Prospect Notes: Hallander, Fiddler, Ivankovic

Pittsburgh Penguins winger Filip Hallander has returned to his home country of Sweden for training after recovering from a blood clot per Seth Rorabaugh of Trib Live. Hallander only played in 16 games this season – 13 in the NHL and three in the AHL – due to the blood clot.

Bad health kept Hallander from playing through his NHL rookie season – his next step after posting 89 points in 102 games through two seasons in Sweden’s SHL. Hallander found his confidence in Sweden and looked to return a much more capable play-driver, after getting his first taste of the AHL between 2021 and 2023.

Hallander began the season with Pittsburgh and scored four points, before a three-game scoring lull earned him a bump to the minors. He added one more point with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton before being removed from the lineup.

Hallander is a confident puck-mover who uses his skill to beat defenders and rack up points. He has yet to prove that talent at the top flight, though he does have 62 points in 107 career AHL games. He will be evaluated by the Penguins for availability at 2026-27 training camp upon returning from Sweden. If he is cleared by doctors, next season could be Hallander’s first chance to dig his feet into an NHL role.

Other notes out of the prospect world:

• Seattle Kraken prospect Blake Fiddler has announced his commitment to the University of Denver. He will join a strong cohort of young defensemen headed to the National Championship winners, alongside top 2026 draft prospect Ben MacBeath and Ryan Lin. Fiddler offers a confident bit of puck-movement and physicality, blending well with Lin’s dynamo offense and MacBeath’s strong defensive presence. Their additions will give Denver more than enough to make up for the loss of Hobey Baker Award finalist and San Jose Sharks prospect Eric Pohlkamp. Fiddler, a Texas native, racked up 11 goals and 36 points in 63 games with the WHL’s Edmonton Oil Kings this season. He carved out a second-pair role and posted a career-high plus-23.
• Sticking with college hockey, Nashville Predators prospect and University of Michigan starter Jack Ivankovic will join Team Canada at the World Championship per Daily Faceoff’s Jeff Marek. This will be a golden chance for Ivankovic to prove his iron man abilities after missing a chunk of the season due to a lower-body injury. Ivankovic returned well ahead of schedule from that injury and led Michigan to a Frozen Four semi-final loss against the eventual championship-winning Denver Pioneers. The second-round draft pick set 25 wins and a .921 save percentage in 35 games with Michigan this season. His performance marked the most wins from a goaltender under the age of 19 since Tyler Wall posted 26 wins with UMass-Lowell in 2017 and Billy Sauer posted 25 wins with Michigan in 2007.