I Believe The Word Is "Målvaktsmål"

You may not recognize the young man to the left, but that's where HBIC comes in as I'll introduce this player to you today. Born in Stockholm, Sweden, 19 year-old Carl Lindbom is a Vegas Golden Knights prospect playing in the HockeyAllsvenskan for Djurgårdens IF. He grew up playing for Djurgårdens' junior team before jumping to Vasterviks IK in 2021-22 for seven games. This season, he returned home to play for Djurgårdens IF where he's been one of the better goalies all season long. Lindbom also played with Sweden at the 2023 World Junior Championship, so it seems the young man has a bright future in the crease no matter where he lands.

Normally, I don't pick random European players to showcase, but Lindbom put himself on the map today. As you know, there's a bit of a time difference between Sweden and Canada, so Lindbom's achievement was actually done in the afternoon by Canadian standards. However, he was the man of the match in Stockholm tonight as Djurgårdens IF battled AIK IF!

Why, you ask? Let's go to the videotape for the details!
With three minutes to play and down 4-1 in the game, AIK dumped the puck into the Djurgården zone where Lindbom stopped the puck behind his net. That's when Lindbom turned with an AIK player bearing down on him, and fired the puck into the air and down the ice. Seconds later, the puck slid inside the right goal post as Carl Lindbom scored his first-ever professional hockey goal to make it 5-1 in favour of Djurgården with 2:52 to play in the third period!

As much as I enjoy celebrating goalie goals, Lindbom has been incredible between the pipes this season as well. As it stands, he's third in HockeyAllsvenskan in goals-against average at 1.96, he's third in wins at 22, he's tied for first in shutouts with five, and he's second in save percentage at 92.77%. He has Djurgården in fourth-place in HockeyAllsvenskan as six teams compete for the top spot in the league while being separated by 14 points (regulation wins are worth 3 points in HockeyAllsvenskan). In short, Lindbom has been exceptional as a 19 year-old, and there's no reason to believe he can't still be better than what he's shown.

It's hard to tell where Lindbom currently fits into Vegas' depth chart with Logan Thompson being 25, Adin Hill being 26, Jiri Patera being 24, and Isaiah Seville being 22. Even their non-NHL goalies aren't that old as Michael Hutchinson is 32, Laurent Brossoit is 29, and Robin Lehner is 31. With four goalies firmly ahead of Lindbom this season, he's going to have to likely play some time in the AHL or the ECHL before getting his break. I'm not certain he should be doing that based on his performance in the HockeyAllsvenskan this season, but it seems clear that the path for him to get to the NHL may include a few stops along the way.

If there are NHL teams looking to add a quality netminder at the trade deadline this year, Carl Lindbom might be a name to include in any trades with Vegas. It's unlikely that he'll be helping that team make a run for the Stanley Cup this year, but he could be backstopping a team in the next few years if his trajectory remains on the same path. Nothing is guaranteed, of course, but Carl Lindbom has shown he score goals as well as stop pucks.

Congratulations to Carl Lindbom on his "målvaktsmål", and here's hoping we see him in the NHL in the coming years. He seems destined to play there, so I hope we see more highlights like this one!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!