Noel Gunler

April 2024 – An incredibly frustrating season for Noel Gunler has come and gone, only playing in 24 games for Karpat in Liiga while on loan due to the Carolina Hurricanes’ AHL situation. In those 24 games, he accumulated five goals and three assists for 8 points and was subsequently healthy scratched for a long time. Gunler was rumored with a trade to the Malmo Redhawks but that move ended up falling through and he ended up being scratched the rest of the year. Since it was a loan deal and the Hurricanes should have their AHL situation fixed by the team next season rolls around, expect Gunler to be back in North America in 2024/25. Nick Bass

March 2022 – Gunler is currently fourth in team scoring for Brynäs IF with 13 goals and 10 assists for 23 points in 51 games. He’s increased his scoring pace after last year’s stint with Brynäs. Keep your eye on the 20 year old as he hopefully aims to transition his game over to North America in the coming years. Alex Wyatt

May 2021 – Gunler played in 29 regular season games scoring seven goals and five assists for Brynas IF this season. He also scored a goal in the final relegation game against HV71, helping his team avoid being sent down to HockeyAllsvenskan next year. Austin Broad 

January 2021 – Gunler made a statement at this year’s WJC, scoring four goals in five games (4G-1A) for Sweden. He’s a talented playmaker, who can really score when his motor is going. A transfer from Lulea to Brynas has seemed to get him a bit more motivated, and he’s played better hockey since the transfer, scoring seven points in 13 games for Brynas. He has all the tools to be a solid goal scorer in the NHL, it’s just about whether he can put it all together. Jack LeGwin

October 2020 – Noel Gunler was drafted 41st overall by the Carolina Hurricanes. With some refinement and commitment, Gunler can be a high-level scorer at the next level. Tony Ferrari 

June 2020 – Gunler wrapped up a very strong draft-eligible season that saw him play primarily in the SHL and in a respectable role for a player his age. His 13 points in 45 games were third-most amongst U19 skaters and trailed only Alexander Holtz for draft-eligibles. Gunler is an offensive weapon. He knows where to be on the ice, how to find the soft spots, how to enact the most potential from space. His shot is very good. He has a nose for distributing as well. The off-puck effort remains concerning, but if you can focus him, his upside is very real. Cam Robinson

October 2019 – Swedish winger Gunler has an incredible ability to score goals in different ways because of his elite release and ability to shoot the puck. It doesn’t matter if it’s a wrist shot, a snap shot or a one-time slap shot, Gunler’s shots are hard and accurate, and he doesn’t need much time or space to get them off his blade. But he is not just a one-dimensional goal-scorer either; he’s also a great playmaker who can make difficult and creative passes look simple and casual. Gunler’s skating ability is good but not great. He also gets criticized for his defensive game but I believe both parts of his game would look better if he just gave more of an effort in his play without the puck. His lack of effort and movement can make it seem like he doesn’t get involved in plays and he’s disinterested but I don’t think that is the case in reality.

After dominating the junior league already last season, Gunler has spent the entire season at the top level in the SHL. He had five points in 15 SHL games last season but only has four points in 14 games so far this season. But as always, it’s important to understand the circumstances around him. The leading scorer on the Luleå team has just nine points. And Gunler has only received an average of 9:04 of ice time, with just 35 seconds of that average coming on the power play.

Gunler was cut from the U18 Worlds team last spring because he didn’t perform incredibly well in earlier tournaments, and there were also some reports about some possible attitude issues. Now, because he is born in 2001, he is ineligible to play at the under-18 level this season. And for whatever reason, the Swedish hockey federation doesn’t seem to like the idea of having him with the under-20 team either. Because of all this, Gunler could drop in most draft rankings. But Gunler will still get drafted relatively high because of his ability to generate offense. If he slips outside the top 10, someone could get a steal.  Jokke Nevalainen