Joachim Bryngelson Junior Review

[tcookie 897]

Joachim Bryngelson
Centre | Karlstad, Sweden | 6’2” | 195 lbs

 

 

Growing up in Karlstad, Joachim Bryngelson loved skating from an early age - he always wanted to be on the ice. It took several years for that to manifest into a budding hockey career - he simply wanted to be on the ice and in fact dabbled in competitive speed skating and figure skating first.

 

Bryngelson first played hockey at the age of 12, and while coaches and teammates alike were in awe of his natural skating ability, he struggled to develop a feel for the game, tending to fly around the ice without doing . Gradually, his skill began to catch up to that skating ability, at least to the point where Farjestad’s junior program took note of him. He signed with their U16 squad two years later and as he worked with better coaching, Bryngelson began to be seen as a legitimate SHL prospect.

 

Joachim made his debut with Farjestad’s U16 team near the end of his 15-year-old season, picking up 5 assists in 13 games. As his skills improved and players above him aged out of the system, he was given a shot in a first-line role to begin his 16-year-old season and flourished, scoring 7 goals and 27 assists in 30 games and earning a call-up to the U18 squad where he played one game.

 

Bryngelson continued his ascent over the next couple of seasons, spending two years with the U18 squad compiling 11 goals and 35 assists in 57 games and the occasional call-up where he played limited minutes on the U20 team. He made Sweden’s team for the U18 WJC, but was the team’s 13th forward and played a very limited role, mostly limited to the penalty kill and 4-on-4 situations where his speed offered an advantage.

 

As a 19-year-old, Bryngelson scored 4 goals and 15 assists for 19 points in 34 games with Farjestad’s U20 squad. Though pegged for a first-line role in his last season of junior eligibility, he decided to take on a new challenge and leave Sweden, sign with a VHLM team and declare for the VHL’s S83 draft.

 

Throughout his career, Bryngelson has been regarded as a talented, but raw player, mainly due to getting a late start in hockey. This has also made him a bit over-reliant on teammates, as he doesn’t like to shoot and is a definite pass-first player. Still, he has blazing top-end speed and acceleration, elite edgework, and a good work ethic. That combination of attributes has made him a valuable penalty killer as he ascended the levels of junior hockey in Sweden. His skill level as a whole has come a long way in his seven year career, and offers a glimpse of untapped offensive upside as he attempts to make his name in the VHL.