Sven Baertschi: Calgary Gets Their Guy

Although not a surprising first-round pick, it certainly is a solid one. Jay Feaster and the Flames’ scouting staff seem to have had their eyes on Sven Baertschi from the word go. The 5’10” 181-pound Swiss-born Baertschi finished first among WHL rookies in playoff scoring this past post-season with the Portland Winterhawks, and was ranked as the 7th best North American skater by NHL Central Scouting.

He probably won’t make the team out of training camp this year, given he’s still a teenager (1992), but it’s a good start towards rebuilding the Flames’ exhausted farm system. Baertschi played left-wing in Portland, but the beauty of him is that he was originally played centre and can pretty much fill a role in any of the forward positions. Versatility is a great asset. He is said to have phenomenal offensive upside with excellent hands, the ability to move with the puck fluently in tight spaces, good vision and awareness and a hard shot. He can also bring a surprisingly gritty element to his game for a guy under 6 feet.

Jay Feaster said this shortly after drafting Baertschi:

“This is a player that our scouts have seen play quite a bit this year and were very high on him from the beginning of the season. As skilled as he is; as talented as he is, his work ethic is even more impressive.”“During the interview process, it was pretty clear that the idea of playing in a Canadian city and playing where hockey matters was something that was important to him. We’re really, really pleased to be able to select him.”

The knock on Baertschi’s game may be his defensive presence. He’s looked baffled at times in his own zone in high-pressure situations with his defensive assignments. It’s clear he’s an offensive minded players, but he has to hone his defensive game if he wants to play in the NHL. It’s not that worrisome right now because it’s common for young guys have a strong offensive mindset. Great two-way play will come with maturity, as it did with guys like Ryan Kesler, Jonathan Toews and Rick Nash. This is not a direct comparison, but something to think about in terms of defensive improvement.

One of the more refreshing things to see in all of this is the mutual excitement both Feaster and Baertschi radiated on Friday. This kid wanted to be a Flame as badly as the Flames wanted him. Both parties spent the first 12 rounds nervously waiting for Baertschi to get scooped up by another team. When Carolina didn’t take him at number 12, it was a huge sigh of relief for the Swiss kid who wanted to play in a rabid hockey market, a Canadian city.

Baertschi said this about being drafted by the Flames:

“I was waiting there up in the stands, just waiting and waiting for my name. I was sweating like crazy in the stands, just waiting for my name. Then the Flames were up and they said it and it felt so good.”

On the road to the NHL:

“There’s a lot of things I have to do, work on my body, on ice, off ice, everything.”“If you look at the NHL playoffs last year, it was pretty tough, very high level games. l’ll really try to work on it so one day I can play my first National Hockey League game.”

Complete list of the Calgary Flames 2011 NHL Entry Draft picks:

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