Team Sweden has announced the first three members of the squad that they plan on taking to Beijing to compete at the 2022 Winter Olympics.
Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom was surprisingly not one of those first three announced by Tre Kronor. The talented center is currently rehabbing a hip injury and has missed all of Training Camp and the preseason so far.
By Chris Cerullo 3 weeks ago
Over the past weekend, Capitals prospect Axel Jonsson-Fjällby made his debut on the international stage. In a pre-World Championship tournament (Carlson Hockey Games) held in Jaroslavl, Russia, and Pardubice, Czech Republic, the 20-year-old played his first two games for the senior level Swedish National Team.
Tre Kronor lost both games to Czech Republic and Finland, but Jonsson-Fjällby had a personal milestone, scoring his first career points for the team.
By Magnus Cadelin 4 years ago
In a hard-fought World Junior Championship semifinals game between Team Sweden and Team USA, special teams decided the game. But in a weird twist, it was the team a man down who did the clutch scoring.
With Team Sweden up 2-0 in the third period, Swedish forward Linus Lindstrom took a holding the stick penalty. Instead of a USA comeback, Sweden would ice the game.
51 seconds into the penalty kill, Swedish forward Oskar Steen scored shorthanded to make it 3-0. 38 seconds later, Capitals prospect Axel Jonsson-Fjällby tallied Sweden’s second shorty while killing that same minor penalty.
The unlikely SHGs would lead Sweden to victory.
By Magnus Cadelin 4 years ago
Ahead of the tournament, a few had heard of him but he’s quickly making a name for himself. Sudden fan-favorite and Capitals prospect Axel Jonsson-Fjällby scored a gorgeous shorthanded breakaway goal – all while chewing on his mouth guard.
By Magnus Cadelin 4 years ago
Axel Jonsson Fjällby, the Capitals 147th overall pick in the 2016 NHL draft, has been named to Sweden’s World Junior preliminary roster.
Fjällby still has to compete for a spot on the final roster which will be cut down from 26 players to 23 over the next two weeks.
By Cara Bahniuk 4 years ago
The 2017 World Championship-winning Swedish national team arrived in the capital of their home country, Stockholm, to participate in a celebration at Sergels Torg, Monday. The location, which is located in the center of the city, drew thousands of Swedish hockey fans.
There was singing. There was chanting. And there were gold helmets. Lots and lots of metallic gold helmets.
Sunday night in Germany, Team Sweden won their first World Championship since 2013. After posing for a team picture and skating around the ice with the IIHF trophy, Team Sweden players retreated into the locker room where their celebration took a strange turn.
While wearing their gold medals, players jumped into a yellow-lit hot tub. The Avalanche’s Gabe Landeskog (above) seemed to be the most excited out of the crew, leaving all of his gear on.
There isn’t much more to say, so I will let these photos, courtesy of Aftonbladet’s Jimmy Wixtrom, do the talking.
By Cara Bahniuk 4 years ago
After losing in the second round to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Nicklas Backstrom arrived in Cologne, Germany, a little over a week ago for the 2017 World Championship. Backstrom ended up centering one of the most dangerous lines of the tournament, made up of World Championship MVP William Nylander and Oscar Lindberg.
On Sunday, after tallying seven points in five games, Backstrom and Team Sweden won gold after defeating Canada 2-1 in a thrilling shootout. It was the first time Sweden has ever beat Canada in a World Championship gold medal game. It was the country’s first World Championship since 2013.
Nicklas Backstrom and William Nylander’s unmatched chemistry continued during their semifinal matchup against Finland, Saturday.
The Capitals first-line center tallied two assists while the Leafs forward had a goal and an assist in Sweden’s 4-1 victory. Backstrom was on the ice for three of Tre Kronor’s four goals.
Skating on a line with William Nylander and and Oscar Lindberg, Nicklas Backstrom has been dominant during his short stint in the 2017 World Championship. That continued Thursday.
Backstrom scored a goal in Sweden’s 3-1 quarterfinals over Switzerland. The Swedes will now face their rivals, Finland, in the semis on Saturday.
