Dorian Eklund Aspe #13 Nationality: Sweden C/W – February 4, 2009 – Stockholm, Sweden – 6’4” / 209lbs – Right Handed – Djurgardens U20 (U20 Nationell)
Dorian Eklund Aspe is a 6’4″ forward whose combination of size, solid skating and hockey IQ gives him a workable foundation at the junior level. Despite his frame, he moves reasonably well and has shown surprising speed, including the ability to generate a burst through the middle and create opportunities off the rush. His stickhandling is crafty, and he can find tight passing lanes while showing good instincts for intercepting opposing passes and transitioning into offense. He is difficult to knock off the puck and can use his size effectively in physical situations, while his work on the power play has been more encouraging than his five-on-five play. He has shown some playmaking ability in those situations, including quarterbacking the power play from the left side and making simple, effective passes to create scoring opportunities.
The biggest concern with Eklund Aspe is his lack of a clearly standout attribute beyond his size and hockey IQ. While he is generally capable at the U20 Nationell level, he can drift through shifts without consistently influencing play, and his positioning in all three zones needs improvement. He has shown lapses in defensive coverage and can be slow to make decisions with the puck, giving defenders time to close on him and goalies time to set. Although his skating is adequate for a player of his size, he looked overmatched against Canada’s faster competition at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, raising questions about how his game will translate against higher-level opponents.
Overall, Eklund Aspe is an intriguing physical prospect, but his current game lacks the consistency and high-end tools typically associated with stronger draft candidates. He projects to be a third- to fourth-round pick in the 2027 NHL Draft, with his draft stock likely dependent on whether he can become more engaged and positionally reliable while turning his size and hockey IQ into a more consistent impact at both ends of the ice.