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Victor Ejdsell

Chicago’s Jacob Nilsson To Return To Sweden

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Just two years after leaving his native Sweden, Chicago Blackhawks forward Jacob Nilsson is heading back. Farjestad BK of the SHL has announced that they have agreed to terms on a two-year contract with the 26-year-old forward. Nilsson, who signed a one-year extension with Chicago last year, was poised to become a restricted free agent this off-season but has seemingly already made his decision.

Nilsson, who Farjestad accurately calls a “late bloomer” in their press release, played in the junior and minor league levels in Sweden until 2017-18 when his former club, Mora IK, was promoted to the SHL. After just that one lone season, Nilsson’s strong two-way play caught the eye of the Blackhawks and earned him an entry-level contract. However, last season Nilsson appeared in just two games with Chicago and had not played in an NHL game this season.

With that said, Nilsson has been fairly productive in the AHL, recording 22 goals and 53 points over two seasons with the Rockford Ice Hogs. He may not have NHL ability, but Farjestad is excited to bring in the skilled center. He joins fellow Swede and former Blackhawks teammate Victor Ejdsell with his new club and they hope to lead Farjestad to a similar or better result as this season, in which the team finished second in regular seasons standings but lost their shot at a title due to the cancelled postseason.

Victor Ejdsell Returning To Sweden

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Sometimes it the grass isn’t greener on the other side. After being pursued heavily by several NHL teams in the spring of 2017, Victor Ejdsell has decided to return to Sweden after just a single full season in North America. The Chicago Blackhawks prospect has signed a two-year deal in the SHL.

Signed by the Nashville Predators in 2017, Ejdsell would stay in Sweden for most of the 2017-18 season to continue developing. While he was there the Blackhawks would acquire him as part of the return for Ryan Hartman, meaning his North American debut would come for the Rockford IceHogs. It didn’t take long for him to make the jump to the NHL, playing in six games for Chicago and recording one point. This season, he spent the entire year with the IceHogs but managed to tally just 29 points in 61 games.

A return to Sweden doesn’t come as much of a surprise, given the fact that Ejdsell’s NHL future wasn’t clear. It was obvious he couldn’t step right into a full-time role next season, but the Blackhawks have also added several other prospects of late that will challenge his playing time at the AHL level. Instead, he can now try to secure big minutes in the SHL where he played quite well in that 2017-18 season. By giving him a qualifying offer the Blackhawks will retain his rights, though it’s not clear if there is a future for him in the organization.

Western Notes: Peters, MacLean, Duclair, Niku, Suzuki

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While the rumor that former Carolina Hurricanes head coach Bill Peters is likely headed to Calgary, TSN’s Pierre LeBrun reports that the Dallas Stars had requested permission from Carolina to speak to Peters and did, but has decided that he isn’t a good fit for their coaching vacancy and is the front-runner for the Flames head coaching job. Postmedia’s Wes Gilbertson adds that the Flames were concerned about a better offer from Dallas, but the scribe writes that it is more and more certain the team will hire Peters.

“I’d like to work, I’d like to coach. I hope something is in place soon,” Peters said via Gilbertson.

While Peters was considered to be one of the top coaching prospects when he was hired by Carolina four years ago, he was never able to get them to the playoffs. The hope is that with four years of experience, the coach can take that next step with Calgary, who has a lot of talent and could be ready to make an impact next year.

  • LeBrun also said the Dallas Stars will be patient in their coaching search, but believes that the team will consider former Ottawa Senators head coach Paul MacLean as a candidate. The coach was 114-90-35 in three and a half seasons for Ottawa from 2011-2014. However, LeBrun admits there are many candidates on their coaching list.
  • Corey Snzjdjer of The Athletic (subscription required) writes the Chicago Blackhawks might not be able to retain restricted free agent Anthony Duclair. The 22-year-old acquired in January has a ton of potential, but can’t seem to put up much, in terms of points. He had two goals and six assists in 23 games until he suffered a knee injury that knocked him out for the last 13 games of the year. The scribe writes that because Duclair is on a one-year bridge deal, Chicago would have to match his $1.2MM salary, which might be too high of a price with all the young talent who could be brought in at cheaper salaries, including Vinnie Hinostroza, Victor Ejdsell and Dylan Sikura.
  • The Winnipeg Jets announced they have assigned defenseman Sami Niku to the AHL’s Manitoba Moose. Niku was recalled Thursday as the team was dealing with injuries to defenseman Tyler Myers and then losing defenseman Josh Morrissey to a one-game suspension. Niku, the AHL’s defenseman of the year, would have gone in had Myers been unable to go Friday. Instead, he returns to Manitoba as they begin their playoff series today against the Grand Rapids Griffins.
  • The Vegas Golden Knights have promoted prospect Nick Suzuki from the OHL’s Owen Sound Attack to the Chicago Wolves of the AHL. The 18-year-old prospect was the 13th overall pick in the 2017 draft and put up a 100-point season this year in 64 games for the Attack. He will join another first-rounder in Cody Glass, who was promoted earlier this week and 2017 second-round pick Nicolas Hague, who has been with the team for a couple of weeks. The prospects are just another future line of depth that could conceivably join Vegas next year, assuming they can win spots on the team during training camp.

