by Daniel Fink | AHL On The Beat
The American Hockey League is tough to play in. Just ask any player who has suited up for games on the circuit. It’s a league that forces players to learn quickly and adapt their game to find success.
Want to try adding to the degree of difficulty? Try moving to a new continent and, for good measure, joining the league nearly 15 games into the schedule. That was Fabian Wagner’s situation this fall when he stepped onto the ice with the Manitoba Moose on Nov. 23 against the Chicago Wolves.
The Winnipeg Jets selected Wagner in the sixth round of the 2022 NHL Draft. While the forward was a point-per-game player in the Swedish junior ranks, Wagner tallied just one goal and six points in 87 games over parts of four seasons in the top-level Swedish Hockey League.
Feeling the best next steps for his development would be in the AHL, the 20-year-old Wagner made the jump to North America after playing 16 games with Linköping HC to start this season. It was a dramatic change for Wagner, but he had help waiting when he arrived with the Moose.
“If I wanted that development, I need to come over here,” explained Wagner. “Of course it’s a new country, new type of hockey and new teammates. It’s something new, but the Swedes have helped me a lot and other guys on the team also.”
Yes, it certainly helps when your new team in North America features three of your countrymen to help get you acclimated. There are plenty of adjustments to make in a new country. Even just figuring out the local grocery stores can be a challenge. Luckily Wagner had experienced players like Axel Jonsson-Fjällby and Simon Lundmark, along with fellow rookie Elias Salomonsson, to help him settle in.
“It’s really valuable,” he said. “Axel and Simon have helped me a lot. It’s great, they’ve been here some years now so it helps me a lot to have them by my side. I’m really grateful for them.”
With help getting his off-ice situation sorted, Wagner could keep his focus on the ice with the Moose. His first objective when joining up with the Moose was just to have fun. Wagner knew there would be challenges getting used to a new style but wanted to enjoy every moment of this new opportunity in Winnipeg.
While offense didn’t immediately flow, Wagner brought a solid two-way game, the sort of play coaches can rely on. It didn’t take long for Wagner to earn the trust of his teammates and coaching staff.
“You could tell as soon as he came over, he wasn’t cheating the game at all,” recalled Moose center Jaret Anderson-Dolan. “He played hard, he was good in puck battles. I remember playing with him earlier in the season and he has the foundation to be a really solid player.”
Early on, the Moose coaching staff recognized Wagner had some natural offensive ability. Those skills centered around a heavy and accurate shot, but he earned opportunity with his responsible play and hard work.
“Everything that Fabian’s got, he’s earned, whether that’s moving up the lineup or playing special teams,” detailed Moose assistant coach Morgan Klimchuk. “It was evident early he wanted to be a player that could be trusted. He took a lot of pride in his play without the puck. That has afforded him the opportunity to play all the games he did early and continue to climb.”
While Wagner’s two-way game earned him consistent praise from the coaching staff, the offensive results hadn’t yet followed. The Nyköping, Sweden, product had three assists in his first 31 games. A couple of those helpers were impactful – Wagner assisted on a pair of game-winning goals – but he was still waiting for that first tally.
That fight to generate offence was something his coach could relate to. Klimchuk appeared in 274 games with Stockton, Toronto and Belleville during his AHL career. While the former winger went on to put up 133 points (62 goals, 71 assists) in his AHL tenure, he didn’t score in his first 16 games and only posted nine points in 55 games of his rookie season.
“I’ve made the jump to this league. It’s not an easy league to score in and it takes time. You have to figure out how to play the game. Usually, it starts without the puck and then you start to find yourself in situations with a little bit more time and space. This is where you need to go to get chances, to get looks.”
Wagner wasn’t letting it show in his play, but there was some angst setting in as he went deeper into the season without a goal.
“Of course there’s some frustration,” Wagner admitted. “You always want to score and when you’re hunting the first goal and the games are ticking, there’s going to be some frustration. I think I was playing pretty good hockey. I was just trying to have that in my mind and continue playing my game. Don’t try to think so much about the first goal.”
And then, on March 5 against the Grand Rapids Griffins, Fabian Wagner scored his first AHL goal. Defenseman Dylan Anhorn stole the puck in the offensive zone and fed Wagner lurking in the slot. Wagner tucked a one-timer just past the outstretched pad of Sebastian Cossa.
Then something remarkable happened. Wagner scored again the next game.
And the next game.
And then twice the next game.
And one more the following game for good measure.
In the span of five games, Wagner scored six goals to take over the Moose rookie goal-scoring lead. It was the longest goal-streak by a Moose skater since the 2022-23 season, and the longest by a rookie since Kyle Connor racked up 10 goals in six games during the 2016-17 campaign. The streak came to an end on March 16 in Iowa, but Wagner was right back at it for his seventh goal in as many games on March 19 in Rockford.
“It was awesome,” laughed Wagner, looking back on the run. “It’s always fun to score goals. Also, I think I also learned something from it. Of course, you know you score goals in front of the net, but I learned how to get to the goal and how to get the opportunities.”
The rookie forward wasn’t the only one reveling in his explosion of scoring. His Moose teammates were ecstatic to be a part of the ride including Anderson-Dolan, who was on a line with Wagner for four of the five games.
“Everyone knows how hard it is to go through a slump,” Anderson-Dolan said. “It feels like the net is super small and there’s nothing to shoot at. Then one goes in, and it feels like a soccer net. Once you see that one go in, you’re happy for him to have the monkey off his back. It’s funny how once you get one, usually the floodgates open up.”
Wagner wrapped up March with seven goals and one assist in 13 games, leading the Moose in goals during the month. His seven tallies also finished the month tied for second among all AHL rookies.
While the number of goals is exciting, Klimchuk is quick to point out it’s not just how many, but how Wagner is scoring.
“We were really proud of him continuing to grow his game and add layers. A lot of those goals were finding quiet ice or scoring areas at the right time. Really good, different releases and scored a bunch of goals in a bunch of different ways. He is not one-dimensional in how he generates offense.”
It’s been a season of change and learning for Fabian Wagner. The Winnipeg Jets prospect embraced the challenge of coming to a new league and country. He dedicated himself to putting in the work to build on a strong foundation and is now starting to see it pay off with new success.
