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Mikkel Boedker Signs In Sweden

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Any thought of a return to North America for Mikkel Boedker can be put to bed after the veteran forward signed a new one-year deal with HV71 in the SHL. The deal takes him out of Switzerland but continues his European career, this time a little closer to home.

Boedker, 32, played more than 700 games in the NHL and racked up 327 points, last seeing the ice with the Ottawa Senators in the 2019-20 season. For the past two years, he has been playing for Lugano, along with fellow NHL alumni like Mark Arcobello, Daniel Carr, and Mirco Mueller. He’ll now head to HV71, just a few hours up the road from his hometown in Denmark.

A long-time member of the Danish national team, Boedker was part of their entry into this year’s Olympics after helping them qualify for the event. He has a long international resume that even included a stint with Team Europe at the 2016 World Cup. He also holds the distinction of being the highest-ever draft pick from Denmark, eighth overall to the Phoenix Coyotes in 2008.

Given his age and recent production, one can assume his NHL career is now over.

Anthony Greco Signs In SHL

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The New York Rangers don’t have to worry about signing at least one of their pending unrestricted free agents. Anthony Greco, who was a key player for their AHL affiliate, has taken his talents to Sweden, signing a one-year deal with Frolunda of the SHL.

Greco, 28, saw one game in the NHL this season, just the second of his lengthy professional career. The undrafted college talent has been an excellent producer in the minor leagues, scoring 235 points in 360 games, including 59 in 66 this year for the Hartford Wolf Pack. Now as he heads overseas, there’s no telling if he’ll ever suit up for another NHL match.

The Rangers of course have plenty of other free agents to worry about, including Andrew Copp, Ryan Strome, and Frank Vatrano. Losing Greco will take away a bit of depth from the organization but with more young players ready to make the jump to the AHL, he wasn’t really necessary any longer. In Sweden, he’ll actually have quite a short offseason, as he joins the team on August 1 to prepare.

A one-year deal will leave him 29 at its expiry, an unrestricted free agent once again.

Johannes Kinnvall Signs In SHL

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Another European free agent has decided to take his talents back home, as Johannes Kinnvall has signed a new two-year deal with Brynas in the SHL.

Kinnvall, 24, is coming off a two-year entry-level contract that he signed with the Calgary Flames in 2020, and was scheduled to become a restricted free agent this summer. The depth defenseman never did see the NHL, spending the first year of the contract back in Sweden on loan and this year with the Stockton Heat of the AHL.

With just 19 games under his belt for the Heat, Kinnvall will return to the SHL without much to show for his North American sojourn. He now heads back to a league he has dominated in recent years, recording 62 points over 83 games in his last two seasons as one of the most reliable puck-moving defensemen in the league.

Calgary will be able to retain his RFA rights by issuing him a qualifying offer, though at this point that isn’t a guarantee, given how little action he saw for their organization.

Adam Werner Signs In SHL

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The Calgary Flames have one less pending free agent to worry about. Adam Werner, who is set to become a Group VI unrestricted free agent this summer, has signed a new two-year contract with the Malmo Redhawks of the Swedish Hockey League.

Werner, 25, spent the entire 2021-22 season with the Stockton Heat, recording a .886 save percentage in 21 appearances. While sometimes minor league goaltending performances can be tricky to evaluate due to the ever-changing roster in front of them but in this case, Werner’s statistics are in stark contrast to starter Dustin Wolf, who posted a .924 and won an award as the league’s best goaltender.

With no clear path to NHL action, it always did seem as though Werner would be taking his talents elsewhere, though a return to Sweden is interesting after his previous success in North America. Selected in the fifth round in 2016, the netminder began his pro career on this side of the pond with the Colorado Avalanche organization and even appeared in two games for the club in 2019-20. Before this season he had posted strong numbers in the minors and has the frame–Werner stands 6’5″–that can represent huge NHL upside.

Still, a two-year term with Malmo doesn’t necessarily mean we’ve seen the last of Werner. Given his relatively young age, there is still plenty of time for him to sign with another NHL organization down the line.

Pontus Aberg, Ryan Spooner Staying In Europe

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A pair of former NHLers are staying across the Atlantic Ocean for the 2022-23 campaign. Swedish winger Pontus Aberg has signed a one-year agreement with BK Mladá Boleslav in the Czech Extraliga, while Canadian forward Ryan Spooner is remaining in the KHL with Dinamo Minsk.

