The Pittsburgh Penguins have made their first move of the 2015 offseason, signing Swedish defenseman Niclas Andersen to a one-year contract on Monday afternoon.
Andersen, 27, was originally a fourth-round draft pick of the Los Angeles Kings in the 2006 NHL Draft but never signed with the club.
He’s spent his entire career in Europe, playing most recently for Brynas in the Swedish Hockey League. The 6-foot-1, 218-pound, left-handed shooting defender led the Brynas blue line in scoring with five goals and 17 assists in 54 games in the 2014-15 season. He also served as the team’s captain.
Andersen was in the midst of his second stint with Brynas, and has played for Severstal in the Russian KHL and AIK and Leksands in Sweden in his eight-year professional career. He has also represented Sweden internationally at the junior level and in the World Championships.
Terms of the contract were not announced. Andersen could be eligible to play for the Penguins’ AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton if he doesn’t make the big club out of training camp.
Andersen’s signing reflects a pair of trends that general manager Jim Rutherford has established since taking the reigns of the club a year ago. He has sought out more European players than his predecessor, Ray Shero, did, and he has stated his desire to get younger on defense this offseason.
MINOR MATTERS: The Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins also signed a player on Monday, bringing back center Carter Rowney for his third season with the club. The 26-year old spent most of his 2014-15 season centering the team’s third line set new career highs in goals (10), assists (21) and games played (63).
Photo credit: Brynas IF Galve (main), WBS Penguins (inset)
