Markus Holton Lauridsen (born 28 February 1991) is a Danish professional ice hockey defenseman who currently plays for the Löwen Frankfurt of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL). He is the younger brother to Oliver Lauridsen.

Markus Lauridsen
Lauridsen in 2015
Born (1991-02-28) 28 February 1991 (age 33)
Gentofte, Denmark
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 196 lb (89 kg; 14 st 0 lb)
Position Defense
Shoots Left
DEL team
Former teams
Löwen Frankfurt
Lake Erie Monsters
Leksands IF
EHC München
HV71
Malmö Redhawks
National team  Denmark
NHL draft Undrafted
Playing career 2012–present

Playing career

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Lauridsen originally played in his native Denmark with his hometown lower division club IC Gentofte before moving to join the Swedish youth team of Linköping HC. After one season in the J20 SuperElit in 2008–09, and with NHL aspirations, Lauridsen moved to North America to participate in a junior career in the United States Hockey League with the Green Bay Gamblers. Undrafted, Lauridsen was an overage player in his second season with the Gamblers in 2011–12, posting 30 points in 58 games.

On the back of helping Green Bay capture the Clark Cup Championship, Lauridsen accepted an invite to join the Colorado Avalanche 2012 training camp on 22 August 2012.[1] With the NHL lockout cancelling Colorado's training camp, Lauridsen was assigned to participate in the training camp of Avalanche AHL affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters.[2] Signed to an AHL contract with the Monsters, Lauridsen was then reassigned to begin his professional career in the 2012–13 season, with inaugural Central Hockey League affiliate, the Denver Cutthroats.[3]

Lauridsen scored his first professional goal in his first game at the Cutthroats season opener on 19 October 2012.[4] He posted 15 points in leading the Cutthroats defense before he received a second recall to remain with the Lake Erie Monsters, finishing with 12 assists in 36 games. Towards the completion of his first professional year, Lauridsen was signed to a two-year entry-level contract with the Avalanche.[5]

After three years within the Colorado Avalanche organization and being unable to reach the NHL, Lauridsen signed as an impending restricted free agent to a one-year deal with Swedish second-tier club, AIK IF of the HockeyAllsvenskan on 16 June 2015.[6] In the 2015–16 season with AIK, Lauridsen cemented a role on the blueline, contributing with 21 points in 50 games and was instrumental in helping the club compete in the playoffs for promotion to the SHL.

On 14 April 2016, Lauridsen left AIK to sign a lucrative two-year contract with top-tier SHL club, Leksands IF.[7] He left the team after the conclusion of the 2016–17 season and inked a deal with German Deutsche Eishockey Liga side EHC München in May 2017.[8]

Lauridsen played a lone season in Germany, appearing in 32 regular season games for 7 points before helping EHC München to their third straight championship in the post-season. On 30 April 2018, Lauridsen opted to return to the SHL, signing a two-year contract with HV71.[9] Following two seasons with HV71, Lauridsen moved to his third SHL club, in agreeing to a two-year contract with the Malmö Redhawks, on 30 March 2020.[10]

Following 33 points in 74 games for the team in his first two seasons, and a combined plus-minus of +10, Malmö Redhawks announced on the 5th of April 2022 that they had signed Lauridsen to a 2-year contract extension, keeping him at the club over the 2023-24 season.[11]

International play

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Lauridsen during his tenure with the Monsters.

Lauridsen has been an established member of the Danish junior team, competing in various World U18 Championships and World Junior Championships. In the 2010 Championship, Lauridsen was named as the Division I Best Defenseman for the tournament and repeated his performance the following 2011 Championship to lead all defenseman in points.[12]

After the completion of his first professional season, Lauridsen was named to the Danish squad to make his senior debut at the 2013 World Championships in Sweden.[13] He played his first full international in an opening game defeat to Canada on 4 May 2013.[14] Playing alongside brother Oliver, he appeared in every game for Denmark to finish with one assist in 7 games to help avoid relegation and finish in 12th place.[15]

