Bowling Green junior defenseman Anton Malmstrom has signed an entry-level contract with the NHL’s St. Louis Blues.
He will report to the franchise’s AHL affiliate, the Springfield Thunderbirds.
Malmstrom, a native of Osterhaninge, Sweden, spent three years at BGSU, playing in 87 games and serving as an alternate captain in 2022-23.
He gives up his senior season with the Falcons in signing with the Blues.
“I was super excited for the opportunity I got at Bowling Green,” Malmstrom said in a statement. “There weren’t many people who believed in me three years ago. I’m really thankful for all the people within this great program for believing in me and as I tried to take advantage of that opportunity. Without the help of the guys here and all the people within the program, I wouldn’t be here. I just want to say thank you. I’m super grateful and proud to be a Bowling Green Falcon.”
Malmstrom finished the 2022-23 season with three goals and three assists for six points, matching or setting a single-season career-best in all three categories. He finishes his career with seven goals and six assists for 13 points.
“I’m really proud for Anton and his family,” said BGSU coach Ty Eigner. “His recruiting process during COVID was interesting. We didn’t get a chance to see him play live, so Curtis Carr and I watched him on video, did some Zooms with him, and ultimately settled on Tony and offered him a scholarship opportunity. He took it and it couldn’t have worked out any better. When these types of things work out for both parties, it’s special. Anton wanted somebody to believe in him and give him an opportunity, and we wanted someone to believe in us and take advantage of an opportunity. He comes from a great family, and for him to leave here after three years with an NHL contract is great.
“We’ll put him up on the wall next to the rest of the guys, which is a really special thing for us, because we want to be a program that combines athletics and academics at the highest level. Anton is a great example of that. Everybody around here couldn’t be more proud of Anton and we wish them all the best with the St. Louis Blues.”
Malmstrom has collected multiple off-ice awards. In 2022, he was named to the CCHA all-academic team and was also recognized as a CCHA scholar-athlete and AHCA all-American scholar. He was also a participant in an NHL development camp the last two seasons, spending 2021 with the Boston Bruins and 2022 with the St. Louis Blues.
He is the first Falcon to sign an NHL contract since 2020, when Alec Rauhauser signed with the Florida Panthers.
