Panthers select Henrik Borgstrom at No. 23
The Florida Panthers selected center Henrik Borgstrom with the 23rd overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft on Friday.
Henrik Borgstrom
Position: Center
Height: 6-3
Weight: 191 lbs
Age: 18
Club: HIFK Jr. (Finland-Jr.)
Nationality: Finnish
| GP | G | A | P |
|---|---|---|---|
| 40 | 29 | 26 | 55 |
Borgstrom entered the draft as a second-year eligible player after being passed over in 2015. A strong showing for the HIFK juniors saw his stock rise over the past year, to the point where he was ranked ninth among European skaters by Central Scouting.
He remains a bit of a long-term project, but his offensive creativity - fueled by his exceptional puck-handling and shooting skills - make him a solid bet to be a nice contributor at the NHL level down the road.
From Finnish Junior Hockey:
Borgstrom is a player who creates offense through puck possession and unexpected plays ... He has an ability to move the puck through traffic and find others easily. He's got excellent reach and really good puck control in tight. Borgstrom can be extremely tough to stop when driving to the net from the wing and getting the inside position. His wrist shot is another asset, it may not be the heaviest one but nevertheless really accurate ... While Borgstrom is certainly one of the most talented Finns (in) the draft, he's somewhat raw and there's clearly work to be done in some aspects of the game.
Borgstrom is committed to play college hockey at the University of Denver beginning this fall.