The Toronto Maple Leafs have four players who will be returning home to play in Sweden this week. Calle Jarnkrok was born in Gavle, about 175 kilometers north of Stockholm where the Maple Leafs will play two games this coming weekend. William Lagesson and John Klingberg were both born in Gothenburg, which is on the opposite coast of Sweden from Stockholm about 475 kilometers away.
Then there is William Nylander, who was born in Calgary, Alberta when his dad Michael Nylander was playing for the Flames. While he was born in Canada, Nylander has dual Swedish/Canadian citizenship and has played internationally for Sweden winning an IIHF World Championship in 2017.
While the two games the Maple Leafs will play this coming weekend mean the four Swedes will all get to play an NHL game in their home country, the trip also has a slightly different meaning for each player.
What the Trip Means for Calle Jarnkrok
For Jarnkrok the trip is a chance to show why he has established himself as an NHL regular hockey player. The 32-year-old veteran of over 740 regular season and playoff games doesn’t have anything extra to prove on this trip. He’s in a comfortable and familiar role with the Maple Leafs. The only thing he has to worry about is going out there and doing the same job he does night in and night out.
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Jarnkrok will have a chance to show off his offensive talents more than he might have thought he would, having been recently placed on a line alongside Nick Robertson and Maple Leafs newcomer Max Domi. Since that line was put together four games ago, it has scored in all four games the Maple Leafs have played. Jarnkrok has three goals and an assist in those four games.
All in all, this should be a comfortable homecoming for Jarnkrok.
What the Trip Means for William Nylander
Nylander returns to Sweden as an emerging star in the NHL. Having played under the shadow of Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner for most of his career, he has been the Maple Leafs’ best player this season. He leads the team in scoring with 22 points.
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Nylander is already a hero to many Swedes after not only leading Sweden to gold at the 2017 World Championship but also being named Most Valuable Player of that World Championship series. He scored seven goals and 14 points in that tournament. While we expect Nylander will feel some pressure to perform in front of the Swedish crowds, these two games can also be seen as a kind of victory lap for the 27-year-old.
What the Trip Means for William Lagesson
The 27-year-old Lagesson was drafted 91st overall by the Edmonton Oilers in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. He’s not had the career he had hoped for and has struggled to gain any playing time in the NHL. He played 57 games over three seasons for the Oilers, managing to score just six points.
Lagesson was traded to the Montreal Canadiens in March 2022 as part of the deal that saw Brent Kulak sent to the Oilers. After playing just three games for the Canadiens, he signed a one-year two-way deal with the Carolina Hurricanes as an unrestricted free agent (UFA) in the summer of 2022. He failed to make the Hurricanes and spent the whole 2022-23 season with the Chicago Wolves of the American Hockey League (AHL). More known for his defensive stay-at-home play, the 6-foot-2, 210-pound Lagesson found some offense with the Wolves. He scored 10 goals and added 22 assists for 32 points in 65 games for Chicago in the 2022-23 season.
Lagesson then signed a one-year, two-way deal with the Maple Leafs this past offseason. With injuries to Conor Timmins, Jake McCabe, and Timothy Liljregren, Lagesson has found himself on the Maple Leafs roster. He’s played eight games to date. While he has only managed a single point offensively, Lagesson has been decent defensively in the games he’s played. He has averaged 14:41 per game of ice time and has shown some physicality with 17 hits. While his underlying stats have not been great, Lagesson visually has appeared to hold his own when needed.
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The timing of this trip could not have come at a better time for Lagesson. He knows once Liljegren and Timmins return to the lineup he will most likely find himself back in the AHL with the Marlies. Now he gets to play two NHL games in his home country. With the added spotlight on these games, if Lagesson plays well enough, who knows where this opportunity might lead?
One other note is that Lagesson has never scored a goal in the NHL. We can only imagine what it would be like for him to score his first NHL goal in his home country in front of family and friends.
What the Trip Means for John Klingberg
Klingberg comes on this trip in the most precarious position of the four Swedes. The now 31-year-old was once regarded as one of the best defencemen in the league. He was also a player who, at one point in his career, was on the verge of signing a long-term deal worth somewhere north of $50 million. However, he’s now a player who took a 40 percent pay cut on a one-year deal but is now struggling to remain in the lineup of his present team, the Maple Leafs.
These two games in his home country could play a crucial role in determining whether Klingberg can play a full-time role in the NHL. He has been relegated to the third pairing on the Maple Leafs’ defence. Once the injured Timmins and Liljegren return to the lineup, he could see himself alongside countryman Lagesson on the outside looking in. As well, the Maple Leafs might be in a situation where they find themselves trying to figure out how to divest themselves of Klingberg and his $4.15 million cap hit.
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If Kilngberg can perform well in the two games in Sweden, it could help him build on his performance in the recent game versus the Vancouver Canucks. In that game, he played 19 minutes and posted an expected-goals-for percentage of 74 percent. He also saw the Maple Leafs get 84 percent of the scoring chances when he was on the ice.
Of the four Swedish players on the Maple Leafs, the pressure is on Klingberg the most to perform and perform well.
The Bottom Line for the Four Swedes
Whatever happens with these four Swedes, it should be a great experience showcasing their skills in their home country. It’s a rare opportunity for them, and you can see the happiness on Nylander’s face as he speaks about his dream coming true by playing at home.
By the way, in a tweet, William Nylander was seen riding the subway in Stockholm. Like father, like son. Or, vice versa.
[Note: I want to thank long-time Maple Leafs fan Stan Smith for collaborating with me on this post. Stan’s Facebook profile can be found here.]
