We’ve reached No. 31 on our BSH Community Draft Board, and today’s profile is on Swedish center Milton Gästrin.
Gästrin, who plays in the Swedish HockeyAllsvenskan for MoDo Hockey Club, really cemented his spot in the late-first round/early second round at the 2025 World Junior U-18 Championships. With three goals and seven assists across 10 WJC-18 games, Gästrin centered two of Sweden’s top prospects – 2025 eligibles Viktor Klingsell and Filip Ekberg. He was a driving force on Sweden’s top line of the tournament, and a huge part of the silver medal run for the Swedish on both ends of the ice. There’s a lot to like about Gästrin, who plays a steady two-way game that could slot into an NHL system nicely, if Gästrin can improve upon his consistency.
Pre-draft rankings
No. 26 by The Athletic (Scott Wheeler)
No. 39 by Elite Prospects
No. 27 by TSN (Bob McKenzie)
No. 24 by Daily Faceoff
Bio
DOB: June 2, 2007
Birthplace: Örnsköldsvik, Sweden
Position: Center
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 185 lbs
Shoots: Left
Statistics
What’s there to like?
Gästrin does nearly everything well, and while he’s not exactly going to wow you with his raw skills, he’s a player that impresses with his situational play and smarts on and off the puck. For a lot of the draft prospects who have high-risk, high-reward potential, you see the most eye-popping, impressive highlight reel but a frustrating level of inconsistent play. Gästrin is much closer to the other side of the coin, where he’s not necessarily boring, but his highlight reel isn’t exactly laden with high-end skills. He’s very much a lower risk profile, but when you get to this range of the draft, finding a guy who you believe has a reasonable chance to be a 3C is a success.
One thing that does stand out with Gästrin is his ability to be elusive with his skating. He’s a powerful skater, and can really find another level when skating with space through the neutral zone and into the offensive zone. He seems to frequently catch defenders off guard with his speed, as he quickly shifts from coasting to full speed ahead on the fly. There’s quite a few examples on Gästrin’s highlight tape like the one below, where he glides through the neutral zone and protects the puck well to create a high-danger chance.
There’s also a certain fearlessness with Gästrin that makes him a really popular late-first round grade for this draft. He does all the things you’d expect a good middle-six center to do – he drives to the net, he has a knack for deflecting pucks, employs lots of below the goal line passes and shots. It’s a gritty, translatable to the NHL playing style that makes scouts feel relatively good about projecting Gästrin as a middle-six stalwart. It’s not hard to envision a world where Gästrin is a play-driving, under-the-radar center who can really set up his teammates well for success in the offensive zone. He may never be the main scorer or even a great secondary scorer on a team, but what he can do is all the little things that will translate well to the next level. There’s room for that on any NHL roster, and it’s more than a fair bet to think that Gästrin could be taken as high as the mid-20s because of it.
What’s not to like?
There are a few things with Gästrin that certainly need some work. First, there are critics of Gästrin’s ability to actually consistently produce points at the NHL level, and most of that revolves around Gästrin’s lack of ability to create offense on his own.
Gästrin is known as a play-driving forward, but what he also is known as is a guy that really “plays well off his linemates”, as said by The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler. Sometimes that’s the name of the game for a center like Gästrin, but there are also concerns that come with a player like that who relies on his linemates to score. If Gästrin is not with higher-end talent on his future teams, what does his production look like? Does it completely crater? Those concerns are a little overblown in our opinion, especially for a player who’s as small-detail oriented as Gästrin is in all three zones. It is a fair limit on his overall individual offensive upside, but Gästrin should still be able to impact the game in other ways to the point where he could become a middle-six center if everything hits.
Motor-wise, this is a concern that’s been brought up in terms of how consistent he is. Gästrin has shown the ability to be a pesky, strong on the boards player, but it’s something that he hasn’t been committed to as an identity on a shift by shift basis. As a player without the high-end tools to make up for it at the next level, Gästrin is probably going to be coached to be that pesky, physical center on every shift. Consistency will be a point of emphasis for Gästrin, to turn him into the play-driving archetype that is likely the best case scenario for the player.
How would he fit in the Flyers’ system?
Gästrin would likely fit pretty well into the Flyers’ system, and yet again give the Flyers much needed center depth in the pipeline. A smart center with 3C upside is something that every coach’s system and playing style utilizes pretty effectively and without issue, so if Gästrin hits – we’re not sure why he would be anything but effective in Philadelphia. Pipeline wise, the Flyers might be best served in this draft if they use 4 or 5 high picks on the center position, considering the state of things. So, Gästrin is probably one of those candidates, and definitely falls on the safer side of possible candidates in this range.
