Adam Larsson

Nils Erik Adam Larsson (born November 12, 1992) is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected fourth overall by the New Jersey Devils in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. The youngest player on the Skellefteå AIK squad at the time of his draft, Larsson was the first defenceman and first European-trained player to be drafted in 2011.

Skellefteå AIK
The 2009–10 Elitserien season turned out to be a spectacular breakthrough season for Larsson. He scored two goals in an Elitserien game against Timrå IK on October 15, 2009. By the end of the season, Larsson had tied the single-season record for amount of points in Elitserien among defencemen under the age of 18, 17 points, a record that was set by Tomas Jonsson in 1977–78, who compiled eight goals and nine assists in 35 games.

Larsson fought Timrå IK forward Daniel Corso in a game on November 2, 2010, receiving a cut eyebrow during the altercation. Larsson commented that he kept his gloves on because removing them during a fight in Elitserien leads to an automatic one game suspension. Although Larsson didn't remove his gloves, both he and Corso were suspended for two games and received fines as a result of the fight.

Larsson's play in the 2010–11 season earned him a nomination for the Elitserien Rookie of the Year award, but Mattias Ekholm would eventually win the award.

New Jersey Devils
Larsson was selected in the first round, fourth overall, by the New Jersey Devils during the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. Seen as a move towards rebuilding the Devils defence corp, Larsson was rated by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau as the top European prospect available in the 2011 Draft. Larsson, who has been compared to the Detroit Red Wings' defenceman Nicklas Lidström, signed a three-year, entry-level contract with no bonuses at the NHL maximum of US$925,000 per year with the Devils on July 15, 2011, due to general manager Lou Lamoriello's disapproval of performance bonuses. He made the team in training camp and became the first 18-year-old defenceman to dress for the Devils in the regular season since Scott Niedermayer in the 1991-92 season, only the sixth under-20 defenceman to play for the Devils, and the first 18-year-old defenceman in the NHL since 2008, when Drew Doughty, Zach Bogosian and Luke Schenn all made their NHL debuts.

Larsson's first NHL goal was scored on November 11, 2011, on a slapshot from the right slot against Tomáš Vokoun of the Washington Capitals. He was selected to the NHL All-Star Rookie SuperSkills Competition on January 12, 2012, along with teammate Adam Henrique; however, he chose to pull out due to a minor injury. He was replaced by Montreal Canadiens rookie defenceman Raphael Diaz. On May 1, 2012, Larsson scored his first Stanley Cup playoff goal against the Philadelphia Flyers in Philadelphia in his first career playoff game, becoming the first Devils rookie defenceman to score a goal in his first playoff game.

Following the 2014–15 NHL season Larsson became a restricted free agent under the NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement. The New Jersey Devils made him a qualifiying offer to retain his NHL rights and, on July 5, 2015, Larsson filed for Salary Arbitration.

On July 25, 2015, New Jersey Devils re-signed Larsson to a six-year extension, worth US$25,000,000.

Edmonton Oilers
On June 29, 2016, Larsson was traded to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Taylor Hall.

International play
Larsson represented Sweden at the 2010 World Junior Championships, held in Saskatoon and Regina, Saskatchewan. At the 2010 World U18 Championships, he was selected as the best defenceman of the tournament. When Larsson played for Sweden at the 2011 World Junior Championships, he repeated his scoring of one goal and three assists from the previous tournament, which earned him the distinction of being Sweden's highest scoring defenceman at the tournament.

Personal life
Larsson's father, Robert Larsson, played 249 games with Skellefteå from 1985 to 1995. Robert Larsson was drafted in the sixth round, 112th overall, by the Los Angeles Kings during the 1988 NHL Entry Draft, but never played in North America.

In the 2008–09 season, Adam Larsson played with his older brother Hampus in the junior league J20 SuperElit.

Notable awards and honors

 * 2010 IIHF World U18 Championships All-Star Team