NHL’s best players under age 25 for 2017: Aaron Ekblad ranks No. 13 after a down season

Note: This is SB Nation NHL’s top 25 players under age 25 series! We’ll be covering each player from No. 25 to No. 1 over the next few weeks leading up to training camp time. See the complete list and information on how the rankings were compiled.

Aaron Ekblad may look like a seasoned NHL veteran with his slicked-back hair and full beard that no one under the age of 30 should be able to produce, but in fact the defenseman is just a half-year past his 21st birthday. The Florida Panthers first-pairing blue liner has been a force of nature throughout his first three years in the NHL, and that ranks him at No. 13 on our list of the top NHL players under 25.

Ekblad’s pedigree is quite strong, as he was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NHL draft as selected by the Panthers. He made his NHL debut right out of training camp and anchored Florida’s blue line for a strong 81 games in his rookie season. Ekblad has since dealt with some injuries, most recently a concussion in March 2017 that ended his last season, but when healthy he’s been the backbone of the Panthers defense.

Last season was actually Ekblad’s worst of his three seasons so far, has he posted just 21 points in 68 games. It didn’t help that he was dealing with a concussion from participating in the World Cup of Hockey that ended his tournament early, and he certainly didn’t end his season well with his second concussion in seven months. Ekblad’s best numbers came during a stretch from mid-January to late-February where he put up eight points in 15 games, but he was otherwise not himself last season.

While that may be worrisome, especially given his recent injury history, there’s no indications that last season will be the norm. Defensively, Ekblad was a better overall possession player in 2016-17 than in his previous season, making the jump from a 50.68 even strength CF% to a 51.85 CF%, according to Natural Stat Trick. While it was down from his stellar rookie year, Ekblad was more than OK at driving possession in his worst season.

Though Ekblad’s even strength GF% dropped by almost 20 percent, his shooting percentage was a mere 4.4 in all situations last season, quite low for the NHL’s third-highest shooting defenseman behind Brent Burns and Dustin Byfuglien in 2016-17. Ekblad’s PDO — the luck based advanced statistic — was also below average at 96.5 percent, the lowest by any blueliner on the Panthers last season, according to Hockey-Reference.

Considering Ekblad’s outstanding first two NHL seasons, last year is very likely a blip on the radar for the 21-year-old defenseman. After all, Ekblad is ranked at No. 13 on our list above some other very high-caliber defensemen, so there’s little reason he won’t bounce back to form in 2017-18 if his heath allows.

Before Ekblad made it to the NHL, he was given “exceptional player” status in 2011 by Hockey Canada. The ruling allowed Ekblad to compete in the Canadian Hockey League a year earlier than normal, at age 15 rather than 16, an exception only allowed to John Tavares, Connor McDavid, Sean Day, and Joseph Veleno.

Ekblad then spent three seasons as an OHL darling, playing in 175 games for the Barrie Colts and putting up 116 total points. During his time in major junior, Ekblad won OHL Rookie of the Year and OHL Defenseman of the Year awards and was selected captain of the Colts for the 2013-14 season.

After being drafted by the Panthers, Ekblad won a spot on Florida’s blue line right out of training camp, then proceeded to put up 39 points in 81 games as a rookie. His hot start earned him that season’s Calder Trophy, beating out Johnny Gaudreau and Filip Forsberg among other young NHL stars. Ekblad also earned a spot in the NHL All-Star Game in his rookie year as an injury replacement for Erik Johnson.

In his second season, Ekblad totaled 36 points in 78 games and put up a career-high 15 goals on the year. After putting up 75 points in 159 games, Ekblad was given an eight-year, $60 million extension in July 2016, to the excitement of many across the state of Florida.

Internationally, Ekblad was a key cog in Canada’s World Championship gold medal in 2015, as he put up four goals in 10 games to lead all defensemen in the tournament. Ekblad also played one game for Team North America in the World Cup of Hockey in 2016 before a concussion sidelined him.

It’s safe to say Ekblad will be leading the Panthers’ defense for years to come. Already, Ekblad has seen an average of 21:40 minutes per night over the last three seasons, signaling his role as the team’s No. 1 defenseman.

Though it’s unlikely Ekblad’s time will increase significantly, he will likely take a bigger role in the defensive zone as his career progresses. Ekblad plays most of his zone starts in the offensive zone at even strength, as over his career he has started 58.8 percent of his zone starts from the offensive side of the puck, according to Hockey-Reference. He clearly excels in the offensive zone, but it’s not unlikely as Ekblad shoulders the brunt of the heavy minutes he’ll slide to a more even split between the two zones.

Last season, Ekblad spent most of his time with Keith Yandle to the tune of a 51.95 CF% with the veteran blueliner. Given Yandle’s age, however, it’s likely the veteran will slide to the second pairing and 23-year-old Michael Matheson will jump to the top line. Ekblad played his second-most minutes with Matheson last season, and though his CF% dipped to 49.88 percent, his GF% rose to 60 percent when playing with the 23-year-old, according to Natural Stat Trick.

If Ekblad stays healthy, all should go according to plan for the Panthers in getting their stud defenseman back on track for the future.

Given our rankings skew more toward forwards, it’s very likely Ekblad is ranked too low on this list. However, his step back last season likely prevented him from taking a leap into the top 10, where he could have been if he stayed on his projected path.

For Ekblad to make it into the top 10 next year as one of the league’s best young defensemen, he’ll have to stay healthy and improve upon his 21 point season. Given he’s shown he can comfortably hit in the mid-30s, it shouldn’t be too difficult for Ekblad to get that number.

Highest rank: No. 3
Lowest rank: Not ranked