"[Holtz] is an amazing player and person," Raymond said. "He's extremely skilled and has a lethal shot. It's incredible. He still has speed despite his size, has great vision and is a great player to play with. If you give him a good shot, 99 percent of the time it's going in."
Holtz and Raymond, each an A-rated player in NHL Central Scouting's Players to Watch list, were invited to Sweden's national junior team selection camp, which begins Monday in Uppsala, Sweden, to help determine the roster for the 2020 IIHF World Junior Championship in Czech Republic from Dec. 26 to Jan. 5, 2020. Sweden will depart for Czech Republic on Dec. 19.
"Holtz is an elite goal scorer," said Sweden WJC coach Tomas Monten. "He has a great shot, wants to shoot, and wants to be the guy that finishes every play. I think he's a little bit stronger than [Raymond] and has a little more muscle and weight but I think Lucas has more speed.
"Holtz works hard, goes to the dirty areas and wants to be a difference-maker. In some ways Holtz and Raymond complete each other, but [Raymond] is more of a playmaker and Holtz more a finisher."
Holtz scored 30 goals in 38 games in Sweden's junior league last season. He does a lot of off-ice training, bolstering several different aspects of his game, including his shot, passing and stickhandling.