Mattias Samuelsson (born March 14, 2000) is an American professional ice hockey defenseman currently playing for the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League (NHL). He played collegiately at Western Michigan.
Mattias Samuelsson | |||
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Born |
(2000-03-14) March 14, 2000 (age 22) Voorhees, New Jersey, U.S. | ||
Height | 6 ft 4 in (193 cm) | ||
Weight | 217 lb (98 kg; 15 st 7 lb) | ||
Position | Defense | ||
Shoots | Left | ||
NHL team | Buffalo Sabres | ||
NHL Draft |
32nd overall, 2018 Buffalo Sabres | ||
Playing career | 2021–present |
Samuelsson played three seasons in the USA Hockey National Team Development Program. He was part of the team that won the silver medal at the 2019 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.[1] He was captain of the team at the 2020 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.[2][3]
Samuelsson was drafted by the Sarnia Sting in the fourth round of the 2016 Ontario Hockey League Draft, but chose not to play there.[4]
After originally committing to the University of Michigan, Samuelsson de-committed and went to Western Michigan instead.[5] He played two seasons at Western Michigan, where he scored seven goals and 19 assists.[6] He was an alternate captain for the team in his sophomore year, despite being the youngest player on the team.[7]
Samuelsson was drafted in the second round, 32nd overall, by the Buffalo Sabres in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.[8][9] He signed a three-year contract with the Sabres on March 25, 2020.[1] He made his NHL debut with the Sabres on April 18, 2021, in a game against the Pittsburgh Penguins.[10][11]
Samuelsson's Swedish-born father, Kjell, played 14 seasons as an NHL defenseman for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning.[12][13] His mother Vicki is a Pennsylvania native.[14] Mattias grew up modeling his game after that of longtime NHL defensemen Mattias Ekholm[5] and Victor Hedman.[15]
Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
2015–16 | Northwood School | USHS | 47 | 14 | 15 | 29 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2016–17 | U.S. National Development Team | USHL | 30 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2017–18 | U.S. National Development Team | USHL | 23 | 4 | 10 | 14 | 64 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2018–19 | Western Michigan Univ. | NCHC | 35 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 37 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2019–20 | Western Michigan Univ. | NCHC | 30 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 41 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2020–21 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 23 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2020–21 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 12 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2021–22 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 22 | 2 | 13 | 15 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
2021–22 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 42 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
NHL totals | 54 | 0 | 12 | 12 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — |
Medal record | ||
---|---|---|
Representing ![]() | ||
Ice hockey | ||
World Junior Championships | ||
![]() | 2019 Canada | |
World U18 Championships | ||
![]() | 2018 Russia |
Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018 | United States | U18 | ![]() |
7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | |
2019 | United States | WJC | ![]() |
7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
2020 | United States | WJC | 6th | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | |
Junior totals | 19 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 12 |
Award | Year | |
---|---|---|
College | ||
NCHC Honorable Mention All-Star Team | 2020 |