Linus Söderström (born 23 August 1996) is a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...

. He is currently under contract with

Skellefteå AIK Skellefteå AIK is a Swedish professional ice hockey club from Skellefteå, Sweden. They currently play In the Swedish Hockey League. They play their home games in Skellefteå Kraft Arena, which seats 6,001 spectators. The team has won the Swed ...

of the

Swedish Hockey League The Swedish Hockey League (officially SHL; sv, Svenska Hockeyligan) is a professional ice hockey league, and the highest division in the Swedish ice hockey system. The league currently consists of 14 teams. The league was founded in 1975, an ...

(SHL).

Playing career

Söderström was contracted by

Djurgårdens IF Djurgårdens Idrottsförening, commonly known simply as Djurgårdens IF, Djurgården (), and (especially locally) Djurgår'n (), Dif or DIF – is a Swedish sports association with several sections, located in Stockholm. Name The club is named ...

in his native Sweden, playing at the

J20 SuperElit J20 Nationell is a junior ice hockey league composed of 20 teams in Sweden. Previously known as the J20 SuperElit, it is the highest-level junior ice hockey league in Sweden. The teams are divided in two groups, or divisions, ''Norra'' (North) ...

level when he was selected by the

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...

in the 4th round (95th overall) of the

2014 NHL Entry Draft The 2014 NHL Entry Draft was the 52nd NHL Entry Draft. The draft was held on June 27–28, 2014 at the Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia), Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The top three selections were Aaron Ekblad, ...

. After loan assignments in the

HockeyAllsvenskan HockeyAllsvenskan (previously Allsvenskan and SuperAllsvenskan) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league, and the second-highest league in the Sweden, Swedish ice hockey system (after the Swedish Hockey League, SHL). Since the 2009–10 ...

with

Södertälje SK Södertälje Sportklubb, also known as Södertälje SK and often referred to as SSK, is a Swedish professional ice hockey club playing in HockeyAllsvenskan, the second highest level of pro hockey in Sweden. Södertälje were charter members of Eli ...

Almtuna IS Almtuna IS is a Swedish ice hockey club based in Uppsala and is currently playing in HockeyAllsvenskan, the second highest league of ice hockey in Sweden. The team maintained its place in the Allsvenskan despite suffering relegation in the 2018� ...

and

HC Vita Hästen HC Vita Hästen is a Swedish hockey club, based in Norrköping, which was founded following the bankruptcy of a previous club called IK Vita Hästen. The team plays in HockeyAllsvenskan, the second tier of the Swedish ice hockey system, as of t ...

, Söderström left Djurgårdens IF without a senior appearance, agreeing to a one-year deal with

HV71 HV71 (), often referred to as just HV, is a Swedish professional ice hockey club based in Jönköping, playing in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), the first tier of Swedish ice hockey. The team played in the 2008–09 Champions Hockey League s ...

on April 11, 2016. Söderström made his SHL debut on October 1, 2016, making 30 saves on 31 shots in a game against

. On May 11, 2017, Söderström was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the New York Islanders. He was returned on loan by the Islanders to continue his development and tenure with HV71 through the first year of his entry-level deal in the 2017–18 season. Söderström moved to North America for the remaining two years of his entry-level contract, however his development was stalled through injury, limited to just 4 games with

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The E ...

affiliate, the

Worcester Railers The Worcester Railers (also called Worcester Railers HC) are a professional ice hockey team based in Worcester, Massachusetts. The team began play in the 2017–18 ECHL season, and is a member of the North Division of the Eastern Conference of t ...

, in the 2019–20 season. As an impending restricted free agent from the Islanders, while still harbouring NHL aspirations Söderström returned to Europe to relaunch his career, agreeing to a one-year contract with Finnish outfit,

Ässät Ässät or Ässä may refer to: * HC Ässät Pori Oy, Finnish sports club ** Porin Ässät (men's ice hockey) ** Porin Ässät (women's ice hockey) ** Porin Ässät (men's football) ** PATA (esports) *, Finnish band from Oulu *S Group, Finnish Con ...

of the Liiga, on 31 July 2020.

Personal life

Söderström was diagnosed with

autistic spectrum disorder The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

and

attention deficit hyperactivity disorder Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by excessive amounts of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that are pervasive, impairing in multiple contexts, and otherwise age-inap ...

at the age of 7.

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Soderstrom, Linus 1996 births Living people Almtuna IS players Porin Ässät (men's ice hockey) players HV71 players New York Islanders draft picks People with Asperger syndrome Sportspeople with autism People with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder Skellefteå AIK players Södertälje SK players Swedish ice hockey goaltenders HC Vita Hästen players Worcester Railers players Ice hockey people from Stockholm