There are conflicting reports coming from various sources, but it appears that the Ottawa Senators may have dipped their toes into the NCAA free agent pool again, this time signing Swedish defenseman Christian Folin form the UMass-Lowell. The freshman signs on with the Senators as a 22 year old, who is 6’3″ and 210 lbs. He is apparently a very solid defensive defenseman who will eventually be able to chip in some points offensively also.
Folin is a native of Gothenberg, Sweden, the same home town as Daniel Alfredsson. He has spent the past 3 seasons in North America, playing in the USHL and the NAHL before jumping into the NCAA.
He had 6 goals and 15 assists in 38 games as a freshman in the NCAA, which is not too bad at all. For comparison, Danny DeKeyser who was the jewel of the Free Agent crop, had 5 goals and 12 assists as a freshman, and 2 goals and 13 assists this year as a junior before signing with the Red Wings. Last year’s big pickup, Justin Schultz had 6 goals and 16 assists in 43 games in his freshman season for Wisconsin.
If in fact the signing does become official, it seems to be yet another good depth move by the Ottawa Senators and their future continues to look bright.