Prospect Info: C Noah Ostlund, 16th Overall, 2022 NHL Draft, Assigned to Rochester 4.17.24

[Fjordy]

I think we should absolutely slow cook him. Leave him overseas for another year or two, then the AHL. He needs some time to grow and fill out before he'll be ready for the NHL. He gets pushed around too much by his peers right now to even consider moving up. I think he'll be a good one but he's a lnger term project IMO.

The problem is that then they will not be able to control its development. There will be no point if he is in the SHL, but he plays 5 minutes per game, it will only hurt. We need to know the plans of the team in which he plays for Ostlund.

 

[Dingo44]

Corey Pronman's NHL Pipeline Rankings: No. 1 Buffalo Sabres' future looks bright

Ranking the top prospects and under-23 players in the organization. Plus, what to expect of every player.

theathletic.com

10. Noah Ostlund, C

18 years old | 5-foot-10 | 164 pounds | Shoots left

Drafted: No. 16 in 2022
Tier: Middle of the lineup player

Skating: NHL average
Puck skills: Above NHL average
Hockey sense: NHL average
Compete: NHL average
Shot: Below NHL average

Analysis: Ostlund possesses impressive speed and skill. He’s able to be an asset in transition due to his ability to create controlled entries and make defenders miss. He has a pass-first mentality but can make difficult plays at a high rate. Ostlund has the poise to run a power-play unit and find seams but he’s not much of a shot threat. Ostlund isn’t the biggest, but he works hard enough and has shown as a junior that he can reliable defensively. He looks like a potential third-line center in the NHL.

 

[Jim Bob]

 

[Ace]

He scored from the Olofsson spot that will one day be the Kulich spot

 

[Prntscrn]

@1:30

 

[Ace]

 

[Ace]

I mentioned before that one of the things that stuck with me while researching this years draft was the belief some scouts/analysts held that Ostlund had an untapped or maybe better said unused entire part of his game in the goal scoring department. Through the preseason we’ve seen him unleash a better shot than he was credited with…and now he’s out there pulling the lacrosse goal behind the net.

The early returns on that question have been beautiful. First he’s out there scoring a hat trick while Lekkerimaki and Ohgren aren’t there to feed…and now he’s just showing off.

He has unmistakable puck skills and unquestioned passing ability that make him a good candidate to make it as he grows. But there might be more here. A lot more.

 

[Nikolajs Sillers]

I mentioned before that one of the things that stuck with me while researching this years draft was the belief some scouts/analysts held that Ostlund had an untapped or maybe better said unused entire part of his game in the goal scoring department. Through the preseason we’ve seen him unleash a better shot than he was credited with…and now he’s out there pulling the lacrosse goal behind the net.

The early returns on that question have been beautiful. First he’s out there scoring a hat trick while Lekkerimaki and Ostlund aren’t there to feed…and now he’s just showing off.

He has unmistakable puck skills and unquestioned passing ability that make him a good candidate to make it as he grows. But there might be more here. A lot more.

Yeah, but can he build an Ark to take Sabres to promised land?

 

[Matt Ress]

Do they not track FO% in swedish J20? Can't seem to find it although I've read he's good at the dot.

 

[Chainshot]

Do they not track FO% in swedish J20? Can't seem to find it although I've read he's good at the dot.

Some of the leagues are missing a public display of data about a lot of things, sadly.

 

[Jim Bob]

Sabres prospect Noah Ostlund turning heads in Sweden, scoring special goals - Buffalo Hockey Beat

The night before Djurgardens’ recent exhibition game, Sabres prospect Noah Ostlund and his teammate, Jonathan Lekkerimaki, bet each other who would score the first “Michigan,” a lacrosse-style goal, this season. The goal made famous by the Wolverines’ Mike Legg in the 1996 NCAA Tournament...

www.buffalohockeybeat.com

So far, Djurgardens has eased the 5-foot-10, 164-pound Ostlund into pro hockey. Instead of skating him at center, he has been playing right wing, a spot Stoppel said the team plans to keep him at.

“He’s skilled, but right now, he’s not that strong – hockey strong,” Stoppel said. “So we want to focus on his skills.”

He added: “He’s a really smart hockey player with good hockey sense, and has also the skills, (a) really good shot.”

Ostlund also has a notable mentor in NHL veteran Marcus Kruger, who won two Stanley Cups with the Chicago Blackhawks. Kruger, who came up in the Djurgardens organization, returned this season and plays on a line with him.

 

[WhereAreTheCookies]

Sabres prospect Noah Ostlund turning heads in Sweden, scoring special goals - Buffalo Hockey Beat

The night before Djurgardens’ recent exhibition game, Sabres prospect Noah Ostlund and his teammate, Jonathan Lekkerimaki, bet each other who would score the first “Michigan,” a lacrosse-style goal, this season. The goal made famous by the Wolverines’ Mike Legg in the 1996 NCAA Tournament...

www.buffalohockeybeat.com

I saw Kruger and got nervous for a second.

 

[Fjordy]

Sabres prospect Noah Ostlund turning heads in Sweden, scoring special goals - Buffalo Hockey Beat

The night before Djurgardens’ recent exhibition game, Sabres prospect Noah Ostlund and his teammate, Jonathan Lekkerimaki, bet each other who would score the first “Michigan,” a lacrosse-style goal, this season. The goal made famous by the Wolverines’ Mike Legg in the 1996 NCAA Tournament...

www.buffalohockeybeat.com

It's a little strange that he won't be playing center, I hope they moved him to the wing on a non-permanent basis.

