Robert Hägg to Anaheim: “Why did you even sign me at all?”

Last month, while he was still considering his options for the 2024-25 season, Robert Hägg gave an interview with a Swedish reporter for Expressen.se where he expressed some of his disappointment with how things worked out in Anaheim.

Now, after signing a one-year, two-way contract with the Vegas Golden Knights, the 29-year-old Swedish defenseman has opened up more, according to website HockeyNews.se.

“It was not at all what I had imagined. Everything that I didn't think would happen happened,” he said about his season in the Ducks organization, where he played only five NHL games for one of the league's weakest teams after having spent the previous six seasons entirely in the NHL with the Philadelphia Flyers, Buffalo Sabres, Florida Panthers and Detroit Red Wings.

“There was a lot of talk and promises. Everything seemed fine. We arranged accommodation and I felt positive during the camp,” said Hägg, who was then called in for a meeting with GM Pat Verbeek at the end of camp.

“You know what that means,” said Hägg. “Either you get put on waivers or sent down to the AHL. When I got the news I wondered, ‘What the hell is going on?’ They said they were pleased, but that the young players had developed unexpectedly well and needed to be given a chance now at the start.”

Hägg was called up in January and played five games before being sent down. The Ducks lost all five games with Hägg logging between 11:57 and 13:05 each game.

“I immediately asked, ‘Why did you even sign me at all?’,” when he got the news about going back to the San Diego Gulls. “I’m not a junior anymore, I've been playing here for 10 years. You had this in mind when you signed me, so why couldn’t you be honest from the start? They had no answer, so it was just a matter of biting the bullet and soldiering on.”

That experience has apparently not soured Hägg on the notion of playing in North America – his two-way deal in Vegas means he could be assigned to the AHL, just as he was in Anaheim. And there was interest in Sweden, particularly from the MoDo club that he played junior and professionally with from ages 16 to 19.

“I know that MoDo was very interested and I spoke to sports manager Henrik Gradin several times,” said Hägg, who discussed the options with his wife. “It was on the table whether we should move home or how we should do it, but we have definitely decided that we want to stay abroad for a few more years.”