PHOTO: Bildbyrån
Peter Forsberg won two Stanley Cup titles during his career.
But there is one forgotten feat that he is all alone in NHL history.
– Yes, it’s definitely something I’m proud of, says “Foppa” to Expressen.
He is undoubtedly one of Swedish hockey’s best players of all time. Few can match Peter Forsberg’s impressive track record as one of Sweden’s best NHL players ever.
Forsberg’s achievement
“Foppa” has won the Calder Trophy as the best rookie in the NHL, the Art Ross Trophy as the scoring league winner, the Hart Trophy as the league’s most valuable player and then double Stanley Cup titles with the Colorado Avalanche as the crowning glory. But there is a forgotten achievement that perhaps even more shows the Swedish legend’s greatness as a hockey player.
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Because no one else in the history of hockey has succeeded in what Forsberg did in 1999 and 2002. Then he became the first ever to win the scoring league in the Stanley Cup twice without even reaching the final, no one else has been able to do that – not even himself Wayne Gretzky.
– Yes, it is definitely something that I am proud of. Time flies, but I remember certain parts of those Stanley Cup years as if it were yesterday, says Foppa in an interview with Expressen.
“But it was sour”
But the unknown record also stirs bitterness in Forsberg, because if there’s one thing he’s upset about, it’s missing out on the Conn Smythe Trophy. The prestigious award that goes to the playoffs’ most valuable player and is one of the most coveted prizes at the NHL Awards.
– If we had reached the final in 1999 or 2002, I could have won the Conn Smythe Trophy, says the 50-year-old to the evening newspaper.
– Lucky that you got to win the Stanley Cup twice, but it would have been fun with a Conn Smythe Trophy as well.
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In 1999, Peter Forsberg accounted for 24 points, 8 goals and 16 assists, in 19 games in the Stanley Cup playoffs. But then Colorado went out against the Dallas Stars in the conference finals.
– Dallas got to face Buffalo in the finals and I think we had also beaten Buffalo that year in a finals series. So it was sour. I played the last matches in the semis with a broken finger and couldn’t hold the club, he says in the interview.
READ MORE: Peter Forsberg reveals what he wants to do to TV colleague Peter Jihde – now admits the brutality: “Oh, my God”
In 2002, there were 27 points, 9 goals and 18 assists, in 20 games for Foppa in the playoffs. He then became unique as the only one to win the scoring league without reaching the finals on two separate occasions during his career, but that year the Detroit Red Wings were too tough in the conference finals.
– Same thing there, I’m convinced that we would have also beaten Carolina (Hurricanes) if we had reached the final, says Foppa.
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