FROM BO TO BRO

Young Oilers defenceman Philip Broberg draws comparisons to Jay Bouwmeester

Philip Broberg meet Jay Bouwmeester.

When the Edmonton Oilers best defence prospect becomes a regular, is there any reason Broberg, 20, can’t be a Bouwmeester facsimile?

Same size, same skating ability, same defence-firstwith-some offence trait. If Broberg, who will get a long look at training camp but will start the season in Bakersfield, turns into Bouwmeester, this is a major win.

Bouwmeester, who turns 38 next week and retired because of heart issues, played 1,240 NHL games. He won a Stanley Cup in St. Louis and played on the 2006 and 2014 Canadian Olympic teams. His skating allowed him to choke off attacking players, he had a great stick to knock down pucks. Not overly aggressive, he still used his frame effectively and he always made a strong, first pass up ice, or he carried it out.

“Bo found a role as a shutdown player and had a long career. His skating ... he never got tired on shifts, or at the end of games. I could play Bo and Petro (Alex Pietrangelo) a minute-30 on the penalty-kill,” his former Blues coach Ken Hitchcock said. “He excelled against top lines. He didn’t have a good stick, he had a great stick. It was always in the next best lane. He always knew where the next play was going so it was very hard for opposing players. Nothing was clean when you played against Bo”

So can Broberg, the eighth player picked in the 2019 draft — first on GM Ken Holland’s watch, also be like Bouwmeester (No. 3 in 2002), who actually played right side for a long time even though he’s a left-shooter?

Broberg has done that in Sweden, too. It’s more congested on left D here right now. Maybe Oilers see him as a possibility on right D, not just left.

Jonas Brodin has done that his whole NHL career in Minnesota, playing his off-side, and doing well.

This is all preliminary stuff with Broberg, however. He played well in two rookie games against Calgary and may play four or five NHL exhibition games, but he’ll start in the AHL, playing for Jay Woodcroft.

He’ll realize the game is played along the boards more. More battles, where he’ll have to get stronger, maybe a tad meaner like Adam Larsson did.

“Philip is still so very young. He has some professional experience in Europe but now it’s about learning who he is as a player, laying a foundation for an identity that can work on a day to day basis (in North America). He’ll work to be the best Philip Broberg he can be,” said Woodcroft, acknowledging the fan hype around the player as a high first-round pick also put more eyeballs on him, but wanting to put the brakes on expectations.

His skating obviously stands out, but Woodcroft also sees a player who has the confidence not just to bang the puck around the wall.

“I’ve seen him make plays at the offensive blue line,”

Woodcroft said. “His gap control because of his skating is good. But he has things to improve on and that will be getting used to this ice size (as a defenceman). There’s no rush.

“Yes, maybe he can use his strength of skating in a defensive role in denying entries, on working back quickly on (puck) retrievals so he spends less time in his zone because of his skating.

“We want to set a value system with Philip so he gets better. We’re not looking at him, saying he has to put up two points a game ... if they happen great, but we want to paint a picture on how valuable those (defensive) things are, not just putting up points.”

Broberg, who captained the Swedish world junior team this past Christmas at Rogers Place, was hamstrung because he was hurt and overplayed.

Returning to Skelleftea, there were games he was the seventh D playing less than 10 minutes.

“I had a knee and shoulder injury here and it was difficult, but it’s an honour to play for your country at the world juniors,” Broberg said. “The injuries are part of the game I know but it affected the way I played after that. I wasn’t 100% when I got back. That’s tough playing in the highest league (there).

“I want to improve everything about my game. This summer I’ve had the opportunity to get stronger and faster (being healthy).”

THIS ’N’ THAT

Not sure of a reason why, but don’t believe we’ll be seeing goalie Alex Stalock at Oiler medicals and fitness testing Wednesday. Maybe not at Oiler camp at all. He says he still wants to play. He has one year left on his Oilers contract ... Kris Russell is taking Larsson’s No. 6 with Oilers retiring Kevin Lowe’s No. 4 on Nov. 5 ... With Oilers planning a salute (artwork, plaques, maybe in Ford Hall) to integral players who don’t have their numbers hanging from the rafters, here’s 12 off-the-top-of-my-head: Ryan Smyth, Doug Weight, Esa Tikkanen, Charlie Huddy, Dave Semenko, Ales Hemsky, Andy Moog, Craig MacTavish, Craig Simpson, Kelly Buchberger, Shawn Horcoff and Bill Ranford.