Nicklas Backstrom recently did a Swedish language interview on Viaplay Sport Live. A part of that conversation was reported by the Swedish outlet Aftonbladet and transcribed by reporter Andreas Käck.
During the chat, Backstrom spoke about the birth of his third child as well as what it’s been like staying in DC during the coronavirus pandemic.
“When you drive around the city, it’s like a ghost town,” Backstrom said, as translated by RMNB’s Magnus Cadelin. “Everyone listens to the information from the President. But when you think about it, what’s going on is pretty sick, the whole world pauses because of this virus. It’s like a big question mark and you don’t know what’s going to happen. You see the numbers go up and up and they say we haven’t even peaked yet.”
Backstrom added, “People seem to handle this in different ways. Those who I’ve talked with back home in Sweden are pretty much living life as usual.”
Recently, Ben Raby snapped photos of an empty Capital One Arena on what should have been the season finale.
While most people in the United States are under stay-at-home orders, Sweden has been under a “low-scale” lockdown. According to Johns Hopkins, Sweden has the 19th most confirmed cases of COVID-19 as a country worldwide. The coronavirus has struck Sweden hardest in Stockholm and down south along the east coast of the country. Stockholm is under a full lockdown and many Swedes have spent the last four or five weeks at home. Nicklas grew up in the small village of Valbo outside of Gävle. There, people have been mostly spared of infection.
During the coronavirus pandemic, Backstrom and his fiancee Liza Berg opted to stay at their Northern Virginia home. On Sunday, March 29, the couple celebrated the birth of their second girl, who they named Alizee.
“We got to the hospital and thought it would be chaos (due to the coronavirus) but there wasn’t a single person there except us. Which really shows you the kind of respect people have for this virus, everyone stays at home,” Backstrom said. “All the nurses and doctors were really good to us, it all worked out fine and we got to go back home after 24 hours.”
In an English language chat with Capitals media, Backstrom added, “I know there’s been a lot of talk about hospital people, how important they are. I think they did a great job with us. I know it was not an ideal situation for us to be in the hospital at this time. Without them, this is going to take a lot longer. They’re sacrificing themselves for others, which is probably one of the nicest things that a human being can do. God bless them.”
Backstrom has been one of the most visible Capitals players during the NHL season’s suspension due to the coronavirus pandemic. He also conducted a Swedish language interview with NHL.com and praised Mika Zibanejad for his five-goal game against the Capitals.
Screenshot courtesy of the Capitals
