The NHL trade deadline is three weeks from Monday, and one of the big questions facing the Bruins is how much general manager Don Sweeney will be willing to give up to improve this year’s team.
For example, is there any deal out there that would justify trading top prospect Fabian Lysell? Or is the 2021 first-round pick simply untouchable?
One recent comparison might swing even more Bruins fans to the “untouchable” camp. It comes from Barclay Parneta, Lysell’s current GM with the Vancouver Giants in the Western Hockey League.
In a new profile of Lysell from The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler, Parneta says that in his 30 years working in hockey -- mostly in the WHL, but also for seven years as an NHL scout -- he has only seen two other players who can skate like Lysell: Pavel Bure and Connor McDavid.
“It’s just so pretty and fun to watch him,” Parneta told The Athletic. “No matter who you are, you’re going to recognize, ‘Wow, this guy is incredibly fast.’ If he’s not the best skater I’ve ever seen, he’s certainly one of them.”
Obviously, that is extremely high praise. Bure and McDavid are two of the best skaters any of us have ever seen -- not just because of their straight-line speed, but also because of their ability to get into top gear quickly and to stickhandle and change directions at such a high speed.
Lysell’s skating drawing comparisons to those two doesn’t mean he’s going to be as good as them, but it gives you an idea of the kind of skill he has and how high his ceiling could be. His skating has always been his biggest strength, and he was widely considered the best skater in the 2021 draft. Highlights showcasing his skating aren’t too hard to find.
For Lysell, this season has been about working on other parts of his game and figuring out how and when to use that speed on the smaller North American sheet. It hasn’t always been easy, but overall it has clearly been a successful first season in North America for Lysell.
He leads the Giants across the board offensively, with 18 goals and 23 assists in 35 games. Lysell really started to heat up in late November and early December, but then got sick while he was at the World Junior Championship with Sweden. That whole tournament wound up getting canceled two games in due to COVID-19, and Lysell’s illness (which was not COVID) lingered.
Lysell ultimately missed a full month of game action due to the illness and some extended time spent with family -- he told The Athletic that not being able to see his family has been one of the toughest adjustments for him this season.
Lysell took a couple weeks to really get going upon returning to the Giants, but has picked it up again in recent weeks with five goals and four assists in his last seven games, including the highlight reel goal below this past weekend.
Lysell tells The Athletic that the Bruins have tasked him with focusing on the details and the defensive side of his game, as well as learning “when to challenge opponents and when to keep it safe.” He said that while the adjustments and learning curve have been steep, he is getting more comfortable.
“It has got a little easier but it’s still tough,” he said. “I feel like it’s good this year to get adjusted to it and I feel it’s going to be even easier coming over again next year.”
Sweeney and the Bruins should be excited about that next year being with their organization, possibly even at the NHL level. If they're even thinking about including Lysell in any trade, it would have to be for something special.
You can read The Athletic’s full feature on Lysell here (subscription required).
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