Gabriel Eliasson

March 2025 – Eliasson has had a decent first season with the Barrie Colts in the OHL this year. He is a physical specimen that will need time to develop. At 6-7 and 214 lbs, Eliasson’s most significant attribute is his physicality and snarl. He competes hard on every play and doesn’t miss an opportunity to finish his check. In 61 games so far for the Colts, he has three goals, four assists, and 114 penalty minutes. His hockey sense is lacking at times; if the easy play isn’t available, it often leads to him rimming the puck or forcing a pass into trouble. For a player his size, Eliasson skates well, but as he develops, he will need to work on trusting his skating and long reach to help get him out of trouble in his zone. The Swedish blueliner has reasonable gap control and can effectively disrupt the opposition as they cross the blue line with his long reach. He needs time to marinate and build confidence with the puck at the junior and minor league levels over the next few years. Eliasson can potentially be a shot-blocking hit machine in banger leagues. Andrew Barrett

June 2024 – Eliasson was selected in the second round, 39th overall, by the Ottawa Senators in the 2024 NHL Draft. Hadi Kalakeche

June 2024 – Eliasson is a polarizing player and can oftentimes be incredibly frustrating to watch. With his size and frame, he won the genetic lottery, yet there seems to be no thought process behind most of his actions on the ice. His first instinct is always to throw his body around, regardless of the options available to him. Because of this, he not only finds himself horribly out of position quite a bit but also spends a large amount of his time in the penalty box, earning 103 PIM through 36 J20 games this season. Despite all of the flaws in his game, Eliasson is likely an intriguing prospect to many NHL teams. If most of his poor habits can be hammered out, he could become a valuable NHL defenseman, but much work is needed. (Final Ranking: Honourable Mention) Wade Messier