Rangers European prospects update: Mikkel Eriksen joins new team on loan

Across the pond, the New York Rangers have six prospects playing in Europe. And since our last update, there've been some changes to note.

As discussed last week, Mikkel Eriksen was loaned to Mora IK in Allsvenskan, the second tier of professional hockey in Sweden. Across the border, Samuel Jung made his return in Finland after missing six weeks with an injury.

Let's get into the latest with the Rangers prospects playing in Europe.

CSKA Moscow, one of the biggest, most successful clubs in Russian hockey, is on a five-game winning streak. This past week they played three games, but Rangers prospect Ivan Patrikhayev only appeared in Wednesday's 2-0 win over Amur Khaborovsk. The 20-year-old defenseman was a healthy scratch for the games on Monday and Friday. Patrikhayev, who signed an extension through the 2027-28 season with the Moscow-based team, recorded a shot on goal in his only game last week, when he logged 13:46 TOI on the third defense pair.

It's worth noting that only eight defensemen aged 20 or younger have played more games this season in the KHL. Patrikhayev and 19-year-old Ivan Yukin share the work-load on the third pair for a loaded defensive corps. Yukin, undrafted, played in the games Monday and Friday for a combined 24 minutes and 49 seconds over two games.

Upcoming schedule: Tuesday against SKA St. Petersburg and Thursday against Dinamo Minsk

Rico Gredig played two games this week, and recorded his first point. After his move from HC Davos to EV Zug, the 2024 sixth-round pick appeared in all four of his new team's games. On Tuesday, Gredig took an early penalty that led to the game's first goal on the ensuing powerplay. He was overall quiet offensively, but early in the second period, Gredig took a high stick to the face and drew a double-minor penalty since he was bleeding. Zug was unfortunately not able to capitalize on the extended man advantage.

On Friday, the 21-year-old forward recorded his first point, an assist on the first goal of the game. Gredig skated the puck up the ice creating an odd-man rush, that led to the goal by Chris Egli. Unfortunately, it was not enough as Zug lost 5-3 and Gredig finished the game with a minus-1 rating in 14:02 TOI.

Upcoming schedule: Tuesday against SC Rapperswil-Jona Lakers and Thursday against Genève-Servette HC

Over in Slovakia, the reigning champions HK Nitra are off to a very poor start, with a 1-3-1 record after five games. Tomáš Chrenko has just one assist in those five games, a surprise after his strong showing for the Rangers in the Rookie Series against Philadelphia Flyers prospects.

In the showdown Friday against second-place Vlci Zilina, Chrenko's team picked up its first win of the season, a 3-1 triumph. Despite not recording any points, Chrenko had four shots on goal in just under 13 minutes of ice-time, his lowest of the season so far.

On Sunday, the 18-year-old forward recorded his first point of the season with an assist on the final goal of the game in a 4-2 loss. With 16 minutes and 35 seconds of ice-time, Chrenko was back in a more familiar role. The loss saw HK Nitra drop to 10th in the league, out of 12 teams.

Upcoming schedule: Tuesday against HK 32 Liptovsky Mikulas and Friday against Dukla Michalovce

Samuel Jung – KalPa Hockey (Liiga/SM Sarja)

Good news out of Finland, where Jung, the Czech winger, is back in game action. The 20-year-old who was selected in the sixth round in the 2025 draft, moved from Kärpät in Oulu, the third northernmost city in the world with a population of just over 100,000, down south to KalPa in Kuopio. During the preseason, Jung was injured when hit into the boards by Victor Lööf. He was out with an unspecified injury until this past week.

KalPa eased Jung back by having him play for their under-20 team on Saturday, when they took on HPK from Hämeenlinna. In a thrilling battle, the game went to overtime with a 5-5 score, and that's when Jung scored the winner. It was his fifth shot on goal, and this one finally found the back of the net. He finished with 19:23 TOI, second most by a forward, in his season debut.

Upcoming schedule: Thursday against SaiPa u20 and Friday against KooKoo u20

Mikkel Eriksen – Mora IK (HockeyAllsvenskan)

A week ago, it was announced that Rangers prospect Eriksen, a fourth round selection in the 2025 NHL Draft, was loaned out by his club Färjestad BK. His new team, Mora IK, is a familiar one to the 19-year old Norwegian center, since he spent time there last season on loan as well. His new club plays hockey in Allsvenskan, the second tier of Swedish hockey. It is very common for young players to be loaned out, often on short-term deals, to get playing time. Sweden's system is promotion-relegation, so the two leagues are a lot closer than the major vs minor league system in North America.

Since his arrival, Eriksen appeared in all three games, and centered the second line. He made his season debut on Wednesday in a 3-2 shootout loss to MoDo Hockey. He played 14 and 17 minutes in the following two games. Despite not recording any points, it is worth pointing out that his line did produce three goals last week, one of which coming from former Rangers prospect Oliver Tärnström. He was 12-for-27 on face-offs, struggling a bit on the draw against tougher and bigger opponents.

Upcoming schedule: Wednesday against Nybro Vikings IF and Friday against Kalmar HC

Rasmus Larsson – Hudiksvalls HC (HockeyEttan)

The final prospect to cover is a player who's been in the Rangers organization for three years, but has not been able to really raise expectations. Rasmus Larsson was picked in the fifth round of the 2023 NHL Draft. After a year in the USHL with the Green Bay Gamblers, followed by a freshman year in college with Northern Michigan, Larsson transferred to Robert Morris University ahead of the 2025-26 season, and this past summer decided to go back to Sweden.

The team he plays for, Hudiksvalls HC, finished first in HockeyEttan last season, the third tier of Swedish hockey. Teams can be promoted into the second tier HockeyAllsvenskan, but it's a hard barrier to cross. At this level, the 22-year old left-handed defenseman made his season debut on Saturday, and he scored a goal to go along with three shots in a 7-1 win. Sunday, his team won in a shootout for a 2-1 victory.

Upcoming schedule: Friday against Norrtälje IK