Mandatory Credit: David Reginek-USA TODAY Sports

Victor Eklund NHL Draft Projection – Overview, Strengths, Weaknesses, and Projection for 2025 NHL Entry Draft

Victor Eklund is expected to be a top ten draft pick this year!

Mandatory Credit: David Reginek-USA TODAY Sports

The time has come for the 2025 NHL Entry Draft as several players gather in the hope of realizing a long-time dream of being able to play hockey at the highest level in what is arguably the top ice hockey league in the world.

Among the many candidates hoping to get drafted this year, we will take a look at the draft profile for one of the top prospects from Sweden, Victor Eklund.

Victor Eklund Overview

Victor Eklund is a professional ice hockey player, born on 3 October 2006 in Stockholm, Sweden. The 18-year-old is a right-handed shooter who primarily plays on the left wing for his team, Djurgårdens IF, in the HockeyAllsvenskan professional Swedish ice hockey league. As per NHL Central Scout, he is the number 2 draft prospect for international skaters.

Eklund hails from an ice hockey family. His father, Christian Eklund, is a former player who played for Djurgårdens IF in the Elitserien league, which is Sweden’s highest professional ice hockey league. Eklund’s older brother William continued his father’s tradition of playing with Djurgårdens IF, but made his move to the NHL when he was drafted seventh overall by the San Jose Sharks in 2021.

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Keeping the family tradition of playing Djurgårdens IF intact, Victor is now looking to join his brother in the NHL. Joining Djurgårdens IF in the 2021-22 season, Eklund made steady progress and played for the team in the HockeyAllsvenskan league, where he scored 19 goals and provided 12 assists in 45 games during the 2024-25 season.

Anton Frondell and Victor Eklund magic! 2025 #NHLDraft
Sauce…Shot…Scoreboard! #HockeyTwitter pic.twitter.com/l8wagcRWGQ
— NHL Draft Prospects (@NHLDraftPros) February 22, 2025

Victor Eklund Strengths

Eklund is a natural skater who possesses both quick acceleration and a decent amount of top speed. Mobility and getting around in tight spaces is not much of an issue, especially with his ability to skate freely from side to side.

Being a forward, Eklund has more than decent shooting skills, and although it may not be his greatest strength, he knows how to find the back of the net. He is more comfortable with the quick release wrist shots and hits a nice one-timer, but shot power is not his forte. However, his shot accuracy is definitely a plus.

Victor Eklund tips home the Willander shot to make it 1-0 Sweden!#WorldJuniors pic.twitter.com/zKKb9NM8GR
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) December 27, 2024

One of the better parts of his game lies in his high hockey IQ, enabling him to make plays. He makes quality passes and is always on the lookout for teammates through his skilled vision. Stick and puck handling are also his strong areas, while gliding effortlessly across the ice.

For all of his plus points, his biggest strength is his will to compete. A tireless skater, Eklund does not give up on plays, always giving his best on each play.

Victor Eklund Weaknesses

Looking for his teammates more is one area he could improve upon. He has shown a tendency to lose the puck while trying to do too much all by himself. Apart from that, there are no major weaknesses in his game, but on the physical front, he can look to add some bulk and increase his strength.

Victor Eklund Draft Projection

The Swedish hockey player is a top contender to be drafted inside the top ten at this year’s NHL Entry Draft. Some scouts feel that Eklund could even go as high as the fifth overall pick, but there is a far greater possibility that he is selected somewhere between picks 7-10.

2025 NHL Draft

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NHL Entry Draft

Victor Eklund

Devavrat Kulkarni

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I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!