A few days after he sent veteran forward Jared McCann to the Toronto Maple Leafs in a mid-July trade primarily motivated by salary cap concerns, Penguins general manager Ron Hextall offered an optimistic assessment of the primary return he received, forward prospect Filip Hallander.
“I would hope he comes into (training) camp and pushes for a spot,” Hextall said July 22 via video conference. “But in the end, that’s going to be up to Filip.”
Hallander seems to be on the same page as Hextall.
“I’m here to take a spot,” Hallander said Saturday during the team’s ongoing development camp in Cranberry. “Just to take a spot. I’m coming here to play, of course, in North America. I’m not going back to Sweden. If you’re going to be in the main (training) camp, you need to have the mindset of taking a spot.”
A native of Sweden, Hallander returned to the Penguins’ organization after spending the 2020-21 season as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Originally drafted in the second round (No. 58 overall) in 2018 by the Penguins, Hallander was dealt to Toronto in August 2020 as part of a deal that brought forward Kasperi Kapanen to Pittsburgh.
Any attachment to the Maple Leafs was fleeting, at best, for Hallander as he spent the season playing for Lulea of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL).
“I was in Lulea all year, in Sweden,” Hallander said. “I never went to Toronto. It didn’t change that much. … Being here two years before (for a development camp in 2019), it’s more like home than being in Toronto. It feels good.”
There was plenty to feel good about in regards to Hallander’s play last season with Lulea. Primarily deployed on the left wing of the top line, he appeared in 51 games and scored 24 points (13 goals, 11 assists), including a team-best three game-winning goals.
That marked considerable progress over his 2019-20 season with Lulea in which he was limited to 27 games because of a fractured ankle.
“The first year there, had an injury, my ankle,” Hallander said. “Lost an offseason. Just trying to get back on track. I’m pretty satisfied with the season and how it went.
“It’s good now. I’m back in shape.”
Hallander will need to make a considerable adjustment to a smaller ice surface in North America. Rinks on this continent typically are 85 feet wide. Most rinks in Sweden and elsewhere in Europe are approximately 100 feet across.
He suggests his style of play will hasten that transition.
“It’s going to be good for me, Hallander said. “I’ve played a couple of tournaments with the (Swedish) national team on the smaller ice. It fits my game better. I’m that guy who likes to go to the net and play pretty aggressive and forecheck. It’s easier to play on the smaller ice.”
Hallander (6-foot-1, 196 pounds) fancies himself something of a power forward. And while he’s listed as a center, he primarily plays on the left wing.
“I like to be net-front, around the net, Hallander said. “But I think I improved my two-way game last season. Got to play some with the national team. That helped me playing up and down in the lineup. Can play many different roles.
“That’s kind of what I want, be a guy that you can trust and play in many different situations.”
That would be a good spot to be in.
