NHL Draft Prospect Profile: Lucas Raymond

One burning question will remain on the minds of Buffalo Sabres fans between now and the start of the NHL Draft on Oct. 6: Who will be available when the team selects eighth overall?
According to Dan Marr, the director of the NHL's Central Scouting Services, eighth is a pretty good place to be.
"The top eight is where you want to be if you want to get a marquee prospect," Marr said. "Not every club is going to have the same order, so they could conceivably get somebody who they have five or six on their list and they're going to be tickled pink to be able to do that.
"I know they've really been working hard preparing. They probably are going to have to get their eyes checked after watching so much video they had collected on these prospects. They're going to get a marquee NHL prospect here."
Alexis Lafreniere is the consensus favorite to be selected first overall. After him, most projections have forwards Quinton Byfield and Tim Stutzle going second and third in some order - though, as we have seen in recent years, those projections are never a guarantee.
Neither is this one. But, over the coming days we can do our best to profile some of the candidates who might be available when the Sabres pick. We continue today with Swedish forward Lucas Raymond.

8 for 8 profiles: Marco Rossi | Jack Quinn | Cole Perfetti | Anton Lundell | Alexander Holtz

Lucas Raymond - LW, Frolunda (SHL)

5-foot-11, 170 pounds

2019-20: 33 GP, 4 G, 6 A, 10 P

Sabres fans have become well accustomed with Frolunda development. Victor Olofsson and Rasmus Dahlin both came up with the Swedish pro team before becoming integral pieces in Buffalo.
This draft class boasts another Frolunda success story in Lucas Raymond, a skilled winger projected to be selected in the top 10 come Tuesday. The 18-year-old spent most of last season playing against men in Sweden's top league, tallying 10 points in 33 games.
He is off to an even better start this season, tallying a goal and an assist through his first three games. He is averaging 15:23 of ice time, up nearly five minutes from a year ago.
"They allow the players to develop at a non-accelerate pace," Dan Marr, director of NHL Scouting Services, said of the Swedish development model.
"They don't expect a 17-, 18-year-old to come in and take over or run the show, but they're there every day. They train with professionals, they know what it takes. They learn how to stay healthy properly. They understand and learn about conditioning. They're placed in situations to succeed."
Raymond has produced at a high rate against his peers, tallying 14 points (3+11) in nine contests with Frolunda's U-20 team last season and four points (2+2) in seven games at last year's World Junior Championship, where he helped Sweden win a bronze medal.
Raymond is more of a playmaker in comparison to his countrymate Alexander Holtz (who we'll profile tomorrow). He is touted for having strong hockey sense with highlight-reel hands. NHL Central Scouting ranks him fourth among European skaters.

What they're saying

NHL.com's Adam Kimelman, who has the Sabres selecting Raymond in his latest mock draft: "Raymond is among the craftiest forwards in this year's draft. Raymond has a high hockey IQ that helps him offensively and makes him reliable defensively."
NHL.com's Mike Morreale: "The 18-year-old plays a strong two-way game with excellent vision, intensity, a good wrist shot and a nose for the net, and he's a tremendous asset on the power play and penalty kill."

What he's saying

Raymond to SHL.se on his offseason:"I've been trying to improve my shooting. And I've spent time working on my skating. I've been focusing to try to keep my speed coming out of a sharp turn. I think it has worked pretty well."

Watch this

Raymond capped off a three-point performance in January by forcing a turnover in the neutral zone and scoring on a breakaway: