Esa Lindell

BIOGRAPHY

Esa Lindell was born May 23, 1994, in Helsinki, Finland. He signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Dallas Stars, the organization that had drafted him in the third round, 74th overall, of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.

Lindell was reassigned to the Liiga for the 2014–15 season, joining Ässät. He established a career-high year, registering 14 goals and 35 points in 57 games with the club, which led all Liiga defencemen in scoring, before on 16 March 2015 he was assigned by Dallas to the organization's American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Texas Stars.

On 18 January 2016, Lindell received his first NHL call-up. He made his debut the following day on 19 January in Dallas' game against the Los Angeles Kings. On 25 November, in his 17th career NHL game, Lindell scored his first NHL goal, coming in a 2–1 win against the Vancouver Canucks.

In June 2017, Lindell signed a two-year, $4.4 million contract extension with Dallas worth an annual salary cap hit of $2.2 million.

On 16 May 2019, Lindell signed a six-year, $34.8 million contract extension with the Stars, carrying an annual cap hit of $5.8 million.

In February 2020, Lindell was made an alternate captain along with teammate Blake Comeau. Lindell and Tyler Seguin served as alternate captains during home games, while Comeau and John Klingberg served as alternate captains during road games.