Swedish hockey club HV71 has secured goaltender coach Joel Gistedt with a new contract running until 2027. The 38-year-old has been part of the team's staff for the past three seasons. This move fills one key position as the club continues its search for a new head coach.
HV71 confirmed the contract extension for Joel Gistedt amid ongoing changes in its coaching staff. The club recently dismissed head coach Anton Blomqvist and is now seeking his replacement along with one additional assistant coach. Gistedt, however, will remain in place to continue developing the team's goalkeepers. Interim general manager Johan Hult praised Gistedt's dedication, stating, 'Joel is ambitious and thorough in his work and comes to the rink every day with tremendous drive to continue developing the goalkeepers. I know the goalkeepers look forward to continuing to work with Joel, which is good feedback that the collaboration works well.' This was shared on the club's website, as reported by HockeyNews.se. Gistedt expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming season, highlighting the potential in HV71's goaltending group. 'We have an exciting goaltender group with both experience and talent, and it will be fun to continue the work we have started,' he said. 'I see curiosity and drive among the goalkeepers to always want to get better, and it is a group that pushes each other, which is a good environment to continue developing in.' With assistant coach Nicklas Rahm already in place alongside Gistedt, HV71 has stabilized parts of its staff. The club now focuses on finalizing the top coaching roles to prepare for the new campaign.