Career statistics

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Regular season and playoffs

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2004–05 IC Gentofte DEN U20 2 0 0 0 0
2005–06 IC Gentofte DEN U20 14 2 4 6 26
2006–07 IC Gentofte DEN U20 24 4 9 13 50
2006–07 IC Gentofte DEN.2 2 0 0 0 0
2007–08 Linköpings HC J18 11 2 2 4 8
2008–09 Linköpings HC J18 17 1 3 4 10
2008–09 Linköpings HC J18 Allsv 10 4 3 7 8 3 0 0 0 4
2009–10 Linköpings HC J20 37 0 3 3 12 6 0 0 0 2
2010–11 Green Bay Gamblers USHL 44 5 5 10 16 11 0 4 4 0
2011–12 Green Bay Gamblers USHL 58 6 24 30 32 11 3 1 4 8
2012–13 Denver Cutthroats CHL 30 6 9 15 14
2012–13 Lake Erie Monsters AHL 36 0 12 12 16
2013–14 Lake Erie Monsters AHL 39 3 9 12 14
2014–15 Lake Erie Monsters AHL 62 5 11 16 22
2015–16 AIK Allsv 50 8 13 21 28 8 0 0 0 0
2016–17 Leksands IF SHL 48 4 9 13 2
2017–18 EHC Red Bull München DEL 32 2 5 7 16 8 2 1 3 4
2018–19 HV71 SHL 49 1 7 8 8 9 1 1 2 2
2019–20 HV71 SHL 52 3 27 30 8
2020–21 Malmö Redhawks SHL 34 0 14 14 10 2 0 1 1 0
2021–22 Malmö Redhawks SHL 40 2 17 19 6
2022–23 Malmö Redhawks SHL 40 4 5 9 10
2023–24 Malmö Redhawks SHL 28 2 4 6 2
2023–24 Löwen Frankfurt DEL 16 2 4 6 2
AHL totals 137 8 32 40 52
SHL totals 291 16 83 99 46 11 1 2 3 2

International

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Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2008 Denmark WJC18 10th 6 0 1 1 8
2009 Denmark WJC18 D1 14th 5 0 0 0 2
2010 Denmark WJC D1 13th 5 0 3 3 4
2011 Denmark WJC D1 12th 5 1 6 7 2
2013 Denmark WC 12th 7 0 1 1 4
2014 Denmark WC 13th 6 0 0 0 4
2015 Denmark WC 14th 7 0 0 0 20
2016 Denmark WC 8th 8 1 1 2 6
2016 Denmark OGQ DNQ 3 0 0 0 0
2017 Denmark WC 12th 7 1 0 1 2
2019 Denmark WC 11th 7 1 3 4 4
2021 Denmark WC 12th 7 2 5 7 0
2021 Denmark OGQ Q 3 0 7 7 0
2022 Denmark OG 7th 5 2 1 3 0
2022 Denmark WC 9th 7 1 7 8 10
2023 Denmark WC 10th 7 0 6 6 10
Junior totals 21 1 10 11 16
Senior totals 74 8 31 39 60

References

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  1. ^ "Danish D-man gets try-out for Avs camp". Eurolanche.com. 22 August 2012. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
  2. ^ "2012–13 Training camp roster announced". Lake Erie Monsters. 28 September 2012. Archived from the original on 10 January 2014. Retrieved 28 September 2012.
  3. ^ "Cutthroats announce opening night roster". Denver Cutthroats. 18 October 2012. Archived from the original on 25 March 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2012.
  4. ^ "Cutthroats top Missouri 4–3 in overtime". Denver Cutthroats. 19 October 2012. Archived from the original on 25 March 2013. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
  5. ^ "Cutthroats are CHL's top development club for 2012–13". Denver Cutthroats. 3 April 2013. Archived from the original on 21 June 2013. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
  6. ^ "AIK building wall in defense" (in Swedish). AIK IF. 16 June 2015. Archived from the original on 18 June 2015. Retrieved 16 June 2015.
  7. ^ "Two new players ready for Leksands". Leksands IF. 14 April 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
  8. ^ "EHC Munich sign Defenseman Markus Lauridsen" (in German). EHC München. 4 May 2017. Retrieved 4 May 2017.
  9. ^ "Markus Lauridsen new defenseman in HV71". HV71 (in Swedish). 30 April 2018. Retrieved 30 April 2018.
  10. ^ "Danish defensman Lauridsen signs with Redhawks" (in Swedish). Malmö Redhawks. 30 March 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  11. ^ Kågström, Rasmus. "Markus Lauridsen extends with Malmö (Swedish)". hockeysverige.se. Hockeysverige. Retrieved 2 July 2022.
  12. ^ "2010 World Junior Championship stats". Eliteprospects.com. 5 April 2013. Retrieved 5 April 2013.
  13. ^ "Danish squad for 2013 Championships" (in Danish). ishockey.dk. 3 May 2013. Archived from the original on 12 May 2013. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  14. ^ "Canada off to winning start". International Ice Hockey Federation. 4 May 2013. Archived from the original on 12 January 2014. Retrieved 4 May 2013.
  15. ^ "Denmark's Dynamic Duo". International Ice Hockey Federation. 8 May 2013. Archived from the original on 12 January 2014. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
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