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Pining for home Don't be shocked if Naslund bolts NHL for SwedenPosted: Friday February 07, 2003 3:00 PM
The NHL's leading goal scorer could walk away in the prime of his career. Like Jim Brown, Sandy Koufax, Barry Sanders and Michael Jordan (twice) in their respective sports, Markus Naslund is considering bowing out of the NHL while still at his athletic peak. "It wasn't a statement where I was saying that I am going back," Naslund said. "I said that it crossed my mind. It could be the last contract. It blossomed to be something pretty big in the Canadian media, which was unfortunate because the focus should be on the team. I didn't try to make a headline by saying that." Naslund found himself in the spotlight in mid-January when he intimated that he might consider returning to Sweden when his current contract expires. He told the Canadian Press at the time: "There are two more years in my contract. Beyond that, I haven't thought too much. It's very likely this could be my last contract and then I could go back, but I don't know. We'll see." The Canucks' captain may have been just thinking out loud, but if that's the case, he continued to do so last weekend in South Florida at the NHL All-Star Game. It's clear that he wants to play the final years of his career in his home country, but he's not sure yet when that move will be made. Well, you know us hockey jackals, pouncing on the fresh meat. Naslund maybe didn't try to make news by opening himself up and revealing what he and his wife feel about their future plans, but it would be a huge story if one of the NHL's top scorers leaves the league in his early 30s while still in the prime of his career. Naslund and wife Lotta have three children, Rebecca, Isabella and Alex. It is their desire to have them grow up in Sweden, and he may cut short his NHL career for the benefit of his family. We can't fault someone for considering a move like this for family reasons, especially those of us who have never lived 5,000 miles from home. "We would like to go back to Sweden at some point, yes," Naslund said. "Our oldest daughter is turning 5 in April. So school age starts at 7 there, and that's why I said that it could be my last contract." Naslund lists Hakan Loob as his boyhood idol, and it's interesting to note that Loob returned to Sweden at age 29 to play the remainder of his career for Farjestads BK Karlstad following six successful seasons in Calgary. A puzzling part of Naslund's thought process is that he emerged as an NHL star so late in his career. After all the hard work he's put in to get to this elite level, I can't imagine him walking away from the NHL if he's still a regular 40- or 50-goal scorer in a couple of seasons. It took five ordinary seasons before Naslund busted out with 66 points in 1998-99. After being selected 16th overall by Pittsburgh in the 1991 NHL Entry Draft, Naslund enjoyed only sporadic success in the Steel City. His best year with the Pens was when he scored 52 points in 66 games while playing with Mario Lemieux and Tomas Sandstrom in 1995-96, before being sent West to Vancouver for Alex Stojanov on March 20, 1996. Stojanov finished with just seven points and 222 penalty minutes in 107 games in the NHL, and a serious auto accident cut his career short before Naslund's star began to rise. "I was really frustrated [in Pittsburgh] and my confidence was fragile, too," Naslund said. "I didn't know if I could do it. Coming in there I expected to be a guy who would play there a long time and have lots of success, but it just didn't work out. It just shows that sometimes you give up on players too early. It's important to have patience. It's easy to have high expectations for first-rounders and guys who are supposed to step in and play right away, but sometimes it takes time." And time to make a decision about his future is a luxury that Naslund has since his contract doesn't run out for two more seasons. Naslund is a likely finalist for the Hart Trophy this season and can look to another Swede who flirted with a return home before staying in the NHL and enjoying award-worthy success. Red Wings defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom hinted at a similar move in 1998, but has signed two new contracts with Detroit since then. Lidstrom has also finished as a finalist for the Norris Trophy each year since, winning it in the past two. "My family comes first, I've always said that," Lidstrom said at the time. "That's something I have to think about. ... We know we are going to live in Sweden when I'm done playing hockey." Lidstrom was making $1.6 million annually at the time and signed a new three-year deal worth $7 million per season in 1999. His current deal, a two-year extension signed in late 2001, pays him $10 million each year and runs through the 2004 season. When that contract is up, Lidstrom will be 34 and could revisit his desire to return to Sweden. With a $4.5 million salary this season, it's doubtful that money would play a role in Naslund's decision. The top players in the Swedish leagues earn less than the NHL's average salary of around $1.7 million, so if Naslund is in line for a raise to the $7-10 million range for his next contract, perhaps a big raise could keep him around for a few more years. But Swedish teams play just a 50-game season and have significantly less travel, allowing more time at home with the family, so if that is Naslund's primary motivation, there probably isn't enough money to stop him. Another element that could pull Naslund back home is his close relationship with fellow Ornskoldsvik native Peter Forsberg. The Avalanche center has been friends with Naslund for more than 20 years. The two were born 10 days apart in the same hometown and would both like to end up in their homeland for their twilight years. "We've talked about it, but nothing where we've really made definite plans," Naslund said. "It's not only me and Peter, but there's almost 10 other guys from MoDo. It would be fun at some point to bring some of the guys back and play together again." Forsberg and Naslund starred together for Team Sweden in the World Junior Championships in 1992 and 1993, combining for 76 points in those two tournaments. The line of Naslund-Forsberg-Niklas Sundstrom scored 69 points during the 1993 tourney in Sweden to lead the host country to the silver medal. Forsberg ranks first and Naslund sixth on the all-time World Juniors scoring list, so the chemistry between the two is obvious. The two also played together for hometown MoDo in Ornskoldsvik from 1990-93, usually playing on the same line there as well. Forsberg played on Sweden's gold-medal winning team in the 1994 Olympics, but Naslund was already in North America playing his rookie season for the Penguins. Forsberg played again in 1998 in Nagano, but Naslund wasn't chosen for that team. Then in 2002, Forsberg was out with a foot injury while Naslund was the second-leading goal scorer on a team that was shocked by Belarus in the quarterfinals. Canucks head coach Marc Crawford played Forsberg and Naslund together in the All-Star Game, the first time in nearly 10 years the close friends had been linemates. Crawford joked about possibly having both of the Canucks' top scorers end up in Sweden for their final years, saying, "Todd Bertuzzi said when he's done with his career he wants to go to Sweden anyway." "I like it here [in North America]," Naslund said. "I think it's a great place to live. It's just that when you have roots, when you have family back home, and when you enjoy the way you were brought up yourself, you kind of want to do that for your kids, too. I'm not bashing North America. I'm very thankful that I got the chance to play in North America and I've had a great time here."
Jon A. Dolezar covers the NHL for SI.com. Got a comment, question or scoop for Jon? Click here. |
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