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Arctic Ice Hockey’s First Annual NHL Mock Draft: Pick #5

Hey all! Welcome to Arctic Ice Hockey's first annual NHL Mock Draft. Over the next thirty days, Ryan, Tim and myself will attempt to telepathically channel the minds of NHL General Managers as they complete their final rankings in preparation for the 2012 NHL Draft being held June 22, 2012 in Pittsburgh, PA.

In some instances, our analysis will require less insight than others *cough* *Edmonton* *cough*.

So without further adieu, we present our loyal readers with the fifth overall pick of Arctic Ice Hockey's 2012 Mock Draft.

Brian Burke: With the fifth overall selection in this years draft, the Toronto Maple Leafs are pleased to select…


Filip Forsberg

Right Wing / Leksands IF – Allvenskan

6-2

August 13 1994
Hometown: Ostervala, Sweden

Shoots: Right



GP G A P +/- PIM
2011-12 Leksands IF (Allsvenskan) 43 8 9 17 33

Rankings: CSS (1 EUR), ISS (2), TSN (7), Hockey Prospectus (4)

The Skinny: The Toronto Maple Leafs will be getting a great talent in Forsberg. With Joe Colborne, Matt Frattin, Jerry D’Amigo and Nazem Kadri gaining valuable experience in the Calder Cup Finals, the selection of Forsberg will be an important one for a team who’s only forward signed through 2013-14 is Mike Brown (at the NHL level). Though Forsberg only registered a single assist for the Gold Medal winning Swedes at the U20 tournament, he put on a solid performance at the U18’s, marking seven points (5G, 2A), as Sweden would ultimately succumb to the United States in the Championship final.

Hockey Prospectus:

Forsberg is a tremendous all-around talent with no clear weakness in his game and the ability to just about everything at an above-average level. Forsberg has high-end puck skills and looks unique when he's holding the puck as he shows a soft touch and a really slippery, yet coordinated way of how he holds it on his stick that allows him to consistently make tremendous moves with the puck and have it look seamless. He couples that level of skill with above-average vision as he's a pretty good passer who is creative, intuitive who can on occasion flash high-end ability in that area but not very often. Forsberg is an above-average skater whose top speed is average or a touch above average, but he's really aided by a great first step that looks very powerful off the line. Forsberg is a very good physical player who gets described by industry sources as "an instinctive physical player" and someone who throws his body around so regularly that it seems natural. His frame is pretty muscular for a 17-year-old born in August which is visible in his puck battles and how well he is able to control the puck. Another weapon Forsberg has is his shot, which isn't his best tool, but it's better than average and he can certainly finish chances. At this point, you can likely guess what all the hype is about as Forsberg has so many ways he can beat you with a great raw skill set, yet he's a smart player who gets his body work done and works very hard on the ice. – Corey Pronman

AIH Draft Board

Pick Team Player Pos Nationality Amateur Club
1 Edmonton Oilers Nail Yakupov
LW RUS Sarnia Sting (OHL)
2 Columbus Blue Jackets Mikhail Grigorenko C RUS Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
3 Montreal Canadiens Alex Galchenyuk C USA Sarnia Sting (OHL)
4 New York Islanders Ryan Murray D CAN Everett Silvertips (WHL)
5 Toronto Maple Leafs Filip Forsberg RW SWE Leksands IF (Allvenskan)

Community Draft Board

Pick Team Player Pos Nationality Amateur Club
1 Edmonton Oilers Nail Yakupov
LW RUS Sarnia Sting (OHL)
2 Columbus Blue Jackets Mikhail Grigorenko C RUS Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
3 Montreal Canadiens Alex Galchenyuk C USA Sarnia Sting (OHL)
4 New York Islanders Ryan Murray D CAN Everett Silvertips (WHL)

Option Votes
Matt Dumba 10
Filip Forsberg 13
Morgan Rielly 2
Teuvo Teravainen 1
Other (provide name in comments) 7
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