Canadian forward Charles Hudon, 31, has signed a two-year contract with Djurgården IF, the Stockholm-based SHL club announced on Wednesday.

“I’m very excited to go out on the ice and meet all the ‘Djurgårders’,” Hudon is quoted in the club’s press release.

“An two-way forward who will be a threat at 5-on-5 and 5-on-4,” said Djurgården sporting director Niklas Wikegård. “Charles is a player who wants to attack, who wants to make decisions and who wants the puck. We know that he produces points year after year and it will be very exciting to follow him.”

Hudon was born in Alma, Que. And played junior hockey for the QMJHL’s Chicoutimi Sanguenéens, whom he captained for two seasons. He was drafted in the fifth round, 122nd overall, by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.

Between 2015 and 2023, Hudon played 134 NHL regular-season games for the Canadiens and Colorado Avalanche, recording 41 points and 58 penalty minutes. He also played two post-season games for Montreal in the 2020 Eastern Conference bubble in Toronto.

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When the NHL’s 2020-21 season was delayed by pandemic restrictions, Hudon got his first taste of European hockey, recording 35 points in 39 National League regular-season playoff games for Lausanne HC in Switzerland.

The following season, between his Montreal and Colorado stops, he was property of the Tampa Bay Lightning but spent the entire 2021-22 season in the AHL. Likewise, he spent the past two seasons in the Los Angeles Kings organization, playing exclusively with the Ontario Reign. All told, Hudon has 440 points in 529 AHL regular-season and playoff games.

The announcement of the Hudon signing comes two days after Djurgården introduced Norwegian former Calgary Flames prospect Mathias Emilio Pettersen as a new recruit.

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“Compared to Emilio, Charles is at a slightly different stage in his career,” said Wikegård. “He has been a professional for many years, played a number of seasons in the NHL and established himself as a top player in the AHL.”

Djurgården was just promoted to the SHL from the second-tier HockeyAllsvenskan but is trying to build a competitive roster. The team will notably feature two 18-year-old forwards who were chosen in the first round of this year’s NHL Entry Draft – Victor Eklund and Anton Frondell.

In addition to Hudon, Pettersen, Eklund and Frondell, Djurgården’s lineup for the 2025-26 season also includes veteran center Marcus Krüger, who was a two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Chicago Blackhawks, Finnish right winger Jesse Ylönen, Swedish defenseman Gustav Lindström, and Swedish goaltender Magnus Hellberg.

Photo © Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images: Los Angeles Kings left wing Charles Hudon (54) skates ahead of Vegas Golden Knights defenseman Lukas Cormier (40) during NHL pre-season action in September 2023.

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