STOCKHOLM, Sweden鈥擳he Stockholm Archipelago looks like what might happen if God gathered up a handful of board game pieces and scattered them about; a jumble of small islands bumping off the coastline, each with their own attraction: a roller-coaster here, an art gallery there, and, naturally, Abba: The Museum, which opened in 2013, the first year I visited the Swedish capital.
STOCKHOLM - Bo Horvat scored twice while Dylan Garand stopped 11 shots as Canada defeated Slovenia 4-0 on Saturday in its first game of the wo…
You get around the Archipelago by a fleet of small bleating water taxis and ferries 鈥 the aqua bus 鈥 that patrol the Baltic Sea harbour where, viewed from above, it might seem as if that same God had one eye on the universe and another on a joystick, randomly moving the watercraft about. While mostly used by commuters, this month they鈥檒l be lousy with hockey fans in goofy hats and face paint from Europe and North America who鈥檝e gathered for the men’s world championship, that charming interloper tournament where, in most cases, emerging players from crestfallen NHL teams who鈥檝e missed the playoffs populate the rosters, although this year stars Nathan MacKinnon, Sidney Crosby and Jordan Binnington are all here, probably because they heard I was coming.
In other instances 鈥 the Latvian, French, and Slovakian national sides, among others 鈥 the tournament is a chance for domestic league scorers to become national figures, and for upsets to inflame a tournament where, in the case of Team Canada, players get to skate on big yawning international ice surfaces without the worry of opponents taking too badly a bite, and hard to do anyway with a smorgastarta 鈥 a deliciously layered Swedish sandwich cake 鈥 in everybody鈥檚 mouth.
ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW
Supporters cheer in the background during Saturday’s contest between Sweden and Austria.
Jonathan Nackstrand AFP via Getty Images
Team Canada brass won鈥檛 openly admit it, but players here are promised an off-the-leash good time with a bit of hockey to break up the fun 鈥 families are flown in after the first week of the three-week tourney 鈥 and stories abound over the years about skaters embracing the opportunity to cavort away from the big league lens. In one instance, a tournament official wandered past a bar one evening to hear a certain player鈥檚 name 鈥 OK, a goalie鈥檚 鈥 chanted from inside. When he peeked in, that player was hanging from a chandelier in his underwear, slugging a beer and high-fiving the crowd below.
DENVER (AP) 鈥 Nathan MacKinnon’s childhood idol and role model has turned into a training partner and an offseason neighbor back home in the H…
The Swedish tournament bracket 鈥 the other is staged in Herning, Denmark 鈥 takes place at Avicii Arena, a swollen testicle of a building renamed after the legendary late Swedish DJ and where, inside, red seats and red curtains give the impression of an opera house or national theatre. The surprising elegance of the arena 鈥 not even the typical smell of popcorn and ammonia can supress the experience of watching a game here 鈥 is a fine support to the IIHF鈥檚 general comportment about the championship (it’s called “Stockholm Hockeyfest” here) which seeks as much to celebrate the nature and state of the game as crown a winner.
Later next week, Zdeno Ch谩ra, Henrik Lundquist, Vicky Sunohara and others will be inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame and the swim of fans from other places around this fabulous Northern European city create an atmosphere of international unity soaked in beer, ice and herring. Like one veteran broadcaster told me during my first trip, 鈥淧ray that the Latvians make it, and follow their fans,鈥 which is what I plan to do.
If friendships evolve here between partying European nations, this spirit is also reflected in the makeup of Canada鈥檚 team, where Maritimers Crosby and MacKinnon 鈥 two of the best players on last February鈥檚 4 Nations side 鈥 arrived in tandem to a phalanx of reporters greeting them at the airport. While there鈥檚 something inherently adorable about a bromance between generational talents 鈥 if Crosby kicked open the NHL door to East Coast skaters, MacKinnon dry walled another room for who follows 鈥 it鈥檚 also a reminder that good teammates, even those who only play together occasionally on the national side, are forever (MacKinnon scored in the team’s opening game, a 4-0 win over Slovenia).
A general view of Avicii Arena prior to Friday’s men’s world championship game between Austria and Finland in Stockholm.
Jonathan Nackstrand AFP via Getty Images
Being聽in Sweden, I鈥檓 reminded of favourite son B枚rje Salming, who said his goodbyes alongside fellow Maple Leafs Darryl Sittler, Tiger Williams and Lanny MacDonald at centre ice, and it was in a parkette next to the Grand Hotel, the city鈥檚 storied oceanside lodging, where Team Canada ‘72 gathered around a case of beer and bonded before boarding a flight into the unknowns of Moscow.
Hall of Famer used hockey to make a better life for himself to the point that even Swedes who don鈥檛 know hockey know the Salming name.
All of this聽might be partly owing to Stockholm鈥檚 soft touch; a gentle city whose old town, Gamla Stan, rises weathered yet glowing above everything new they鈥檝e built here, steadying the chaos of change and modern times and the anxiety that comes with it.
In 2013, I laid awake in our Stockholm hotel room in the middle of the night listening to Joe Bowen describe the Leafs third period collapse against the Bruins. Twelve years later, I鈥檓 leaving the Leafs at home with a lead in their series versus Florida, while still bringing my Auston Matthews sweater with me, the team having gone 4-0 while wearing it (4-1 now).
When I booked my ticket just after Christmas, I studied the calendar and told myself I couldn’t continue to design my life around whether or not the Leafs would or wouldn鈥檛 advance past the first round, but here I am, six hours and an ocean away in a city where, in the Arlanda airport, someone in a Hockeyfest booth wearing a Mats Sundin national team sweater 鈥 the last captain to lead 海角社区官网to a conference final 鈥 directed me to the train. You look for positive signs wherever you can find them.
Opinion articles are based on the author鈥檚 interpretations and judgments of facts, data and events. More details
To join the conversation set a first and last name in your user profile.
Sign in or register for free to join the Conversation