Vancouver Canucks By The Numbers: No. 2 – Mattias Ohlund

The Canuck Way continues its series looking at the best Vancouver Canucks at every number. This time we look at No.2.

Mattias Ohlund’s career with the Canucks got off to a rather unusual start. He was drafted by the team with the 13th overall selection in the 1994 NHL Draft. Four years later and set to re-enter the 1997 Draft, he signed a five-year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs worth $10 million. The Canucks had one week to match the offer and elected to.

He joined the Canucks to start the 1997-98 season. Oddly enough, he scored his first NHL goal against the Maple Leafs. He would go on to be one of the most prolific defenseman in Canucks history. He won the Babe Pratt Trophy as the Canucks best defenseman four times, in 1998, 2000, 2004 and 2006. He is the Canucks all-time leader in points by a defenseman. He represented Sweden six times (three Olympics, three World Cups) during his tenure with the Canucks.

He became an unrestricted free agent in the 2009 off-season, signing a seven-year deal with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Unfortunately for Ohlund, he started having a lot of injury troubles. He missed 15 games in the 2009-10 season, while also not scoring a goal and only having 13 points, his lowest point total of his career to that point. He followed that up with missing 10 games in 2010-11 while only having five points, a even lower low.

However, he would play his last NHL game, at least until this date, in that 2010-11 season. Knee injuries became an issue and have kept him from playing since. He still remains under contract and has yet to retire.

Next: Canucks By The Numbers - No. 1

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