2022-23 marks the third season of an Extended Series release joining Upper Deck flagship. It continues the Extended Series trend of having a truly weak crop of Young Guns. Number one on my list is a decent pull, and…that’s about it. The bigger draw for this release is insert sets that include better 2022-23 rookies like Matt Boldy, Matty Beniers, Marco Rossi, Brandt Clarke, Jake Sanderson, Dylan Guenther, Juraj Slafkovsky, and Wyatt Johnston.
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- Kirill Marchenko • RW • Columbus Blue Jackets
Kirill Marchenko has started his NHL career with back-to-back 20 goal seasons, and led the Blue Jackets with 23 goals in 2023-24. That would be a truly exciting start for a younger prospect, but Marchenko will already be 24 years old by the time the puck drops on the 2024-25 season, so it is tough to imagine that his ceiling is dramatically higher than what he’s already shown. Marchenko popping off for 30-40 goals in upcoming seasons is entirely within reach though. - Jonatan Berggren • RW • Detroit Red Wings
Jonatan Berggren is a good bet to have a decent NHL career, but stardom would be a surprise. He was over a point-per-game in 53 AHL games in 2023-24. Cam Robinson at Dobber Prospects offers this report on Berggren: “Small, offensively minded winger with top-six potential. More of a play-maker than a shooter and will likely be a contributor on the power play.” - Aatu Räty • C • New York Islanders
- Jean-Luc Foudy • C • Colorado Avalanche
- Oskar Olausson • W • Colorado Avalanche
Aatu Räty, Jean-Luc Foudy, and Oskar Olausson are all under 22 years old as of this writing, so they still have a little time left to potentially take a big leap forward. Realistically though, expect them to be battling for bottom-six roles. - Juuso Parssinen • C • Nashville Predators
- Semyon Der-Arguchintsev • C • Toronto Maple Leafs
- Simon Holmstrom • W • New York Islanders
- Tyler Tucker • D • St. Louis Blues
- Samuel Ersson • G • Philadelphia Flyers
- Jonatan Berggren / Pontus Holmberg checklist
- Nikita Alexandrov • C • St. Louis Blues
- Tim Berni • D • Columbus Blue Jackets
- Eetu Makiniemi • G • San Jose Sharks
- Matej Blumel • W • Dallas Stars
- Pontus Holmberg • W • Toronto Maple Leafs
- Nick Cicek • D • San Jose Sharks
- William Bitten • C • St. Louis Blues
- Dylan Wells • G • Chicago Blackhawks
- Samuel Walker • C • Minnesota Wild
- James Hamblin • F • Edmonton Oilers
- Fredrik Olofsson • W • Dallas Stars
- Mac Hollowell • D • Toronto Maple Leafs
- Callahan Burke • C • Colorado Avalanche
- Justin Kirkland • W • Anaheim Ducks
- Parker Wotherspoon • D • New York Islanders
- Marcus Bjork • D • Columbus Blue Jackets
- Jake Lucchini • F • Ottawa Senators
- Anton Levtchi • F • Florida Panthers
- Nick DeSimone • D • Calgary Flames
These rankings are based primarily on my interpretation of data and articles from Hockey Prospecting, The Hockey Writers, The Athletic, and various other media sites, as well as performance to date, player age (the younger the better), and draft position.
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