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Marcus Hogberg

Islanders Activate Marcus Högberg From Injured Reserve

March 9, 2025 at 10:37 am CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment

The Islanders will be a bit deeper between the pipes as they continue to make an improbable push for a playoff spot. The team has activated netminder Marcus Högberg from injured reserve ahead of tonight’s game against the Ducks, per Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News. The team reassigned goalie Jakub Skarek to AHL Bridgeport in a corresponding move.

Högberg, 30, will likely get his first start since Jan. 25 after Ilya Sorokin made 38 saves on 40 shots in last night’s win over the Sharks. He missed 14 games with an upper-body injury, pressing pause on a strong run of play since the veteran was recalled from Bridgeport in December to replace the still-injured Semyon Varlamov as Sorokin’s backup. The Swede only made five starts and two relief appearances over two months while Sorokin got the vast majority of the workload, but was excellent when called upon with a .947 SV% and 1.45 GAA.

New York signed Högberg to a two-year, $1.55MM deal last May to serve as veteran insurance behind Sorokin and Varlamov. The deal marked the former Senators depth netminder’s return to the NHL ranks after spending three years starting for Linköping HC in the Swedish Hockey League, including SHL Goalie of the Year and MVP honors in 2023-24. His time in Bridgeport out of the gate didn’t go well, posting a 3.26 GAA and .898 SV% in 11 games with a 2-5-3 record, but he’s redeemed his stock with his strong showing in limited NHL action.

He’s an undeniable upgrade down the stretch over the 25-year-old Skarek, who finally made his NHL debut in Högberg’s absence in his sixth season in the Isles organization. The 2018 third-round pick allowed five goals on 39 shots in a start and relief appearance, equating to a .872 SV% and 3.94 GAA. The Czechia native has failed to post a SV% north of .900 in any league since the 2018-19 campaign, when he logged a .906 in 22 games for Liiga’s Pelicans. A No. 4 option at best at this stage of his career, he’ll return to a minor-league role down the stretch as he hurtles toward Group VI unrestricted free agency this summer.

Health permitting, Högberg will likely serve as Sorokin’s backup for the remainder of the season. Varlamov is doubtful to return in 2024-25 due to the lower-body injury that’s kept him out since early December, general manager Lou Lamoriello told NHL.com yesterday.

New York Islanders| Transactions Jakub Skarek| Marcus Hogberg

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Islanders Issue Updates On Multiple Long-Term Injuries

February 1, 2025 at 5:20 pm CDT | by Gabriel Foley 2 Comments

New York Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello met with the media on Saturday morning to provide updates on the team’s endless injury list, captured by NHL.com’s Rachel Luscher. Most notably, Lamoriello shared that backup goaltender Semyon Varlamov has stopped skating on his own or taking shots after a setback in his lower-body injury. Lamoriello dubbed Varlamov as now out indefinitely and referred to his recovery as “a total rehab situation”.

Varlamov has been out of the lineup for over two months but very little about his injury has come to the surface. His last appearance was an overtime loss to the Washington Capitals on November 29th where Varlamov – despite allowing five goals – didn’t seem to suffer a noticeable injury. But he was pulled from skating the following morning, moved to injured reserve on December 14th, then moved to long-term injured reserve five days later. He seemed to be on the rebound when the new year rolled around, returning to skating and individual drills on January 2nd. But after a month of light action, Varlamov still needs more time to recover. He’ll head back to the shelf, forcing the Islanders to continue searching for a backup.

Unfortunately, that search will be made significantly tougher by an injury to Varlamov’s fill-in, Marcus Hogberg, who Lamoriello shared will miss the next four weeks with an upper-body injury. Hogberg was originally injured on January 26th and moved to injured reserve the following day. He’ll now sit out through the two-week break 4-Nations Face-Off from February 9th to February 22nd. Hogberg was in the midst of a small resurgence before going down with injury. He made his return to North American pros with a two-way deal with the Islanders this summer, after spending the last three seasons starting for Linkopings HC of Sweden’s SHL. Hogberg started the year with middling numbers in the AHL – a 2-5-3 record and .898 save percentage in 11 games – but found his momentum in the wake of Varlamov’s injury.

