"We are excited to officially welcome Linus to Vancouver," said Allvin. "He is a good goal scorer who plays a solid two-way game, and he is coming off an impressive rookie season in Sweden. We look forward to seeing him develop his game in North America."
Karlsson, 22, appeared in 52 games with Skellefteå AIK of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) last season, leading the team in goals (26) and ranking second in overall scoring with 46 points (26-20-46). His point total also ranked ninth league-wide and first among all SHL rookies, earning him the honours of the SHL Rookie of the Year. He also skated in six playoff games with Skellefteå AIK, contributing one assist.
Previously, Karlsson spent three seasons in the HockeyAllsvenskan league, registering 109 points (39-70-109) across 152 regular season games split between Karlskrona HK and BIK Karlskoga. He also collected 18 points in 17 postseason Allsvenskan games.
A native of Eksjö, Sweden, Karlsson has also represented his country on the international stage on multiple occasions, totalling 11 points (4-7-11) and six penalty minutes in 15 games.
The 6'1", 178-pound forward was originally selected by San Jose in the third round, 87th overall at the 2018 NHL Entry draft and was acquired by Vancouver via trade on February 25, 2019.