Aberg, 28, attempted an NHL comeback last season when he signed a one-year deal with the Ottawa Senators. However, he was waived prior to the season and spent 17 games with the Belleville Senators before mutually terminating his contract to return to Sweden with Timrå IK in the SHL. He netted two goals, nine assists, and 11 points in those 17 games with Belleville. Aberg’s last taste of NHL action came in 2019-20, where he got a five-game look with the Toronto Maple Leafs, registering one assist. A second-round pick of the Nashville Predators in 2012, Aberg could really never hold onto a full-time NHL role, shuffling between the NHL and AHL in nearly every season he spent in North America.

Spooner hasn’t been in the league since 2018-19, when he split the season between the New York Rangers, Edmonton Oilers, and Vancouver Canucks. He’s been one of the best scorers in the KHL since then, and after one year in Yekaterinburg, he returns to Dinamo Minsk where he led the club in scoring in 2019-20 with 37 points in 43 games. Spooner had a few NHL stretches where it looked like he could become a great middle-six depth piece, especially when he scored 41 points in 59 games between the Rangers and Boston Bruins in 2017-18. His offense disappeared the next season, however, and he hasn’t returned to North America. Now 30 years old, it’s unlikely he ever will.

Vancouver Canucks Sign Filip Johansson

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The Vancouver Canucks have nabbed one of the more interesting European free agents on the market this offseason. The team today announced the signing of defenseman Filip Johansson, a first-round pick of the Minnesota Wild, to a two-year, entry-level contract. Financial terms are unavailable at this time.

Drafted 24th overall in 2018 by Minnesota, the now-22-year-old’s development in the SHL had stalled over the past few seasons, leading the Wild to the decision to not offer Johansson an entry-level contract as his exclusive signing rights expired on June 1. The 6′ 1″, 176 lb defenseman’s best hockey came in the 2022 postseason, notching five goals and two assists in just nine games with Frölunda HC.

Vancouver general manager Patrik Allvin evidently disagrees with the Wild’s assessment of the player, saying in the team’s release that Johansson “plays a solid defensive game and has shown consistent improvement over the past three seasons.” Allvin also noted that the team will loan Johansson back to Frölunda for the 2022-23 season, meaning Canucks fans won’t get a chance to see their new prospect on North American ice just yet. However, Johansson will attend Canucks development camp next month.

Johansson joins a Canucks prospect pool on defense that lacks much to be truly excited about other than Jack Rathbone and Jett Woo, and he’ll become a giant wild card for the organization. If Johansson can regain his development and reach the defensive ceiling he had when the Wild drafted him, it’ll be a gamble worth taking for the Canucks. If not, Vancouver gave up no assets to obtain the player other than a contract slot. It’s a solid bet from Allvin and the Canucks organization to take a chance on the Swedish defenseman.

New York Rangers Sign Gustav Rydahl

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June 13: The team has officially agreed to terms with Rydahl on a one-year contract for 2022-23. However, financial terms were not confirmed.

May 16: Despite clinching their place in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs last night with a series-clinching overtime goal from Artemi Panarin, the New York Rangers have already begun their offseason work, adding to their forward group for next season. According to CapFriendly, the organization has signed forward Gustav Rydahl to a one-year, one-way contract for the 2022-23 season (link). The contract is worth $750K and will leave Rydahl a UFA after next season.

Unlike many signings this time of year, Rydahl is not a young prospect in the Rangers system; instead, he is a veteran of parts of nine SHL seasons, spending the previous four seasons with Farjestads. Rydahl, who will be 28 at the start of next season, has proven to be a reliable center for his SHL teams, though never being much of a point-producer until 2018-19 when he began to breakout. After accumulating just 20 points over 191 SHL games from 2013-14 through 2017-18, Rydahl had 12 goals and seven assists in 47 games in 2018-19. He would take another step forward in 2019-20, scoring 19 goals to go along with 16 assists in 49 games. The veteran would play in just nine games in 2020-21, tallying two assists, but rebounded strongly this past season, where he had 15 goals and 15 assists in 44 games.

In Rydahl, the Rangers will look for a responsible two-way center who can contribute on offense from time to time. Notably, the Rangers do have some salary-cap considerations this offseason, with Adam Fox and Mika Zibanejad both due significant raises and forwards Ryan Strome Andrew Copp, and Frank Vatrano as important pending UFAs. The team has also failed to get consistent, strong production out of bottom-six center Filip Chytil, and while Chytil has not been bad either, they could look to move on from him and his $2.3MM cap hit for next season, replacing it with Rydahl’s $750K hit.

