It’s been quite the year for 22-year-old Vancouver Canucks prospect Linus Karlsson.
First, he broke Elias Pettersson’s rookie goal-scoring record in the SHL. Then, he got the call to represent his home country of Sweden alongside captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson at the IIHF World Championships in Finland.
And now, he’s not only just been named SHL rookie of the year, but he’s also getting ready to sign an entry-level contract once his time at World Championships has concluded.
This, from Thomas Drance and Rick Dhaliwal of The Athletic:
As The Athletic first reported in February, the club has long intended to sign Karlsson to an entry-level contract before their exclusive negotiating rights expire on June 1. And our understanding at the moment is that the contract — a two-year entry-level deal, as specified for a 22-year-old by the collective bargaining agreement — is all but agreed to.
The clock isn’t ticking here. Our understanding is that Karlsson’s deal with Vancouver will be done and announced on the conclusion of his obligations to the national team this month.
The World Championships are set to conclude on May 29th with a championship game that Karlsson’s Swedish team could very well be a part of. After that, he’ll be free to officially dot the lone i in Linus on his contract and join the Canucks.
General manager Patrik Allvin spoke about Karlsson at his end-of-season media availability earlier this month.
“I think it’s great experience and good for him,” Allvin said of the prospect of Karlsson making Sweden’s roster. “I think regarding the expectations [in Vancouver] I think it’s always a transition period for European players coming over to North America. Different lifestyle, different rink size. I think Linus is excited, and we’re excited to have him here. We’ll see where he is come training camp, but we’re excited to see him in July.”
In July, the Canucks will hold a development/prospects camp out at UBC Vancouver, and that will mark our first time to see Karlsson live and in-person since his highly-acclaimed rookie SHL season.