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Swedish Hockey Club MoDo crowdfunds in attempt to steal Montreal Canadiens defenseman


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Nick Bass
September 2, 2024  (5:57 PM)
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Mattias Norlinder in practice
Photo credit: The Hockey Writers

A team in the top flight of Swedish hockey is using a creative way to try and steal one of the Montreal Canadiens' players away from playing in North America this season.

Mattias Norlinder spent the preseason training with Swedish club MoDo of the SHL in an attempt to regain his form heading into the upcoming NHL season. The team reports that there is mutual interest between the team and the player to get something done but the team's budget is stretched thin.
To bridge a gap in the teams budget, MoDo is attempting to crowdfund around $1 million Swedish krona (around CDN$130,000) to try and lure the player to come home
So far the technique is paying off, according to the team.
"So far more than 400'000 SEK, around 53'000 CAD has been collected" - Szymon Szemberg

Mattias Norlinder, a former 64th overall pick back in 2019 who put up just 9 points in 50 games this past season for the Laval Rocket, was not given a qualifying offer from the Habs this offseason, making him a free agent. However, if he were to sign even a two-way NHL contract, he would make significantly more than if he were to go to MoDo. He would likely be serving a role in the bottom-four of the Laval Rocket lineup in order to give more playing time to younger prospects.
Source for Mattias Norlinder's stats: HockeyDB

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