Next up in our annual prospect review and forecast series is Ludwig Persson, forward for BIK Karlskoga in Sweden’s HockeyAllsvenskan (2nd tier) league. (You can access all of our Capitals Prospect Reports and player analysis on our “Prospects” page in the top menu or right here.)
VITALS
Persson, 19, is a 6’-0” center/left wing who from hails from Goteborg, Sweden. The Capitals selected Persson with their third round pick (#85 overall) of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. The Capitals announced on July 15, the final day of the team’s 2022 Development Camp, that they had signed Persson to a three-year entry-level contract. He will earn $775,000 in each of the first two seasons of the deal and $800,000 (NHL) in the third and $82,500 in the AHL.
CAREER SUMMARY
Persson, who is currently the youngest player ever to debut in the SHL with Frölunda at 16 years, 3 months and 3 days old, described his own game in the interview with his home club.
“I am an offensive player who likes to have the puck and put my teammates or myself in good positions. I have good skating (skills) that I like to use, good speed, a good shot and a good sense of play.”
Persson recorded 25 goals and 36 assists in just 41 regular season games for the J20 team in 2020-21. He played 13 games for Frolunda HC in the Swedish Hockey league in 2021-22, scoring a goal and an assist.
Following the 2022 draft Persson participated in the Capitals Development camp the week immediately following and inked his entry level deal before returning home to Sweden.
Persson began his 2022-23 campaign in August, working out with the Swedish Junior National team in advance of the 2023 World Junior Championship in December. He and 46 other Swedes, including Capitals prospect Alexander Sudalev, participated in a week-long camp in Enköping.
Persson was one of 22 Swedes selected for the Four Nations Tournament in August. He began the tournament on the top line, but was dropped to the 4th line for game 2. He would be elevated to the second line for the final game of the tournament for Sweden. Persson would record no points in the three games.
Persson returned to Washington for the Capitals rookie camp and Capitals main training camps in September before returning to BIK Karlskoga for the 2022-23 season. Persson stepped down a level to play in the HockeyAllsvenskan league beginning with the 2022-23 season.
“I felt that I, as it looks now, I am not really ready to be a good player in the SHL. Karlskoga heard from me and was interested and I felt that playing here gives me an extremely good opportunity for me to establish myself on the next level and hopefully be able to take the next step in my development.”
Unfortunately Persson’s offensive production never materialized during the 2022-23 season, scoring just four goals and 11 assists in 45 games played. He was re-assigned to the Hershey Bears at the end of the season, has worked out with the team, but will unlikely see any games in the postseason.
2022-2023 MONTH-BY-MONTH RECAP AND TREND ANALYSIS
The following is a compilation of our month-by-month prospect reports for Ludwig Persson during the 2022-2023 season. Also included are his monthly scores (0-5, with 2.5 being average). You can find all of our monthly prospect reports on our “Prospects” page in the top menu.
OCTOBER
Persson began his 2022-23 campaign in August, working out with the Swedish Junior National team in advance of the 2023 World Junior Championship in December. He and 46 other Swedes, including Capitals prospect Alexander Sudalev, participated in a week-long camp in Enköping.
Ludwig Persson 🚨 #Hockeyallsvenskan #bikkarlskoga #allcaps
🎥 C More pic.twitter.com/Y59rxmBbWD— SwehockeyGIFs (@swehockeygifs) October 29, 2022
Persson was one of 22 Swedes selected for the Four Nations Tournament in August. He began the tournament in the top line, but was dropped to the 4th line for game 2. He would be elevated to the second line for the final game of the tournament for Sweden. Persson would record no points in the three games.
Ludwig Persson 🚨 #Hockeyallsvenskan #BIKKarlsoga #allcaps
🎥 C More pic.twitter.com/OuJSSvtUU3— SwehockeyGIFs (@swehockeygifs) October 7, 2022
Persson has three goals and two assists in nine games played for BIK Karlskoga in the HockeyAllsvenskan league.
Monthly Score: 3.5
NOVEMBER
During November, Persson played in seven games for BIK Karlskoga in the HockeyAllsvenskan (Second Tier Swedish League). He did not score but had two assists.
On November 28, he had the secondary assist on a power play goal by David Lindquist at 6:32 in the first period. It put the team ahead 1-0 in a game they ultimately lost 4-3.
On November 30, he had the primary assist on a David Lindquist goal at 14:13 during third period. Lindquist’s goal was the game-winner in a 2-1 victory over Björklöven.
For the season, he has three goals and four assists in 16 games. He has generally played on the third line.
Persson was part of the Swedish junior team in a five-team tournament in Czechia that took place in Poruba, Czechia from November 9 through November 13. He was in the lineup for three out of the four games in which Sweden played. He scored a goal during a 5-1 victory over the Czech Under 19 team on November 9.
Persson is expected to depart BIK in the coming days in order to join Team Sweden in their preparations for the upcoming 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship beginning in late December. The 47th edition of the Championship is scheduled to be held from December 26, 2022 through January 5, 2023 in Halifax, Nova Scotia and Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada.
