25. Nicolas Kerdiles
26. Scott Laughton
27. Ludvig Bystrom
28. Cristoval 'Boo' Nieves
29. Oscar Dansk
30. Malcolm Subban
Only a year removed from a Stanley Cup victory, Boston is still mostly in tinker mode with it's roster. With a lot of long term pieces in place (Tyler Seguin, Tuuka Rask), and a very respectable group of young prospects (Dougie Hamilton, Ryan Spooner), their focus isn't so much on finding NHL ready, as it is with finding the best player long term for the organization.
"With the twenty-fourth pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, Boston is proud to select, from Rögle:
Hampus Lindholm."
At six-foot-two, Lindholm possesses a good-sized frame to pack some more weight on, and build some strength. He currently clocks in around 190 lbs, so he has some ways to go. He currently lacks a lot of the strength necessary to handle bigger, tougher forwards, so he'll need some time to grow into his body. Despite this, Lindholm is an impressive athlete with some monstrous upside.
His best asset touches the ice. A very gifted skater with powerful strides and quick acceleration, Lindholm transitions the game with style. Using lateral shifts, he can throw checkers off-balance and gain the zone quite well. His foot work is very impressive.
At his best, Lindholm generates offensive chances in the attacking zone with calm and collected passes. Using his high end vision, and soft hands, he can feather passes right onto the tape of a teammate. But it's his anticipation that sets him apart, dissecting a defensive posture, and seeing the play happen many moves before it does. He's known for taking the puck deep and looking for cross-seam passes, as a very aggressive offensive defenseman. All the while, he can use his feet to get back to the blueline quickly.
Where Lindholm struggles is defensively. For all his composure in the offensive end, Lindholm begins to chase defensively and leaves big gaps for forwards to gain steam on him. Despite being a hard worker, his play in his own end is maddeningly inconsistent.
No prospect is perfect, however a good blend of size, terrific skating and offensive upside make Lindholm a very intriguing prospect for a team willing to be a bit more patient.
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