carlsson's size, skill make him an intriguing choice

The NHL draft lottery is May 8, with the Blue Jackets -- who finished with the second-worst record in the league -- guaranteed a top-four pick, including a 13.5-percent chance at No. 1 overall.

With that in mind, BlueJackets.com is taking this week to profile five players -- Connor Bedard, Leo Carlsson, Adam Fantilli, Matvei Michkov and Will Smith -- who will be in the mix to be chosen by the Jackets wherever they fall.

Of course, everyone has different opinions about the draft, and these five players aren't guaranteed to be at the top of the list being produced by general manager Jarmo Kekalainen and his scouting staff. But in looking around at pre-draft projections, Bedard, Carlsson, Fantilli, Michkov and Smith generally are seen by draft observers as the cream of the crop of this year's very deep class, as well as players who all will be high-end NHLers in the years to come.

The other profiles can be read below.

Connor Bedard | Adam Fantilli | Matvei Michkov | Will Smith

Leo Carlsson: The Vitals

Position:Center

Age: 18 (Born Dec. 26, 2004)

Height/Weight: 6-3, 198

Hometown:Karlstad, Sweden

The Accomplishments

• Ranked the No. 1 international skater available by NHL Central Scouting after posting a 10-15-25 line in 44 games with Orebro HK of the Swedish Hockey League.
• Added nine points (one goal, eight assists) in 13 games for Orebro as the squad reached the semifinals of the SHL postseason.
• Led SHL U-20 players in points, edging the eighth overall pick in the 2022 NHL draft, Marco Kasper (23 points).
• Named Swedish Junior Hockey Player of the Year.
• Notched nine points (3-6-9) in 35 games in 2021-22 as the youngest player in the SHL.
• Posted three goals and three assists for six points in seven games for fourth-place Sweden at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship. Included were two goals in a quarterfinal win vs. rival Finland and a goal and an assist in the bronze medal game against Team USA.
• Recently joined the national team for games ahead of the IIHF World Championship.

The Hype

So far, only six players from Sweden have been chosen in the first three picks in the NHL draft. The last was Rasmus Dahlin, who went No. 1 overall to Buffalo in the 2018 draft.

If there's a time for that to change, it looks like it could be right now. Carlsson has steadily moved up draft boards this season, not just finding his footing but making an impact playing against men at age 18 in his native Sweden.

Watch: Youtube Video

The result is a player who has the tools to crash the draft party and become a key piece of a team's future during the June 28-29 draft.

"Carlsson has all of the measurable qualities teams look for in a power forward, but he's shown very early on in this SHL season that he's got the game to go along with it," FloHockey analyst Chris Peters

wrote in his midseason evaluation of the prospect

. "He's been scoring at an extraordinarily high-rate for a U19 player in Sweden's top pro league, while averaging top-six minutes and showing an ability to drive play.

"At 6-foot-3, 194, he's a solidly-built forward who is difficult to move off pucks and has good net-drive ability. Carlsson also has soft-touch skills with the puck and makes confident decisions when he has it on his stick. Off the puck, he competes and is responsible at both ends of the ice."

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The Pipeline Podcast: Draft Lottery Preview with Chris Peters

In other words, Carlsson might be the power forward teams are looking for at the top of the draft. The son of a former pro player and coach who left home at age 15 to chase his hockey dream, Carlsson has steadily shown he deserves to be in consideration as one of the top players in the draft.

It helps that a growth spurt right around the same time vaulted him from an average-sized prospect to one that has the physical tools to dominate a game. Add in above-average hockey IQ and Carlsson has the type of high-end potential that will allow him to be a consistent top-six forward at the NHL level.

"I'm a big, strong player who sees the ice well and uses my size to have the puck a lot, while making plays and creating scoring chances for myself and my teammates,"

Carlsson told NHL.com earlier this year

. "At a young age, I was always very quick and fast. As I got older, I began to enjoy my intensive off-ice training and that has helped me to get even faster and quicker, especially in the corners and tight situations."