Mattias Norlinder had a roller-coaster season in 2020-21, starting out strong but faltering due to injuries, then coming back to be arguably Frölunda’s best player in the playoffs, especially in the quarter-final series against Rögle.
The Montreal Canadiens have had their eyes on the defender for a long time, and Rob Ramage summed it up best during a press conference in December when he answered the question about the defender with an “oof” rather than a full sentence.
The club signed Norlinder to an entry-level contract on June 3, while still deep into a playoff run. Did they already know about the ramifications of Shea Weber’s injury?