Yesterday, the Philadelphia Flyers signed 2014 seventh-round Draft pick Jesper Pettersson to an entry-level contract. The deal carries an NHL-level cap hit of $575,000. Reportedly, Pettersson's contract also includes incentive bonuses based on NHL games played.
According to Linköping's official team web site, Pettersson informed club president Mike Helber yesterday that he is
leaving the team and will play in North America next season.
Pettersson turns 20 on Wednesday (July 16) of this week. His just-signed contract would NOT have been eligible to squeeze in under the slide rule in the NHL's Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the Players' Association. Under CBA rules, a player's "signing age" is based on his age as of Sept. 15 of the year he signs his contract. As a result, the first year of Pettersson's entry-level contract will be burned regardless of where he plays.
Texts sent yesterday to Flyers general manager Ron Hextall and scouting director Chris Pryor seeking confirmation of Pettersson's decision to play in North America in 2014-15 went unanswered.
Helber's statement on LHC's official site congratulating Pettersson for his NHL contract and noting that the Flyers want to see the defenseman on the small rink next season seems to be definitive confirmation. However, Flyers player development coach Kjell Samuelsson said via email, "To the best of my knowledge, that decision has not been made yet."
Built like a fireplug at 5-foot-9 and 195-plus pounds, the player nicknamed "Pitbull" by LHC fans and known as Jeppe among friends in Sweden, is a tenacious defensive defenseman who does not shy away at all from physical play. While it is undeniably tough for defensemen his size to make it to the NHL and achieve any sort of longevity (especially if he's not a big point producer) doing so is not impossible.
For example, Pettersson is built along very similar lines to the still-active Francis Bouillon. Currently an unrestricted free agent, the 5-foot-8, 195-pound Bouillon is a veteran of 776 regular season games in the NHL. Former Flyers defenseman Freddy Meyer, now retired due to injury and working in the minor league coaching ranks, played 281 NHL games and posted 76 points along the way.
Prior to making the decision to come to North American, Pettersson played 62 SHL-level games for Linköping over the last two seasons. He was also a member of Sweden's silver-medal winning team at the 2014 World Junior Championships. He was suspended by the International Ice Hockey Federation for the gold medal game against archrival Finland. At the conclusion of the semifinal game between Sweden and Russia, Pettersson jumped out of the penalty box to get into an altercation between the two teams.
Philadelphia Flyers Blogger •NHL.com • 
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