2024 Top 25 Under 25: Daniela Pejšová (20), Maja Nylén Persson (19)

20: Daniela Pejšová

by J Gray

On June 10, 2024, Daniela Pejšová became the the second European and the first Czech player to be selected in the top ten of the PWHL Draft. She was also the subject of the first draft pick trade in league history: PWHL Boston traded up from the tenth pick to take her at seven. Already a polished professional at age 21, Boston is hoping that Pejšová will be a powerful force on their blue line as she acclimates to North America.

2023-24 Season

Pejšová will join PWHL Boston on the heels of winning her second SDHL Championship in two years. She finished with 12 points in 34 games for Luleå HF on a blueline that included one of hockey's all-time greats in Jenni Hiirikoski. She regularly played on the team’s second pair with Finnish national team player Ronja Savolainen, with whom she developed great chemistry. Prior to the draft, Savolainen told the media that Pejšová was “the best [player] I have [played] with so far in my career,” and both women said they hoped to play together. Unfortunately for the two of them and for North American fans, Savolainen was taken immediately after Pejšová with the eighth pick by PWHL Ottawa. 

At the international level, Pejšová returned to her post on Czechia’s top pairing at the 2024 Women’s World Championship. Although the team lost in the shootout in the bronze medal game, putting an end to their two-year medal run, she had a good tournament. Pejšová’s two goals were good for second on the squad, and she was one of the most composed players on the team at both ends of the ice.

Past and Future

Daniela Pejšová was only 16 years old in 2018 when she left Czechia for Örnsköldsvik, Sweden to play in the Swedish Women’s Hockey League. She played in ten games for MoDo Hockey and scored six points. She also played in 41 games with the Czech Under-18 and senior national teams, already heavily involved with the program that she would later help lead to glory.

Over the next few years, Pejšová’s star continued to rise. She was named a Top-3 Player for the Czechia U18 squad in 2020 and took steps forward with MoDo in 2021 and 2022, culminating with a trip to Czechia’s first Olympics in Beijing. Later that year, she was named Best Defender at the 2022 Women's World Championship, leading all blueliners in goals and points as she helped Czechia win their first ever medal in the top division. 

At age 21, Pejšová has already spent six seasons playing professional hockey in one of the top leagues in the world and seven seasons playing for her country at the highest levels. Although she will be one of the youngest players to take the ice in the PWHL this fall, she will not be unprepared. The SDHL has been playing with full contact for the last two years, and Pejšová will bring aggression and physicality along with the rest of her toolbox. She is already a smart player with good vision and better skating, and she’ll be able to move the puck up the ice the way Boston needs. The real question is, how much better can she get?

Ranking

I will forever say that defenders are underrated in rankings like this one, but I think the boost from being drafted so high canceled that out in our ranking. Pejšová has never been the highest-scoring defender, but there is a lot of value in her defensive and off-the-puck play. I’d say 20 is just about right.

19: Maja Nylén Persson

by Meredith Foster

It's hard to believe Nylén Persson is only 23 years old: longtime women's hockey fans will remember her senior debut with the Damkronorna in the 2016-2017 season at 16 years old, the same year she played her second U18 tournament. Even then she attracted plenty of well-deserved buzz, and she's only gotten better as her development has continued. She's won the SDHL's Defender of the Year award three years running, no small feat in a league with blue line powerhouses like Jenni Hiirikoski and Ronja Savolainen.

2023-24 Season

Last season as captain of Brynäs IF in the SDHL, Nylén Persson racked up 38 points (11 goals, 27 assists) in 36 regular-season games, making her the league's top-scoring defender in both assists and total points. She and her frequent defense partner Sára Čajanová played largely as the team's top pairing. Both of them were nominated for the SDHL's Defender of the Year award, the only d-pair to feature twice on the list.

Internationally, she was named a Top Three Player on Team Sweden at the 2024 World Championships.

Past and Future

Nylén Persson started her pro career as a young teenager with Leksands IF in the 2014-2015 season back when the SDHL was still known as Riksserien. She made her Olympic debut in 2018 as the youngest member of the Swedish squad. Despite Sweden's dismal showing under rightfully-maligned head coach Leif Boork, Nylén Persson manages to put up a pair of points.

After five seasons in Leksand, Nylén Persson moved to Brynäs IF in 2019, one of several high-end players the team acquired as part of their push towards equity and success on the women's side. Although the team has made several serious bids for an SDHL championship over the past five years, the golden helmets remain elusive and Nylén Persson and her teammates have had to settle for silver.

Looking ahead, Nylén Persson just signed a three-year contract with PWHL New York. They selected her 10th overall at the 2024 PWHL Draft, making her the highest-drafted Swedish player in league history.

Ranking

Considering we've been talking about her as an exceptional defender since her mid teens and she has a shiny three-year deal, 19 feels too low. Even without the COVID pandemic, the past eight years have been quite tumultuous for Team Sweden yet Nylén Persson has continued her upward trajectory. Buckle up, New York. You're getting a good one.