1
Rob Ramage (D)
DefensemanInactive
Swedes in the NHL DraftSwedes in the 1979 NHL Draft
Cohort: 1959
Highest selection
#25
NYITomas Jonsson (D)
Swedes selected
5
of 126 picks
In round 1
0
of 5 Swedes
Share of the draft
4 %
of all picks
The 1979 NHL Draft took place on August 9, 1979 in Montreal, QC, Canada. 5 Swedes were selected, including 0 in the first round. Tomas Jonsson was the first Swede selected, at number 25 in round 2.
5 of the 5 Swedes (100%) have played at least one NHL game since the draft. The class leaders in NHL games played are Thomas Steen (950 GP, 817 P), Mats Näslund (651 GP, 634 P), and Tomas Jonsson (552 GP, 344 P).
Across the draft archive, the year ranks 22 in Swedes selected and 7 in Swedish first-round selections. The Swedish draft class has combined for 1893 points in 2518 NHL regular-season games. That ranks as the 9th best Swedish draft class of all time by total points. None are still active in the NHL today.
The draft's top picks
The first 10 selections
Every drafted Swede
5 Swedes were drafted
5
Swedes
4
Teams
2
Rounds
Round 2
3 PICKS
25
35
37
Round 5
2 PICKS
98
103
The draft class in the NHL
Best Swedish players from the 1979 Draft
NHL regular-season statistics: games played, goals, assists, points, plus save percentage, wins, and shutouts for goalies.
Skaters · most points
Thomas Steen (C)
Drafted #103WIN
GP
950
G
264
A
553
P
817
Mats Näslund (L)
Drafted #37MTL
GP
651
G
251
A
383
P
634
Tomas Jonsson (D)
Drafted #25NYI
GP
552
G
85
A
259
P
344
Thomas Eriksson (D)
Drafted #98PHI
GP
208
G
22
A
76
P
98
Goalies · most games
Pelle Lindbergh (G)
Drafted #35PHI
GP
157
W
87
SV%
.887
SO
7
Drafting teams
Teams that drafted Swedish players
Sorted by the number of Swedish players selected.
The road to the NHL
The draft class's NHL debuts
5 of the class's Swedes have made their NHL debuts, the first in 1980-1981. Pick a season to see every debutant.
More about the NHL Draft and the Swedes
Explore Swedish Draft history
Best draft classes→The best Swedish draft classes by NHL career output.First round→Every Swedish first-round selection, ordered by pick number.Teams→Which NHL teams have drafted the most Swedes?
From draft pick to NHL contract – what an entry-level contract means and how salary, bonuses and AAV work.