Selected 119th Overall by the New York Rangers.
Calle Andersson is a member of Farjestad’s Under 20 team in the Swedish Junior League. Andersson joins Hampus Lindholm and Ludvig Bystrom as an impressive bunch of Swedish defenceman available for this June’s draft. Andersson represented his country internationally last summer at annual Ivan Hlinka tournament and this year at the IIHF Under 18 World Championships, earning two silver medals in the process. The defender even scored a goal for Sweden in the Gold Medal Game at the Hlinka against Team Canada. Calle Andersson is the son of former New York Ranger Peter Andersson. Unfortunately Andersson spent the entire season in the Swedish Junior League so this report is based on his international play.
Defense
Born May 16 1994 – Limhamn, SWE
Height 6.02 — Weight 201 — Shoots R
| 2011-12 | Farjestad J20 | Swe U20 | 49 | 12 | 24 | 36 | 56 | 5 |
Andersson is a very good skater. He accelerates quickly and skates with good top end speed. He has good agility and excellent edgework which allow him to make crisp pivots and tight turns. He is able to quickly change direction, and this quickness helps him to stop the opponents rushes. Andersson is also a fluid and quick backwards skater. He is well balanced and strong on his skates, which makes him tough to knock off the puck.
Andersson has some very good offensive skills. His point shot is accurate and he has a good release and onetimer. He has good hockey IQ and understands when to pinch or join the rush. Andersson is an effective stickhandler and protects the puck well from his opponents. His ability to handle the puck and patiently walk the line buys him extra time to make the smart play. Andersson has good vision, and makes crisp, accurate passes, both in transition and from the offensive blue line.
Andersson’s defensive game is unpolished. He will often go for the stick check when he should be looking to lay a hit on the opposition. He might be slightly underweight and could stand to add more muscle, but even if he does that, he is not an instinctive hitter. He certainly could use more strength in winning board battles in the defensive zone. Andersson also has a tendency to get out of position defensively by chasing the puck a little too much.
Andersson projects as a slick skating defenceman with offensive flair. We would compare his max potential to become a defenceman similar to Marek Zidlicky of the New Jersey Devils.
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