Determination Leads Linus Sandin To NHL Debut

ALLENTOWN, Pa. - After not reaching the NHL last season and spending his first season of pro hockey in North America in the American Hockey League (AHL), Linus Sandin had a decision to make - as an unrestricted free agent this past summer - as to whether to head back to playing professional hockey in Sweden in the SHL or return to Philadelphia for camp in the fall to attempt to make the team.

He opted to re-sign a one-year contract with the Flyers this past offseason, coming into rookie camp in late August looking to make a good first impression and get the ball rolling from there.

"I want to give it another shot here in North America and chase my dream to play in the best league in the world," Sandin explained during a media aviailability after the second day of rookie camp. "That's why I'm here."

Though ultimately sent down to the AHL to begin the season, Sandin was familiar with the scene with the Flyers' AHL affiliate Lehigh Valley Phantoms. After all, he spent the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 season with the team - tallying 10 points (six goals, four assists) in 26 games with half of those points (four goals, one assist) coming in his final 10 games of the campaign.

"Coming over to North America last year was a big adjustment," Sandin said. "The language, the size of the rink, everything like that. But this year, I feel more comfortable off and on the ice."

The added comfort of knowing what to expect at the AHL level, combined with hard work in his summer training program geared toward making him faster on the ice as the main focus, had Sandin standing out and getting rave reviews from the Phantoms' new coaching staff entering the 2021-22 season.

"He's a real smart player," Phantoms' assistant coach Jason Smith said of Sandin's strengths. "When you can think the game and be in good spots, positionally, whether it's in the offensive zone or the defensive zone, it gives you opportunity to capitalize or really help your team defend and get the puck out of the zone."

There were high hopes for Sandin entering the season, but a devastating injury on opening weekend but those hopes of touching NHL ice on hold.

In the third period of the Phantoms' October 17 game in Hershey, Sandin was in the slot with his back to the goaltender and Bears' defenseman Eddie Wittchow laid a punishing cross-check into the back of an unsuspecting Sandin - sending him sprawling face-first into the shooting lane as his teammate from the right point let loose on a one-timer.

The puck blasted Sandin under his visor, causing Bears' goaltender Zach Fucale to immediately begin waving his arms at the referees to stop play. It was was a scary situation, as Sandin was cut and bleeding on his way off the ice with Phantoms' trainer Brian Grogetsky.

It was later determined that Sandin suffered a broken orbital bone and would require surgery to repair. His father, Patric, flew in from Sweden to be Linus for the surgery - offering his support during a time in which it was surely needed.

The injury, subsequent surgery and time spent rehabbing on the ice to get back into shape took two months but Sandin returned to game action on December 18, sporting a full-face shield and ready to make up for lost time.

It took a few games, but once Sandin got his footing under him and re-gained that comfort level - he started to become somewhat of a go-to contributor, playing a helping hand in turning the Phantoms' three-wins-in-19-games start to the season around as the team has a chance to get back to .500 hockey as they now sit at 12-13-8 through 33 games.

Perhaps it was only fitting that on January 5th at Giant Center in Hershey - Sandin's first game back since the season-opening incident - he scored his first goal of the season.

"Last time I was here was a tough night," Sandin told InsideAHLHockey.com after that January 5 game. "I felt a lot better today [than the last time I was here]."

The goals just kept coming for Sandin, who had tallied five goals and an assist in his last six games prior to getting the call up to the Flyers on Monday. His high hockey-IQ and the ensuing trust from the Phantoms coaching staff had him playing big minutes in all situations, including both the penalty kill and the power play - the latter of which he has two goals on the season.

"That kid is all character," Phantoms' head coach Ian Laperriere said of Sandin. "He put the work in, and it was a long way to recovery, and he's here now. All the credit to him."

On Tuesday night, Sandin will get to live out his childhood dream as he will make his NHL debut with the Flyers as they look to snap an 11-game winless skid on the road against the New York Islanders.

"He put a lot of work in once he was able to get out and skate, and spent a lot of time on the ice," Smith said of Sandin's strong return. "He's built up some good conditioning and trust and now he's got some confidence in his game."