Starter Ilya Sorokin has been New York’s bell-cow, but in seven games relieving him, Hogberg has managed a dazzling, team-leading .947 save percentage. It’s the highest save percentage of his North American career, ignoring sample size. But now, Hogberg will join Varlamov on the absentee list – and force the Islanders to find yet another replacement. After succeeding him as AHL starter, Jakub Skarek has also filled Hogberg’s role of NHL backup in light of his injury. Skarek hasn’t yet made his NHL debut, but he nonetheless seems cushy at the top flight – with Henrik Tikkanen and Hunter Miska both posting save percentages below .840 in their own elevated, minor-league roles.

Moving out of the net, Lamoriello also shared that the team is still unsure when defenseman Mike Reilly will return after undergoing a heart procedure in November. Reilly has been skating on his own since December 14th – just over a month after his surgery – but hasn’t progressed since then. Lamoriello added that Reilly’s situation will be dictated by his doctors. The 31-year-old defenseman is in his second season with the Islanders. He scored a career-high 24 points in 59 games last season, serving as an impactful third-pair option for a deprived Islanders defense. He seemed headed for a cushier role this year, but struggled to manage any scoring through the first 11 games of the season – then fell to injury. Reilly seems to have a winding recovery ahead of him, which could limit his chance to earn another deal when his $1.25MM cap hit expires this summer.

Ending on a positive note, top Islanders defensemen Noah Dobson and Ryan Pulock are both expected to return to skating drills during the 4-Nations break, per Andrew Gross of Newsday Sports. Dobson has missed the Islanders’ last four games and earned a spot on long-term injured reserve with a lower-body injury; while Pulock has missed two games and been placed on standard IR with an upper-body injury. The pair of absences have driven the Islanders to acquire both Scott Perunovich and Adam Boqvist via trade and waivers respectively. This news will lock the new acquisitions into the lineup until the two-week break – but hopefully the blue-line can return to full-health soon after that.

AHL| Injury| NHL| New York Islanders Marcus Hogberg| Mike Reilly| Noah Dobson| Ryan Pulock| Semyon Varlamov

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Islanders Place Ryan Pulock, Marcus Högberg On Injured Reserve

January 27, 2025 at 9:23 am CDT | by Josh Erickson Leave a Comment

Islanders defenseman Ryan Pulock and goaltender Marcus Högberg have both landed on injured reserve after leaving Saturday’s overtime win over the Hurricanes with upper-body injuries, the team announced. There’s no corresponding transaction yet for Pulock, but the team recalled goalie Jakub Skarek from AHL Bridgeport to temporarily replace Högberg as Ilya Sorokin’s backup.

Pulock and Högberg will miss at least three games due to their IR placements, which are retroactive to Saturday. They’ll be eligible to return on Feb. 2 against the Panthers, although, without further clarity on either’s injury, there’s no indication whether they’ll be medically cleared by then.

Pulock got hurt on his first shift against the Canes, falling awkwardly behind the net as he got tangled up with Carolina winger Jackson Blake. He favored his left shoulder as he left the ice. Högberg, meanwhile, played all of regulation but didn’t come out for overtime after a right-hand injury sustained midway through the third period was actively getting worse, head coach Patrick Roy told Stefen Rosner of The Hockey News. Sorokin thus came in relief, recording the win despite making just one save in overtime.

These are crater-sized blows for the Isles, who are now without their top two right-shot defensemen and are down to their third-best backup option. Pulock joins Noah Dobson as inactive, and PuckPedia reflects that the latter was moved to long-term injured reserve yesterday to add some cap flexibility after the Tony DeAngelo signing. That move ensures Dobson won’t return before the 4 Nations Face-Off break with his right leg injury – not that he was expected to – and also rules him out of their first game back against the Stars on Feb. 23. He’ll be out of action for almost another month at the very least, with his earliest eligible return date standing as Feb. 25 against the Rangers.

