Goaltender Stefan Steen loses professional contract for horrible reason: lawsuit likely

Stefan Steen, a Swedish goaltender who was slated to play in the Elite Ice Hockey League (EIHL) this season, has been told he won't be, and the reason is terrible

Of all the reasons to get dropped from a professional hockey contract, this has to be one of the worst. Swedish goaltender Stefan Steen was going to play hockey for the Dundee Stars of the Elite Ice Hockey League in 2024-25. However, he was recently told the team had changed it's mind, and the reason for it is eye-opening.

AftonBladet out of Sweden reports that Stefan Steen's contract with the Dundee Stars would not be finalized because his wife is pregnant. Michael Latschenberger, Steen's agent, said the team knew about his wife's pregnancy and had no problem with it. But, a call from Stars' owner Steve Ward turned everything around.

"'I'm glad to hear from Dundee Stars, finally we can complete everything' I said. But he answered immediately 'unfortunately, I have bad news, nothing will happen.... I don't want a goalkeeper whose wife is pregnant - I don't want that stress.'"

 

Latschenberger argues the club had no valid reason for cancelling the contract, and he wants Stefan Steen compensated for his losses, including the close to $5000 USD he spent on new equipment. Stefan said he wants to make sure this doesn't happen to anyone else.

"If they had just done the right thing, I could have thought about just drawing a line under it. But when it's like this against me, you wonder how they treated other players. Everything was turned upside down. In a couple of days, everything disappeared."

 

Steen had spent the past two seasons playing in Austria before deciding to make the move to the EIHL. Dundee's ownership has refused to answer questions from the media about the dropped contract. Steen's wife is due to give birth this month.

POLL
SEPTEMBRE 10   |   200 ANSWERS Goaltender Stefan Steen loses professional contract for horrible reason: lawsuit likely Are the Dundee Stars wrong for dropping Stefan Steen because his wife is pregnant?
Yes	155	77.5 %
No	27	13.5 %
Not sure	18	9 %
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