Eric Martinsson

Eric Martinsson
Martinsson in 2025
Born	(1992-10-22) October 22, 1992 (age 32) Klippan, Sweden
Height	6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight	190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb)
Position	Defence
Shoots	Left
DEL team Former teams	Schwenninger Wild Wings Växjö Lakers Genève-Servette HC HV71 Barys Nur-Sultan
NHL draft	Undrafted
Playing career	2012–present

Eric Martinsson (born October 22, 1992) is a Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman who is currently playing for the Schwenninger Wild Wings of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL).

Playing career

Martinsson originally played as a youth with Rögle BK in the SuperElit before spending one North American junior season with the Des Moines Buccaneers of the United States Hockey League (USHL) in the 2012–13 season. ^[1]

After he was passed over in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, Martinsson opted to return to Sweden to make his debut with Rögle BK in the Allsvenskan in the 2013–14 season. ^[2] He featured in 19 games for 3 assists, before breaking out offensively in the postseason qualifiers with 14 points in 16 games.

With Rögle BK confined to the second tier Allsvenskan, Martinsson signed an initial two-year contract with the Växjö Lakers of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) on April 15, 2014. ^[3] Martinsson made his SHL debut playing with Lakers during the 2014–15 SHL season, and won a Le Mat Trophy. ^[4]

After helping the Växjö Lakers to a second Swedish championship in the 2017–18 season, Martinsson as a free agent, agreed to terms on a one-year, two-way contract with the Minnesota Wild of the National Hockey League (NHL) on May 2, 2018. ^[5] After attending the Wild's training camp, Martinsson was assigned to begin the 2018–19 season, with American Hockey League affiliate, the Iowa Wild. Martinsson produced 9 assists in 13 games before opting to mutually terminate his contract with the Wild, after being placed on unconditional waivers on November 28, 2018. ^[6]

On November 28, 2018, Martinsson joined Swiss club, Genève-Servette HC of the National League (NL) for the remainder of the season on a one-year deal worth CHF 500,000. He was brought to the team as a replacement for injured Johan Fransson. ^[7] On January 6, 2019, Martinsson was hit from behind, falling head first into the boards, by Marc Wieser in a game against HC Davos. Martinsson left the game and went straight to the hospital in Davos, where he spent the night, before returning to Geneva the next day. He suffered a severe concussion which sidelined him for the next two months. Whereas Wieser was only fined CHF 5,100 and suspended for three games. Martinsson returned to Geneva's lineup with 10 games remaining in the regular season and was a healthy scratch for games 3 and 4 of the 2019 Quarterfinals against SC Bern. Martinsson displayed poor performances following his return and was not offered a contract extension by Geneva, making him a free agent.

On April 17, 2019, Martinsson returned to Sweden, agreeing to a three-year contract with HV71 of the SHL. ^[8]

Following the conclusion of the 2022–23 season, having regressed offensively with just 1 goal and 12 points through 44 games, Martinsson was mutually released from the remaining two years of his contract with HV71 on 15 March 2023. ^[9]

After completing his second season in his return to original SHL club, Växjö Lakers, Martinsson left Sweden to sign a one-year contract with German club, Schwenninger Wild Wings of the DEL, on 18 July 2025. ^[10]

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2009–10	Rögle BK	J20		37	2	5	7	24		2	0	0	0	0
2010–11	Rögle BK	J20		23	3	4	7	6		3	1	0	1	0
2011–12	Rögle BK	J20		47	7	26	33	71		7	1	6	7	39
2011–12	Helsingborgs HC	Div.1		7	1	3	4	27		—	—	—	—	—
2012–13	Des Moines Buccaneers	USHL		59	7	26	33	66		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Rögle BK	J20		5	1	1	2	4		—	—	—	—	—
2013–14	Rögle BK	Allsv		19	0	3	3	10		16	4	10	14	14
2013–14	Helsingborgs HC	Div.1		14	3	7	10	14		—	—	—	—	—
2014–15	Växjö Lakers	SHL		47	1	3	4	14		15	0	2	2	10
2015–16	Växjö Lakers	SHL		50	2	10	12	57		13	2	5	7	4
2016–17	Växjö Lakers	SHL		41	4	11	15	30		6	0	2	2	0
2017–18	Växjö Lakers	SHL		46	3	14	17	34		13	3	8	11	18
2018–19	Iowa Wild	AHL		13	0	9	9	10		—	—	—	—	—
2018–19	Genève-Servette HC	NL		19	1	4	5	2		4	0	0	0	0
2019–20	HV71	SHL		43	3	19	22	16		—	—	—	—	—
2020–21	HV71	SHL		51	5	32	37	34		—	—	—	—	—
2021–22	Barys Nur-Sultan	KHL		38	0	11	11	26		5	0	0	0	2
2022–23	HV71	SHL		44	1	11	12	8		—	—	—	—	—
2023–24	Växjö Lakers	SHL		52	4	11	15	20		8	0	1	1	31
2024–25	Växjö Lakers	SHL		48	8	9	17	16		8	0	2	2	25
SHL totals				420	31	120	151	229		63	5	20	25	88

Awards and honors

Award	Year
SHL
Le Mat Trophy (Växjö Lakers)	2015, 2018	[11]

References

1. "Martinsson ready for USHL" (in Swedish). gronvitasumo.se. August 12, 2012. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
2. "Eric Martinsson returns to fold" (in Swedish). Rögle BK. July 10, 2013. Retrieved July 10, 2013.
3. "Eric Martinsson signs for Lakers" (in Swedish). Växjö Lakers. April 15, 2014. Retrieved April 15, 2014.
4. "Eric Martinsson". SHL.se (in Swedish). Retrieved November 28, 2018.
5. "Wild sign Swedish defenseman Eric Martinsson". Minnesota Wild. May 2, 2018. Retrieved May 2, 2018.
6. "Eric Martinsson: Waived unconditionally". CBSSports.com. November 27, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
7. "GSHC sign Eric Martinsson". swisshockeynews.ch. November 28, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
8. "Eric Martinsson new defenseman in HV71". HV71 (in Swedish). April 17, 2019. Retrieved April 17, 2019.
9. "Eric Martinsson leaves HV71" (in Swedish). HV71. March 15, 2023. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
10. "Defensive power from Sweden" (in German). Schwenninger Wild Wings. July 18, 2025. Retrieved July 18, 2025.
11. "Lakers dominant in SHL title win". eurohockeyclubs.com. April 23, 2018. Retrieved April 23, 2018.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com , or  Eliteprospects.com , or  Eurohockey.com , or  The Internet Hockey Database