Pulock, 30, had yet to miss a game this season after sitting out over a quarter of 2023-24 with a lower-body issue. The Manitoba native had three goals and 13 assists for 16 points with a plus-seven rating through 48 games, continuing a run of seven straight seasons in the black. He’s averaged just shy of 22 minutes per game, and, as usual, his pairing with Adam Pelech has graded out as the Isles’ top shutdown unit at even strength. Pelech’s 1.9 GA/60 and Pulock’s 2.2 GA/60 are the two lowest marks among New York’s regular defensemen.

Scott Mayfield now slots in alongside Pelech as a top-four option with Pulock sidelined, while DeAngelo will likely continue alongside Alexander Romanov as Dobson’s short-term replacement. Depth defender Dennis Cholowski should re-enter the lineup alongside Isaiah George on the third pairing after sitting as a healthy scratch in three of the last four games. They don’t have any other defenders on the active roster to insert into the lineup but they opened a roster spot with Pulock’s IR replacement that they could use to recall one from AHL Bridgeport.

Högberg had been spotless as Sorokin’s backup for the past month while veteran Semyon Varlamov remains sidelined with a lower-body injury. The 30-year-old, who last played in the NHL with the Senators in 2020-21, has a 2-2-0 record in five starts and two relief appearances with a .947 SV% and 1.45 GAA. That’s a big jump on his AHL numbers from earlier in the year, as the Swede struggled behind a bad Bridgeport club to a .898 SV% and 3.26 GAA in 11 showings.

The Isles are hoping for a similar bump from Skarek, who could finally make his NHL debut after six AHL seasons. The 25-year-old was a third-round pick in 2018 but has never been a solid minor-league option, failing to record a save percentage above .900 at any level in a single season since his post-draft year in Finland. Through 20 appearances for Bridgeport this year, he has a 3.22 GAA, .895 SV%, one shutout, and a 5-11-1 record.

Varlamov resumed skating nearly a month ago, so his return likely isn’t too far off. Whether or not he’ll beat Högberg to it remains to be seen, though.

Images courtesy of USA Today Sports.

New York Islanders| Newsstand| Transactions Marcus Hogberg| Ryan Pulock

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Semyon Varlamov To Practice This Week

January 12, 2025 at 8:18 pm CDT | by Josh Cybulski Leave a Comment

Stefen Rosner of NHL.com is reporting that New York Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov is expected to return to team practice at some point this week. The update comes from Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello and is a bit of good news after the Islanders had a goaltending scare on Saturday when starter Ilya Sorokin fell ill, and the team had to start third-stringer goaltender Marcus Hogberg in net and recall Jakub Skarek on an emergency basis.

The situation ended up favorably, as Hogberg started last night against Utah and picked up the win by stopping 21 of 22 shots. Hogberg has given the Islanders some incredible play in Varlamov’s absence, posting a .950 save percentage and a goals saved above expected of 5.0 (as per Money Puck). However, the Islanders can’t rely on a third-string netminder long-term, and Varlamov’s return will represent an upgrade.

With the shuffling of goaltenders, the Islanders AHL affiliate in Bridgeport added to their goaltending depth by signing Hunter Miska to an AHL deal (as per Rosner). The 29-year-old had been playing in the KHL this season with Dynamo Moscow, registering a .908 save percentage and a 2.81 goals-against average in 14 games. The North Branch, Minnesota native hasn’t played in North America since the 2021-22 seasons and has spent much of his professional career in the AHL while he was a member of the Colorado Eagles. Miska does have six games of NHL experience, five of which were with the Avalanche and one with the Arizona Coyotes.

New York Islanders Hunter Miska| Marcus Hogberg| Semyon Varlamov

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Islanders Notes: Varlamov, Högberg, Pelech

December 5, 2024 at 9:39 am CDT | by Josh Erickson 1 Comment

Islanders goaltender Semyon Varlamov isn’t fully healed from his lower-body injury. The team announced that he’s been downgraded to day-to-day once again and will likely miss Thursday’s tilt against the Kraken.

Varlamov, 36, was given a day-to-day designation earlier in the week but could dress as Ilya Sorokin’s backup for Tuesday’s overtime loss to the Canadiens. However, the Russian veteran is now set to be unavailable for a game due to injury for the first time since missing nine contests with a lower-body issue in January last season.

