Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd They are 22 and 33, but on 26 September 2000, they both turned 20. With Vancouver Canucks fans hoping they will make those jersey numbers famous, Daniel and Henrik Sedin celebrated their birthday by turning in a solid performance against the Minnesota Wild in a 4-4 […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd Most Canadian hockey fans would have pegged Artem Chubarov for a pure sniper after his performance in the gold medal game at the 1999 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships in Winnipeg. There, the Novgorod native potted two goals for Team Russia, including the winner at 5:13 […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd “No surprises to me. His game is the same every day. He’s such a competitor, such a pest.” That’s how Kansas City Blades Head Coach Stan Smyl recently described Jarkko Ruutu, a gritty 25-year-old Finnish right winger from Helsinki. And that consistency may win the IFK […]

Originally published on HockeyCanada.ca in 2005 By Lucas Aykroyd At this stage of Alexander Edler’s career, some observers might project the 19-year-old to be a poor man’s version of Nicklas Lidstrom. That wouldn’t be a bad thing. But don’t forget something else: both those Swedish defencemen were drafted in the third round of the NHL […]

Originally published on HockeyCanada.ca in 2005 By Lucas Aykroyd At first glance, it’s a bit of a shock to see big Jim Sandlak wearing a Team USA jacket at various 2006 World Junior venues. Okay, maybe this doesn’t rank up there with Bryan Trottier donning American colours at the 1984 Canada Cup or Brett Hull’s […]

Originally published on HockeyCanada.ca in 2005 By Lucas Aykroyd Ten years before stars like Sidney Crosby, Dion Phaneuf, and Corey Perry made the 2005 version of Team Canada the strongest-ever World Junior entry, there was another gold medal-winning team that thrilled the host nation when the tournament was held in Red Deer, Alberta. Three members […]

Originally published on HockeyCanada.ca in 2006 By Lucas Aykroyd Even though this is the first time Vancouver has hosted the World Juniors, the West Coast metropolis of 2 million has plenty of historical connections to this elite tournament. The legendary Ernie “Punch” McLean was best-known as the coach of the WHL’s New Westminster Bruins, which […]

Originally published on IIHF.com in 2002 By Lucas Aykroyd Talk to the Eastern Canadian hockey media and they’ll tell you that Mats Sundin of the Toronto Maple Leafs is a leading candidate for the Hart Trophy. However, Vancouver captain Markus Naslund has been the biggest Swedish scoring threat in the NHL this season, and that […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 2000 By Lucas Aykroyd They say you can’t go home again, but Jyrki Lumme of the Phoenix Coyotes is always welcomed back with open arms in Vancouver. The 33-year-old native of Tampere, Finland spent eight of his 12 NHL seasons with the Canucks. He proved as gracious and friendly off […]

Originally published on EuroReport.com in 1999 By Lucas Aykroyd Could Markus Naslund be a fan of the Doors? So far this season, “Break On Through to the Other Side” has been his theme song. Heading into Tuesday’s battle at Nashville between the Predators and Naslund’s Vancouver Canucks, the 25-year-old Swedish right winger ranked in the […]