Swedish defenseman Robert Hägg, 30, has signed a one-year contract with Brynäs IF, the Gävle-based SHL club announced on Wednesday. Hägg is returning to Sweden after spending the past 11 seasons in North America, split between the NHL and AHL in six different organizations.

“It feels really good to come to Brynäs,” said Hägg. “I have been in the USA for many years and felt that it was a good time to return home to Sweden. I have had very good conversations with Johan Alcén and the club has clear visions that match mine. In the end, it was an easy decision when we got to that stage. I look forward to getting to work.”

“Robert is a big, solid player who has accumulated a lot of experience and we will benefit greatly from that,” said Alcén, the club’s sports director. “We like his whole aura when he is out on the ice where he does not hesitate to step into the melée. He is a humble and respectful person who really makes his surroundings better and wants to win. He will fit in perfectly with the group.”

Born in Uppsala, Sweden, Hägg developed in the MoDo system and he was rumored to be heading to that club a few months ago; however, MoDo’s relegation to the second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan was probably a factor in him deciding to play elsewhere.

Hägg was chosen in the second round, 41st overall, by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. Between 2016 and 2025, he played 345 NHL regular-season games for the Flyers, Buffalo Sabres, Florida Panthers, Detroit Red Wings, Anaheim Ducks and Vegas Golden Knights, recording 63 points and 208 penalty minutes. He added three assists in 14 playoff games, all with Philadelphia.

Robert Hägg to Anaheim: “Why did you even sign me at all?”Last month, while he was still considering his options for the 2024-25 season, Robert Hägg gave an interview with a Swedish reporter for Expressen.se where he expressed some of his disappointment with how things worked out in Anaheim.

After being a regular NHLer for six seasons, Hägg only played seven games in the league over the past two seasons. He considered returning to Sweden last summer after a particularly sour experience in Anaheim, which he shared with Swedish media, but decided to give it one more shot with Vegas.

Hägg joins a Brynäs team that is coming off a season in which it shattered all expectations. Just after being promoted from the HockeyAllsvenskan, Brynäs finished first overall in the regular season and made it to the SHL finals, where it lost to Lulea in six games.

In addition to Hägg, the club’s roster includes ex-NHLers Jakob Silfverberg, Johan Larsson, Oskar Lindblom, Christian Djoos, Axel Jonsson-Fjällby, Mattias Norlinder and goaltender Erik Källgren. Last year’s team included defensemen Charles-Édouard D’Astous and Victor Söderström – however, D’Astous has signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning and, although Söderström is under contract for another season with Brynäs, it is expected that he might sign with the Chicago Blackhawks – who acquired his NHL rights in the spring.

Photo © Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

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