Fantasy Summary
Offense-minded, puck-moving rearguard with the potential to be a power play specialist at the NHL level.
Observations
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February 2020 – Persson has been traded to the Anaheim Ducks for Angus Redmond and a 2022 conditional 7th round pick. This is a much better spot for him to produce as the Ducks blueline is mostly a mess. Pat Quinn
September 2019 – Although Oiler fans have not seen a lot of Persson in North America to date, his performance in the preseason thus far has definitely peaked everyone’s interest. The Swedish defender came as advertised offensively as he recorded two assists and six shots on goal in the Oilers’ 2-0 win over the Winnipeg Jets in his first preseason game as an Oiler and continued to play relatively well in the preseason. Time will tell if he can keep up his play from the preseason but based on limited exposure he is definitely one of the front runners for one of the last two spots on Edmonton’s defense core. The Oilers desperately lack puck movers on the backend and which works in Persson’s favour as he has a better offensive skillset than some of Edmonton’s more experienced defenders. On September 25th it was announced that Persson had a shoulder injury that would keep out of the lineup for seven to 10 days but at this point him and Ethan Bear have made the Oilers top seven to start the season. Jameson Ewasiuk
March 2019 – It’s hard not to be intrigued by the offense-minded, Swedish defender. He proved this season that his 34 points in 51 games in the SHL last year wasn’t a fluke as he essentially matched those totals this year with 31 points in 50 games. What is impressive about this season is he matched he produced at a similar rate without last years SHL MVP and current NHL rookie phenom Elias Pettersson being on his team. His offensive abilities are impressive but there have been question marks about his size, defensive skill and average skating so it’ll be interesting to see how he adjusts to the North American game next year. Persson turned 25 earlier this month and signed a one-year contract extension with the Oilers in January so the hope is that he can not only compete for a spot on the Oilers in September but also win a spot. At his age he should be more NHL ready than the other prospects vying for a third pairing role in Edmonton. Jameson Ewasiuk
June 2018 – On May 18 the Oilers confirmed the signing of the Swedish blueliner to a one-year contract after recording six goals and 34 points as a SHL rookie last year. The 24-year-old has had a very quick development curve considering that before last season he played tier three hockey in Sweden. His accomplishments last year were definitely impressive as he was nominated for the SHL rookie of the year and was nominated for the best SHL defenseman award. There are concerns that his play was elevated due to the very good Växjö team, but many accounts from Sweden say that he was every bit as good as the stats make him sound. This campaign Persson will return to Sweden for the year but the Oiler‘s have the option to recall him at any time. The Oilers‘ have the ability to retain his rights after his one-year contract if he proves he wasn‘t a one-hit wonder. It‘s hard to say how his play will translate to the North American style and whether he will be a John Klingberg or more realistically a Philip Larsen/David Rundblad at the NHL level. The Oilers have very few offensive-minded defenders on their team and in their system, so Persson will likely be given every chance to succeed in an offensive role. He‘s a low risk, high reward prospect with boom/bust potential that could be a very savvy draft choice if everything turns out perfectly for him. Jameson Ewasiuk
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