It’s been quite a tough go of things this season for the former All-Star. After posting better numbers than Sorokin in limited usage last season, he’s nosedived to post a .889 SV%, 2.89 GAA, and -3.0 GSAA in 10 starts – his worst numbers since an injury-plagued 2016-17 campaign.

Per MoneyPuck, he’s posted -1.1 goals saved above expected compared to Sorokin’s 5.1 this season. It’s unclear if his downturn in play is due to the dreaded aging curve or if his injury has been lingering and affecting his performance.

The Islanders hope it’s the latter. Varlamov has two seasons left after this one on a four-year, $11MM deal he signed to remain as Sorokin’s backup in the summer of 2023.

More from the Isles today:

  • With Varlamov out, the Islanders have recalled Marcus Högberg from AHL Bridgeport on an emergency basis for the second time this week. He was sent down Tuesday before the Montreal game, so he’s yet to dress for an NHL contest this season, but that will change tonight as he backs up Sorokin against Seattle. The 30-year-old Swede has a 3.26 GAA, .898 SV%, and a 2-5-5 record in 11 games for Bridgeport this season, his first in North America since the 2020-21 campaign. No corresponding transaction is necessary with an open spot on the active roster.
  • Stalwart defenseman Adam Pelech took the ice for the first time today since sustaining a broken jaw at the beginning of November, Stefen Rosner of NHL.com reports. He was wearing a non-contact jersey and a full face shield, but it’s a crucial step for him to return within the next week and a half, as his initial timeline predicated. The 30-year-old has missed 15 games with the injury, during which time the Isles have gone 5-5-5 and now rank last in the Metropolitan Divison.

Injury| New York Islanders| Transactions Adam Pelech| Marcus Hogberg| Semyon Varlamov

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Islanders Notes: Pageau, Cizikas, Hogberg, Varlamov

December 3, 2024 at 7:18 pm CDT | by Josh Cybulski 1 Comment

Jean-Gabriel Pageau is in the lineup tonight for the New York Islanders (as per Newsday’s Andrew Gross). Pageau was deemed a game-time decision earlier in the day but ultimately dressed tonight against the Montreal Canadiens. The 32-year-old missed the last two games with a lower-body injury but skated yesterday and took line rushes at morning skate today.

Pageau is playing center tonight on the third line, sandwiched between Oliver Wahlstrom and Kyle MacLean. The Ottawa, Ontario native has five goals and five assists in 23 games this season and has posted some of the better underlying numbers of his career, despite his inflated turnover numbers.

In other New York Islanders notes:

  • Casey Cizikas is also in the Islanders lineup tonight against Montreal after missing the team’s morning skate today for undisclosed reasons (as per Andrew Gross of Newsday). Cizikas has struggled to contribute offensively this season, posting just a goal and an assist in 25 games.  The 33-year-old has long been one of the top defensive forwards in the NHL and continues to provide solid work away from the puck with 23 blocked shots and 53 hits thus far this year.
  • The Islanders have returned goaltender Marcus Hogberg to the Bridgeport Islanders of the American Hockey League. Hogberg was called up yesterday under emergency conditions to fill in for Semyon Varlamov who was day-to-day with a lower-body injury. Varlamov returned to New York’s lineup tonight (as per Andrew Gross) and the 30-year-old Hogberg is back in Bridgeport where he has posted a 2-4-3 record with a 2.97 goals-against average and a .908 save percentage. The Orebro, Sweden native spent five seasons playing in the Ottawa Senators organization before he made the trip home, spending the past three seasons in Sweden in the SHL. Hogberg does have 42 games of NHL experience but hasn’t suited up in an NHL game since April of 2021.

AHL| New York Islanders Casey Cizikas| Jean-Gabriel Pageau| Marcus Hogberg| Semyon Varlamov

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Islanders Recall Marcus Hogberg, Semyon Varlamov Day-To-Day

December 2, 2024 at 10:49 am CDT | by Gabriel Foley 1 Comment

The New York Islanders have recalled goaltender Marcus Hogberg under emergency conditions. He’ll fill in for backup Semyon Varlamov, who is day-to-day with a lower-body injury but is expected to travel with the team to Montreal. Varlamov played through New York’s Friday overtime-loss to the Washington Capitals and didn’t seem to suffer an injury. He backed up Ilya Sorokin’s shutout win on Saturday as well.

