Linus Karlsson hopes to sign entry-level deal with Canucks after breaking SHL rookie goal-scoring record

It was another impressive performance from Linus Karlsson Tuesday night, who scored his 25th and 26th goals of the season for Skelleftea AIK, breaking the SHL’s rookie goal-scoring record in the process. The 22-year-old forward could soon follow the footsteps of the player who previously held that record, as he told Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK TV that he hopes to sign with the Vancouver Canucks following the SHL season.

Elias Pettersson was the previous record holder, scoring 24 during the 2017-18 season, his only campaign in the SHL. He followed it up with an incredible 10-goal performance in the playoffs, something Karlsson will have to try to replicate with his powerhouse club. Skelleftea AIK is in first place in the SHL after Tuesday night with just one match to come before the playoffs begin.

Karlsson, 22, was originally drafted by the San Jose Sharks in the third round of the 2018 draft but was flipped to Vancouver in a trade for Jonathan Dahlen in 2019. Importantly, Karlsson could actually become an unrestricted free agent on June 1 if the team can’t work out an entry-level contract, something that the rest of the league is likely keeping an eye on.

The young forward has dominated at every level as he moves through the Swedish hockey system and now has 45 points in 51 games as a rookie in the SHL. While he will turn 23 in November, much older than Pettersson was when he was setting the records, he is still an important piece for Canucks’ general manager Patrik Allvin to get under contract, even just to see how he will fare in North America.