| STORIES |
- Friday, June 27, 2008: The Maine Swedish attraction
- Monday, November 3, 2008: Another Swedish gem?
- Monday, January 19, 2009: Nyquist gets top marks in college
- Tuesday, October 27, 2009: Nyquist enjoying sophomore success
- Tuesday, February 9, 2010: Wings boast Hobey hopefuls
- Tuesday, March 23, 2010: Mursak satisfies need for speed
- Tuesday, April 6, 2010: Mixed reviews on the farm
- Wednesday, February 9, 2011: 2010-11 mid-season: New Euro Twins rise higher
- Wednesday, March 9, 2011: Nyquist, marked man, cuts loose
- Thursday, June 9, 2011: 2010-11 end-of-season: Smith rules the roost
- Wednesday, November 23, 2011: Nyquist closes in on Smith’s top spot
- Wednesday, January 25, 2012: Pulkkinen scoring goals — and lots of them
- Tuesday, January 31, 2012: Defense plus, opportunity minus for Almqvist
- Wednesday, February 29, 2012: Nyquist still running on a full tank
- Tuesday, March 6, 2012: Tatar progresses despite production plateau
- Tuesday, May 29, 2012: Expect multiple grads from competitive top 11
- Wednesday, December 19, 2012: Paterson puts himself in the spotlight
- Wednesday, January 30, 2013: Shades of Edler in Red Wings’ Backman
- Wednesday, March 6, 2013: ‘Other people just can’t do’ what Jurco can
- Wednesday, March 13, 2013: Almquist making his mark as AHL rookie
- Wednesday, April 17, 2013: Four Red Wings prospects chase Memorial Cup
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| AWARDS |
- 2008-09 Hockey East rookie of the month (December)
- 2008-09 Hockey East All-Rookie Team
- 2009-10 Hockey East Unanimous First-Team All-Star
- 2009-10 Hockey East Co-Scoring Champion (tied with Bobby Butler)
- 2009-10 Hockey East Player of the Year runner-up (second to Bobby Butler)
- 2009-10 New England First-Team All-Star
- 2009-10 NCAA scoring champion
- 2009-10 NCAA First-Team All-American
- 2009-10 NCAA Hobey Baker Award top-three finalist
- 2010-11 Hockey East Unanimous First-Team All-Star
- 2010-11 NCAA Hobey Baker Award top-10 finalist
- 2010-11 NCAA Second-Team All-American
- 2011-12 AHL All-Star Game (Western Conference)
- 2011-12 The Hockey News Future Watch (NHL’s 34th-best prospect)
- 2011-12 AHL All-Rookie Team
|
| HISTORY |
2006-07:
- Productive year with Malmo at Sweden’s top junior level (42-21-23-44) didn’t get him drafted.
|
2007-08:
- High-level production continued with Malmo at Sweden’s top junior level (24-11-20-31).
- Missed six weeks with a mid-season shoulder injury.
- Saw action with Swedish junior national teams, although not at major tournaments.
- Committed to play NCAA hockey at the University of Maine starting in 2008-09.
- Selected by Detroit in the fourth round (121st overall) in his second run through the NHL draft.
|
2008-09:
- Broke into NCAA ranks with Maine and had a fantastic freshman season (38-13-19-32).
- Arguably the best overall player on a team that struggled, going 13-22-4.
- Finished 13th in Hockey East scoring, second in rookie scoring and first in rookie goals.
- Led Maine with 117 shots (nobody else had more than 83) and was a minus-1.
- Earned spot on Hockey East all-rookie team but missed rookie of the year to goalie Kieran Millan.
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2009-10:
- Returned to Maine for sophomore year and enjoyed a sensational campaign (39-19-42-61).
- Almost doubled his freshman point total in a massive step forward.
- Tied for Hockey East’s scoring lead and had a seven-point edge for the NCAA scoring crown.
- Maine finished a game under .500 and lost in the Hockey East final to NCAA champ Boston College.
- Collected a goal and an assist in the 7-6 overtime loss to Boston College.
- Named a top-three finalist for the NCAA’s most prestigious award, the Hobey Baker.
|
2010-11:
- Returned to Maine for his junior year and started slower than his sophomore scoring pace.
- Still managed to maintain a point-per-game plus clip through the end of January (24-6-22-28).
- Exploded in final dozen games with a spectacular run (12-12-11-23).
- Tied for second in Hockey East scoring (36-18-33-51), one point behind Paul Thompson.
- Also finished with an even plus-minus rating, 140 shots, four PP goals and two SH goals.
- Named a top-10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award for a second straight season.
- Produced five points (2-1-4-5) in two-game loss to Merrimack in Hockey East quarterfinals.
- Signed AHL amateur tryout with Grand Rapids and stepped right in (9-1-3-4).
|
2011-12:
- Tremendous NHL pre-season, finishing third in Red Wings scoring (5-3-2-5, plus-2, 13 shots).
