Marco Kasper – the youngest Player of the Year in the history of “Powerplay”

Just 18 years old, a Champions Hockey League winner, eighth overall in the NHL Draft, with three goals and four assists in 16 international appearances – we are talking about Marco Kasper, who finished second behind Marco Rossi in last year’s Player of the Year vote. By winning this year’s vote, the Sweden-based player not only receives the award for the first time, but also becomes the youngest Player of the Year in the history of the vote. With Anna Meixner in 2nd place, a woman is also on the podium for the first time!

15 March 20233 min read

Marco Kasper: “I am very grateful for this award. It is incredibly cool to win this trophy. Being Player of the Year at such a young age means a lot to me. I will continue to work hard to inspire young players and put myself in contention for this award in the years to come.”

2022 was remarkable for Marco Kasper in many respects. The Carinthian made his debut for Rögle BK’s (SWE) senior team on 21 January 2021, spending 11:35 on the ice. In the 2021/2022 season, he was already a regular in the team, recording ten goals and eight assists in 59 SHL (Svenska Hockeyligan) games, including the playoffs.

He also played another twelve games in the Champions Hockey League, contributing a further two goals and four assists. The team reached the final, where they claimed the title in front of a home crowd on 1 March 2022 with a 2:1 victory over Tappara Tampere (FIN).

A few weeks later, Tampere marked another major milestone in his still young career. During the World Championship group stage, Kasper impressed for Austria against every opponent, more than held his own against the top nations, only lost to the USA in overtime and celebrated a historic 2:1 shootout victory over the Czech Republic.

The 5:3 win over Great Britain secured their place in the top division. By then, Marco Kasper’s name had long been noted in every NHL scout’s notebook. His performances at the World Championship, at the latest, made him a strong first-round candidate.

And that is exactly what happened: on 7 July 2022, the Detroit Red Wings selected Marco Kasper eighth overall. NHL legend Steve Yzerman himself announced the Klagenfurt native’s selection.

Just a few days later, he signed his “Entry Level Contract”, but was to remain focused on Rögle for the season. And so far, the second-highest Austrian NHL draft pick in history (note: Thomas Vanek was selected fifth overall in 2003) has done so in impressive fashion, with eight goals and 15 assists in the league, as well as four goals and five assists in the Champions Hockey League.

Marco Kasper turns 19 on 8 April and is therefore 14 days younger than Benjamin Baumgartner, who was named Player of the Year in 2019, making the Carinthian the youngest “Player of the Year” in the history of “Powerplay”.

Anna Meixner in second place

Also playing in Sweden for Brynäs IF, Anna Meixner is the first woman to make the top three. In the SDHL (Svenska damhockeyligan), she is chasing the scoring title and currently has 26 goals and 27 assists.

The podium is completed by David Reinbacher, who secured 3rd place ahead of Peter Schneider, Dominique Heinrich and last year’s winner Marco Rossi.

A detailed interview with Marco Kasper can be found in this week’s current issue of Powerplay magazine.

Also:

ÖEHV President Klaus Hartmann talks about current developments in Austrian ice hockey and within the federation
Head Coach Roger Bader discusses the World Championship, his career and what inspires him
Anna Meixner, the first woman on the podium in the Player of the Year vote
Dream Team Austria
win2day ICE Hockey League and Alps Hockey League enter the playoffs
Ö Eishockey Liga takes off in its second year
All the key federation and ice hockey news, including women’s ice hockey and para ice hockey from Austria
Ice hockey in Spain
"Whatever happened to..." with Dieter Kalt
and much more...