FEATURE: Lagesson crosses the pond

EDMONTON, AB - For defenceman William Lagesson, the 2017-18 season was about ice-time - getting as much of it as possible.
All roads led back to Sweden for the Swedish blueliner.
The Gothenburg, SWE product was loaned by the Oilers to Djurgårdens IF of the Swedish Hockey League last season for extra game-time with the plethora of defencemen available to the Bakersfield Condors.

OILERS ROOKIE CAMP

DAY 3 CONTENT
OILERS TODAY | Rookie Camp Day 3
PRE-GAME REPORT: Oilers at Flames
PRE-GAME RAW: Bouchard
PRE-GAME RAW: Gambardella
PRE-GAME RAW: Jones
PRE-GAME RAW: Jay Woodcroft

DAY 2 CONTENT
OILERS TODAY | Rookie Camp Day 2
BLOG: Woodcroft's assessment
BLOG: Marody to focus on details
CAMP RAW | Jay Woodcroft
CAMP RAW | Wells
CAMP RAW | McLeod
PHOTO GALLERY: Rookie Camp Day 2
The 6-foot-2, 198-pound defenceman chipped in a goal and 12 helpers in 49 contests, averaging almost 20 minutes a night in Sweden's top tier. Entering his second Oilers Rookie Camp, the 22-year-old is one of the veterans with professional experience after taking on heavy minutes in all situations in the SHL.
"It was a bit of a combination," Lagesson said of his loan by the Oilers last season. "I got more ice time and was able to develop as a player, about 20 minutes a night. If you look back at it, I think it was a good decision to go back and play there.
"I feel like obviously it's important to play - play a lot and get more confident in all types of situations. I feel like that helps a lot to play a lot and get confident."
Extra reps at the professional level with Djurgårdens, along with a two-year stint with the NCAA's Umass-Amherst Minutemen and one season with the USHL's Dubuque Fighting Saints has prepped the Oilers fourth-round pick from 2014 for crossing the pond and returning to North America next season in Bakersfield.
"I will stay over here [in North America] for sure. Now, I'll focus on this camp and main camp, do my best and take it from there. It's good to know the pace of the game and playing against good players. Being around here and see how everything works obviously helps."
Lagesson, along with the Oilers management and coaching staff, knows his role - a shutdown defenceman capable of playing big minutes and chipping in the occasional point.
"He had a tremendous year last year in the Swedish Elite League," Oilers VP of Player Development Scott Howson said. "He played 19-20 minutes a game, playing a lot of important minutes. He's a defending defenceman, so he's not going to provide offence. He's really, really competitive and his skating has improved. I anticipate he's going to have a strong showing here at Rookie Camp."
While he won't compare his game as a like-for-like to Dallas Stars defenceman and fellow Gothenburg native John Klingberg, Lagesson has taken pointers from his countrymen training and skating with him this off-season, along with the Los Angeles Kings' Christian Folin.

"We're not the same type of player, but small things," Lagesson said of Klingberg. "He's really good with the puck, so when we were skating in the off-season I saw how he skates and how he holds the pucks and makes good plays. It's always good to be around good guys. You can always pick up small things that help you."
Playing on larger ice surfaces in Sweden allowed Lagesson to develop his defensive positioning further, with the transition to the smaller surfaces of the NHL being eased by his North American experience.
"I grew up playing in Sweden, the big ice sheets, Lagesson said. "You got to cover more ice and focus on your area by keeping a good position on the ice, too. In the beginning it was a little bit different but I got used to it pretty quick. I feel like I adjusted pretty quick and didn't have any problems with it."