Rising Philadelphia Flyers prospect Jack Berglund is quickly working to reverse the narrative that followed him after the 2024 NHL Draft.
Berglund, 19, was generally considered a reach when the Flyers drafted him 51st overall in the second round of the 2024 draft last year, but he's already showing signs of becoming quite a difficult player to play against.
It helps, too, that the now-widely publicized story of Berglund wearing skates two sizes too big gave him the benefit of the doubt shortly thereafter.
Since then, it's been all gas, no brakes for the 6-foot-4 forward.
Berglund saw SHL hockey for the second time in his young career last season, scoring a goal and two assists in 17 games for Farjestad BK. The rest of his season was mostly spent with the Farjestad U20s, with whom he scored eight goals, 14 assists, and 22 points in 15 games.
And, at the end of the year, the Flyers prospect was loaned to BIK Karlskoga in HockeyAllsvenskan, Sweden's second tier, where he contributed two goals, three assists, and five points in 10 playoff games following a four-game regular season cameo.
Bringing that momentum in the summer, Berglund has been all over the place in the games he's played recently.
Berglund scored in the Flyers' development camp scrimmage earlier in the month, and he's already up to three goals at the World Junior Summer Showcase, including two against Shane Vansaghi and Team USA in a 6-3 rout on Wednesday afternoon.
The 19-year-old is starting to pick up more and more believers around the league, too. Just ask Daily Faceoff prospect expert Steven Ellis.
"I’m definitely a Berglund Believer. I feel like he was underrated in his draft year, but he has really had a strong showing in Minnesota," Ellis wrote for Daily Faceoff on Wednesday after the game. "He scored a goal and added an assist today, and he also showed what he’s capable of as a power forward. He’s hard to contain on the rush, and he’s even more difficult to defend in tight spaces. Today was his best outing of the week so far."
It's unlikely Berglund's ceiling as an NHL player has changed much in one year, but what is clear is the type of player he can be for the Flyers on his day.
Berglund is incredibly hard to handle when he gets his feet moving and in tight spaces, and a good portion of that can be attributed to his steadily increasing experience playing against grown men.
He's got a heavier shot than many give him credit for, and he's equally adept at finding and manufacturing plays for his teammates, too.
Right now, I'm seeing a bottom-six player with the positional versatility to play either center or wing with the skills that could make him a match for more dynamic talents higher in the lineup if needed.
The Flyers seem to now have lots of forwards with this kind of projection and skillset, but can that be a bad thing?
Time will tell the full story, but Berglund has put himself on the map for 2025-26 with aplomb.
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