Mattias Norlinder (born 12 April 2000) is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman for the Laval Rocket of the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected in the third round, 64th overall, by the Canadiens in the

2019 NHL Entry Draft The 2019 NHL Entry Draft was the 57th NHL Entry Draft. The draft was held on June 21–22, 2019 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia. The first three selections were Jack Hughes going to the New Jersey Devils, Kaapo Kakko being select ...

Playing career

Europe

As a youth, Norlinder played junior hockey for Modo Hockey in the J20 SuperElit, winning the 2019 J20 SuperElit championship. He made his professional debut for Modo in the HockeyAllsvenskan during the 2018–19 season, playing 14 games with two goals and four assists. In March 2019, he signed a one-year professional contract with Modo. In the

2019–20 HockeyAllsvenskan season The 2019–20 HockeyAllsvenskan season was the 15th season that the second tier of Swedish ice hockey has operated under that name. The series consisted of 14 teams playing a regular season in which each team played each other team four times, t ...

, he played 34 games for Modo with seven goals and eleven assists. Despite missing time with a

concussion A concussion, also known as a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI), is a head injury that temporarily affects brain functioning. Symptoms may include loss of consciousness (LOC); memory loss; headaches; difficulty with thinking, concentration, ...

, he was named the best Junior (Guldgallret) in the HockeyAllsvenskan that season. He was loaned to

Frölunda HC Frölunda Hockey Club, previously known as the Frölunda Indians, is a Swedish professional ice hockey club based in Gothenburg. They currently play in the highest Swedish league, the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), formerly the Elitserien, where th ...

in the

2020–21 SHL season The 2020–21 SHL season was the 46th season of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL). The regular season began in September 2020 and ended on 3 April 2021, it was then followed by the playoffs and the relegation playoffs. The league consisted of the 14 ...

, playing 37 games with five goals and five assists after missing time with a shoulder and a knee injury.

North America

Norlinder was drafted by the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL) in the third round, 64th overall, of the

. The Canadiens signed Norlinder to a three-year entry-level contract on 3 June 2021. On 6 November 2021, Norlinder made his North American professional debut with the Canadiens' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Laval Rocket, in a 4–0 loss against the

Syracuse Crunch The Syracuse Crunch are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). They play in Syracuse, New York, at the Upstate Medical University Arena. They are the primary development affiliate of the National Hockey League's Tampa ...

. Norlinder made his NHL debut with the Canadiens in a 6–0 loss against the Pittsburgh Penguins on 18 November 2021. On 27 November 2021, he scored his first NHL point with an assist in a 6–3 win against the Penguins. Having played six games with the Canadiens before returning to the Rocket, Norlinder was later reassigned on loan to continue his development and return to Swedish club, Frölunda HC, for the remainder of the season on 16 December 2021. Norlinder returned to North America for the 2022–23 season and played in 67 games with the Rocket scoring two goals and 19 points. He was assigned to Laval to begin the 2023–24 season. Norlinder was recalled by Montreal on 21 November 2023 after Jordan Harris suffered a significant injury. However, he saw no playing time with the Canadiens and after David Savard came back from injury, he was returned to Laval on 10 December.

International play

Norlinder represented

Sweden men's national junior ice hockey team The Swedish men's national under 20 ice hockey team, or ''Juniorkronorna'' (Junior Crowns in Swedish) as it is commonly called in Sweden, is the national under-20 ice hockey team in Sweden. The team represents Sweden at the International Ice Ho ...

at the 2020 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, winning a bronze medal. He made his senior national team debut at the 2020 Karjala Tournament in the Euro Hockey Tour.

Personal life

Norlinder's younger brother, Linus, is also a hockey player.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Norlinder, Mattias 2000 births Living people Frölunda HC players Ice hockey people from Västernorrland County Laval Rocket players Modo Hockey players Montreal Canadiens draft picks Montreal Canadiens players People from Kramfors Municipality Swedish ice hockey defencemen