Mats Sundin, whose biography is presented in this article, is a famous Swedish hockey player who played in the position of the central striker. He became a three-time world champion and winner of the gold medal of the 2006 Olympics. Included in the IIHF Hall of Fame.
Biography
Sundin Mats Johan was born in February 1971 in the small town of Bromma, located in the immediate vicinity of Stockholm. Initially, the future NHL star was engaged in bandy - ball hockey, but later moved to a more popular sport.
Already from adolescence, experts predicted a brilliant sports career for him. At that time, Mats Sundin played for Djurgarden, which went from junior to adult teams. With its relatively large dimensions, the center forward had excellent speed and technology.
In 1989, Sundin was called to the NHL draft, where for the first time in the history of Swedish and European hockey he was selected under the first number by the Canadian club Quebec Nordics.
However, the 19-year-old striker remained for another season at Djurgarden. This year he became the champion of Sweden, having excelled himself in a series of playoffs.
Moving overseas
Since the fall of 1990, Mats Sundin has been a Quebec Nordics hockey player. Despite the "unlucky" 13th number, the Swedish central striker quickly took root in the NHL.
In the first season, he played in 80 fights, in which he scored 23 goals and gave 36 assists. With these indicators, he became the second most successful player in his team.
Over the next three seasons, the Swedish striker, nicknamed Suddenly among fans, has become one of the Quebec Nordics leaders. In 224 matches, Sundin scored 275 (103 + 172) points.
Transition to the Toronto Maple Leafs
In 1994, one of the most titled hockey clubs in the NHL Toronto Maple Leafs, as a result of a large-scale exchange, got a young Swedish striker, who was destined to become one of the team’s legends. Since the regular NHL rally due to a lockout was shortened, Mats Sundin in the “Maple Leaves” held 47 fights, in which he scored 47 (23 + 24) points.
The next season, the Swedish hockey player began as the vice-captain of the team. In the regular season, Sundin spent 76 matches, scored 33 goals and made 50 assists. Such indicators allowed him to take part in the NHL All-Star Game for the first time.
After leaving in 1997 from the team of its captain Doug Gilmore, “Toronto Maple Leafs” began to bring to the game Sundin. He became the first European captain in the long history of the club.
Over the next 11 years, Captain Capture has been a consistent leader in its performance team. He has never scored less than 70 points in 10 regular NHL raffles. In 2006, Sundin Mats became the first Swede to score 500 goals, and a year later set the “Maple Leaves” scorer, scoring 400 times for them.
Due to its excellent performance, the Swedish striker eight times became a member of the NHL All-Star Game. Four times he was presented with a “Viking Award” - an award to the best player from Sweden. In 2002 and 2004, he was included in the symbolic team of all NHL stars. In 2008, Captain Capture became the owner of the Mercier Prize for his leadership skills.
Team change and career completion
When the contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs ended in 2008, Mats Sundin doubted whether he should continue his career further. After some deliberation, the 37-year-old legendary hockey player signed a one-year contract with Vancouver Canucks. In its composition, the Swedish veteran spent 41 fights, scored 9 goals and gave 19 assists.
In February 2009, he played in Toronto against his former team. In this game, “Vancouver Canucks” won the shootout, and the winning shot was made by a Swedish player. In September 2009, Mats Sundin ended his playing career.
In 2012, the Swedish hockey legend took up the position of Sports Advisor at the coaching staff of his national team. At the 2013 World Cup, he joined the coaching staff of the national team.
Team appearances
Since 1988, Mats Sundin was regularly called up first in the youth and then in the youth team of Sweden. In 1990, he made his debut in the main team of the country at the World Cup, where he became a silver medalist.
A year later, Sweden wins the world championship. Sundin played in all ten fights, scored 7 goals and made 5 assists. In total, Mats won seven world championship medals as part of his team, three of which were gold. Since 1996, he became the unchanging captain of the Tre Kronur.
At the 2006 Olympics in Turin, Mats Sundin won a medal on the third attempt, and immediately a gold one. In eight games played at the Games, he scored three goals and five times assisted his teammates. In the final game against Finland, his magnificent pass to Niklas Lindstrom decided the outcome of the match and the fate of gold medals.
After the winning Olympics, Mats Sundin said goodbye to the national team of Sweden, to which he returned a few years later, but already in the role of assistant coach.