Could the Flyers actually get him?
Yes, as we are saying about most of the prospects in this range. There’s so many interesting forwards throughout the range of Flyers picks from 32-50, and Gastrin is certainly one of them. Gästrin might not be too big of a swing, but the Flyers might feel reasonably confident that the player could at least develop into a solid bottom-half of the lineup player. That’s a slam dunk, excellent outcome for his projected draft slot, and a very worthwhile bet to take on a player that’s shown two-way potential. And, it’s worth noting that the Flyers have selected Swedish centers from the HockeyAllsvenskan in this range before, including last year’s selection of Jack Berglund at 51st overall.
What scouts are saying
“I go up and down on Gästrin every time I see him. If this were a competition of “who has the most incredible highlight”, he might be very high on the list. He’s extremely efficient in transition with excellent puck carrying ability, good skill on the fly to control pucks, and is a massive volume passer in scoring areas to drive massive amounts of MoDo’s offense. I just wonder about his lack of a physical game, and being much, much more active on the offensive side of the puck with possession than on the defensive side without it. He comes and goes, is opportunistic waiting for offensive opportunity, but still a huge offensive driver for his team. I don’t know if he projects as a centre in the NHL, but a good, offensive leaning winger is possible, especially if he gains a bit more pace and physical edge in his game. I found his SHL tape illustrative of some issues in his game long term, but that doesn’t mean he’s a non-option. He’d be a great, fun upside option early on day 2 that might find his way into day 1, but he’s a bit of a wild card to me.”
Will Scouch, scouching.ca
“Gastrin started his draft season off on fire. He was captain of Sweden’s Hlinka Gretzky Cup team and produced 10 points in five games, and that same success bled into his club play with MoDo’s J20 squad. A mid-season injury held him out of the World Junior A Challenge, and his production has tailed off since the injury, but Gastrin remains a promising prospect. Gastrin can play centre or on the wing and could be used up and down the lineup. His tools are solid across the board, even if none of them are considered high-end or elite. He has a good frame which he’ll likely be able to add weight to as he matures. The upside for Gastrin is a 2nd line point producing forward, but he’ll most likely end up as a middle-six player.”
Jordan Harris, Dobber Prospects
“A strong game from Gästrin overall, arguably the best viewing I’ve had over the past month despite him being held pointless. It wasn’t due to a lack of chances, as he racked up quality looks from the slot and set his teammates up for success, too. 18 goals in 40 games isn’t anything to scoff at, but I feel like a higher-end finisher could’ve had an even more productive season with similar chance generation rates. Gästrin has become better at finding openings away from the puck, consistently looking for give-and-go opportunities and getting his stick open while driving the net as F2. In one of his last shifts of the game, he had a grade A one-touch chance off the rush, but the goalie ended up making a fabulous stop. I’d want to see more high-end playmaking and moments of creativity from him off the cycle, and his low-percentage hook and spin pass attempts to the net-front from below the goal line haven’t been working recently. But to his credit, he did end up setting up a couple of good looks, and has the vision to recognize open teammates in better positions instead of shooting from a worse angle. Transition play-driving and defensive details were apparent, as is the case with pretty much every one of my viewings of the player. An easy player to like and project to the next level; one of the better 3C bets you can make after the first 20 picks.”
Lassi Alanen, Elite Prospects Game Report (March 12)
Into the poll is another Swedish prospect, future Michigan State center Eric Nilson!
“Nilson is a lean but intelligent center who is one of the smarter forwards in the draft on both sides of the puck. He takes smart routes with and without the puck, finds space in possession, always has his head and eyes up and processes the game at an advanced level. He’s got a slick first touch and catch-and-release shot. The puck comes off his stick quickly and accurately. He’s proficient on both special teams and will block shots. He’s also a light, breezy, plus-skater who can make plays at pace and sees the ice so well that he makes his linemates better. He’ll need to get stronger to improve his faceoff proficiency and to get the most out of his heady defensive play and tracking, but once that comes, he’s got legit NHL prospects. He knows how to win back pucks with his skating and body positioning, protect them and then escape or find inside ice with his sharp edges. He’s a winning player. He’s got one-on-one skill and finesse. I would have liked to see him score more this year, but he’s an interesting prospect who still has a lot of development opportunities in front of him, and I thought he was a standout at U18 Worlds. I expect him to go the college route as well, which I think will be good for him to get into the gym and play and continue to develop at that level. He’s a very good hockey player.”