Hallander Back in a Penguins Sweater After 322 Days
The Swedish forward, sidelined since last November by a blood clot, played Pittsburgh’s preseason opener and led the team with five shots.
Filip Hallander played his first game in a Penguins uniform in 322 days on Monday night, dressing for Pittsburgh's preseason opener against Buffalo after a blood clot diagnosis last November wiped out most of his 2025-26 season. He led the team with five shots on goal.
"It feels normal in one way, but at the same time, looking back at it, you wanted this moment to come, and now it's here. You're not taking it for granted," Hallander said.
The original timeline had him out a minimum of three months. He was assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in February for a conditioning stint, got three games in, then hit a setback inside a week and shut it down for the year.
"That was probably the hardest part after coming back for a couple of months," he said. He spent the back half of the season working daily at UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex, went home to Sweden for the summer, and was cleared to take contact a month ago.
Head coach Dan Muse called the attitude Hallander brought every day "absolutely remarkable," and said he is skating at a high level.
Hallander, a Pittsburgh second-round pick (58th overall) in 2018, spent two seasons in the Swedish Hockey League before signing a two-year contract with the Penguins on April 29, 2025. He made the opening-night roster last fall.
"I was close to getting everything, this, taken away from me," he said. "No one is more motivated and hungrier than me."
