Former Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Max Lagace has signed with Färjestad BK of the Swedish Hockey League.
That team announced the transaction via release Wednesday.
A native of Saint-Augustin-de-Desmaures, Quebec, Lagace has spent his entire professional career in North America up until this point.
His time with the Penguins was brief. One game, in fact.
A free agent signing in the 2020 offseason, Lagace bounced between the NHL roster, the AHL roster and the pandemic-era taxi squad throughout the 2020-21 campaign that was limited in scale due to covid-19.
His lone NHL game for the Penguins was memorable. Making his first NHL appearance in over two years, Lagace recorded his first career shutout after making 29 saves in a 1-0 home win against the Buffalo Sabres on May 8, 2021 in the team’s regular season finale. In the process, he became the first — and still only — Penguins goaltender to record a shutout in his debut for the franchise.
Lagace left the Penguins in the ensuing offseason, joining the Tampa Bay Lightning as an unrestricted free agent.
During the 2022-23 campaign, the 30-year-old Lagace spent the entire season with the Syracuse Crunch, American Hockey League affiliate of the Lightning. In 41 AHL contests, Lagace had a 17-12-8 record, a 3.34 goals-against average, an .888 save percentage and one shutout.
In addition to the Penguins and Lightning, Lagace has also played for the Vegas Golden Knights.
