1
Alex Ovechkin (L)
Left wing
Swedes in the NHL DraftSwedes in the 2004 NHL Draft
Cohort: 1986
Highest selection
#31
PITJohannes Salmonsson
Swedes selected
19
of 291 picks
In round 1
0
of 19 Swedes
Share of the draft
7 %
of all picks
The 2004 NHL Draft took place on June 26–27, 2004 in Raleigh, NC, USA. 19 Swedes were selected, including 0 in the first round. Johannes Salmonsson was the first Swede selected, at number 31 in round 2.
5 of the 19 Swedes (26%) have played at least one NHL game since the draft. The class leaders in NHL games played are Alexander Edler (1030 GP, 439 P), Johan Franzén (602 GP, 370 P), and Carl Söderberg (597 GP, 297 P).
Across the draft archive, the year ranks 10 in Swedes selected and 7 in Swedish first-round selections. The Swedish draft class has combined for 1195 points in 2827 NHL regular-season games. That ranks as the 16th 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
19 Swedes were drafted
19
Swedes
14
Teams
8
Rounds
Round 2
4 PICKS
31
Johannes Salmonsson (F)Forward
34
Johan Fransson (D)Defenseman
49
56
Round 3
2 PICKS
91
97
Round 4
1 PICKS
104
Fredrik Naslund (R)Right wing
Round 5
4 PICKS
132
Oscar Hedman (D)Defenseman
137
Magnus Akerlund (G)Goaltender
147
154
Richard Demen-Willaume (D)Defenseman
Round 6
2 PICKS
182
Fred Wikner (F)Forward
192
Anton Axelsson (L)Left wing
Round 7
2 PICKS
210
Emil Axelsson (D)Defenseman
211
David Fredriksson (F)Forward
Round 8
1 PICKS
255
Anton Hedman (F)Forward
Round 9
3 PICKS
274
Bjorn Bjurling (G)Goaltender
284
John Wikner (L)Left wing
290
Nils Backstrom (D)Defenseman
The draft class in the NHL
Best Swedish players from the 2004 Draft
NHL regular-season statistics: games played, goals, assists, points, plus save percentage, wins, and shutouts for goalies.
Skaters · most points
Alexander Edler (D)
Drafted #91VAN
GP
1030
G
104
A
335
P
439
Johan Franzén (R)
Drafted #97DET
GP
602
G
187
A
183
P
370
Carl Söderberg (C)
Drafted #49STL
GP
597
G
110
A
187
P
297
Nicklas Grossmann (D)
Drafted #56DAL
GP
592
G
13
A
73
P
86
Janne Niskala (D)
Drafted #147NSH
GP
6
G
1
A
2
P
3
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 2005-2006. 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.