- Spent bulk of season in AHL with Grand Rapids (56-22-36-58, plus-7, 152 shots).
- Ultra-consistent, averaging at least a point per game every month but one.
- Finished fifth in the AHL rookie scoring race and was second in rookie points per game.
- Recorded an assist in the West’s 8-7 win over the East in the AHL All-Star Game on Jan. 30.
- Got into 18 NHL games during various call-ups, averaging 7:33 TOI (18-1-6-7, plus-2, 22 shots).
- Got into Red Wings’ first-round playoff lineup with injury to Darren Helm (4-0-0-0, plus-1, one shot).
|
| SCOUT COMMENTS |
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“His best assets are either his smartness and his work ethic. They really go together. He’s not physical but he’s very intense. When he loses the puck, he chases like crazy to get it back, and when he has the puck, his feet are always moving. If he makes it, he should be at least a second or third line player.” — Red Wings director of European scouting Hakan Andersson (June 2008) … “He plays both ends of the ice. He has the skill to be a second-line guy, but the ability to be the complementary third-line guy who is willing to back-check and play in the hard areas. If you have a skilled guy like him that plays on your third line, that’s going to be a good thing.” — Red Wings scout Mark Leach (January 2009) … “He continues to lead us offensively. He’s generated a ton of offensive opportunities for us … He’s fast and when he’s got the puck, he’s very good at protecting it, he’s an excellent playmaker, and he’s … shooting the puck more.” — Grand Rapids Griffins head coach Curt Fraser (February 2012) … “He’s got skill and he’s got a mind. We like that. He’s going to be a top-six NHL forward.” — Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock (May 2012, The Hockey News).
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| STRENGTHS |
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Outstanding two-way hockey sense … Extremely hard worker … Intense … Persistent and diligent in puck pursuit … Capable of stripping an opponent of the puck … Effective penalty killer … Always moves his feet … Fast skater who pushes the pace offensively and doesn’t give up on plays … Loves to attack with the puck and can intimidate defenders … Outstanding set-up man who excels on the power play … More of a playmaker than a scorer … Tremendous puck-protection skills.
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| WEAKNESSES |
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Still small and slight and will need to show he won’t be knocked off the puck too easily at the NHL level … First-option passer who could stand shoot the puck more frequently.
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| PROJECTION |
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Nyquist hasn’t missed a beat since leaving college. Not only was he one of the top rookies in the American Hockey League in 2011-12, he was consistent from start to finish and didn’t wear down late in the season as do many college grads. After performing well in various call-ups to Detroit and seeing time in the playoffs because of an injury to Darren Helm, Nyquist is a potential top-six forward who is ready for full-time NHL work in 2012-13 and could challenge for a spot on the top three lines.
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Player statistics powered by www.eliteprospects.com
| Season |
Team |
League |
GP |
G |
A |
TP |
PIM |
|
Playoffs |
GP |
G |
A |
TP |
PIM |
| 2005-2006 |
Skåne |
TV-Pucken |
8 |
3 |
7 |
10 |
2 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Malmö J18 |
J18 Allsvenskan |
14 |
9 |
3 |
12 |
10 |
| |
Playoffs |
6 |
1 |
3 |
4 |
0 |
| |
Sweden U17 (all) |
International-Jr |
3 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 2006-2007 |
Malmö J20 |
SuperElit |
42 |
21 |
23 |
44 |
57 |
| |
Playoffs |
4 |
2 |
2 |
4 |
6 |
| |
Sweden U18 (all) |
International-Jr |
2 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 2007-2008 |
Malmö J20 |
SuperElit |
24 |
11 |
20 |
31 |
20 |
| |
Playoffs |
7 |
5 |
5 |
10 |
6 |
| |
Sweden U19 (all) |
International-Jr |
5 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
6 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 2008-2009 |
Univ. of Maine |
NCAA |
38 |
13 |
19 |
32 |
28 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Sweden U20 (all) |
International-Jr |
4 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 2009-2010 |
Univ. of Maine |
NCAA |
39 |
19 |
42 |
61 |
20 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 2010-2011 |
Univ. of Maine |
NCAA |
36 |
18 |
33 |
51 |
20 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Grand Rapids Griffins |
AHL |
8 |
1 |
3 |
4 |
2 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 2011-2012 |
Grand Rapids Griffins |
AHL |
56 |
22 |
36 |
58 |
18 |
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
Detroit Red Wings |
NHL |
18 |
1 |
6 |
7 |
2 |
| |
Playoffs |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| 2012-2013 |
Grand Rapids Griffins |
AHL |
58 |
23 |
37 |
60 |
34 |
| |
Playoffs |
10 |
2 |
5 |
7 |
19 |
| |
Detroit Red Wings |
NHL |
22 |
3 |
3 |
6 |
6 |
| |
Playoffs |
14 |
2 |
3 |
5 |
2 |
Player statistics © www.eliteprospects.com
