We’ve officially reached our 10th Pittsburgh Penguins draft profile with three days to go until the first round of the 2026 NHL Draft.
Tuesday’s profile dives into winger Elton Hermansson, a dual-threat right-shot player from Sweden. He started the 2025-26 season with MoDo Hockey’s U20 team, producing three goals and nine points in 13 games. He was so good that he earned a call to the men’s pro MoDo team. He played in 38 games for them, compiling 11 goals and 21 points.
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Hermansson also played for Sweden in the U18s, racking up four goals and 12 points in seven games.
This is a player who has a lot of skill, but the projections for when he could get drafted are all over the place. Some pundits have him as a sure-fire first-round pick, while others have him sliding to the second round.
Personally, I think it would be nuts if he didn’t go in the first round, even though he needs to be a bit more consistent. However, he’s a strong duel-threat winger with excellent passing and shooting capabilities.
His vision is absurd, and he has a great way of finding players, even when they don’t look to be open. I saw him fit pucks through lanes with multiple sticks in the way, leading to strong scoring chances and goals.
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Hermansson’s release is a thing of beauty, especially from the left circle. He scored multiple goals from that area this past season, and the puck exploded off his stick each time. Even when he’s not being set up with one-timers from that spot, he can score from anywhere in the offensive zone and also has a really nice wrist shot. He disguises it really well.
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Don’t forget about Hermansson’s dangling ability, either. He’s very silky and can make players miss on a dime. One of my favorite examples of this came during a game between Sweden and Czechia.
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The game was tied with less than a minute to go in overtime when a teammate passed him the puck on the left side of the offensive zone. He skated up to the point for a brief moment before making his move, making one player miss before going around another player. He was one-on-one with the goaltender and made a nice move that ultimately led to a save. His teammate then corralled the loose puck and scored the OT winner right after. Even though Hermansson didn’t score the goal, he still made it all happen.
His two-way game still needs some work, and I’d like to see his compete level be a bit more consistent, too. There were times during this season when he was going through the motions, but again, both of these qualities can be improved on when he spends the full 2026-27 season with Modo.
Hermansson is a tier below some of my top favorites in the Penguins’ range (like Tommy Bleyl, J.P. Hurlbert, and Nikita Klepov), but he’d still be a solid pick if the Penguins opted to select him.
The first round of the 2026 NHL Draft will take place on Friday at 7 p.m. ET.
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