Erik Brännström

Erik Brännström (born 2 September 1999) is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman for the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). Brännström was selected 15th overall by the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft, and was traded to Ottawa in 2019.

Erik Brännström
Brännström at the 2019 AHL All-Star Game
Born (1999-09-02) 2 September 1999
Eksjö, Sweden
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 181 lb (82 kg; 12 st 13 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
NHL team
Former teams		 Ottawa Senators
HV71
SCL Tigers
NHL Draft 15th overall, 2017
Vegas Golden Knights
Playing career 2015–present

Playing career

Brännström played junior hockey with Swedish team HV71. In 2013–14, he debuted at the under-16 level, playing twenty-three games in the J16 SM. The following season Brännström moved on to HV71's J20 SuperElit. In 2015–16, Brännström made his Swedish Hockey League debut.[1][2][3]

He was drafted 15th overall in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft by the Vegas Golden Knights[4] and agreed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Knights on 16 July 2017.[5] He played the 2017–18 season with the HV71 organization. Brännström earned his first NHL recall on 5 May 2018 to help the Knights during their 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs run, but did not appear in any games.[6]

Brännström attended the Golden Knights 2018 training camp but was reassigned to the American Hockey League (AHL) on 27 September 2018.[7] During the 2018–19 season, Brännström was selected to participate in the 2019 AHL All-Star Game.[8]

On 25 February 2019, Brännström was traded to the Ottawa Senators as part of a package to acquire Mark Stone and Tobias Lindberg. In addition to Brännström, Ottawa acquired Oscar Lindberg and a 2020 second round draft pick in the deal.[9] After the trade, Brännström was assigned to Ottawa's AHL team, the Belleville Senators.[10] He was recalled from the AHL and made his NHL debut with Ottawa on 14 March 2019 in a game against the St. Louis Blues.[11] He was then returned to Belleville following the game.[12] He opened the 2019–20 season with the Senators, but struggled at the NHL level and was sent down to Belleville on 5 December 2019.[13] He was recalled only 11 days later on 16 December after playing in four games with Belleville, collecting one goal and four points.[14] Brännström was returned to Belleville on 3 January 2020.[15] At the end of February, he suffered a wrist injury with Belleville that caused him to miss some games.[16]

On 5 October 2020, Brännström was loaned to the SCL Tigers of the National League (NL) for the start of the 2020–21 season.[17] He made his NL debut with the Tigers on 15 October 2020 in a 8–1 away loss to Genève-Servette HC. On 21 November 2020, in his eighth game with the Tigers, Brännström was punched in the face by EHC Biel's Damien Brunner during a line change in the third period. Brännström was not injured on the play and Brunner immediately received a game misconduct.[18] On 11 December 2020, Brännström left the Tigers after having appeared in 10 games (8 points) to return to Ottawa for the start of training camp.[19] The 2020–21 NHL season was abbreviated due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the season did not begin until January 2021.[20] Brännström did not make the Ottawa Senators out of training camp and was assigned to Belleville on 13 January.[21] He was recalled on 4 February 2021 and placed on the taxi squad. He played his first game of the season versus the Montreal Canadiens, playing on the second power play unit.[22][23] He scored his first NHL goal on 24 February 2021 versus the Montreal Canadiens.[24] On 5 May 2021, he had three assists in a 5–1 win over Montreal, marking his first multi-point game.[25] Brännström finished the season with two goals and thirteen points in thirty games with the Senators.[26]

Brännström began the 2021–22 season in Belleville. He was recalled on 7 November 2021 after Nick Holden was placed in COVID-19 protocol.[26] On 13 November, he broke his hand blocking a shot in a game versus the Los Angeles Kings.[27] He returned to the lineup on 1 January 2022.[28] He finished the season with 14 points in 53 games with Ottawa.[29] On 5 September 2022, Brännström signed a one year, $900,000 contract extension with the Ottawa Senators.[30] During the 2022–23 season Brännström's play improved as he was often called on to replace injured defenceman after a number of them, including regulars Thomas Chabot and Jakob Chychrun, were affected.[31] He finished the season with two goals and 18 points in 74 games. A restricted free agent at the end of the season, Brännström signed a one-year contract extension with the Senators on July 1, 2023.[32]

Personal life

Brännström's older brother Isac, is also a professional hockey player, currently with Luleå HF.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2014–15 HV71 J18 15 6 7 13 8 — — — — —
2014–15 HV71 J18 Allsv 18 2 13 15 6 7 2 3 5 4
2014–15 HV71 J20 1 0 0 0 2 — — — — —
2015–16 HV71 J18 2 2 1 3 0 — — — — —
2015–16 HV71 J18 Allsv 5 1 3 4 4 — — — — —
2015–16 HV71 J20 41 8 22 30 26 3 0 0 0 0
2015–16 HV71 SHL 3 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2016–17 HV71 J20 19 9 14 23 18 7 3 4 7 4
2016–17 HV71 SHL 35 1 5 6 2 — — — — —
2017–18 HV71 SHL 44 2 13 15 22 2 0 1 1 2
2018–19 Chicago Wolves AHL 41 7 21 28 36 — — — — —
2018–19 Belleville Senators AHL 9 0 4 4 12 — — — — —
2018–19 Ottawa Senators NHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
2019–20 Ottawa Senators NHL 31 0 4 4 16 — — — — —
2019–20 Belleville Senators AHL 27 3 20 23 22 — — — — —
2020–21 SCL Tigers NL 10 2 6 8 6 — — — — —
2020–21 Ottawa Senators NHL 30 2 11 13 25 — — — — —
2020–21 Belleville Senators AHL 4 0 5 5 6 — — — — —
2021–22 Belleville Senators AHL 9 1 2 3 10 — — — — —
2021–22 Ottawa Senators NHL 53 0 14 14 30 — — — — —
2022–23 Ottawa Senators NHL 74 2 16 18 38 — — — — —
NHL totals 190 4 45 49 109 — — — — —
Medal record
Representing  Sweden
Ice hockey
World Junior Championships
Silver medal – second place2018 United States
IIHF World U18 Championship
Silver medal – second place 2016 United States