 

[Butt Ox]

It's a little strange that he won't be playing center, I hope they moved him to the wing on a non-permanent basis

Krüger is centering their line?

 

[Jim Bob]

Krüger is centering their line?

I would think so since he is a center.

 

[Matt Ress]

Maybe not ideal size (especially right now) but I think Ostlund is ultimately a center.

 

[Jim Bob]

Maybe not ideal size (especially right now) but I think Ostlund is ultimately a center.

With as many center or wing guys on the team and in the pipeline as they have, good luck guessing who their 4 centers are in 3 or 4 years.

 

[jmelm]

Maybe not ideal size (especially right now) but I think Ostlund is ultimately a center.

I agree and have a feeling the Sabres want to develop Ostlund as a center. So that makes me wonder: if they have any doubt about Ostlund moving back to C in Sweden for next season, if they try to get him selected in the CHL import draft and have him spend a year in the CHL playing C.

 

[Matt Ress]

With as many center or wing guys on the team and in the pipeline as they have, good luck guessing who their 4 centers are in 3 or 4 years.

Thank you. I'll need it

 

[CowbellConray]

To me - he is the most interesting prospect in the Sabres system. I think he fits into the new NHL - where you can anticipate plays and execute high skill moves quickly. Defenses are more systematic than ever, and have a system breaker like Ostlund is really interesting.

If he achieves his potential development curve.... he could be a PPG+ offensive force. Needs a lot to get there, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

 

[Matt Ress]

I agree and have a feeling the Sabres want to develop Ostlund as a center. So that makes me wonder: if they have any doubt about Ostlund moving back to C in Sweden for next season, if they try to get him selected in the CHL import draft and have him spend a year in the CHL playing C.

Maybe. I don't think playing wing in Sweden is a bad move now to get settled in mentally and physically and maybe he gets some reps at C when injuries occur in DJ if he's playing well. He'll need to eventually get acclimated to playing men, playing C, and playing in North America so it could be an extra year or two.

But, he's a good faceoff guy by all accounts, great vision, passer, shooter, skater and plays 200 feet. Everything you want in a top 6 center (except for height) and a unique package in our system. You want him distributing pucks to all of those riflemen coming up. I think KA wants to upgrade the team center depth and top end which is why there's so many drafted. This should be a guy they've been looking for.

 

[jmelm]

Maybe. I don't think playing wing in Sweden is a bad move now to get settled in mentally and physically and maybe he gets some reps at C when injuries occur in DJ if he's playing well. He'll need to eventually get acclimated to playing men, playing C, and playing in North America so it could be an extra year or two.

But, he's a good faceoff guy by all accounts, great vision, passer, shooter, skater and plays 200 feet. Everything you want in a top 6 center (except for height) and a unique package in our system. You want him distributing pucks to all of those riflemen coming up. I think KA wants to upgrade the team center depth and top end which is why there's so many drafted. This should be a guy they've been looking for.

I can get behind him playing wing THIS year. But if Djurgardens won't commit to playing him at C by NEXT year, then I'd rather see him playing C in the CHL. I don't think it would be good for his development to have 2 full years not playing at C if that's where the Sabres want him to be long term (which I suspect they did when they drafted him).

 

[Dex]

With as many center or wing guys on the team and in the pipeline as they have, good luck guessing who their 4 centers are in 3 or 4 years.

This is why I love what the Sabres have been doing insofar as roster building is concerned. It seems like in the draft, they are focusing on skilled, high ceiling players as opposed to guys who are 3rd /4th line/role players at the time of the draft. The also got a couple of good ones back in the Eichel trade, which is a nice bonus to their own drafting

We know that there is only so much room in the top six or top 9 if you want to stretch it that far, so the Sabres will be able to pick from the best of their draftees and current players, hopefully being able to space those contracts out so, down the road, they are not walloped all at once by having to dole out too many huge contracts simultaneously.

In the meanwhile, they are not filling the roster with NHL plugs to fill their lineup. They are playing their young talent, allowing them to develop and in the process, show the rest of the NHL how they are developing. So, when the eventual tough choices have to be made about who to keep as the Sabres start building what we hope is a playoff team in the next year or two, the players who are left out are marketable and desirable players based on their performance in Buffalo. Those players could be used to be traded for picks to replenish the pipeline or for the bigger players with jam and with a track record themselves that may be needed down the road as well.

All in all, I think it's a great way to build a highly competitive team.

 

[Matt Ress]

I can get behind him playing wing THIS year. But if Djurgardens won't commit to playing him at C by NEXT year, then I'd rather see him playing C in the CHL. I don't think it would be good for his development to have 2 full years not playing at C if that's where the Sabres want him to be long term (which I suspect they did when they drafted him).

I agree and I'm hoping he's successful this season so that the Sabres can bring him over next (ROC) year or at the least DJ will give him more opportunity at center after a good year. I'd guess the team has the same line of thinking as you and would pull him out of DJ if he's going to stagnate as a successful winger there past this season.

 

[Prntscrn]

Preseason is done. Östlunds leads the team in scoring