April 1st, 2008. Any die-hard hockey fan would know that date as the last time Peter Forsberg scored an NHL goal. It was his only goal in a nine game season that saw Forsberg tally 14 points for the Colorado Avalanche. The often injured superstar has not played an NHL game since, but his hockey career goes on.
Forsberg is currently enjoying a good season with Modo Hockey in Sweden where he has 19 points in 18 games. It was also recently announced that Forsberg will be added to Swedens olympic team that will be on display in Vancouver this February. Forsberg has collected two gold medals with the team and is considered the team’s unsung leader. I post a question to all of you though; Are the Olympic games one last go around for Swedens biggest NHL hero, or is it an NHL showcase for teams to see if he still has anything left in the tank, and is worth signing to a contract for a potential playoff team?
[adinserter block=”1″] He is after all 36 years old and is one of the most storied injury plagued players of this era. In fact in seven different seasons, Forsberg has failed to play 90 percent of his teams games due to injury. He had been dubbed “the playoff addition”, because it is believed that teams sit him to save his health for a Stanley Cup run, which Forsberg has won twice in case you didn’t know. His career stats and playoff stats tells you why some teams may have interest in adding him. In 706 regular season games he has totaled 249 goals and 636 assist for 887 points and a career plus minus of +242. In the playoffs he has played 151 games, scoring 64 goals and 107 assists and a +54.
So I wonder, does he even have any interest in the NHL anymore? Do any NHL teams have an interest in him? If so, where could he possibly go? Well he has been with Colorado, Philadelphia, and Nashville in his career and none of those clubs seem to have a want or need for his service. Other highly ranked teams like Chicago, San Jose, New Jersey, and Pittsburgh are based more on youth and speed, than the gritty game Forsberg brings, and none of them appear to be in a desperate need for additions. Many other NHL clubs are either too cap strapped or rebuilding, and I’m sure to bring him back to the league, he would want to play for a contender.
[adinserter block=”2″]So it would appear that the games in Vancouver may very well be a swan song for a great NHL star, and the whole world would get to see him one last time on a grand stage, much like Team Canada did with both Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky. Sweden’s biggest hockey hero may find one last piece of glory before his body forces him to hang it up. This one hockey fan is excited to see him mix it up, and see if he still has any of that great skill left. I’m sure he can still pass the puck with the pin-point accuracy that was described as “Gretzky-Esque” during his career. I do however doubt that he will be slamming his big body around as much, and can be sure Modo Hockey wants to see him limit that style of play.
Sometimes legends of the game don’t really know when it is time to walk away, and it leads to some very poor looking performances and bad stats. It ends with sad stories and photos plastered all over the internet of the sad faces of a once-was who is now a has-been. As the NBA suffers through the Allen Iverson break down and the Tracy McGrady on again off again saga, it’s nice to see one guy admit when it is passing him by and slowly fade off, instead of being carried off. Either way Forsberg is a winner, and he has the credentials to prove it. He’s won an MVP award, a scroing title, championships on all levels, rookie of the year award honors as well. He has nothing left to prove to anyone, but it will be fun to see him on the ice one more time.
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