Felix Unger Sorum: The NHL's Youngest Prospect

In just three months, Carolina Hurricanes prospect Felix Unger Sorum has gone from a relatively unknown teenager from a small, Swedish village to everybody's new favorite prospect in Raleigh.

The youngest member of his draft class, Unger Sorum was drafted by the Canes in the second round of the 2023 draft at just 17 years old and life's been a whirlwind for him ever since.

89 Days

He was drafted on June 29, participated in the Hurricanes' development camp from July 10-13 and then signed a three-year ELC on July 15.

“It was amazing," Unger Sorum said on signing his ELC. "It wasn’t something that I expected, but it was definitely a dream come true.”

After that, he took part in the U20 World Junior Summer Showcase for Team Sweden — where he led the team in points — from July 29 to August 4, the Canes' rookie showcase from September 15-18, joined Carolina for training camp on September 20 and then took part in his first preseason game on September 26.

From draft to debut, just 89 days.

Oh yeah, and he just celebrated his 18th birthday too. On September 14.

“You learn a lot here," Unger Sorum said about his extended time in Carolina. "You learn the game, get some small tips too. I’m just really trying to learn while I’m here.”

Despite the whirlwind that the summer has been, Unger Sorum did at least make time to take in his preseason debut. 

A few hours before game time, he came out to the benches and just stood there, chin resting on top of his hands which were folded at the top of his stick, and gazed around the empty arena.

He stood there for a few minutes, soaking it all in, before he returned to the locker room to prepare for the game.

“It was a really cool experience," Unger Sorum said. "Especially [September 27] (the very next game) when there was nearly a fully packed arena. That was awesome. It’s really been like a dream.”

Even though he's been living a dream, according to Unger Sorum, he hasn't felt "butterflies" at all.

No Expectations, No Nerves

A striking feature about the 18 year old is just how calm he appears. On the ice, in the locker room, it doesn't matter.

"Of course, it’s a big experience and it’s always been a dream," Unger Sorum said about his debut. "I don’t know how to explain it, but I don't get nervous. I just go out and play and after the game, I’m focused on the next day. Not much more to it.”

Not even when he found himself playing on the team's top power-play unit, in just his second-ever preseason game, with guys like Brent Burns, Michael Bunting, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Stefan Noesen.

“I just see it as an opportunity," Unger Sorum said. "It’s a time where I can show what I can do, especially when you have such good players around you."

Maybe that calmness comes from his lack of expectations.

“I don’t have expectations," Unger Sorum said. "I just try to work every day and see where that takes me. Of course, I have goals, but I don’t have expectations.”

It's a common phrase that Unger Sorum has repeated across multiple interviews: "I don’t have any expectations."

Goals? Standards to reach? Things he wants to accomplish? Check. Check. Check. But expectations? Nuh-uh.

Unger Sorum knows where he wants to get and understands what he has to do to reach it. He just approaches everything day by day and doesn't let himself get caught up looking past the present.  

Making an Impression

When you're surrounded by loads of high-end talent, whether that be the NHL regulars or the other top prospects at camp, it might be hard to stand out.

But that wasn't the case for Unger Sorum. 

In his preseason debut, he didn't look out of place. He made some high end passes, picked up a primary assist and even caught some unprompted praise from the head coach.

“I actually thought the youngest kid on the ice was pretty good," said Rod Brind'Amour when asked who stood out to him. "To be honest with you, I wasn’t sure. Kid just turned 18. You’re not sure how he’s gonna take the moment and he looked like he had no problems. He was hanging onto pucks, almost too much at times. He was trying to make plays all the time so you like to see that, especially in these kinds of games. He was solid. You don’t teach some things which is that poise and some guys just have it and you can see he has it. He caught my eye for sure.”

And after a second game in back-to-back days, Unger Sorum received that same praise again.

“The young guys are doing well," Brind'amour said. "You don’t want to get too excited, but that was a great play that Felix made and he’s done it a couple of times. There were a few of those passes he made. He’s got the poise and knows where the puck’s going to go. Some stuff that he can tell guys that’s where it needs to go and he seems to have a real good feel for it and he’s not afraid."

When asked to elaborate some more on what makes him so special, here's what Brind'Amour had to say:

“He’s smart. For a young player, he just has a really good hockey awareness. I don’t know if it's that you tell him something and he’s getting it or he just already got it. He kind of already knows how you have to do things. Even today, we had a couple of clips where he was not in exactly the right spot and doing it a little wrong and he knew right away. He was like, ‘Yep, I should have been there.’"

It's the same praise he's received from other members within the organization as well.

"[Unger Sorum] sees the ice incredibly well," said Hurricanes AGM Darren Yorke on the floor of the 2023 draft. "He’s a guy that we saw keep on getting better and better and better... Incredibly smart"

"Just a very, very high hockey sense," said development coach Peter Harrold at the Hurricanes' Development Camp.

On top of that intelligence and skill, Unger Sorum is also a fierce competitor.

Despite his slight frame, he's not afraid to go into corners or battle for pucks. He's involved in plays, goes to difficult areas and can take a hit.

When he wasn't selected for the initial roster for Team Sweden's U20 Summer Showcase team, the then 17 year old expressed that he felt "a little bit angry" at first for not being selected, but he made the roster as a reserve and did quite well for himself.

Away From the Rink

Life isn't just all hockey for the Swede though.

For instance, during these few weeks of training camp, Unger Sorum said that he, fellow Swede Noel Gunler, and Finns Aleksi Heimosalmi and Anttoni Honka have taken up poker and FIFA to pass the time between practices and games.

"We often get back to the hotel at 2 p.m.," Unger Sorum said. "Maybe take a nap and then we probably play some cards and then go out for dinner and then we play some more cards or FIFA (on Gunler's Playstation) and then it’s the next day. It’s gone really fast.”

FIFA isn't just a hotel activity either as Unger Sorum said he routinely enjoys playing video games and chatting in-game with his friends. He said outside of FIFA, he'll also play the NHL video game. 

Unger Sorum also enjoys golf (he is a hockey player after all) and playing soccer, which he primarily grew up playing more than he did hockey. 

Also, the Swede, well... wasn't always Swedish, as he was actually born in Norway, but moved to Sweden when he was seven.

“I’ve always had a Swedish passport," Unger Sorum said. "My mom was Swedish and my father is Norwegian. I’ve always had a Swedish passport. I can get a Norwegian one if I want to, but I’m Swedish.”

However, he does still speak Norwegian.

His Future

Since being drafted, the expectation for Unger Sorum was that he'd return to Sweden to play in the SHL for Leksands IF.

However, Unger Sorum has made himself an interesting candidate for sticking around. It's obvious the coaching staff see a special talent in him and perhaps there have been some thoughts about keeping him around.

"We don't have a plan for him as far as I know," Brind'amour said when asked about Unger Sorum returning to Sweden. "Just seeing where it goes. He's done well. Young kid and we'll try to get him at least another game here, maybe two, and then make the decision. Every decision is going to be made after the final preseason game."

Even though he's made quite the impression, the most important thing for development is consistent playing time and Unger Sorum really won't get that at the NHL level this year and without an AHL affiliate, the best bet for him will be to return home and play in the SHL which is still a very skilled league.

The biggest key for Unger Sorum's development will also just come from him getting older. With age will come more maturity in both mind and body. Getting bigger will also just help Unger Sorum in every facet of his game from skating to shooting and much more.

But in terms of pure hockey IQ, he might already be ready.

"You need to have that steady diet of impact players," Brind'Amour said. "And I think there’s a chance that’s what we got here.”