PHOTO: Bildbyrån
Börje Salming meant so much to Mats Sundin.
Now the former NHL Swede opens up about the last time together with his friend.
– For me it was incredibly heavy, he says in an interview with Hockey Sweden.
It has almost been six months Börje Salming fell asleep. On November 24, 2022, Swedish hockey lost one of its biggest giants of all time and an incredibly loved person on the side of the ice.
Salming mentor
Salming played a full 16 seasons for the classic NHL team Toronto Maple Leafs and became immensely popular in the hockey-crazy city. For Mats Sundin it was “only” 13 NHL seasons for the Maple Leafs, but he has Börje to thank for so much.
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Salming became a mentor for a young Sundin in Toronto and they have had a good relationship even outside of hockey. “Sudden” was also on the ice side by side with Börje Salming when the hockey icon received his big tribute from the Toronto Maple Leafs last year.
READ MORE: Beautiful memory of Börje Salming – son Anders reveals the fine tradition with the father: “Always laughter”
Sundin’s words
The nerve disease ALS had greatly weakened the 71-year-old, but his last wish was still to go to Canada and say goodbye to his favorite team and his old supporters. It was extremely emotional and several months after Börje’s passing, Mats Sundin opens up about the last time together with him and above all the strong tribute in Toronto.
– For me it was incredibly heavy. I had talked a little with Börje’s wife (Pia) before we went over to Canada. She said “Mats, you have to steel yourself a bit because Börje is not like when you last met him, but he has deteriorated quite a lot”, says Sudden in an interview with Hockeysverige.
– It was a heavy weekend. At the same time, it felt incredibly nice to be there. To be with Börje and see all the fantastic tributes from the Toronto fans and what the Hockey Hall of Fame arranged for Börje over the weekend. The Toronto Maple Leafs also did a fantastic job for Börje and his family.
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With tears in his eyes, Sundin stood next to Salming on the ice in his home arena, Scotia Bank Arena. Both Swedes are immortalized by the Maple Leafs with their own statue outside the hockey arena and the tribute was incredibly special for the duo.
– I really hope, for Börje and his family, that he took it to heart. It felt like he did. If there was anyone who deserved this tribute, it was Börje considering that he was the kind of person who never wanted to put himself in the spotlight but always put the team and family first. I also think that’s why people shut up the way they did, the Hall of fame, the Toronto Maple Leafs and all the fans there. Everyone knew what kind of person Börje was, says Mats Sundin in the interview.
READ MORE: Beautiful gesture to Börje Salming – now the Swedish celebrity elite is gathering for a nice tribute: “We are happy to be able to do it”
“It is difficult”
Today, Sudden carries on the spirit of his late friend by being an ambassador for Börje Salming’s ALS foundation. Together with Nicklas Lidström, Ingemar Stenmark and several other ambassadors, they do their utmost to collect money for the all-important ALS research.
Recently, “Game for Börje” was organized together with Brynäs IF and millions of kroner were collected over a weekend. But so much more is needed than that.
– ALS is a disease that affects 250 Swedes a year. Then it is difficult to get substantial funding for that type of research to develop medicines, cures and help in the future. It is important to understand the sequence of events in this research. It takes a long, long time and costs a lot, a lot of money. Then it would be fantastic if we could raise a lot of money for research into ALS in particular. The event we had in Gävle was fantastic. Brynäs did fantastically well. TV4 put on a show all weekend… An incredible amount of money was collected for Börje’s foundation then. I hope it continues like this because it takes a lot, a lot, a lot of money, unfortunately, if you want to get any results. I hope that the foundation and all of us can contribute to that, says Mats Sundin to the hockey site.
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