Victor Eklund could force his way into the Islanders’ opening-night plans

The New York Islanders need to get a little bit younger and a little more skilled to keep up in a competitive Eastern Conference, and adding one of their first-round picks from the 2025 draft is a good way to do it. Matthew Schaefer might steal all the headlines from that draft as a potentially generational defenseman, but Victor Eklund's arrival in North America is something to keep an eye on.

Eklund played his first season in the Swedish Hockey League in 2025-26, recording six goals and 18 assists for Djurgårdens IF. As a 19-year-old playing in Sweden's top league for the first time, he didn't look out of place, and despite what some would say were below-average offensive numbers, he showed why the Islanders took him in the middle of the first round.

The Swedish winger showed that even more when he arrived in Bridgeport at the end of his Swedish season and recorded 10 points in nine games. He also added an assist in his lone game with the Islanders, as the team gave him a one-game tryout to get a look at him in regular season action before they have to make a decision on him for 2026-27.

In his peer group, Eklund has been a high-level offensive contributor, and he showed it again playing against veterans in the AHL. It doesn't always translate, but being that comfortable early in his first time playing North American hockey shows he won't shy away from the physicality on the smaller ice surfaces.

Victor Eklund's variable skill set

Because of his skill set, Eklund doesn't have to debut in the top six for the Islanders to be effective. Instead of keeping him in the minors until he is ready to be on a scoring line, New York could do a little trial by fire and throw him onto the third line and let him learn the game on the fly, like his fellow 2025 draftee Schaefer did last season.

The Islanders could put Eklund in Hamilton and let him develop on the first line in the AHL. Taking that route wouldn't be any more detrimental to the Swede than starting on the third line in the NHL, but for a team looking to inject some youth, it's hard to see why they wouldn't give Eklund a shot.

It is fine to try to save him from the possibility of starting in the NHL and failing, only to get sent down and have to work his way back up. However, in a year when the team might be in the playoff picture but not competing for the Stanley Cup, it could make sense to let Eklund get a free run at being a full-time NHLer.

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