Monthly Score: 3.0
DECEMBER
Persson did not make Team Sweden’s roster for the 2023 World Junior Championship, and turns 20 in October.
During December, Persson played in seven games for BIK Karlskoga in the HockeyAllsvenskan (Second Tier Swedish League). He did not score but had four assists. On December 9, assisted on a goal during a 6-3 win against Hasten. (2022-12-09 Karlskoga – Vita Hästen 6-3 – HockeyAllsvenskan)
On December 14, he had two assists in a 5-4 overtime loss against Södertälje SK.( 2022-12-14 Södertälje – Karlskoga 5-4 (OT) – HockeyAllsvenskan)
On December 16, he assisted on the team’s second goal that occurred during second period against Djurgarden. It put the team ahead 2-1 in a game they lost 5-2. (2022-12-16 Karlskoga – Djurgården 2-5 – HockeyAllsvenskan)
For the season, he has three goals and eight assists in 23 games. He has generally played on the third line.
Monthly Score: 2.0
JANUARY
During January, Persson played in ten games for Karlskoga, scored one goal and recorded two assists in 10 games. He scored a goal on Friday, January 27, his fourth of the season. His team won 4-3.
David Lilja 🚨
Ludwig Persson 🍎#Hockeyallsvenskan #bikkarlskoga #allcaps
🎥 C More pic.twitter.com/Mx5gDCDUdV— SwehockeyGIFs (@swehockeygifs) January 18, 2023
Goal on January 27:
Den dragningen vid blå…. riktigt vackert av Ludwig Persson (@BIK_Karlskoga) som glider igenom och målar! #superfredag #hockeyallsvenskan #sverigesmestunderhållandeliga pic.twitter.com/DCowHSJnrN
— HockeyAllsvenskan (@hockeyallsvensk) January 27, 2023
For the season, he has four goals and ten assists in 33 games. He has generally played on the third line.
Monthly Score: 2.5
FEBRUARY
During the month of February, Persson played in eight games for Karlskoga in Hockey Allsvenskan (Second Tier Swedish League). He did not score any goals but recorded one assist for Karlskoga. He mainly played on the fourth line throughout February.
On February 22, he earned the primary assist on a late second period goal at 19:45. It tied the score at 2-2 in a game they ultimately lost 3-2 to OIK. 2023-02-22 Karlskoga – Östersund 2-3 – HockeyAllsvenskan
Persson has four goals and 11 assists in 41 games played so far this season.
Monthly Score: 2.0
MARCH
During the month of March, Persson played in four regular season games for Karlskoga in Hockey Allsvenskan (Second Tier Swedish League) and had no goals nor assists. He played in all four playoff qualifying games in which the team played against Djurgarden and were swept. He was kept off the scoresheet in all four of those playoff qualifying games.
With Karlskoga being swept, they are now out of the playoffsand Persson’s season is over.
Persson has four goals and 11 assists in 45 regular season games played this season. He had no goals and no assists in four playoff games.
Monthly Score: 2.0
MONTHLY SCORE SUMMARY
PLAYER FORECAST
Like many young prospects, Persson had a good start to the 2022-23 season, but his offensive production severely slumped in the second half of the season. As a result, his season was less than spectacular, considering he is playing in Sweden’s second tier league.
The question of “what’s next?” is an interesting one. It could certainly be argued that he still needs time in the HockeyAllsvenskan league, but maybe departing is best for him. When Persson originally decided to step down a league, he noted he knew the coach well and felt comfortable joining BIK Karlskoga. Maybe he needs a bit of “uncomfort”. Whether that’s in the CHL or elsewhere remains to be seen.
We’ve seen flashes of skill from Persson in the nine games we watched this season. There is talent there, enough for the Capitals to ink him to a three-year entry deal right after the draft. The development track is the critical decision right now.
By Jon Sorensen
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Capitals Forward Prospect Ludwig Persson Scores In Preseason Opener For BIK
Capitals Prospect Ludwig Persson Is One Of 22 Swedes On The Roster For “Four Nations Tournament” In Preparation For 2023 World Junior Championship
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I don’t think he’s been drafted by a CHL team in their import draft. I’m not familiar with the import rules for the CHL so I’m wondering if he can even play there if he isn’t drafted.
I think a good example is Alexander Suzdalev, who wasn’t drafted by Regina but chose to sign with them because he played with Bedard in Sweden.
Suzdalev was drafted in 2021 by the Pats in the CHL import draft, so its not the same situation
Big BIG game in Hershey tonight. Go Bears! Take down Charlotte!
John Walton put together a special version of “Caps This Morning” today, preparing for the HER vs CLT Game Three. Good stuff on the main Caps website.
On the Caps “twitter feed” Walton also interviews McMichael, Protas and Lapierre, with a special in-depth interview with HER coach Todd Nelson. Coach Nelson “comes off” sounding very good in the interview. He should “have his say” during the Caps-Head-Coaching interview process with GM Mac.
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