Mattias Norlinder: a natural athlete with an engaging personality
If there's one prospect in the Montreal Canadiens' bank with intriguing potential, it's Swedish defenseman Mattias Norlinder.
Having had a superb season in his country's second division in 2019-20, he got his first taste of top-level hockey last season, which he played for HC Frolunda in the Swedish top division. He did very well under the circumstances, collecting 10 points, including five goals, in 37 games.
These performances have earned Norlinder a three-year entry-level contract, which could bring him to North America next year. In short, if the potential of this young left-handed defenseman is not in doubt, he who has already been compared to Nicklas Lidstrom and P.K Subban, his latest interview with journalist Nicolas Cloutier of TVA Sports allows us to learn a little more about the person.
A natural athlete
First of all, Mattias Norlinder is an athlete at heart. In addition to hockey, one of the things he took up during the pandemic was golf, and after just one year, he is well above the average golfer, already able to hit 300 feet.
On the hockey side, Norlinder noted during his post-season meeting that he needed to build muscle if he was going to break through to the National Hockey League level.
"I have to build up my whole body," Norlinder said by phone. "I'm pretty young, but I'm getting old! I also need to build up my legs."
So he's been working hard over the summer, not only working out regularly in the gym, but also doing a Spartan workout that involves running up the steep ski jump hill at Slottskogen Forest Park.
"It's the worst damn thing you can do in Gothenburg," exclaims the talented defender, who has just returned from his daily gym session. We did it two or three times this summer. You can't walk all weekend after that. It's crazy.
Personality-wise, the latest is an engaging, somewhat laid-back young man who lives life at his own pace. He's also feisty, and full of daring, which helped him get through a tough last year in hockey.
"It was a different season for me, so to speak," he said. "First, there was the shoulder injury and then the knee injury. When I came back from my knee injury, it took me longer than expected to get back into the swing of things."
Still, the mobile, hands-on defenseman was able to take his game up a notch in the postseason playoffs, amassing three goals and two assists in seven games.
"I was at the level I need to be, yes."
A level he wants to continue playing at next season?
"No, I think I need to be even better."
Talks that came at the wrong time
In the end, it was after his own season, which was the same time as the Habs' second round against the Winnipeg Jets, that Norlinder signed his first contract with the Habs. It's obvious that the attention of the organization's senior management was not entirely on this file, which is why the negotiations took place via Director of Player Development Rob Ramage.
"The Canadiens were pretty busy," laughs Norlinder. "I talked to Rob over the summer. I imagine the frequency of our discussions will increase as training camp approaches."
The young Swede also didn't hear Marc Bergevin's recent comments about him, when he explained that he was looking for a "good puck-moving defenseman" to add to his roster, mentioning in passing that Norlinder would be attending the team's camp in September.
Norlinder's goal is simple: he wants to earn a spot with the team as soon as possible. The man who will be setting foot on Montreal soil for the first time in the coming weeks has also tried to follow the Habs' fabulous playoff run last spring as closely as possible, despite the time difference.
"It was completely crazy, the fans and everything," said the 21-year-old defenseman.
Finally, after learning these details about the young man, it is clear that he has a personality of the same style as Jesperi Kotkaniemi, exactly the type that fans love...
Source : TVA Sports
