Nicklas Danielsson played one season with Zdeno Chara in the KHL.
Now the SHL profile tells about the incredible routines of the legendary back man.
– He was in the ice rink all the time. It was incredible, he says in the podcast Släpp Sargen.
For the Swedish hockey public, Nicklas Danielsson is most associated with all his years in the SHL. He had his SHL breakthrough with Djurgården in 2006, and since then has played a whopping 615 games in the league.
Played with Chara
For the past four seasons, Danielsson has played in Brynäs, where he came from Switzerland’s Lausanne, where he scored points in two straight seasons. But Danielsson has also had time to play in the KHL during his career, and there he had the great honor of playing in the same team as one of the greatest defenders in history.
When he came to Lev Praha during the 2012/2013 season, there was a lockout in the NHL, which made Zdeno Chara suddenly play in the Czech club.
– It was great fun, of course. Chara and the boys were already there, so there was good quality in the league overall. There were many teams that had NHL players on the teams. It was awesome, says Danielsson in the Släpp Sargen podcast.
Revealing the obsession
Danielsson clearly remembers the first meeting with Chara – and there was one thing that stood out.
– I remember the first time I was in the dressing room, then Chara comes and he kind of has to duck for the doorpost. He was great, really, he says.
Danielsson continues:
– He was like a giant. He was as big as could be. And his club… I could hardly lift it. It was like my four-year-old son trying to lift my mallet.
Many who have played with Chara during his many years in professional hockey have pointed out how extremely meticulous the Slovak is with his training and all preparations. Danielsson agrees – and talks about how hugely obsessed Chara was.
– He was always in the hall. He lived right next to the arena, in some hotel, and he was first in the hall in the morning. Then there was a meeting, then he cycled. Then he came down in the afternoon, and I wasn’t there all the time right away… But he really drove four shifts a day. It was absolutely incredible to see.
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