Lindberg slotted into top-line role
Forward added in Sens trade joins Nylander, Kapanen in all-Scandinavian unit
The excitement level around new Maple Leafs prospect Tobias Lindberg ramped up Wednesday when he took his first workout with the Toronto Marlies.
Coach Sheldon Keefe immediately placed Lindberg — acquired in the nine-player, Dion Phaneuf trade with Ottawa — on a potentially dynamite, all Scandinavian line with William Nylander and Kasperi Kapanen.
“It’s not often you’ll find a guy sixfoot-three to play with (Nylander), and you have to think they play the same way, so we’ll see how they go together,” Keefe said as Lindberg wrapped up his first workout in his new organization, and prepared for his first game this weekend when the Marlies head east to play the St. John’s Ice Caps.
That was the welcome mat Lindberg was hoping for since the trade caught him by surprise Monday. Lindberg and Nylander work out together in the summer in Stockholm and played on the same team as early teens, with Lindberg’s father serving as coach.
The two are now on track to form what could be an explosive line with Kapanen.
Lindberg, the 20-year-old Swede drafted in the fourth round by Ottawa in 2013, and a member of Leaf assistant coach D.J. Smith’s Memorial Cup-winning Oshawa Generals last spring, has been portrayed as the key player in the Phaneuf trade for the Leafs.
Keefe realized the potential behind Lindberg last season when he coached the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in the OHL and faced off against Smith’s Generals in the playoffs.
“I was a big Lindberg fan, he stood out in our (series with Oshawa) and we had a difficult time preparing for him then,” Keefe said.
“In terms of what he adds to the prospect pool here (with the Leafs), he’s a nice addition. He has that pro type of size and with Oshawa last year, he was conditioned to play the pro type of style that matches our systems here.”
Lindberg welcomes the positivity in Toronto, partly because the trade was originally a shock to him.
“Yes, a very big surprise . . . I talked to my coach (Binghamton Senators coach Luke Richardson) and I wasn’t able to skate with the team. I was worried, I didn’t know what was going on, and then the assistant GM (Senators assistant Randy Lee) called and told me I was going to Toronto,” said Lindberg.
“At first, I was scared. I thought I didn’t play well and that they didn’t like me. But they said I was going to Toronto and that it was a good opportunity, and now I’m super excited to be with the best team in the AHL (the Marlies).”
Lindberg is excited to team up with Nylander, who was a teammate with the SDE club in Stockholm back when both were in their early teens. The two also train under the watch of Nylander’s father, Michael, who runs an off-season facility in Stockholm that also attracts other Swedish stars such as Gabriel Landeskog and Niklas Kronwall.
“All the other players (on the SDE team) thought it was great to have Nylander there because his father was such a legend,” Lindberg said.
Lindberg said he has yet to speak in person with Smith — the Leafs are on a western road swing — but credited the former Generals coach with helping him save his hockey career.
“I was on verge of having my career go (downhill) and D.J. helped with that, so I’m always grateful,” Lindberg said.
Lindberg went on to score 97 points in 88 games (playoffs included) with the Generals last year, and is filled with renewed energy at the opportunity to crack a Leafs roster that is very open to new, young talent.
“I think it’s a great thing here, they are having a rebuild and that can work great for young guys . . . they have a new coach (Mike Babcock) who inspires young guys to work hard and I want to be the young guy that takes advantage of that opportunity,” Lindberg said.