As part of yesterday’s Kasperi Kapanen trade, the Toronto Maple Leafs picked up the 20-year-old Filip Hallander from the Pittsburgh Penguins. From what I’ve read, Hallander seems to be a young forward with plenty of potential. He was the 58th overall pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.
Related: Maple Leafs Still Working On a At Least 4 Possible Trades [Report]
Kyle Dubas Really Liked Hallander
After the trade, Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas noted that he really liked Hallander.
However, the Penguins obviously liked him more and chose him during the Draft. After being drafted him in 2018, the Penguins’ director of amateur scouting Patrik Allvin called Hallander a “solid, two-way player. He has those character traits like Patric Hornqvist. He goes to the hard areas and produces.”
Elite Prospects reported that Filip was a “Two-way forward and a capable skater. Works hard and forechecks and backchecks impressively. Shoots and passes the puck equally well. Smart in all three zones and a good team player. (EP 2018)
By the way, Hallander’s father Patrik was a defenseman who played professionally in Sweden in the 1980s and 1990s. He was a teammate with NHL player Fredrik Modin and coached Timrå’s U16 team.
Hallander Was a Teammate of Elias Pettersson
A Sportsnet article yesterday reported that Hallander had played during his junior career in the Timrå system where he sometimes was a teammate of the NHL’s 2019 Calder Memorial Trophy winner Elias Pettersson. However, Hallander is two years younger than the Vancouver Canucks young star.
Hallander jumped to the SHL in 2018-19, where he finished the season with 21 points in 45 games. During the playoffs, although his team didn’t last long, his scoring was impressive and he finished with five goals and eight points in seven games. He transferred to Luleå in 2019-20, but he missed several months after he broke his leg during a game early in the season. His final season’s totals were 14 points in 27 games.
What Does Hallander Bring to the Maple Leafs?
Joining Hallander on his way to the Maple Leafs are the 15th-overall pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, a depth forward in Evan Rodrigues, and AHL defenseman David Warsofsky. Other than the first-round draft pick and the additional cap space, Hallander’s the prize of the deal.
The 20-year-old forward is a center/left-winger who stands 6-foot-1 and weighs 190 pounds. As noted, Pittsburgh selected him during the late second-round pick (58th overall) in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. And he was widely considered one of the top-three prospects in the Penguins’ organization.
Because he signed an entry-level contract with Pittsburgh in 2018 but didn’t suit up for the team that season, the first year of his contract slid to 2019-20. That means he has two years remaining on his rookie deal before he is slated to become a restricted free agent in 2022.
Hallander often represents his country at international tournaments. He’s played on teams that have won gold at the 2016 World U17 Hockey Challenge and bronze at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in 2017. He was on Sweden’s 2019 world junior squad, however his broken leg kept him out of the 2020 tournament.
Dubas reported that he would honor the Penguins loan agreement with Lulea. That means Hallander can come to training camp and, if he makes the Maple Leafs roster, he’d stay. Otherwise, he’ll return to Sweden and work to develop in his home country for a top-tier team.
Hallander noted that he “had a really good summer now and feel like I can take a huge step in SHL.” He knows Maple Leafs defenseman Rasmus Sandin because they were both members of the Swedish national team, but doesn’t know any other Maple Leafs players very well.
How to Interrupt a Good Golf Game
Hallander was playing golf with he got a number of phone calls about the trade – one message was from Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas and Hallander noted that it stood out.
According to the young Swede, “He said they have looked at me for a long time from when I was drafted and had an eye on me and how I developed and stuff like that. And they thought I played really well and was happy to trade for me, so really happy that they see me as a potential NHL player in the future. A really good first impression, so I’m really happy.”
Related: What Next for Alex Pietrangelo? The Maple Leafs Perhaps?
One More Skilled Young Player for the Maple Leafs Organization
The so what of the Kapanen deal is that, in Hallander, the Maple Leafs have obtained another young skill player on an entry-level contract that helps the team mediate the reality of a current flat salary cap.
There’s little chance with the emergence of Nick Robertson that Hallander will play for the Maple Leafs in 2020-21, but he should become part of the team’s long-term future.
