What's Next For Oskar Lindbergh

[Doomsday 4,048]

What's Next For Oskar Lindbergh?

 

TORONTO - Since being drafted fourth overall in the Season 80 VHL Entry Draft and making his debut for the Toronto Legion the next season, goaltender Oskar Lindbergh has been one of the stalwarts for the team. He has appeared in 386 games for Toronto, tied for the fourth-most in team history with Torstein Ironside, and has won 175 of them, good for sixth in team history. However, following Season 86, Lindbergh is set to be a free agent, with young goaltenders Joel Castle and Jeremy Swayman ready to make the leap to the VHL. It will mark the end of an era in Toronto, and for the first time in Lindbergh's career, his future will be uncertain.

 

"I'm trying not to think about it too much," Lindbergh replied to questions of what's next for him in Season 87. "I had a blast here in Toronto, but this is after all a business, and I just don't fit into the team's future any longer. I don't have any hard feelings, because I'd end up making the same decision if I was in management's shoes as well. My story in the VHL isn't over yet, but I don't know what's next for me just yet."

 

The landscape for goaltenders has rapidly shifted since Lindbergh came into the league seven seasons ago. A massive influx of young talent has more than filled the void that existed until recently. Teams without a future at goaltender now have a prospect waiting in the wings, meaning that even for a player of Oskar Lindbergh's caliber, there simply may not be a place for him in the VHL in Season 87.

 

 

"I would be lying if I said it hasn’t crossed my mind," continued Lindbergh about the possibility of not having a place to play in Season 87. "I know that the potential options are very limited, but I can't do anything to change that. It really added a different feeling to this season, though. I knew my time could be up very soon, and the last game I played this season with Toronto could very well have been my last as a VHL goaltender. It became very important for me to make the most of every single start and to cherish the time I got to play, because it could all be over before I know it and want it to be. I don't want to take any of that for granted."

 

It was been a difficult season so far for Toronto, who finished in seventh place in the North American Conference, just one point ahead of the Los Angeles Stars. However, it certainly wasn't due to the play of Oskar Lindbergh. He saved .925% of the shots he has faced, allowing an average of 2.69 goals per game, and won 21 games, four of them shutouts. If this season was an audition for Lindbergh, he certainly showed that he's still got it and can be an option for a team in need of an upgrade at goaltender. However, the question has never been about his ability, it's a matter of cap space and roster availability. 

 

Lindbergh nearly found himself on the move at the trade deadline, with a trade announced an hour before the deadline sending him to the Warsaw Predators. While the trade was accepted, the league office determined that processing the trade would have put Warsaw over the salary cap, and vetoed the trade. However, the trade deadline came and went without an amendment being made to the trade, meaning Lindbergh finished the season with Toronto. With the contract of Warsaw's current goaltender, Wumbo, set to expire following the season, there is still a chance that Lindbergh could wind up with the Predators after all, but nothing is guaranteed in the VHL these days.

 

 

The future may be uncertain, but the present for Oskar Lindbergh has and will remain much the same as it always has: to do what he's always done. Work hard, play harder, and do his best every time he takes to the ice. What lies ahead is out of his hands, but what he does now has always been in his control. What remains to be seen is whether or not the VHL will get to see more of Oskar Lindbergh. 

 

Jethro Novacek is a writer for the MSFL Times, the timeless and essential source for simulation sports news. He enjoys having the satisfaction of a good steamed ham, long-lasting laundry detergent, and not rushing around on Christmas.