They call Karlsson "The Melkman" because he delivers game after game, but every team passed on him in the NHL Draft.
A solid two-way forward who is a tenacious, pesky checker with puck skills, Karlsson came to the attention of the San Jose Sharks after he was a key contributor for Skelleftea AIK when it won back-to-back Swedish Elite League titles in 2012-13 and 2013-14.
They call Karlsson "The Melkman" because he delivers game after game, but every team passed on him in the NHL Draft.
A solid two-way forward who is a tenacious, pesky checker with puck skills, Karlsson came to the attention of the San Jose Sharks after he was a key contributor for Skelleftea AIK when it won back-to-back Swedish Elite League titles in 2012-13 and 2013-14.
During the 2013-14 Swedish playoffs, Karlsson's versatility was evident. He finished sixth in playoff scoring with 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 14 games, was tied for fourth in plus/minus (plus-nine) and third in blocked shots among forwards (16).
In 2012-13, Karlsson's goals (13) and points (28) totals were the best of his Skelleftea career, as was his plus-20 rating. He was tied for ninth in playoff scoring with 10 points.
His performance impressed the Sharks, who signed Karlsson as a free agent on May 30, 2014. He began the 2014-15 season with Worcester of the American Hockey League, scoring five goals and 10 points in 20 games, before getting called up by San Jose.
Karlsson made his NHL debut Dec. 9, 2014 against the Edmonton Oilers, getting an assist to become the 28th player in Sharks history to have a point in his first NHL game. Karlsson's first multipoint NHL game (two assists) came Dec. 18, 2014 against the Oilers, and he scored his first NHL goal Dec. 22, 2014 against goaltender Frederik Andersen of the Anaheim Ducks.
Karlsson had 13 goals and 24 points in 53 games, and had a five-game goal-scoring streak from Jan. 3-10, 2015. He finished the season tied for seventh among NHL rookies in goals and tied for 15th in points and was named San Jose's Rookie of the Year.
Karlsson hit double digits in goals again in 2015-16 with 10 and also had nine assists and a plus-five rating in 65 games. Karlsson had five goals and eight points in 24 Stanley Cup Playoff games as San Jose advanced to the Final for the first time.
He did some of his best work in the Final against the Pittsburgh Penguins with two goals, four points and a plus-one rating in six games. Karlsson scored a goal in Game 4 and had the game-winner in Game 5 as the Sharks avoided elimination.
