The Sens claimed the Swedish netminder off of waivers Wednesday and this morning he joined his new team for the first time.
"There was a lot of changing of plans," he said. "There was a while when I was going to drive, then changed to a flight and changed again to a charter flight to get here but I'm happy to be here and to especially get right into practice and play games."
Forsberg is expected to start Saturday afternoon for the Belleville Senators. It'd be his first game since March 7 2020 when he stopped 24 shots for the Carolina Hurricanes in a 3-2 win over the New York Islanders. His last AHL appearance was February 22 of last year.
The 28-year-old has played 48 career NHL games, going 12-25-4 with a 3.22 GAA and a .901 save percentage.
Ottawa marks his fourth team of the 2020-21 season. He initially signed with Edmonton, then was claimed by Carolina, then by Winnipeg, before coming to the Senators. Despite being placed on waivers multiple times, he takes solace that teams still want his services.
"At the end of the day I try not to think about it and just focus on my game and whoever I work with and wherever I am, the game for myself isn't going to change," he said. "I'm going to use it as a tool. I've seen a lot of goalie coaches now and I can listen to all of them and get something from each one of them but at the end of the day it's my game and I've got to play my game."
He has a few familiar faces in Ottawa. He's played considerably with Clark Bishop in both Carolina and their AHL affiliate, Charlotte, as well Ryan Dzingel. He's also lined up alongside Artem Anisimov in Chicago and Columbus.
"He's obviously bounced around a little bit but when you get put on waivers and a team claims you, that means you're a heck of a player and people want you," Dzingel said. "It's tough to be a goalie in this league. There's only two jobs everywhere but … it's nice to see [him] get an opportunity and hopefully he can do well with it."
All of the relocating was unexpected for Forsberg, but then again, the past 12 months have been filled with the unexpected. But he's excited for a fresh opportunity in the Nation's Capital.
"A lot of things happen in the world, rules changed throughout the season with Covid," he said.
"The third goalie has been more important than ever and I'm happy to be here right now."
