It’s not only his words; the emotions are written on Lias Andersson’s face as we met following his signing by the Montreal Canadiens.
He comes back to one thought a few times before and after our conversation. It’s not that it didn’t mean anything to play hockey with the New York Rangers, in Hartford, or across the continent in Los Angeles or in Ontario, California. I get the feeling Lias wants a place to call ‘home.’ Home like in Jönköping with HV71, a town where most things are centred around the hockey team and the fans are knowledgeable and love their club.
You can disappear in New York and Los Angeles, places where hockey isn’t the main sport in the city. Lias is keen to point out that this is not meant as any disrespect toward those regions or fanbases, it’s just a different situation. He wants to make sure to convey the thought right, and stresses that he wanted to come to a place where hockey is part of the culture, ingrained in the fabric of the city. He had other offers as a free agent, but he wanted to play for the Montreal Canadiens.
“That feeling is something I like, something I enjoy. I like the passion the fans have for hockey. Hopefully you get recognized for doing something good and hopefully we can have a good season, and have some positive vibes around town.”
For him, joining the most storied franchise in the NHL is special. “I feel honoured, I feel excited, and, yes, I am pumped for this opportunity,” he says. “I heard nothing but great things about Montreal as an organization, and we played the World Juniors there in 2017. I was there for three weeks and I really liked it as a city. I heard nothing but great things about both Laval and Montreal. I talked to some guys who played in Laval and they said it was fantastic.”
You would think it had been Emil Heineman, Lukas Vejdemo, or maybe Mattias Norlinder who recommended the city, but Lias heard the glowing reviews from a different source.
“William Lagesson said it was fantastic. He said he loved it and highly recommended it, too.” It is unexpected that a player who played just three games as a Canadien gave the town and organization such a high recommendation, however it has already paid off as you could see the excitement in the eyes of Andersson.
Does Lias also see an opportunity with Montreal’s young core of talent to break into the NHL? He had been in the AHL for more or less the full season last year.
“I mean, I hope so. I had a good last year. I feel good. I want to be in the NHL and I want to be not only on the fourth line. I want to be higher up than that and, hopefully, produce one day in the NHL. I feel like I’ve taken steps these last couple of years. I think I belong in the NHL, and I’m confident I can play well in the NHL, too.”
Lias’s recipe for success is simple: “I just have to come to camp prepared. I know they have a good team and have some good young players, but hopefully I can play well, and if I don’t make it right away, start playing well in the AHL and hopefully get called up and get a job in the NHL.
“I have no problems with the AHL at all. I mean, a lot of people in Europe and in Sweden in particular look down on the AHL and think it’s a poor league, but I don’t agree at all.”
What does Andersson feel he can bring to the Canadiens after spending the last few years on the west coast?
“I think my game has changed a little bit over the last last couple of seasons. I played on the wing the last two to three years and I’ve started to like it a lot. I was a centreman growing up, drafted as a centreman, and I feel like I can play both on the wing and in the middle now, which is pretty good.
“Last year I took the role as a goal-scorer and I think I did that pretty well. So, if you’re just talking from last year, I hope I can bring that. And some energy, too. I like to play physical and I like to be around the net and battle and compete.”
Andersson doesn’t believe there are any problems with Jeff Gorton and Nick Bobrov who were part of the braintrust that drafted him to the New York Rangers.
“No, it’s fun,” Andersson says when I broach the topic. “I mean, we didn’t have time to work together that much in New York. So hopefully we can start off something new here and build a good relationship. I’m going to work hard and see what that leads to.”
He finishes our conversation with some words directed to the fans in Montreal and Laval.
“I’m super excited to be a part of the Canadiens and can’t wait to come over and be a part of the community, and hopefully learn some French here. I’m going to work this summer and hopefully be able to order some food in French; you know, those easy types of things. Hopefully I can work a little bit on my French here when I have some time. I’m just super excited to be a part of a historic club.”
Listen to the full interview below or in the podcast app of your choice.
