Oskar Lindblom

Oskar Lindblom
Lindblom with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms in 2018
Born	(1996-08-15) 15 August 1996 Gävle, Sweden
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	191 lb (87 kg; 13 st 9 lb)
Position	Left wing
Shoots	Left
SHL team Former teams	Brynäs IF Philadelphia Flyers San Jose Sharks
National team	Sweden
NHL draft	138th overall, 2014 Philadelphia Flyers
Playing career	2014–present

Oskar Lindblom (born 15 August 1996) is a Swedish professional ice hockey forward for Brynäs IF of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL). He formerly played with the Philadelphia Flyers and San Jose Sharks of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Early life

Lindblom was born on 15 August 1996 in Gävle, Sweden. One of his childhood idols was Washington Capitals player Nicklas Bäckström, also from Gävle. Lindblom's father Johan played for several Swedish hockey teams. Lindblom and his two brothers, Marcus and Linus, began playing hockey at a young age, helped by their father.

All three brothers began playing hockey in the Brynäs IF junior ice hockey system. He was named as captain for the Brynäs under-16 team in the 2011–12 season, but was promoted to the under-18 team after scoring 18 points in nine games. He made two appearances at the TV-pucken tournament, playing for Gästrikland in 2011 and 2012. In his first year, Lindblom was second on the team in goals (four) and points (seven). The next year, as alternate captain, he scored 20 points in eight games, the second-highest of anyone in the tournament. Going into the draft, Lindblom had 13 goals and 33 points in 43 games with Brynäs in the J20 SuperElit, the highest level of junior play in Sweden.

Playing career

Lindblom's career began with Brynäs IF, where he played on the U16, U18 and U20 junior teams. Beginning with the 2014–15 season, his outstanding play earned him a spot on their professional team who compete in the Swedish Hockey League, the country's top division. Lindblom was selected by Lokomotiv Yaroslavl in the 5th round (163rd overall) of the 2013 KHL Junior Draft. He was selected by the Philadelphia Flyers in the fifth round (138th overall) of the 2014 NHL entry draft. In the 2016–17 season with Brynäs IF, Lindblom finished fourth in scoring league-wide with 47 points in 52 games. He was named Forward of the Year at the end of the season.

Philadelphia Flyers

On 30 May 2017, Lindblom was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Philadelphia Flyers. He was then assigned to the Flyers American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. On 18 January 2018, Lindblom was selected to replace Phantoms teammate Danick Martel at the 2018 AHL All-Star game. Lindblom was called up to the NHL for the first time on 19 February 2018, and played his first career NHL game two days later against the Montreal Canadiens. He recorded his first NHL point on 17 March against the Carolina Hurricanes. The next day against the Washington Capitals, Lindblom scored his first career NHL goal in a 6–3 win. Following the Flyers defeat in Round 1 of the 2018 Stanley Cup playoffs, Lindblom was loaned to the Phantoms to play in their post-season.

On 13 December 2019, Lindblom was diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma, a form of bone cancer. The diagnosis was expected to effectively end his season. On 2 July 2020, Lindblom completed his chemotherapy treatments. Following his cancer battle, Lindblom was named as one of three finalists for the 2019–20 Masterton Trophy alongside Bobby Ryan and Stephen Johns.

On 22 July 2020, the Flyers signed Lindblom to a three-year, $9 million contract extension. On 3 September, Lindblom returned to play in a Game 6 victory against the New York Islanders. He spent 17:30 minutes on ice, which included three shot attempts, two hits and one block.

On 18 April 2021, the Flyers honored Lindblom at their annual Hockey Fights Cancer game, his first since returning to play post-cancer diagnosis and treatment. After the regular season Lindblom was announced as a finalist for the Masterton Trophy for the second consecutive year, and on 15 June, he was named as winner of the trophy.

Following the 2021–22 season, in a move that was panned by both reporters and fans, the Flyers bought out the remainder of Lindblom's contract with one year remaining.

San Jose Sharks

On 13 July 2022, Lindblom signed as a free agent to a two-year, $5 million contract with the San Jose Sharks.

Return to Sweden

At the conclusion of his contract with the Sharks and having spent the final season of his contract in the AHL, Lindblom opted to return to his original Swedish club, Brynäs IF, for their return to the SHL. He was signed to a two-year contract with an additional multi-year option on 8 May 2024.

International play

Medal record
Representing Sweden
Ice hockey
World U-17 Hockey Challenge
	2013 Drummondville and Victoriaville

Lindblom competed as a member of Team Sweden at the 2013 World U-17 Hockey Challenge, where he led Sweden to a Gold Medal as the tournament's leading scorer.

On 9 May 2019, Lindblom was named to make his senior international debut with Sweden at the 2019 World Championships held in Bratislava, Slovakia.

Personal life

Lindblom's older brother Marcus plays for Strömsbro IF of Hockeyettan. Their younger brother Linus plays in the Brynäs IF system.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2011–12	Brynäs IF	J18		13	6	7	13	0		—	—	—	—	—
2011–12	Brynäs IF	J18 Allsv		17	6	7	13	8		1	0	1	1	0
2012–13	Brynäs IF	J18		22	20	21	41	4		—	—	—	—	—
2012–13	Brynäs IF	J18 Allsv		11	11	7	18	10		8	4	5	9	2
2012–13	Brynäs IF	J20		3	1	0	1	0		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Brynäs IF	J18		4	5	4	9	0		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Brynäs IF	J18 Allsv		2	3	1	4	0		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Brynäs IF	J20		43	13	20	33	28		7	6	1	7	6
2013–14	Brynäs IF	SHL		4	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2014–15	Brynäs IF	SHL		37	8	7	15	16		4	0	0	0	0
2015–16	Brynäs IF	SHL		48	8	17	25	14		3	1	2	3	6
2015–16	Lehigh Valley Phantoms	AHL		8	2	5	7	0		—	—	—	—	—
2016–17	Brynäs IF	SHL		52	22	25	47	18		20	4	10	14	10
2017–18	Lehigh Valley Phantoms	AHL		54	16	18	34	10		11	4	3	7	0
2017–18	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		23	2	4	6	8		4	0	0	0	0
2018–19	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		81	17	16	33	20		—	—	—	—	—
2019–20	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		30	11	7	18	4		2	0	0	0	0
2020–21	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		50	8	6	14	9		—	—	—	—	—
2021–22	Philadelphia Flyers	NHL		79	12	14	26	22		—	—	—	—	—
2022–23	San Jose Sharks	NHL		73	6	9	15	18		—	—	—	—	—
2023–24	San Jose Sharks	NHL		1	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
2023–24	San Jose Barracuda	AHL		41	8	8	16	20		—	—	—	—	—
SHL totals				141	38	49	87	48		30	6	13	19	16
NHL totals				337	56	56	112	81		6	0	0	0	0

International

Year	Team	Event	Result		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2013	Sweden	WHC17			6	8	5	13	0
2013	Sweden	WJC18	5th		5	2	2	4	0
2013	Sweden	IH18	7th		4	2	2	4	0
2014	Sweden	WJC18	4th		7	3	3	6	2
2015	Sweden	WJC	4th		7	4	5	9	0
2016	Sweden	WJC	4th		7	3	3	6	0
2019	Sweden	WC	5th		8	3	1	4	12
Junior totals					36	22	20	42	2
Senior totals					8	3	1	4	12

Awards and honours

Awards	Year	Ref
NHL
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy	2020–21
International
World U-17 Hockey Challenge gold medal	2013
World U-17 Hockey Challenge scoring leader	2013
World U-17 Hockey Challenge All-Star Team	2013

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database