Hockey fans in Sweden have watched superstars such as Sidney Crosby and Steven Stamkos for decades on television, but never in person.
That'll change next season with the NHL announcing Tuesday that the Nashville Predators and the Pittsburgh Penguins will play a pair of regular-season games next season as part of the Global Series at the Avicii Arena in Stockholm, Sweden.
Crosby and the Penguins will play Stamkos and the Predators on Nov. 14 and Nov. 16. This will be the Penguins' first trip to Europe in 17 years. Although this will be the Preds first venture to Sweden, it'll be the third time in franchise history they've played outside North America.
"Something we've heard a lot of -- and it's why we're bringing the Penguins -- is fans want to see Crosby, they want to see (Connor) McDavid," said David Proper, the senior executive vice president for media and international strategy for the NHL. "We're so busy making sure they get to see (Filip) Forsberg, (Victor) Hedman and (Erik) Karlsson and all the great Swedes. But it was interesting to hear them say they'd like to see some of the top, top players in the world that aren't Swedes."
Proper said the league's focus since the Global Series started in 2017 was to have fans from a particular nation experience the NHL while seeing their fellow compatriots. That will remain a focal point with the Penguins and Predators combining to have six Swedes between them. It's a group that includes three-time Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson and Forsberg, who is Sweden's seventh all-time leading goal NHL scorer.
It's just that the input the NHL received means fans will get to see those players who've also helped shape the game over the last 20 years such as Roman Josi, Kris Letang, Evgeni Malkin, Crosby and Stamkos.
"You get why they want to see somebody like that in person," Proper said. "It's similar to someone like Messi where people who've never gone to a game will go to a soccer game because they're getting a chance to see Messi. We have to be thinking about a Crosby or a McDavid in that same way."
Proper said the demand for the league's marquee players shows that there are fans who closely follow the game beyond just watching those from their home nation and it shows the affinity that teams have been able to gain from around the world.
The NHL's announcement that this is the start of bringing icons such as Crosby and Stamkos to Europe also comes in the wake of the 4 Nations Face-off. The four-team tournament hosted by the NHL and NHL Players' Association featuring Canada, Finland, Sweden, and the United States in February captured the attention of millions within and outside of hockey in North America. Proper also said that the 4 Nations Face-off was a major draw outside North America as well.
He said the Swedish Ice Hockey Association told the NHL that the Finland-Sweden game was going be directly competing against one of the Melodifestivalen qualifying rounds, the competition that determines who will represent Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest. Sweden's seven victories are tied with Ireland for the most Eurovision Song Contests wins by a nation with future Rock and Roll Hall of Fame members, ABBA, winning the Sweden's first title in 1974.
"We were like, 'We're sorry but that's what we gotta do,'" Proper recalled. "Our media partner over there, ViaPlay, was also concerned by the numbers were very strong. It showed that our appetite for best-on-best national tournaments also exists throughout the world."
Proper said the success of the 4 Nations also led to the NHL hearing from different federations and their players that didn't participate at the tournament.
While those federations and their players expressed admiration for how the 4 Nations was received, they also stressed to the league how they want to be included going forward.
The NHL announced during the 4 Nations that it would be re-introducing the World Cup of Hockey starting in 2028. Adding the World Cup of Hockey along with NHL players returning to The Olympics in 2026 now allows the game's premier players to be on a two-year cycle alternating between those tournaments.
"I think what you're going to see is two things that come of the 4 Nations," Proper said "The first is the World Cup which we've announced already. But the other is going to be a renewed focus on looking at all of the (international) markets that we should put really more focus, time, effort and resources into because we've seen such a positive reaction in that regard."