International
Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2015 Sweden IH18 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 5 0 4 4 4
2015 Sweden U17 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) 6 3 0 3 2
2016 Sweden WJC18 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 7 1 3 4 10
2016 Sweden IH18 4th 5 2 1 3 31
2017 Sweden WJC18 4th 7 2 3 5 0
2018 Sweden WJC 2nd place, silver medalist(s) 7 1 3 4 4
2019 Sweden WJC 5th 5 4 0 4 4
Junior totals 42 13 14 27 55

Awards and honors
Award Year
SHL
Le Mat Trophy 2017 [33]

References
  1. "Erik Brännström". hv71.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 10 December 2016.
  2. "Erik Brännström". shl.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 10 December 2016.
  3. Marie Carlsson (10 December 2015). "16-åring får chansen i kvällens SHL-match". Aftonbladet (in Swedish). Retrieved 10 December 2016.
  4. Cranston, Mike (29 July 2017). "Brannstrom hopes to be offensive defenseman for Golden Knights". NHL.com. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
  5. "Golden Knights sign three first round picks to entry-level contracts". NHL.com. 16 July 2017. Retrieved 16 July 2017.
  6. "Vegas Golden Knights Announce Taxi Squad Recalls". NHL.com. 5 May 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
  7. Brian Sandalow (3 October 2018). "Erik Brannstrom ready for seasoning with Wolves". Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
  8. "Pirri, Carr, Brännström Named AHL All-Stars". Chicago Wolves. 3 January 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
  9. "Stone Traded to Golden Knights by Senators for Lindberg, Brannstrom". NHL.com. 25 February 2019.
  10. "Top prospect assigned to Belleville Senators after major NHL trade deadline deal". The Belleville Intelligencer. 25 February 2019. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  11. Schuller, Rudi (14 March 2019). "Senators to hand Erik Brannstrom NHL debut Thursday vs. St Louis". The Sporting News. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  12. Warren, Ken (15 March 2019). "Hello and goodbye: Brannstrom returns to Belleville after promising debut". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  13. Garrioch, Bruce (5 December 2019). "Senators send struggling defenceman Erik Brannstrom to Belleville". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  14. Borkowski, Pete (16 December 2019). "Senators recall Brannstrom, Beaudin from AHL's Belleville". Sportsnet. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  15. Warren, Ken (3 January 2020). "Ottawa Senators send Brannstrom back to Belleville". Winnipeg Sun. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  16. Garrioch, Bruce (26 February 2020). "Top prospect Erik Brannstrom sidelined with wrist injury in Belleville". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  17. "Ottawa's GM confirms loan of Erik Brännström to the Tigers". swisshockeynews.ch. 5 October 2020.
  18. "Game Center". sihf.ch. 21 November 2020.
  19. "Langnau bids farewell to Erik Brännstrom". swisshockeynews.ch. 11 December 2020.
  20. Brehm, Mike (12 January 2021). "The NHL is set for a strange season. Here's why it will be among the most unusual in history". USA Today. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  21. Foot, David (13 January 2021). "Five former B-Sens crack Ottawa roster, 17 players assigned to Belleville". QuinteNews. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  22. "Senators' Erik Brannstrom to make season debut vs. Canadiens". Sportsnet. 4 February 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  23. Garrioch, Bruce (8 February 2021). "Snapshots: Erik Brannstrom has made his presence felt since being recalled to Ottawa Senators". Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  24. "Senators' Erik Brannstrom: Pockets first NHL goal". CBS Sports. 24 February 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  25. "Brannstrom has three assists, speedy Senators down Canadiens 5-1". RDNewsNow. The Canadian Press. 5 May 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  26. "Senators place Nick Holden in COVID-19 protocol, recall Erik Brannstrom". Sportsnet. 7 November 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  27. "Brannstrom out 6-8 weeks for Senators with broken hand". NHL.com. 13 November 2021. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  28. Tidcombe, Matt (1 January 2022). "Brannstrom to return to Sens lineup against Maple Leafs". Ottawa Senators. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  29. "Senators sign defenceman Erik Brannstrom to one-year, $900K contract". CityTV News. 5 September 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  30. "Defenceman Erik Brannstrom re-signs with Ottawa Senators after career season". Toronto Star. Canadian Press. 5 September 2022. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  31. Warren, Ken (24 March 2023). "Brannstrom finally finding his place on shifting Senators defence". Ottawa Sun. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  32. "Ottawa Senators re-sign Erik Brannstrom to one-year, $2M deal". Sportsnet. 1 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  33. "HV71 wins championship". Aftonbladet.se (in Swedish). 30 April 2017. Retrieved 30 April 2017.
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