Henrik Zetterberg

Henrik Zetterberg
File:Zetterberg08.jpg
Position	Centre
Shoots	Left
Height Weight	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 195 lb (89 kg)
NHL Team	Detroit Red Wings
Nationality	Swedish
Born	(1980-10-09)October 9, 1980, Njurunda, Sweden
NHL Draft	210th overall, 1999 Detroit Red Wings
Pro Career	2000 – present
Website	Henrikzetterberg.com

Henrik Carl Zetterberg (born 9 October 1980) is a Swedish professional ice hockey forward and captain of the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL).

Along with winning the Stanley Cup in 2008, Zetterberg won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the Most Valuable Player of the 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs. He won gold medals in the 2006 Ice Hockey World Championship and 2006 Winter Olympics, as part of the first team to ever win both tournaments in the same year, also making him a member of the Triple Gold Club.

Playing career

Swedish career

Zetterberg started out by playing his youth league games for the Njurunda Sports Club. In 2008, the club renamed their arena—until then known as Njurunda Ishall—to Modin & Zetterberg-hallen in their honor.

Zetterberg caught the attention of Wings Assistant General Manager Jim Nill and Director of European Scouting Håkan Andersson during a tournament in Finland. While Andersson was trying to point out Mattias Weinhandl, Nill could not help noticing "this little Zetterberg guy who always seemed to have the puck."

Zetterberg was selected by the Detroit Red Wings 210th overall in the seventh round of the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. Detroit was under criticism at the time for "mortgaging its future," trading away many of its earlier picks in the 1999 draft. After playing for Timrå IK of the Swedish Elitserien for the 2000–01 and 2001–02 seasons, Zetterberg came to Detroit to play in the NHL for the 2002–03 season.

NHL career

Zetterberg, a highly touted rookie, did not disappoint. He made his debut against the San Jose Sharks on October 10, 2002, at the Joe Louis Arena. He played in 79 games his rookie season, scoring 22 goals and 22 assists for 44 points, leading all first-year players. Zetterberg finished the season as runner-up for the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year behind St. Louis Blues defenceman Barret Jackman. In his sophomore season, Zetterberg nearly matched his rookie stats despite missing 21 games due to a broken leg suffered against the Vancouver Canucks early in the season on November 5, 2003. Due to the owners' lockout the next season, Zetterberg returned to Sweden to play for Timrå IK in 2004–05, leading the Elitserien in scoring with 50 points in 50 games.

As the NHL resumed in 2005–06, Zetterberg emerged as an NHL star and was also named an alternate captain in the absence of team captain Steve Yzerman. He enjoyed his second best statistical season in 2005–06, tallying 39 goals and 85 points, second in team-scoring to Pavel Datsyuk's 87, along with a plus/minus of +29 and a team-high 17 power play goals. That season, head coach Mike Babcock began assembling an all-Swedish starting lineup which included Zetterberg and teammates Tomas Holmström, Mikael Samuelsson, Nicklas Lidström, and Niklas Kronwall (sometimes Andreas Lilja). The combination was dubbed the "Swedish Five", a concept similar to the famed Russian Five of the Red Wings during the 1990's. All five players would also skate together at the 2006 Olympics, helping Sweden to a gold medal.

With the announced retirement of Steve Yzerman during the season, Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet speculated that Zetterberg might take over the captaincy for the Red Wings, but Nicklas Lidström was instead named Yzerman's successor while Zetterberg was named an alternate on the day of the Red Wings' 2006–07 season opener. That season, Zetterberg was selected for the 2007 NHL All-Star Game, but withdrew to rest an injured wrist. Later in the year, Zetterberg scored his 100th career goal against the Phoenix Coyotes on February 8, 2007, prompting Coyotes head coach Wayne Gretzky to comment that Zetterberg is "probably the most underrated player in the league." Nine days later, on February 17, in another game against the Coyotes, Zetterberg picked up his first career hat-trick, all power play goals, and added an assist on an empty-net goal by Jason Williams for a four-point game. He finished the campaign with 68 points in his injury-shortened 63-game season.

Zetterberg during a break in the action in 2006.

Zetterberg began the 2007–08 season with a 16-game point-scoring streak, breaking the record of 14 games set by former Red Wing Norm Ullman in 1960. He was voted to start for the Western Conference in the 2008 NHL All-Star Game alongside teammates Chris Osgood (who was named a starter after Roberto Luongo declined), Nicklas Lidstrom and Pavel Datsyuk, but again did not play in the game due to back problems. Despite missing time due to injury, Zetterberg recorded a career-year with personal bests of 43 goals, 49 assists and 92 points in 75 games. He went on to add a 27 points in 22 playoff games, leading the Red Wings to the 2008 Stanley Cup championship, their 11th in team history. In game six of the Finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins, Zetterberg scored the Stanley Cup-winning goal and was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoffs MVP afterwards. His 13 playoff goals tied with teammate Johan Franzén for the Red Wings record for most in a single postseason. At the end of the season, Zetterberg was also up for the Frank J. Selke Trophy as the best defensive forward, but finished as a runner-up to teammate Pavel Datsyuk.

