Updated at 6:24 AM: This is one of those middle-of-the-night Swedish snippets that you only find in mid-July.
Red Wings prospect defenseman Anton Johansson spoke with Falu Kuriren’s Oskar Magnusson, and the article’s regrettably behind a paywall…
But there’s at least a headline and a “lede” which explains why Johansson turned down Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman and the team’s invitation to continue playing for the Grand Rapids Griffins after an 11-game stint in North America this past season.
According to Magnusson, Anton and his family decided that he should remain with Leksands IF of the SHL for one more year because his 26-year-old brother Simon, who played 2 seasons with the AHL’s Iowa Wild, felt that he went over a year too early (and, as a result, Simon headed back to Europe to play for Ilves Tampere of the Finnish Liiga).
Otherwise, the article says that the 6’4,” 196-pound defenseman’s put on 3 kilograms of weight without becoming “immobile on the ice,” and that’s it before the paywall hits. But given how incredibly skinny Anton is, being a healthy 6’4″ and another 6.6 pounds, or about 203 lbs total, is a good playing weight…
And as much as the Red Wings wanted the right-shooting, big-hitting stay-at-home defenseman to play for the Griffins this upcoming season, he’ll be earning major minutes for the rebuilding Leksands IF. The team from under a lot of pressure to turn things around both in terms of the team’s game and financially, all the while under the watchful eye of Thomas “Tjomme” Johansson, who is both the GM and is Anton’s father.
It’s a slow night, however. Other than being able to tell you that somebody updated the Red Wings’ “Make-a-Wish” page at 2:20 AM, that’s all I’ve got. I’m not going to chase stories for the sake of chasing dust. This is the season of bullshit stories and stupid, made-up rumors.
UPDATE: Hockeynews.se’s editorial department adds a little more to the mix, stating that Johansson “has a lot to learn”:
After a strong finish to the season in the AHL team Grand Rapids, there were hopes in Detroit that Anton could fight for a spot already this fall.
But after talks with Red Wings Steve Yzerman and dad Thomas – who is also the GM for Leksand–they made a a joint decision.
“I am still young and I have a lot to learn. Above all, I want to build on more muscles and stuff,” says Johansson to Falu-Kurien..
Johansson is now training further in the SHL – with a full focus on developing physics and timing right.
He weighs in at 90 kilos but aims to increase a few more kilos – without losing his mobility.
‘My brother Simon has already made the trip to North America – but according to Anton, too early. “I want to avoid that. I think he himself feels like he left over a year early.”
