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Henrik Zetterberg

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Henrik Zetterberg
Born (1980-10-09) October 9, 1980 (age 43)
Njurunda, SWE
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb)
Position Centre
Shoots Left
NHL team Detroit Red Wings
NHL draft 210th overall, 1999
Detroit Red Wings
Playing career 2000–present
Website henrikzetterberg.com

Henrik Zetterberg (Born October 9, 1980, in Njurunda, Sweden) is a Swedish professional ice hockey player with the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL). He plays centre and wears #40 for the Red Wings, but wore #20 for Timrå IK. On June 4, 2008, Zetterberg scored the game-winning goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals and won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.

Playing career

Pre-NHL career

Zetterberg played his youth league games for the Njurunda Sports Club, as did Fredrik Modin. He caught the attention of Wings Assistant General Manager Jim Nill and Director of European Scouting Håkan Andersson during a tournament in Finland, where, while Andersson was trying to point out Mattias Weinhandl, Nill could not help noticing "this little Zetterberg guy who always seemed to have the puck."[1][2]

His ability to hold on to the puck fitting perfectly into Detroit's puck possession style of play, Zetterberg was selected by the Detroit Red Wings 210th overall in the seventh round of the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. Detroit was under criticism at the time for "mortgaging its future," trading away many of its earlier picks in the 1999 draft. After playing for Timrå IK of the Swedish Elitserien for the 2000–01 and 2001–02 seasons, Zetterberg came to Detroit to play in the NHL for the 2002–03 season.

NHL career

Zetterberg, a highly touted rookie, did not disappoint. He made his debut against the San Jose Sharks on October 10, 2002. In his rookie season, he played in 79 games, scored 22 goals and had 22 assists for a total of 44 points, which led all rookies. He was the runner-up for the Calder Trophy, the award given to the rookie of the year.

In his sophomore season, Zetterberg nearly matched his rookie stats despite missing 21 games due to a broken leg suffered in a game against the Vancouver Canucks early in the season.

For the 2004–05 season, Henrik Zetterberg returned to Sweden to play for Timrå IK because of the owners' lockout. He led the SEL in scoring with 50 points in 50 games.[3]

Zetterberg during a break in the action in 2006.

During the 2005–06 season, Zetterberg sometimes wore the alternate captain's "A" on his jersey in the absence of team captain Steve Yzerman. The Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet speculated that Zetterberg might take over the captaincy for the Red Wings when Yzerman retired,[4] but Nicklas Lidström was named captain and Zetterberg was named an alternate captain on the day of the Red Wings' 2006–07 season opener. He enjoyed his second best statistical season in 2005–06, setting career highs in goals, assists, and points, while finishing with a plus/minus of +29. His 17 power play goals led the team, and his 85 points were second to Pavel Datsyuk's 87.

Zetterberg was named to participate in the 2007 NHL All-Star Game, however he withdrew to rest an injured wrist.[5]

After Zetterberg scored his 100th career goal against the Phoenix Coyotes on February 8, 2007, Coyotes head coach Wayne Gretzky said Zetterberg is "probably the most underrated player in the league."[6] Nine days later, in a game against the Coyotes, Zetterberg picked up his first career hat-trick and added an assist on an empty-net goal by Jason Williams.

Zetterberg has skated as a member of the "Swedish Five", a line the Red Wings have featured that is similar in concept to the famed Russian Five. During the 2005–06 season, head coach Mike Babcock assembled a starting lineup of five players that hail from Sweden: Zetterberg, Tomas Holmström, Mikael Samuelsson, Nicklas Lidström, and Niklas Kronwall (or Andreas Lilja). This was the first NHL line assembled with all Swedish players. The line also skated together at the 2006 Winter Olympics, in which Sweden won the gold medal.

At the start of the 2007–08 season, Zetterberg recorded at least one point in each of the Red Wings first 17 games, breaking the record of 14 games set by former Red Wing Norm Ullman in 1960. He was voted to start for the Western Conference in the 2008 NHL All-Star Game alongside teammates Chris Osgood (who was named a starter after Roberto Luongo declined), Nicklas Lidstrom, and Pavel Datsyuk, but again did not play in the game due to back problems.

On April 25, 2008, Zetterberg was announced as a finalist for the 2007–08 Frank J. Selke Trophy, along with his teammate Pavel Datsyuk.[1]

On May 24, Zetterberg tied teammate Johan Franzén for the most Red Wing playoff goals in a single postseason with his 12th.

On June 4, Zetterberg scored the cup winning goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals and won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP to bring Detroit its 11th Stanley Cup in franchise history.

International career

Zetterberg has been a consistent part of the Swedish National Team, Tre Kronor, since 2001. He has enjoyed a fair amount of success in the IIHF World Championships, winning a medal in four of the five years he has appeared in that tournament. He was one of just two non-NHLers named to the Swedish squad for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.

He won a gold medal in the 2006 Winter Olympics and then again in the 2006 World Championship in Riga, playing a part in the international sweep (both Olympic and World Champion the same year). Zetterberg is one of only eight players to capture this sweep.