In the final year of his contract in 2008–09, Zetterberg agreed to a 12-year, $73 million contract extension with the Red Wings on January 28, 2009. The deal is the longest and most lucrative in franchise history. Zetterberg recorded 11 goals and 13 assists for the Red Wings during the 2009 Stanley Cup Playoffs that saw them reach Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, only to lose to their 2008 opponent the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Despite a slow start to the 2009-10 NHL Season, Zetterberg's play quickly improved, and he recorded the fourth hat trick of his career on 14 November against the Anaheim Ducks, scoring three goals in the third period of Detroit's 7–4 victory. He scored seven goals during the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs, which saw Detroit bow out in the second round against San Jose.

Zetterberg posted 80 points in 80 games in the 2010-11 NHL season. However, the Red Wings were once again eliminated in the 2nd round to San Jose.

In the 2011-12 NHL season, Zetterberg played on the 2nd line alongside Valtteri Filppula and Jiri Hudler. Both teammates had career seasons playing on the line centered by Zetterberg. Filppula scored a career high 66 points while Hudler had a 50-point season (25 goals, 25 assists). The Red Wings fell 4–1 to the Nashville Predators in the first round of the Playoffs, their earliest playoff exit since 2006.

Zetterberg signed with EV Zug in Switzerland during the 2012 NHL lockout.

On 15 January 2013, Zetterberg was named captain of the Red Wings, succeeding Lidström who had retired. Despite missing 13 games due to chronic back problems, he scored over 40 points through the first part of the 2013-14 NHL season. However, he sustained another back injury during the 2014 Winter Olympics and underwent surgery, causing him to miss an estimated two months of the season while the Red Wings pursued a berth in the NHL playoffs for the 23rd straight year. Zetterberg returned for the final two games of the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs as the Red Wings were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals by the Boston Bruins. He elected not to play for Sweden in the 2014 IIHF World Championship to further recuperate from his back injury.

On 6 November 2015, Zetterberg recorded his 300th career goal against James Reimer of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He became the seventh Sewdish player to reach the 300 goal plateau, and the fifth player in Red Wings franchise history to have 300 goals and 800 points, following Gordie Howe, Alex Delvecchio, Steve Yzerman and Sergei Fedorov.

International play

• Played for Sweden in:
• 2001 World Championships (bronze medal)
• 2002 Winter Olympics
• 2002 World Championships (bronze medal)
• 2003 World Championships (silver medal)
• 2004 World Cup of Hockey
• 2005 World Championships
• 2006 Winter Olympics (gold medal)
• 2006 World Championships (gold medal)

Zetterberg has been a consistent part of the Swedish national team, "Tre Kronor", since 2001. He has enjoyed a fair amount of success in the IIHF World Championships, winning a medal in four of the five years he has appeared in that tournament. He was one of just two non-NHLers named to the Swedish squad for the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah.

He won a gold medal in the 2006 Olympics and then again in the 2006 World Championship in Riga, playing a part in the international sweep (both Olympic and World Champion the same year). Zetterberg is one of only eight players to capture this sweep.

Henrik in 2008

With the 2008 Stanley Cup championship, Zetterberg became a member of the Triple Gold Club. The term is used for an exclusive group of ice hockey players who have won Olympic gold, World Championship gold, and the Stanley Cup. Zetterberg is one of 22 members of this exclusive club, former head coach Mike Babcock, former team mate Mikael Samuelsson, and current teammate Niklas Kronwall.

Zetterberg was named captain of Team Sweden for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. On-going troubles with a herniated disc in his back, which caused Zetterberg to miss 13 games with the Red Wings earlier in the season, forced Zetterberg out of the 2014 Winter Olympics after one game. Teammate Niklas Kronwall was named captain for the remainder of the tournament.

Zetterberg was named to Team Sweden for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. On 11 August, 2016, Zetterberg was named captain of the team. However, on 1 September, Zetterberg withdrew from the tournament due to a knee injury. He was replaced by Calgary Flames forward Mikael Backlund.