Minor Transactions: 3/25/18

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There have already been a couple early moves today as the league prepares for the second-to-last week of the regular season. Expect more to come as injuries and college additions continue to shift roster makeup. Others will be made to specifically prepare for key match-ups, such as major playoff position battles today between the Penguins and Flyers and Predators and Jets. Keep track of all the action here:

  • The Ottawa Senators have recalled forward Ben Sexton from their AHL affiliate in Belleville, marking the first big-league call-up for the 26-year-old. Sexton was a leader and top scorer as a college player at Clarkson University from 2010 to 2014, but the Boston Bruins, who had drafted him in the seventh round in 2009, moved on after just two disappointing minor league campaigns. Ever since, Sexton has been much more productive in the AHL and has finally earned his first NHL shot in his first season with the Senators after posting 10 goals and 21 points in 28 games so far in 2017-18.
  • Victor Ejdsell is also making his first trip to the NHL, not long after making his North American pro debut. The Chicago Blackhawks have announced Ejdsell’s promotion this morning and the 22-year-old Swedish forward could be in the lineup in short order, seeing as it was an emergency recall. Ejdsell was acquired by Chicago in the Ryan Hartman trade last month and only joined the AHL’s Rockford Ice Hogs last week. Ejdsell recorded 34 points in 50 games in the Swedish Hockey League this season before making the jump and notched an assist in his first AHL game.
  • With backup Al Montoya suffering through a minor ailment, the Edmonton Oilers announced they are recalling Laurent Brossoit on an emergency basis. The 25-year-old goaltender and one-time back-up this year has struggled in the NHL, posting a 3.22 GAA and a .886 save percentage in 13 games this year. He’s fared slightly better with the Bakersfield Condors with a 2.72 and a .912 save percentage in 22 games. The Oilers also announced they have sent forward Brad Malone to Bakersfield. Malone had been recalled Friday, but did not play Saturday.
  • The St. Louis Blues’ Samuel Blais has been up and down quite a bit in the past couple of days. The 21-year-old winger was called up Friday on an emergency basis and sent back down that night. He was recalled Saturday on an emergency basis and was assigned back to the San Antonio Rampage this morning, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He did not play in either Friday’s or Saturday’s games. The Blues have also assigned emergency fill-in Ville Husso to the San Antonio Rampage, according to NHL.com’s Lou Korac. The move suggests that Blues backup Carter Hutton, who has been out with a neck injury since Mar. 3, is ready to return to the team.

Trade Deadline Recap: Western Conference

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After a month of lead up, a sprinkling of trades over the last week or so, and a wild deadline day today, NHL teams are done with transactions for the 2017-18 NHL season. Here are the deals that improved contenders in the Western Conference:

Deadline Day

Winnipeg Jets receive:
F Paul Stastny

St. Louis Blues receive:
F Erik Foley
2018 first-round pick
Conditional 2020 fourth-round pick

 

Vegas Golden Knights receive:
F Tomas Tatar

Detroit Red Wings receive:
2018 first-round pick
2019 second-round pick
2021 third-round pick

 

Nashville Predators receive:
F Ryan Hartman
2018 fifth-round pick

Chicago Blackhawks receive:
F Victor Ejdsell
2018 first-round pick
2018 fourth-round pick

 

San Jose Sharks receive:
F Evander Kane

Buffalo Sabres receive:
F Danny O’Regan
Conditional 2019 first-round pick
Conditional 2020 fourth-round pick

 

Anaheim Ducks receive:
F Jason Chimera

New York Islanders receive:
F Chris Wagner

 

Vegas Golden Knights receive:
D Philip Holm

Vancouver Canucks receive:
F Brendan Leipsic

 

Winnipeg Jets receive:
D Joe Morrow

Montreal Canadiens receive:
2018 fourth-round pick

 

Calgary Flames receive:
F Nick Shore

Ottawa Senators receive:
2019 seventh-round pick

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Nashville Predators Sign Victor Ejdsell To Three-Year Deal

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As rumored, the Nashville Predators won the battle for Victor Ejdsell, beating out several other NHL teams in pursuit of the Swedish centerman. The team has signed him to a three-year entry-level contract. The 21-year old was the MVP of the Allsvenskan (Swedish second league) this season after scoring 57 points in 50 games.

Back at the end of April it was reported that the Detroit Red Wings were pursuing Ejdsell, and while he had visited the city to be wooed by the team, he eventually decided on Nashville. The Chicago Blackhawks were also linked to the Swedish forward, marking the second victory Nashville has over Chicago this spring.

Ejdsell is a big, big man (6’5″, 214-lbs) who has turned into a “strong two-way center” according to Red Wings assistant GM Ryan Martin. His NHL career may not start right away, as he has also signed on to play for HV71 this season. Another year (or two) of development for Ejdsell won’t hurt, but he is a big add to a growing Swedish contingent in Nashville. Viktor Arvidsson, Filip Forsberg, Calle Jarnkrok and Mattias Ekholm are all big parts of the Predators already, and Ejdsell will try to make an impact with that group within the next few years.

Nashville is turning into one of the premiere destinations in the NHL, with a rabid fan base and successful team. After their impressive playoff run this year, competing with more traditional hockey markets like Detroit and Chicago for international talent is a great sign for the team going forward. Ejdsell was one of the most interesting names in Sweden this year mostly because of his age and size. He’ll have to prove he can compete at the same level in the SHL where defenders are quicker and stronger, but it is a worthwhile gamble for the Predators.

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