Personal

Zetterberg goes by the nicknames of "Zäta" (pronounced "Zaeta", which means "Z" in Swedish); and "Hank", an anglicized shortening of Henrik that is used by his Red Wings teammates. He and his fellow linemate Pavel Datsyuk have been nicknamed by commentators and the Detroit media as the "Euro Twins" and "The Pav and Hank Show".

His father, Göran Zetterberg, is coach of the hockey team in Njurunda, and his mom Ulla is an office supervisor.

Zetterberg is an avid soccer player while off the ice. He is currently dating Emma Andersson, a Swedish model and TV host.[7]

Awards

  • Elitserien Rookie of the Year in 2001.
  • Bronze medal at the 2001 and 2002 World Championships.
  • Played in the Elitserien All-Star Game in 2002.
  • Awarded Guldpucken (Swedish Player of the Year) in 2002.
  • Named to the Swedish All-Star Team in 2002.
  • Silver medal at the 2003 World Championships.
  • Named "Detroit Red Wings Rookie of the Year" in 2003 by the Detroit Sports Broadcasters' Association for his play during the 2002-03 season.
  • Awarded the Sporting News Rookie of the Year (voted on by NHL players) in 2003.
  • Named to the NHL All-Rookie Team in 2003. (Lead NHL rookies with 22 goals and 44 total points.)
  • Calder Trophy finalist in 2003.
  • Named to the Swedish All-Star Team in 2005.
  • Gold medal at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games.
  • Gold medal at the 2006 World Championships.
  • Named to the NHL Western Conference All-Star Team in 2007.
  • Viking Award in 2007, awarded to the "Best Swede" playing in North America
  • Holds a Red Wings record for having at least one point in 17 consecutive games to start a season.
  • Won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2008
  • Stanley Cup (Detroit Red Wings), 2008
  • Holds the Red Wings franchise record for goals (13 - tied w/ Johan Franzen) and points (27) in a single playoff season.

Career statistics

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts +/- PIM GP G A Pts +/- PIM
1997–98 Timrå IK Swe-2 16 1 2 3 — 4 4 0 1 1 — 0
1998–99 Timrå IK Swe-2 37 15 13 28 — 2 4 2 1 3 — 2
1999–00 Timrå IK Swe-2 42 20 14 34 — 20 10 10 4 14 — 4
2000–01 Timrå IK Elitserien 47 15 31 46 -2 24 — — — — — —
2001–02 Timrå IK Elitserien 48 10 22 32 -14 20 — — — — — —
2001–02 Timrå IK Swe-2 — — — — — — 8 7 5 12 8 2
2002–03 Detroit Red Wings NHL 79 22 22 44 6 8 4 1 0 1 -4 0
2003–04 Detroit Red Wings NHL 61 15 28 43 15 14 12 2 2 4 0 4
2004–05 Timrå IK Elitserien 50 19 31 50 15 24 7 6 2 8 2 2
2005–06 Detroit Red Wings NHL 77 39 46 85 29 30 6 6 0 6 -2 2
2006–07 Detroit Red Wings NHL 63 33 35 68 26 36 18 6 8 14 1 12
2007–08 Detroit Red Wings NHL 75 43 49 92 30 34 22 13 14 27 15 16
Elitserien Totals 145 44 84 128 -1 68 7 6 2 8 2 2
NHL Totals 355 152 180 332 106 122 62 28 24 52 11 34

International play

Olympic medal record
Men's Ice hockey
Gold medal – first place 2006 Turin Ice hockey
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2006 Latvia Team
Silver medal – second place 2003 Finland Team
Bronze medal – third place 2002 Sweden Team
Bronze medal – third place 2001 Germany Team

International statistics

Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM
2001 Sweden WC 9 1 3 4 2
2002 Sweden Oly 4 0 1 1 0
2002 Sweden WC 9 0 7 7 4
2003 Sweden WC 9 3 4 7 2
2004 Sweden WCH 4 1 1 2 4
2005 Sweden WC 9 2 4 6 4
2006 Sweden Oly 8 3 3 6 0
2006 Sweden WC 8 2 3 5 6
Senior int'l totals 60 12 26 38 22

References

  1. ^ Wigge, Larry (2008-05-22). "Zetterberg has grown into an NHL superstar". NHL.com. Retrieved 2008-05-25.
  2. ^ "Drake/Holland conference call transcript". mlive.com. 2008-05-22. Retrieved 2008-05-25.
  3. ^ "Svenska Ishockeyförbundet - Official Statistics" (PDF). Swedish Ice Hockey Association. 2005. Retrieved 2007-10-01.
  4. ^ Template:Sv icon "Yzermans arvtagare". Aftonbladet.se. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
  5. ^ Niyo, John (2007). "No All-Star for Zetterberg". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2007-02-09.
  6. ^ Kulfan, Ted (2007). "Zetterberg puts on show for Great One". The Detroit News. Retrieved 2007-02-09.
  7. ^ St. James, Helene. "Wings make Game 6 a family affair". Retrieved 2008-06-05.
Preceded by Golden Puck
2002 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy
2008 		Succeeded by
Incumbent
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