But it seems Varlamov may now need a break to ensure he’s at full health. The 36-year-old goaltender has appeared in 10 games this season, recording a 3-4-3 record and .889 save percentage. Varlamov has finished with a save percentage below .900 just once in his 17-year NHL career – when he managed a .898 in 24 games of the 2016-17 season. He more often finds his save percentage north of .910 – a mark he’s hit 12 different times, including his .918 in 28 games last season. Varlamov has been as consistent as a pro goaltender can be, making his losing record to start this season all the more surprising.

Hogberg has a chance to return to the NHL lineup should Varlamov step back. He’s spent the start of the season splitting AHL starts with Jakub Skarek. Both goalies have made 10 starts but Hogberg has the better stat line – posting a 2-4-3 record and .908 save percentage, to Skarek’s 3-7-0 record and .896 save percentage. Hogberg made a return to North American pros for this season after spending the last three years starting for Linkopings HC of Sweden’s SHL. He performed well in the role, playing at least 40 games and surpassing a .900 save percentage in each season. Hogberg combined for 59 wins and a .909 save percentage in 124 games over the three year stretch, picking up the tendency for strong play in Sweden that he showed prior to his 2016 move to North America. Hogberg played in 42 NHL games for the Ottawa Senators between 2018 and 2021 – recording nine wins and a .894.

AHL| Injury| NHL| New York Islanders| Transactions Marcus Hogberg| Semyon Varlamov

1 comment

Waiver Wire: 10/6/24

October 6, 2024 at 1:40 pm CDT | by Brennan McClain 25 Comments

Today is the major day for the waiver wire as most teams in the NHL are preparing the 23-man rosters for the 2024-25 NHL season. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman confirmed that all players on waivers from yesterday have cleared. The following list is each player placed on waivers this afternoon as reported by PuckPedia.

Boston Bruins

F Patrick Brown
G Brandon Bussi
G Jiri Patera
D Billy Sweezey
F Jeffrey Viel

Buffalo Sabres

D Kale Clague
G James Reimer
F Lukas Rousek

Calgary Flames

G Devin Cooley
F Jakob Pelletier
F Cole Schwindt

Carolina Hurricanes

F Josiah Slavin
D Ty Smith
F Ryan Suzuki

Chicago Blackhawks 

D Isaak Phillips

Detroit Red Wings

F Sheldon Dries
D Justin Holl
D William Lagesson
D Brogan Rafferty
F Joe Snively

Edmonton Oilers

D Josh Brown
F Drake Caggiula
F Raphael Lavoie
G Olivier Rodrigue

Los Angeles Kings

G Pheonix Copley
F Samuel Fagemo
F Jack Studnicka

Nashville Predators

D Marc Del Gaizo

New Jersey Devils

F Shane Bowers
D Nick DeSimone
F Nolan Foote
D Colton White

New York Islanders

D Samuel Bolduc
F Pierre Engvall
F Hudson Fasching
F Liam Foudy
G Marcus Hogberg
D Grant Hutton
F Fredrik Karlstrom
G Jakub Skarek