Detroit Red Wings Sign Elmer Soderblom

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7:38 pm: CapFriendly has announced the terms of the deal, which carries a cap hit of $878,333:

2022-23: $750,000 base + $92,500 signing bonus + $82,500 performance bonus
2023-24: $775,000 base + $92,500 signing bonus + $57,500 performance bonus
2024-25: $832,500 base + $92,500 signing bonus

The contract carries a minor salary of $70,000 in all three seasons.

1:12 pm: The Detroit Red Wings have signed another interesting Swedish prospect, this time inking Elmer Soderblom to a three-year entry-level contract. The sixth-round pick is coming off a breakout season with Frolunda of the SHL.

It’s hard to focus on anything other than the size of Soderblom, given his 6’8″ frame. The massive forward is finally starting to find his way offensively though, leading to a very interesting package of size and skill. In 52 games this season he registered 21 goals, good enough to tie him for seventh in league scoring. If he can continue the same development trajectory, the Red Wings might have found a late-round steal that can actually contribute to their lineup down the road.

They certainly would have gotten a good look. Soderblom has played with top prospect Simon Edvinsson on Frolunda going back to their junior days, meaning the Red Wings have seen his progression first hand while watching their prized draft pick recently. Signing him now will get him into the organization, and since his contract has expired in Sweden, it could actually mean he’ll be joining the Grand Rapids Griffins next season.

Even if he goes back for another year, the 20-year-old Soderblom is a player to watch for Detroit fans and one that has a massive ceiling if he can continue to marry size and skill as he did this year. His entry-level deal will kick in no matter where he plays, making him an RFA in the summer of 2025.

Joachim Blichfeld Signs In SHL

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The San Jose Sharks won’t be able to rely on Joachim Blichfeld as an injury call-up next season, as the young forward has signed a two-year contract with the Vaxjo Lakers in the SHL. The team will be able to retain his exclusive rights by issuing a qualifying offer but this is a disappointing turn for a franchise that will need young talent in the coming years.

Blichfeld, 23, made his NHL debut during the 2019-20 season and got into another handful of games in 2020-21, before spending the entire 2021-22 campaign in the minor leagues. The 6’2″ winger was excellent for the San Jose Barracuda, scoring 24 goals and 45 points in 61 games but failed to even earn a single call-up, other than a short period on the taxi squad when it was brought back in January.

He then suited up for Denmark at the World Championship, where he scored another five goals in seven games, an impressive total that easily led the squad. All of that doesn’t really matter for the Sharks now as they’ll lose him for the next two years at least, and perhaps longer if Blichfeld decides to stay overseas. While he wasn’t someone they had invested a ton of resources into–Blichfeld was a seventh-round pick, 210th overall in 2016–he did represent some nice depth for the organization.

Minnesota Wild Not Expected To Sign Filip Johansson

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Though it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise with the deadline set for tomorrow, Michael Russo of The Athletic has confirmed that the Minnesota Wild are not going to sign Filip Johnasson. The 2018 first-round pick will become an unrestricted free agent and the Wild will receive a compensatory pick in this year’s draft, which will be 56th overall.

Johansson, 22, has spent the last three seasons playing in the SHL, where his offensive numbers have never really improved. In 47 games this season the young defenseman had just three goals and 11 points. Not only that but he hasn’t been included in any major international events for Sweden since the U18 World Juniors in 2018 and signed a two-year extension with Leksands in December, which keeps him under contract through the 2023-24 season.

All that adds up to a player that didn’t hold a ton of upside for the Wild, and given the fact that they can now get a solid compensatory pick, leaving him unsigned makes at least some sense.

Still, when looking back at the 2018 draft it is easy to think about what could have been. Just as the Wild’s pick was approaching, the New York Rangers traded up four spots and selected St. Paul native and NHL regular K’Andre Miller with the 22nd selection. While it’s certainly no guarantee that the team would have gone with the 6’4″ Miller, who was committed to the University of Wisconsin, he or one of the many other defensemen that followed (Rasmus Sandin, Mattias Samuelsson, and Alexander Romanov are among the group taken soon after) could have been a difference-maker for the Wild already.

Now, though a second-round pick does hold value, the team will likely have to wait several other years for that player to mature and develop–if he makes it at all. This unfortunate result is just another oddity in the whirlwind 14-month tenure of former Minnesota general manager Paul Fenton.

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