Welcome to the no. 5 of our Top 25 Under 25 countdown here at The Cannon! Thanks to the more than 120 of you who participated in our reader poll. Throughout the month of August, we’ll reveal a new player each weekday based on your ranking.
#5 Alexander Wennberg
Voting
5th out of 55 eligible players (2327 points)
Highest placement: #1 (1 ballot)
Most common placement: #4 (52)
Biography
Birthdate: September, 22 1994
Birthplace: Nacka, Sweden
Height: 6’2”
Weight: 196 lbs
Position: Center
Acquired: Drafted by Columbus, 2013, Round 1, #14 overall
2017-18 Season
Alexander Wennberg of the Columbus Blue Jackets comes off a disappointing season, fresh off his breakout campaign a year prior, and a newly-signed six-year contract extension. In 2017-18, he was limited to 66 games as he battled his way through injuries and registered just 35 points (eight goals, 27 assists), well below the 59 points in 80 games the season prior.
2018-19 Forecast
To wonder which Wennberg shows up in 2018-19 is not an unfair question. His 2016-17 campaign was the only year in which he played above 70 games. In a recent interview with Blue Jackets broadcaster Jody Shelley, Shelley also talked about Wennberg as a potential player to watch out for this upcoming season.
“Another guy for me, a guy like Alexander Wennberg, what’s he going to do this year? What does Wennberg want to do with this team? He’s such a talent, he’s got such a high hockey IQ, he’s so smart. He’s a guy too, at the center ice position if you recall, he was a guy that was going to play with Artemi Panarin on the top line last year, he was penciled in as the No. one center-man and he didn’t live up to that, so I think he’s a guy now that’s settled into his contract. He’s probably disappointed we left here and what he did with the Blue Jackets. I think he’s another one of those guys that quietly, with that off year, he can be the guy that brings it here for the Blue Jackets.”
You can also listen below.