Sweden’s Loke Johannson heads from Bruins development camp to Canada and the QMJHL

As Loke Johannson wrapped up his first Bruins development camp Thursday morning, the 18-year-old was all smiles in the locker room.

The 6-foot-3-inch defenseman was selected by the Bruins in the sixth round of last weekend’s draft, and he was headed to New Brunswick Thursday afternoon to join the Moncton Wildcats in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League.

At home in Sweden at around 10 p.m. last Saturday, Johannson received a text from scouts asking him if he was at The Sphere in Las Vegas. The Bruins’ pick hadn’t gone in yet, but he knew what was about to happen. He and his parents got the call a few moments later and everything changed.

Johannson slept for three hours Saturday night and boarded a 6:30 a.m. flight on Sunday, bound for Boston.

“The first day was pretty awful,” Johannson said, referring to the jet lag. “It’s been fun. First day was kind of weird. At first I was home, [then] knowing where I was going, and then the other day I was here. So it’s been weird. But it’s been really fun to get to meet all the guys and see all of Boston.”

For someone who’s just traveled from Stockholm to Boston, and played four full days of camp, Johannson didn’t look too tired on Thursday. He was still buzzing with excitement — and he had another leg of his journey.

The defenseman signed with Moncton on Wednesday. Contract details have yet to be announced, but it’s a step in the right direction for a young player lacking North American experience.

“I’m excited to see the city,” Johannson said of Moncton. “I know they have a really good arena, so I’m excited to see that, and getting to meet all the guys.”

Johannson has played in Swedish junior leagues since 2019, first for Flemingsbergs IK for two seasons, before joining AIK IF for three.

During the 2023-24 season, he played for AIK J20 in the J20 Nationell league, and AIK in the HockeyAllsvenskan league, recording five goals and nine assists over 52 games. Johannson has made five playoff appearances in the J18 (2) and J20 (3) Nationell leagues, the highest junior levels in Sweden for ages 18 through 20.

He’s a young player with things to work on, and that’s what development camp is for. The Bruins have focused on defensive depth this offseason, and it’s reflected in their selection of prospects such as Johannson and fourth-round pick Elliott Groenewold.

“There’s a closing and physical element to his game,” player development coordinator Adam McQuaid said of Johannson. “I saw that a lot. He’s strong for a young player, actually for all the first-year guys that came in, they all fit in fairly seamlessly, which is really nice to see, but especially for him. His willingness to be hard on people, and a strength at a young age probably stood out for me.”

For young international players such as Johannson who are less experienced with North American hockey, entering a development camp setting can be intimidating. Luckily for the defenseman, there were five other Swedish prospects at Warrior Arena this week.

Johannson said he’s been talking most with fellow blue-liner Kristian Kostadinski, who was selected by the Bruins in the seventh round of the 2023 draft. During last year’s development camp, Kostadinski had Swedish prospects Oskar Jellvik and Philip Svedeback to look up to, and a fellow Swedish rookie in Casper Nassen.

“I felt like it was easier to be here for the first time,” Kostadinski said. His eyes lit up when he talked about his home country, and as a rookie, he felt more comfortable with players from home by his side, and he stepped into that role for Johannson.