Quick Facts
LeoBiography
Jakob Lilja (born 23 July 1993) is a Swedish professional ice hockey forward currently playing for Barys Nur-Sultan of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
Playing career
Lilja made his Elitserien (now the SHL) debut playing with Rögle BK during the 2012–13 Elitserien season.
In the 2018–19 season, Lilja registered 12 goals and 25 assists for a career high 37 points in 52 games with Djurgårdens IF. Leading the club and finishing tied 8th in the SHL in assists, and 10th in points, he added 8 points in 19 playoff games to help reach the SHL finals.
Having made 222 appearances in the top flight SHL, Lilja gained the interest of NHL clubs as an undrafted free agent. He later agreed to pursue a North American career with the Columbus Blue Jackets, signing a one-year, entry-level contract on June 15, 2019.
In his first North American season in 2019–20, Lilja made the Blue Jackets opening night roster out of training camp and made his NHL debut against the Toronto Maple Leafs on 4 October 2019. Given a role on the fourth-line, Lilja appeared in 37 games over the course of the regular season, registering 2 goals and 5 points. He split the season with AHL affiliate, the Cleveland Monsters, notching 13 points through 25 contests.
After receiving permission by the Blue Jackets to find a new team during the suspension of the NHL season due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, Lilja returned to Europe after he was signed to a one-year deal with Barys Nur-Sultan of the KHL on 24 June 2020.
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2009–10 | Sunne IK | Div.1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Rögle BK | J20 | 39 | 12 | 13 | 25 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2011–12 | Rögle BK | J20 | 20 | 8 | 13 | 21 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | Rögle BK | Allsv | 23 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2012–13 | Rögle BK | J20 | 11 | 10 | 2 | 12 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 2012–13 | Rögle BK | SEL | 29 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | IF Troja/Ljungby | Allsv | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2013–14 | Rögle BK | Allsv | 47 | 15 | 7 | 22 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 12 | ||
| 2014–15 | Rögle BK | Allsv | 51 | 23 | 12 | 35 | 28 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 25 | ||
| 2015–16 | Linköping HC | SHL | 52 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2016–17 | Linköping HC | SHL | 49 | 11 | 5 | 16 | 31 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2017–18 | Linköping HC | SHL | 40 | 12 | 10 | 22 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | ||
| 2018–19 | Djurgårdens IF | SHL | 52 | 12 | 25 | 37 | 18 | 19 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 6 | ||
| 2019–20 | Columbus Blue Jackets | NHL | 37 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2019–20 | Cleveland Monsters | AHL | 22 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| SHL totals | 222 | 48 | 51 | 99 | 71 | 38 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 6 | ||||
| NHL totals | 37 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
