Penguins forward prospect Filip Hallander returns from injury eager to improve

Filip Hallander was in a rotten mood Wednesday for someone who played his first game in nearly a month.

But the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins forward has something of a perfectionist bent to him. It’s one of the reasons he is one of the Pittsburgh Penguins’ top prospects.

After a 3-2 home loss to the Springfield Falcons, Hallander was furious with himself.

“Today, I had two bad penalties and (missed) a block on the (penalty kill) that cost us the game,” Hallander said via video conference. “I was pretty devastated about that.”

Hallander’s harsh self-audit noted, the fact that he was even on the ice was an upbeat development.

Only 25 days earlier, he left the ice on a stretcher.

During the late stages of a 4-2 home loss to the Charlotte Checkers on Jan. 6 at Mohegan Sun Arena, Hallander suffered a suspected head injury when he was hit into the boards and fell to the ice.

He left the arena on a stretcher and was briefly hospitalized.

The precise nature of his injury never was revealed, but Hallander missed Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s next 10 games and was unavailable for any potential recalls to the NHL roster.

Hallander’s episode happened four days after Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin captured the national consciousness when he suffered a cardiac arrest during a road game against the Cincinnati Bengals and numerous medical measures were required to save his life.

The sight of Hallander leaving the ice under similar circumstances was a raw, scary moment for spectators.

“I think it probably looked a bit worse than it was,” Hallander said. “I try to put it behind me a little bit. It wasn’t as bad as it looked. All the people in the stands, my teammates, my family, everyone watching was more nervous than me. I’ve been gone for a while but feeling good now. Ready to play. Happy about that.

“It’s just bad luck. You can’t think about it too much. It’s just a weird play happening, and it ends up being a couple of weeks with rehab and stuff.”

His coach was clearly happy to have Hallander back in the lineup.

“Certainly a big deal for us,” Wilkes-Barre/Scranton coach J.D. Forrest said. “He’s a terrific player for us, and we’re happy that he’s back and full go. I thought he played really well (Wednesday), also. He helps us in so many different ways. He kind of gave a shot of energy to (teammates). … It was great to see him out there, back in the mix. Couldn’t be happier to have him back.”

A second-round pick (No. 58 overall) in 2018, the Swedish-born Hallander is among the Penguins’ best prospects, albeit in a pool of scarce candidates. In his second season on this continent, Hallander has taken considerable steps forward in his development.

Through 27 American Hockey League games this season, he has 25 points (eight goals, 17 assists).

In comparison, he had 28 points (14 goals, 14 assists) in 61 AHL games during the 2021-22 campaign.

The base offensive figures are nice, but Hallander isn’t under any misconceptions on what will get him to the NHL.

Defense.

“I take big pride in doing that,” Hallander said to the Tribune-Review in November when he was recalled to the NHL roster. “Hard work, wall battles, all that stuff, I think you can get very far in your career in being very good at that and being trustworthy in those areas.”

Hallander’s perspective on his professional existence doesn’t surprise Forrest.

“He’s pretty dialed into what he needs to do,” Forrest said. “It’s not surprising that he said something along those lines. The way that he plays with us, even if he’s on the first or second line, he’s got a third-line mentality. He does a lot of things that you’d expect from a third-line player in the NHL or a fourth-line player in the NHL, killing penalties and being sound on the defensive side of things. He’s able to contribute with us offensively, which is great. I think he can do that at the next level.

“Certainly, he sees the writing on the wall. He knows what he has to do to carve out a spot for himself and go from there. It doesn’t surprise me that he has that approach. That’s his day-to-day approach. He certainly knows the direction that he needs to go to end up where he wants to be.”

Hallander appeared in two games with the NHL club in November, road contests against the Washington Capitals and Toronto Maple Leafs. Last season, he made his NHL debut in a road game against the New York Rangers.

He offered a frank assessment of where he stands as an NHL-ready product.

“I have a ways to go,” Hallander said. “I’m there, but I’m a bit behind, too. I have some stuff to work on. That’s why you’re down here (with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton), to work on stuff. We have good staff members, development coaches. We have all the time in the world to do that here. I’m in a great place, and I think I can develop better.”