New York Rangers

D Matthew Robertson

Ottawa Senators

F Adam Gaudette
F Jan Jenik

Pittsburgh Penguins

D Sebastian Aho
F Bokondji Imama

St. Louis Blues

D Corey Schueneman
D Tyler Tucker

Tampa Bay Lightning

F Gage Goncalves
D Steven Santini
F Jesse Ylonen

Toronto Maple Leafs

G Matt Murray
D Marshall Rifai

Utah Hockey Club

G Matt Villalta

Vancouver Canucks

D Erik Brannstrom

Vegas Golden Knights

F Zach Aston-Reese
F Tanner Laczynski
F Jonas Rondbjerg

Washington Capitals

G Hunter Shepard

Winnipeg Jets

F Jaret Anderson-Dolan

Boston Bruins| Buffalo Sabres| Calgary Flames| Carolina Hurricanes| Chicago Blackhawks| DEL| Detroit Red Wings| Edmonton Oilers| Los Angeles Kings| Nashville Predators| New Jersey Devils| New York Islanders| New York Rangers| Ottawa Senators| Pittsburgh Penguins| St. Louis Blues| Tampa Bay Lightning| Toronto Maple Leafs| Transactions| Utah Mammoth| Vancouver Canucks| Vegas Golden Knights| Waivers| Washington Capitals| Winnipeg Jets Adam Gaudette| Billy Sweezey| Bokondji Imama| Brandon Bussi| Brogan Rafferty| Cole Schwindt| Colton White| Corey Schueneman| Devin Cooley| Drake Caggiula| Erik Brannstrom| Fredrik Karlstrom| Gage Goncalves| Grant Hutton| Hudson Fasching| Hunter Shepard| Isaak Phillips| Jack Studnicka| Jakob Pelletier| Jakub Skarek| James Reimer| Jan Jenik| Jaret Anderson-Dolan| Jeffrey Viel| Jesse Ylonen| Jiri Patera| Joe Snively| Jonas Rondbjerg| Josh Brown| Josiah Slavin| Justin Holl| Kale Clague| Liam Foudy| Lukas Rousek| Marc Del Gaizo| Marcus Hogberg| Marshall Rifai| Matt Murray (b. 1994)| Matt Villalta| Matthew Robertson| Nick DeSimone| Nolan Foote| Olivier Rodrigue| Patrick Brown| Pheonix Copley| Pierre Engvall| Raphael Lavoie| Ryan Suzuki| Samuel Bolduc| Samuel Fagemo| Sebastian Aho| Shane Bowers| Sheldon Dries| Steven Santini| Tanner Laczynski| Ty Smith| Tyler Tucker| William Lagesson| Zach Aston-Reese

25 comments

Islanders Sign Marcus Högberg To Two-Year Deal

May 7, 2024 at 9:19 am CDT | by Josh Erickson 3 Comments

May 7: The Islanders confirmed Högberg’s signing today, announcing a two-year deal for the veteran netminder. Per PuckPedia, the contract carries a $775K cap hit and is a two-way agreement in 2024-25 before converting to a one-way deal in 2025-26. Next season, he’ll earn a minor salary of $425K with a $550K guarantee.

April 29: In recent weeks, the Islanders have already been heavily linked to one international free agent, and it appears GM Lou Lamoriello isn’t done bringing in talent from overseas. They’re expected to bring in 29-year-old goalie Marcus Högberg from the Swedish Hockey League’s Linköping HC to bolster their depth at the position, Expressen’s Johan Svensson reports. A statement from Linköping last week confirming that Högberg was leaving for the NHL indicates it’s a two-year deal.

Högberg does have 35 NHL starts and seven relief appearances under his belt, all coming with the Senators between 2018-19 and 2020-21. The 6’5″ Swede was an Ottawa third-round pick in 2013 out of the Linköping organization but remained there for four seasons, finally signing his entry-level deal in March 2017. He spent his first season in North America entirely in the minors, splitting the campaign between AHL Belleville and ECHL Brampton.

The following season saw Högberg emerge as a full-time AHL netminder, holding the starting role with Belleville (.917 SV%, 2.32 GAA, 2 SO in 39 GP). With injuries piling up in the Ottawa crease around New Year’s Day in 2019, Högberg got his first NHL chance. He made four starts around the turn of the calendar, struggling with a .884 SV%, 4.09 GAA and 0-2-1 record.

Nonetheless, his strong showing with the B-Sens left the door open for more starts over the next two seasons, with goalie injuries a common occurrence in the Canadian capital. After inking a two-year, $1.4MM extension in June 2019, Högberg was the primary backup to starter Craig Anderson in the latter half of the 2019-20 campaign while veteran Anders Nilsson was out with a concussion that would ultimately end his career. He made a career-high 21 starts and three relief appearances in Nilsson’s absence, posting a serviceable .904 SV% and 3.12 GAA while compiling a 5-8-8 record.

