The Florida Panthers picked diminutive, play-making Swedish center Elliot Ekmark in the seventh round (198th overall) of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. Ekmark was projected to go somewhere in the middle rounds, so this was good value selection by general manager Bill Zito.
During his draft season, Ekmark put up 12 goals and 26 points in 31 games for Linkoping’s club in the J20 SuperElit league and appeared in four games in the Swedish Hockey League.
In 2020-21, Ekmark suited up in 31 games at the top level and scored his first goal in the SHL, his only point, and also played seven games for the J20 squad, where he excelled against his peers with two goals and ten points.