Islanders Sign Former NHL Goalie Marcus Hogberg To Two-Year Deal, Diving Into The Why
The New York Islanders announced on Tuesday morning that they have signed former NHL netminder Marcus Hogberg to a two-year deal.
The 29-year-old was drafted in the third round (No. 78) of the 2013 NHL Draft by the Ottawa Senators, playing to a 3.39 GAA with an .894 SV% in 42 games from 2019-2021.
Over the last three seasons, the Orebro, Sweden native has played for Linkopings HC in the SHL.
This season, Hogberg owned a 2.51 GAA with a .914 SV% in 40 games.
“It obviously feels good to get this chance again,” Hogberg told LHC’s website via translation. “I wasn’t really prepared for something like this to appear, but I’m very happy and excited to test my wings on the extreme world elite again.”
Bob Frid-USA TODAY Sports
So, why did the Islanders make this move?
The Islanders are all set at the NHL level after they signed Semyon Varlamov to a four-year extension this past summer and Ilya Sorokin to an eight-year extension, which kicks in next season.
At the AHL level, the Islanders have 24-year-old Jakub Skarek (7-22-6, 3.23 GAA, .888 SV%), who inked a two-year extension this past summer, but his development has tailed off.
Due to Sorokin and Varlamov, Skarek has no real path to the NHL, so you can’t rule out parting ways after this season despite his being under contract.
Bridgeport could potentially lose Skarek’s goalie partner, 29-year-old Ken Appleby (10-10-1, 2.85 GAA, .901 SV%), after this season, as he’s an unrestricted free agent, which is where Hogberg comes in.
In the ECHL, the Islanders saw 23-year-old Henrik Tikkanen, who stands at 6’8 and weighs 201 lbs, take tremendous strides in his second season with the organization after being selected in the seventh round (No. 214) at the 202 NHL Draft.
In 20 games with the Worcester Railers this season, Tikkanen played to an 11-7-2 record, with a 3.22 GAA and an .892 SV%. But when he was given the chance at the AHL level — an 18-game sample size — he impressed, posting an 8-6-2 record with a 2.10 GAA and a .930 SV%.
Tikkanen’s Worcester partner, Tristan Lennox, has only one year of professional experience. He had a 2.94 GAA, a .909 SV%, and a record of 5-6-2 in 13 games with Worcester.
So it seems that, with the Hogberg signing, he will replace Appleby in Bridgeport for 2024-25.
That does block Tikkanen from taking more of a role in Bridgeport if Skarek is back.