2011 NHL Draft Results: B/R Interview with Gabriel Landeskog

A native of Stockholm, Sweden, Gabriel Landeskog traveled overseas to join the Kitchener Rangers of the Ontario Hockey League, where he played for two years.

At 6'0", 196 lbs, Landeskog has great size at the right wing position.

Despite only playing 53 games for the Rangers last season, Landeskog found the back of the net 36 times and tallied 30 assists (66 points).

At an unprecedented Reebok-CCM sponsored event at the St. Thomas Ice Arena in Mendota Heights, Minnesota, Landeskog sat down with Bleacher Report to discuss the draft process and his future in the National Hockey League.

Questions are presented in bold. Answers are in standard print.

Tom Schreier is a Featured Columnist at Bleacher Report. Interviews were conducted at a Reebok-CCM NHL Draft Prospects Event in Mendota Heights, MN.

On Being a Swedish Player in the OHL

Writer's Note:

Landeskog played three seasons for Djurgårdens IF in the Swedish Elite League before joining the Rangers.

On playing in Sweden:

It’s pretty similar. There’s a lot of skill and development in Sweden; they work on that a lot and obviously skating is a big part of the game.

On Expectations at the Xcel Energy Center on Draft Day

On draft day:

It’s going to be crazy to say the least. You’re going to wake up tomorrow morning and not be too sure what to expect, but I’ll be nervous, for sure, about that. It’ll be a lot of fun, just to spend the day with my family and friends.

On Edmonton, Colorado and Edmonton, Teams Drafting 1-3

On teams drafting early:

Obviously, they’ve got great talent on their teams and their organizations, and both Colorado and Florida, like you mentioned, have a really bright future ahead of them, not to mention, at least, the Edmonton Oilers.

They are a great young crop of players, and they’re going to be very good in a few years.

What would it be like to play on a team like Edmonton?

It would definitely be special to be part of such a well-respected organization for so many years would obviously make it very special to play there, especially with all the talent they have there and the bright future they have there.

On Making the Leap to the NHL

Is there something you need to work on specifically?

Absolutely, there’s a lot of parts of my game that have to get better at, but especially my quickness.

Just practicing with men and NHL players would benefit me.

Overall, just getting stronger and working on my shot and work on my stick-handling and stuff like that and just get a little bit better every day.