Oilers' Have Their Own Erik Karlsson

The Edmonton Oilers have kicked off their pre season and are gearing up for the start of their regular season on October 11th. The excitement has been slowly building as things creep closer to that opening game.

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Mattias Ekholm is sitting out the first few games of the pre season, but that hasn't stopped him from singing the praises of his fellow defenders. Earlier in the month he was asked about Philip Broberg and what it was like to be a mentor to him - and what he could work on to reach the next step.

However, on a recent episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast, Ekholm raved about another defender that he spent a lot of time playing with - Evan Bouchard. One thing he noticed right away was Bouchard stressing out about defensive mishaps.

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"I think when I got in, he was a little too worried sometimes about the defensive faults that happen." Ekholm also stressed the necessity to take those criticisms and remember the good things he creates offensively. 

Bouchard is so good at creating offense in Ekholm's eyes, that he thinks Bouchard could reach the heights of Erik Karlsson. "I played with Erik Karlsson early on with the national teams and all that. I think he has the same attributes at times. The passing, the vision. Obviously it's tough to put him on that pedestal, not to put any pressure on him, but as an offensive defenceman, I think he has everything it takes.

Bouchard will get a chance to prove his offensive capabilities this season. With no Tyson Barrie ahead of him for power play time, he should collect a lot of points shooting his "Bouch-bombs" from the point.

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