FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- When asked the biggest thing he needs to work on to reach the NHL, Gracyn Sawchyn smiled.
“For me, it’s pretty obvious,’’ the 19-year-old Florida Panthers center prospect said. “I need to work on gaining strength and a little bit of weight. That’s kind of my main focus this summer.’’
Sawchyn, selected by the Panthers in the second round (No. 63) of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, certainly needs to add some bulk before making it to the next level.
One thing about Sawchyn, though -- listed at 5-foot-11, 157 pounds, he plays bigger than he is.
Aside from his playmaking abilities, that's the first thing Florida noticed about him at his first training camp last year.
“He's gotten his body in there and that’s great for someone that age and that size,” said forward Sam Reinhart, who played on the right side of Sawchyn’s line at the start of camp last September.
“Obviously he's going to continue to get bigger, but the most important thing is that he's not shying away; he's initiating that contact. And that's going to help him learn, that's going to motivate him to continue working off the ice.”
Following his first development camp last year, Sawchyn played so well at the Panthers rookie tournament that coach Paul Maurice put him with veteran players such as Reinhart when training camp started.
“For a young guy who is not the biggest man on the ice yet, somehow he is on the puck, he plays the game and he competes right through drills," Maurice said.
“I would have thought he would have worn out after three days because of his age, but he was not.’’
Sawchyn returned to Seattle of the Western Hockey League following his first stint at an NHL camp, and had 21 points (six goals, 15 assists) in 17 games.
The native of Grande Prairie, Alberta, was traded to his home province in December, going to Edmonton of the WHL along with his younger brother, Lukas, in a deal that included seven draft picks going back to Seattle.
“I had a different role in Edmonton, and I enjoyed it a lot,’’ Sawchyn said. “That definitely helped me grow.”
Sawchyn had 43 points (13 goals, 30 assists) in 37 WHL games with Edmonton. He joined Charlotte, Florida’s American Hockey League affilaite, for the end of the season but did not play.
Sawchyn, who centered a top line during his second Panthers development camp earlier this month, will be back in South Florida for another rookie tournament and another chance to open some eyes at training camp before returning to Edmonton for what could be his final junior season.
“It was awesome,’’ Sawchyn said of being traded to Edmonton. “I had been in the States for a couple of years, and I have a lot of family there. So it was great."
