Canucks send Jonathan Dahlen back to Sweden

According to their official Twitter account, the Canucks have re-assigned Jonathan Dahlen from the Utica Comets of the AHL to Swedish Hockey League.

Dahlen, who was acquired from the Ottawa Senators in a deal for Alex Burrows at last year’s trade deadline, was 42nd overall pick in the 2016 draft. He spent last season with Timrå, racking up 25 goals and 19 assists in 45 games, an impressive total for an 18-year-old in Sweden’s second-best league. He also recorded six points for Sweden at the World Juniors in seven games, and will likely play a key role on that team again this year in Buffalo. Edit: He’s actually too old to play in the WJC this year, unfortunately.

No, this doesn’t mean that Dahlen is a bust that isn’t good enough to play in the AHL. The Canucks have quite a bit of depth at the AHL level on the wings, and Dahlen simply wasn’t going to get quality minutes. This move is ultimately better for his long-term development than riding the bus around the AHL, trying to get ice time over veterans like Reid Boucher and Anton Rodin.

The Canucks said they would keep Dahlen in the AHL if he was deemed close to NHL ready, but dealing with mono threw a wrench in that plan. His agent and the team agreed it was best for Dahlen to spend one more season in Sweden.

We aren’t sure yet where Dahlen will play, but it would be interesting to see him play with the Växjö Lakers alongside former Canuck draft pick Elias Petterson.