Personal life

File:Zetterberg08.jpg

Zetterberg in 2008

Zetterberg goes by the nicknames of "Zäta" (pronounced "Zaeta," which means "Z" in Swedish) and "Hank," an anglicized shortening of Henrik that is used by his Red Wings teammates.

In the summer of 2008 he became engaged to Emma Andersson, a Swedish model and TV host. On 23 July 2010, Henrik married his fiancee near the bride's hometown in 

On 20 August 2015, Emma gave birth to their first child, a son named Love (pronounced Loo-VEY).

Zetterberg served several months in the Swedish Army when he was 17 years old—a rare thing among NHL players—as Sweden at that time had a conscription policy.

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1997–98	Timrå IK	Swe-2		16	1	2	3	4		4	0	1	1	0
1998–99	Timrå IK	Swe-2		37	15	13	28	2		4	2	1	3	2
1999–00	Timrå IK	Swe-2		42	20	14	34	20		10	10	4	14	4
2000–01	Timrå IK	Elitserien		47	15	31	46	24		—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	Timrå IK	Elitserien		48	10	22	32	20		—	—	—	—	—
2001–02	Timrå IK	Swe-2		—	—	—	—	—		8	7	5	12	2
2002–03	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		79	22	22	44	8		4	1	0	1	0
2003–04	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		61	15	28	43	14		12	2	2	4	4
2004–05	Timrå IK	Elitserien		50	19	31	50	24		7	6	2	8	2
2005–06	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		77	39	46	85	30		6	6	0	6	2
2006–07	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		63	33	35	68	36		18	6	8	14	12
2007–08	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		75	43	49	92	34		22	13	14	27	16
2008–09	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		77	31	42	73	36		23	11	13	24	13
2009-10	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		74	23	47	70	26		12	7	8	15	6
2010-11	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		80	24	56	80	40		7	3	5	8	2
2011-12	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		82	22	47	69	47		5	2	1	3	4
2012-13	EV Zug	NLA		23	16	16	32	20		—	—	—	—	—
2012-13	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		46	11	37	48	18		14	4	8	12	8
2013-14	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		45	16	32	48	20		2	1	1	2	0
2014-15	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		77	17	49	66	32		7	0	3	3	8
2015-16	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		82	13	37	50	24		5	1	0	1	4
NHL totals				918	309	527	836	365		137	57	63	120	79
SHL totals				145	44	84	128	68		7	6	2	8	2

International statistics

Year	Team	Event	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1998	Sweden	EJC	6	2	1	3	4
2000	Sweden	WJC	7	3	2	5	8
2001	Sweden	WC	9	1	3	4	2
2002	Sweden	Oly	4	0	1	1	0
2002	Sweden	WC	9	0	7	7	4
2003	Sweden	WC	9	3	4	7	2
2004	Sweden	WCH	4	1	1	2	4
2005	Sweden	WC	9	2	4	6	4
2006	Sweden	Oly	8	3	3	6	0
2006	Sweden	WC	8	2	3	5	6
2010	Sweden	Oly	4	1	0	1	2
2012	Sweden	WC	8	3	12	15	4
2014	Sweden	Oly	1	1	0	1	0
Senior Totals			73	17	38	55	28
	Junior Totals		13	5	3	8	12

Awards

Sweden

Award	Year(s) awarded
Rookie of the Year	2001
All-Star Team	2002, 2005
Guldpucken	2002

NHL

Award	Year(s) awarded
All-Rookie Team	2003
All-Star Game	2007, 2008*
Conn Smythe Trophy	2008
Stanley Cup	2008
NHL Foundation Player Award	2013
King Clancy Memorial Trophy	2015

Nominations

Award	Year(s) nominated
Calder Memorial Trophy	2003
Frank J. Selke Trophy	2008

• Named "Detroit Red Wings Rookie of the Year" in 2003 by the Detroit Sports Broadcasters' Association for his play during the 2002-03 season.
• Awarded the Sporting News Rookie of the Year (voted on by NHL players) in 2003.
• Named to the NHL Western Conference All-Star Team in 2007.
• Viking Award in 2007 and 2008, awarded to the "Best Swede" playing in North America
• Holds a Red Wings record for having at least one point in 17 consecutive games to start a season.
• Holds the Red Wings franchise record for goals (13 - tied w/ Johan Franzén) and points (27) in a single playoff season.
• Named the first recipient of the 'TSN NHL Player Of The Year' in 2008 by a panel of 30 people around the NHL.

External links

• Henrik Zetterberg's stats on hockeydb

Preceded by Mikael Renberg	Golden Puck 2002	Succeeded by Niklas Andersson
Preceded by Scott Niedermayer	Winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy 2008	Succeeded by Evgeni Malkin