NHL

Victor Hedman celebrates 1000th NHL game with a win

Swedish defenseman Victor Hedman celebrated his 1,000th game on home ice as Tampa Bay defeated Dallas 4-0. Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy made a significant contribution by keeping a clean sheet.

Published

1 year ago

5. 12. 2023

David Sobola

tampa bay lightning — Zdroj: Depositphotos

Swedish defenseman Victor Hedman celebrated his 1,000th game on home ice as Tampa Bay defeated Dallas 4-0. Goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy made a significant contribution to the win, keeping a clean sheet.

The Swedish defenseman did not score in the game, but enjoyed the anniversary with all the honours. A short ceremony was held before the opening bullpen to mark the occasion. The goalie Vasilevskiy also had a great reason to be happy, as he caught 25 shots from the opponent and scored his first clean sheet of the season.

It was only his fifth game this season. One of the league’s best goalies of recent seasons had to miss the opening 20 games as he underwent surgery to fix a herniated lumbar disc.

1,000 games, all with the @TBLightning.

Congratulations to Victor Hedman! #GoBolts pic.twitter.com/ORwSunyt99
— NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) December 5, 2023

Productivity leader Nikita Kucherov contributed to the win with two points on a goal and an assist. He recorded his 215th career game with at least 2 points. In addition, he has strengthened his lead in scoring, where he is already 6 points ahead of David Pastrnak.

The best defenseman in Lightning history

Hedman became the first defenseman in Tampa Bay history to reach this milestone. He ranks behind club legends Vincent Lecavalier, who has played 1,037 games for the Lightning, and team captain Steven Stamkos, who is now at 1,027 games played.

The winner of the 2018 Norris Trophy for best defenseman of the season and the 2020 Conn Smythe Trophy for best playoff player is also a two-time Stanley Cup winner from 2020 and 2021, while being one of the league’s best defensemen for many years.

The Swedish defenseman holds all offensive club records at the point guard position with the Lightning. Of course, in the number of games played, as well as in points scored (677), goals scored (148) and assists recorded (529).

The second man in the 2009 draft, who was selected by Tampa Bay and has spent his entire overseas career with the team, also has a world championship title with the Swedish national team in 2017. He also owns a bronze medal from the 2010 World Championship in Germany.

Source: NHL, Wikipedia