Leon Muggli: The Best Kept Secret in the 2024 NHL Draft?

A sleeper in the 2024 Draft Class: Could Leon Muggli be the next rising star from Switzerland?

PHOTO: KEYSTONE/PHILIPP SCHMIDLI

Leon Muggli entered this season as an unknown, hidden in the shadow of the popular Swiss Titan, Daniil Ustinkov. Muggli was the captain of the U17 Swiss Roster last year, with 9 points in 21 games, as well as 8 points in 22 games in the U20-Elit. He also got into some games with the U18 Worlds, playing 5 games at the end of last season.

However, Muggli didn't stay in that shadow for long. After an unfortunate injury to Nico Gross, EV Zug needed a defenseman, and U20-Elit defender, Leon Muggli, stepped up and never looked back. He found immediate chemistry as a seventh defenseman, gluing and supporting any defender, right or left-handed, he played with. A level of intelligence, adaptability, and defensive safety kept him in this role, even after Nico Gross returned.

While the points didn't jump off the screen, he began the season playing upwards of 15 minutes per game, securing a relatively consistent bottom-four role. Zug, a no-nonsense system, would see him playing 5-9 minute games scattered throughout the season. Despite being healthy scratched a few times after the World Juniors, Leon Muggli found himself playing 18:58 against Champions League Winners, Genève-Servette, and 14 minutes against 2nd seed and National League title runner-ups, Lausanne HC, totally putting faith and trust into Leon Muggli leading into the playoffs.

Offensive Contributions

Muggli's offensive profile is characterized by his brilliant playmaking ability. He thinks the game at an incredibly efficient level, with the handling and distribution skills to match. Even in one of the toughest professional leagues in the world, he was second all-time in points among draft-year defensemen with 12 in 42 games, slightly outpacing Roman Josi's 0.23 points per game.

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His game is marked by mobility, and moving the puck is no different. He often sees lanes a second before making a decision, without needing much scanning. He moves the puck around the perimeter and isn't afraid to use his edges to cut wide and make successful passes to inside danger areas. I would like him to continue showing this more, taking more risks with slot passes as the season progresses.

In the Swiss National League, the pressure comes quickly, and he does a great job keeping the play engaged and active at the point. He uses a combination of edgework, stick-handling, and a variety of passing tools and shot potential to keep opponents guessing.

A lesser-talked-about aspect of Muggli's offensive creation is his dynamism. Often regarded as a safe, reliable defenseman with a limited ceiling, he frequently jumped into the play, sacrificing defensive position to create offense in danger areas. He's a passer at heart, looking for key options in the high slot and tap-in areas that he rarely misses. He uses slick handling and excellent four-way mobility to stay elusive and active on the point.

Transition Play

Muggli excels at exiting the zone, largely due to his passing ability and top-notch mobility. He plays very calm and cool under pressure, and his high-end hockey sense aids this greatly. Even in the playoffs against a titan like ZSC, he never panics under pressure, sometimes to his own fault. At times he's too patient to move the puck, which can halt the play's progression and force forwards to reposition. He should adopt a more aggressive, tape-to-tape approach, as he often relies on well-placed air clears to play it safe. When he gets going at top speed, he's dynamic in all three zones with the puck.

His ability to sense pressure is top-tier, consistently scanning and staying engaged with or without the puck. Although his zone entries need work, as seen with the transition numbers tracked by Lassi Alanen, this is largely due to system structure and confidence. I'd like to see him weave through traffic into zone entries more in the future, as the dump-in-chase Zug system makes it hard to transfer over as a transition defender in the NHL.

His skating will need to become more explosive. His first step out of stride is a step behind, often making him the second man into the puck battle and positioning himself at a disadvantage. Though he does this exceedingly well, the explosiveness will be crucial as a mobile defenseman in the NHL.

Defensive Contributions

At 6'0 and 176 lbs, Muggli lacks the physical strength to dominate against men, but don't tell him that because he doesn't care. Finishing every check, playing mean, defending his teammates and goalies in the slot, and fighting hard in the corners, it's hard to find many players in this draft class who work harder than him in the defensive zone.

He takes a passive approach to coverage due to the man-on-man system Zug implements, but he does a great job covering his man. Early in the season, he often left the slot unopposed, but that changed in the playoffs. Whether against a mean forechecking team in Bern or a heavily NHL-alumni-stacked team in ZSC, he didn't give them any easy outs. Many prospects stand beside a player and say "he's covered," but Muggli actually covers the player aggressively. He uses his body position and stick to tie up the slot man extremely well, always playing on the inside lane, giving himself an immediate advantage. He has a quick mind, seeing transition lanes before they happen.

Muggli does a great job killing rush plays with solid, square-to-the-opponent technique. As the season progressed, he also became more confident in pushing rushers to the boards. His lateral movement contains forwards well, and he has the intelligence to transition the puck up-ice immediately after stripping it from the rusher.

This explosive step carries over here as well. Muggli would benefit from a quicker start out of pivots to get to the puck faster as the rusher dumps it in. While he uses his body position excellently, and his stick and core strength to box forwards out, much of this work would be avoided if he could win the puck race. This passive, man-on-man approach also allows for some coasting in the defensive zone. This isn't very projectable to the NHL level, as occasionally he and his defenseman lose track of who has whom, leading to dangerous opportunities against.

What Do You Have?

Muggli brings a steep development curve and high intelligence to any prospect pool. Even top-level players have had a tough time containing him in the offensive zone and stopping him in transition.

His playmaking vision, handling, developing shot from the point, and intelligence make him a threat in any zone and situation. This is why a 176-lb 17-year-old was killing penalties for one of the best teams in the NL. He's always engaged and in motion, fluidly rotating in the offensive zone, joining rushes, looking for danger areas, and fiercely defending any rush chances. Not only is he not afraid to hit, he loves it, hitting at any chance he gets and utilizing a strong reverse hit when defending dump-in-chase efforts.

Whichever team drafts Leon Muggli will get a reliable, intelligent defender who can carry a third-pair penalty kill or support a top pair in a playmaking role. His progression will be exciting to follow next year as he continues to develop and make his mark in professional hockey.