Round 5 – 143rd Overall
Original Pick: D Peter Andersson
New Pick: C Marcus Kruger (149th to CHI)
Honorable Mentions: F Anders Lee (152 to NYI)
The later it gets in a draft, the harder it is to find NHL talent. Of the players selected between Canucks picks 143 and 173, there are only two who played in at least 100 NHL games. Only 10 of them played in the NHL at all, while the other 20 never made it. Defenseman Peter Andersson is one of those 20. If the name sounds familiar, though, Andersson was with the Chicago Wolves and later the Utica Comets until last year.
As opposed to fellow Swede Anton Rodin, Andersson stayed in Sweden first, then came to North America for three years, and just went back to Sweden. So, as opposed to Rodin, he likely won’t return. Ever.
The Chicago Blackhawks had more luck with their Swedish fifth-round pick. Marcus Kruger has been in the league for parts of six seasons and has 411 games under his belt. Kruger is a solid two-way defenseman that has helped the Blackhawks to two Stanley Cup victories. He won’t set the world on fire offensively and there are better defensive players as well, but he is a cheap bottom-six option Chicago will likely keep around for a long time.
Next: Round 6