While still below average, Högberg actually had the best results of any Sens netminder that year, saving 4.8 goals below expected compared to Anderson’s 6.7 and Nilsson’s 7.5, per MoneyPuck. That won him the backup job behind offseason trade acquisition Matt Murray heading into the shortened 2020-21 campaign, but he was unable to replicate the previous season’s performance. He only made 10 starts and four relief appearances, limited in part by a lower-body injury that cost him 15 games, but was one of the worst goalies in the league on a per-game basis. After logging a .876 SV%, 3.74 GAA and a whopping 11.9 goals saved below expected in only 642 minutes of action, the Senators didn’t issue him a qualifying offer when his contract was up and let him walk to unrestricted free agency.

He’d actually left Ottawa before qualifying offers were due, signing a four-year deal to return to Linköping in mid-June 2021. He’s held down the starting role ever since, posting solid but not elite numbers behind a middling team. 2023-24 was his best season since returning to Sweden, posting a .914 SV%, 2.51 GAA, four shutouts and a 21-18-0 record in 40 games as Linköping made the playoffs for the first time since 2018.

Högberg leaving for North America comes just a month and a half after he signed a three-year extension that would have kept him in Linköping through 2027-28. The NHL/SHL transfer agreement permits NHL clubs to buy players out of their existing SHL contracts, which the Islanders will need to do in this case.

While the Islanders have one of the better goalie tandems in the NHL in Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov, their minor-league depth is some of the worst. AHL Bridgeport was one of the worst clubs in the league this season, and poor play from New York third-stringer Jakub Skarek was a major factor. Skarek, 24, was a third-round pick of the Isles in 2018 but has consistently struggled since turning pro, failing to post an SV% above .900 in any of his five campaigns with Bridgeport. Högberg will provide a much better foundation between the pipes for the Islanders’ prospects in Bridgeport and will be the most reliable call-up option they’ve had behind Sorokin and Varlamov in the last few years.

New York Islanders| SHL| Transactions Marcus Hogberg

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Senators Will Not Extend Qualifying Offers To Six RFA’s

July 25, 2021 at 6:11 pm CDT | by Zach Leach 1 Comment

The deadline to extend qualifying offers to restricted free agents arrives on Monday, but the Ottawa Senators have already made their plans clear. The young team has no shortage of restricted free agents, but that list is about to be trimmed substantially. As relayed by the Ottawa Sun’s Bruce Garrioch, Senators GM Pierre Dorion has confirmed that forwards Michael Amadio, J.C. Beaudin, Jonathan Davidsson, and Jack Kopacka, defenseman Brandon Fortunato, and goaltender Marcus Hogberg will not receive qualifying offers. That group of six is nearly half of Ottawa’s current 14 restricted free agents.

The most notable name on the list is Hogberg, who served as the Senators’ primary backup goalie the past two seasons. However, he is also the least surprising inclusion on the list. The team informed the 26-year-old back in May that they would not qualify him and have stuck to that promise. Hogberg has struggled in the NHL and is expected to return to Sweden.

Perhaps the biggest surprise is Amadio, who would only require the minimum $750K salary to qualify. Acquired this season from the Los Angeles Kings for defenseman Christian Wolanin, Amadio has 173 NHL games on his resume including a 2018-19 campaign in which he scored at a full season pace of 12 goals and 25 points. One would think that this could be a useful player for the Senators to hold on to, at least for a full year, but instead they will move on quickly from the 25-year-old winger.

Kopacka was also new to Ottawa this season, acquired from the San Jose Sharks as part of the package for defenseman Christian Jaros, but has never played in the NHL and did little in the AHL to show he was worthy of a new contract. Beaudin, who saw 22 games with the Senators this season, seemingly did not do enough in his audition to stick with the club. Fortunato, the most expensive player to qualify despite having no NHL experience and unspectacular AHL numbers, and Davidsson, who is signed to a multi-year deal overseas, are not surprising inclusions on this list of soon-to-be former Senators.

If anything, this exodus of RFA’s from Ottawa implies that the Senators see better uses for their maximum 50 contract slots. With a deep pipeline of prospects, the team could be looking to bring younger, more exciting options into the fold this season in place of these aging, uninspiring players.

Los Angeles Kings| Ottawa Senators| Prospects| RFA| San Jose Sharks Christian Jaros| Christian Wolanin| J.C. Beaudin| Marcus Hogberg| Michael Amadio

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