Playing Style
Edler plays in the style of an offensive defenceman. One of his strongest offensive assets is his slapshot. At the Canucks' 2008 SuperSkills event, he beat the team's reigning hardest shooter, Sami Salo, with a 99.3 mile-per-hour shot and has gone on to win the competition in 2009 and 2010, as well. He is also known for his poise and confidence with the puck, allowing him to make strong first passes out of the defensive zone to forwards. Many within the Canucks organization, such as assistant coach Rick Bowness, have asserted this as a reflection of his calm off-ice demeanor.
Despite Edler's imposing physical characteristics, he was not known to be an aggressive defender early in his NHL career. However, he has gradually shown a capability for physicality and to hit opposing players hard. Looking back on his transition to North American hockey with the Kelowna Rockets, Edler noted the most difficult adjustment was the physical aspect of the game, which was more pronounced than in Sweden. During the Canucks' 2011 playoff run, teammate Kevin Bieksa compared him to Edler's former defensive partner, Mattias Ohlund, commenting "He was like Bambi when he first came into the league but now he realized how big and strong he is. When he hits guys, he hurts them."
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