PHOTO: Bildbyrån
The grief after Börje Salming’s death has touched the entire sports world.
Now the legendary Kenta Nilsson opens up about the feelings after Salming’s passing.
– I think about Börje every day, says Nilsson to Expressen.
On 24 November came the grim news that Börje Salming died, aged 71, after suffering from the disease ALS. Earlier in the fall, Salming attended the Tidernas Hockey Gala in the Avicii Arena, where he received great praise and several awards for his efforts over the years.
Kenta’s words
One who was also present during the gala was Kenta Nilsson. The icon, who is one of Swedish hockey’s greatest of all time, was inconsolable during the gala and during the tributes to Börje Salming. And when the news that Börje had passed away reached Nilsson, the sadness was enormous.
– I think about Börje every day. What he was forced to go through should not have to happen to anyone, he tells Expressen.
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Kenta Nilsson elaborates, and also believes that Salming should have been praised further during his career.
– It’s so fucking terrible. Börje was a fantastically good guy who deserves all the accolades. If he had only played in a better team in the NHL, he would have received the Norris Trophy, the prize for the league’s best defenseman. And had he been Canadian – then he would have received that award several times.
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The meetings with Börje
The two of them already met each other during the time that Börje Salming was in Brynäs, and you can imagine that it was not entirely easy to meet him on the ice even at that time. But when Kenta Nilsson remembers the meetings with Salming, the expressions suddenly become a little more cheerful.
– I already met Salming when he was in Brynäs. If he was difficult to face? No. He was just as easily fooled as everyone else, haha, says Nilsson with a twinkle in his eye.
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