| Oliver Bjorkstrand | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 10 April 1995, Herning, Denmark |
| Height Weight |
6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 174 lb (79 kg; 12 st 6 lb) |
| Position | Right wing |
| Shoots | Right |
| NHL team F. teams |
Columbus Blue Jackets Herning Blue Fox |
| Ntl. team |  Denmark
|
| NHL Draft | 89th overall, 2013 Columbus Blue Jackets |
| Playing career | 2011–present |
Oliver Bjorkstrand (born 10 April 1995) is a Danish professional ice hockey forward for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). Bjorkstrand was selected by the Blue Jackets in the third round, 89th overall, of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. Born and raised in Herning, he is the son of American hockey coach Todd Bjorkstrand and the brother of Patrick Bjorkstrand.
Playing career[]
Bjorkstrand made his AL-Bank Ligaen debut playing with the Herning Blue Fox during the 2011–12 season.[1] On 26 December 2013, during his second season in the Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Portland Winterhawks, Bjorkstrand signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets, the organization that drafted him in the third round, 89th overall, of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.[2]
On 16 March 2016, Bjorkstrand was recalled by the Blue Jackets and made his NHL debut the following day, 17 March, against the Detroit Red Wings. He scored his first and second NHL goals in his second NHL game on 19 March against goaltender Yann Danis of the New Jersey Devils.[3]
On 11 June 2016, while playing for Columbus' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters, Bjorkstrand scored the game-winning goal in overtime of Game 4 in the Calder Cup Finals against the Hershey Bears, effectively winning the series for Lake Erie; Bjorkstrand also earned the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the playoffs' most valuable player.[4]
Career statistics[]
Regular season and playoffs[]
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2011–12 | Herning Blue Fox | DEN | 36 | 13 | 13 | 26 | 10 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 2012–13 | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | 65 | 31 | 32 | 63 | 10 | 21 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 4 | ||
| 2013–14 | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | 69 | 50 | 59 | 109 | 36 | 21 | 16 | 17 | 33 | 8 | ||
| 2014–15 | Portland Winterhawks | WHL | 59 | 63 | 55 | 118 | 35 | 17 | 13 | 12 | 25 | 10 | ||
| 2015–16 | Lake Erie Monsters | AHL | 51 | 17 | 12 | 29 | 10 | 17 | 10 | 6 | 16 | 2 | ||
| 2015–16 | Columbus Blue Jackets | NHL | 12 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Columbus Blue Jackets | NHL | 26 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2016–17 | Cleveland Monsters | AHL | 37 | 14 | 12 | 26 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Columbus Blue Jackets | NHL | 82 | 11 | 29 | 40 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2018–19 | Columbus Blue Jackets | NHL | 77 | 23 | 13 | 36 | 8 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | ||
| NHL totals | 197 | 44 | 53 | 97 | 23 | 21 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 0 | ||||
International[]
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Denmark | U18 | 10th | 6 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2012 | Denmark | WJC | 10th | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2013 | Denmark | WJC-D1 | 15th | 5 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 2 | |
| 2014 | Denmark | WJC-D1 | 11th | 5 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 | |
| 2015 | Denmark | WJC | 8th | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2015 | Denmark | WC | 14th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 2016 | Denmark | OGQ | DNQ | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2018 | Denmark | WC | 10th | 7 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | |
| Junior totals | 27 | 19 | 9 | 28 | 6 | ||||
| Senior totals | 13 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | ||||
Awards and honours[]
| Awards | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| WHL | ||
| First All-Star Team (West) | 2013–14, 2014–15, | [5] |
| Player of the Month (January, February, March) | 2014–15 | [6] |
| Top Scorer (Bob Clarke Trophy) | 2014–15 | [7] |
| WHL Plus-Minus Award | 2014–15 | [7] |
| AHL | ||
| Calder Cup (Lake Erie Monsters) | 2016 | [8] |
| Calder Cup MVP (Jack A. Butterfield Trophy) | 2015–16 | |
References[]
- ↑ "2011–12 Herning Blue Fox player statistics". Eliteprospects.com (2013-05-16). Retrieved on 2013-05-16.
- ↑ "Blue Jackets sign WHL standout Oliver Bjorkstrand to entry-level contract". Columbus Blue Jackets (2013-12-26). Retrieved on 2013-12-26.
- ↑ "Game Summary, Game 1073". National Hockey League (2016-03-19). Retrieved on 2016-03-19.
- ↑ "Oliver Bjorkstrand nets OT winner as Lake Erie win Calder Cup". cumberlink.com (2016-06-12). Retrieved on 2016-06-12.
- ↑ "WHL Announces All-Stars & Awards". Western Hockey League (2014-04-01). Archived from the original on 24 March 2014. Retrieved on 2014-04-01.
- ↑ "Winterhawks’ Bjorkstrand Named WHL Player of the Month". Western Hockey League (2015-03-01). Archived from the original on 27 March 2015. Retrieved on 2015-03-01.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 "WHL Announces All-Stars & Award Finalists". Western Hockey League (2015-04-01). Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved on 2015-04-01.
- ↑ Brown, Tony (12 June 2016). Bjorkstrand's OT goal clinches Monsters' first-ever Calder Cup championship. Columbus Blue Jackets. Retrieved on 12 June 2016.