The Jets announced that they’ve recalled defense prospect Alfons Freij from his loan to Timrå IK of the Swedish Hockey League and have sent him to AHL Manitoba to finish the season. Timrå’s campaign ended with the conclusion of the SHL’s regular season last weekend, finishing 12th out of 14 teams – not enough for a postseason play-in opportunity but not low enough to face relegation.
Freij, 20, was an early second-rounder in 2024, going 37th overall. He spent the entire season in Swedish juniors with the Växjö Lakers’ under-20 club. For his post-draft season, Växjö chose not to keep him on their main roster and instead loaned him to second-tier pro club IF Björkloven. He thus didn’t make his top-level pro debut until he signed a two-year contract with Timrå last summer.
He signed his entry-level deal with Winnipeg a couple of months into the offseason after inking with Timrå, but since he wasn’t a first-round pick, the NHL’s transfer agreement with the SHL required that he be offered back to his Swedish team before being sent to the AHL. All parties involved were happy to offer Freij another year of development in Europe to get accustomed to top-level play as a pro.
The 6’1″, 198-lb lefty was viewed as one of the best skaters among defenders in the 2024 class. He finished this year with six goals, 11 points, and a -6 rating in 42 games with Timrå. That may not jump off the page, but point totals rarely do among young defenders in that league. He was excellent for the Swedes in their march to gold at this year’s World Juniors, posting seven assists and a +6 rating in seven games.
Freij checked in as the #7 prospect in Winnipeg’s system last summer, according to Daily Faceoff’s Steven Ellis. When the yearly reports come out this year, there will likely be some upward movement, since several names ahead of him have taken steps backward in the AHL this season. The fact that Manitoba hasn’t proven to be an effective development environment recently could be a concern for Freij’s path, but considering he’s already established himself as a professional overseas, he arrives as more of a finished product than other higher-drafted Jets prospects who turned pro straight out of junior hockey.