Free agent forward Joe Snively has signed a one-year contract with Djurgardens IF, the Swedish team announced via press release on Wednesday.
Snively has spent most of his career in the Capitals organization after initially signing an entry-level contract with Washington in March 2019. He signed a couple of more contracts with the Caps, including a two-year, one-way deal in 2022, before reaching unrestricted free agency last summer. The 29-year-old spent last season with the Red Wings on a two-way deal, clearing waivers during training camp and spending the entirety of the campaign on assignment to AHL Grand Rapids.
In his last three seasons for the Capitals, Snively appeared in a total of 27 NHL regular-season games, scoring six goals and 11 points in 11:40 of ice time per contest.
A diminutive 5’9″ left-winger who was an ECAC All-Star at Yale, Snively will play international hockey for the first time after three seasons of junior hockey with USHL Sioux City, four collegiate seasons, and six full professional campaigns in the NHL and AHL.
Snively had hovered around a point per game for AHL Hershey while in Washington’s system in recent years, but he managed only 21 goals and 47 points in 72 games for Grand Rapids in 2024-25. It’s not surprising to see Detroit show little interest in retaining him as a result.
The Virginia native pauses his AHL career with 219 points in 292 career minor-league games over the last seven years. He joins a Djurgarden team, likely headlined by 2025 No. 3 overall pick Anton Frondell, if he doesn’t make the Blackhawks’ roster, which is looking to stick in the top-level SHL after gaining promotion from the HockeyAllsvenskan, Sweden’s second-tier pro league, this year.
Snively Whiplash!