Colorado Avalanche
Jersey |
Manufacturer: Koho
Material: Airknit
Year: 2000-2004
Home/Away (Maroon): Peter Forsberg Size 48
Material: Airknit
Year: 2000-2004
Home/Away (Maroon): Peter Forsberg Size 48
Jersey History |
One of the other teams I turned to during the Blackhawks dark days were the Colorado Avalanche. The Avalanche franchise started when the Quebec Nordiques were relocated in 1995. Since then this has been the main jersey design used by the Avalanche. The main logo includes an "A" with an avalanching puck, the shoulder patches are a yeti foot, and the piping of the jersey is to represent the mountains. The Edge era saw the Avalanche use one of the templates by Reebok which unfortunately ditched the mountain piping for chest piping. In 2015 the shoulder patches would be changed to the "C" on the Colorado state flag. When Adidas took over, the chest piping was removed to bring back the mountains.
Player History |
Peter Forsberg: This is probably my all time favorite player in the hockey world. I still remember the first time I visited family in Sweden and when I mentioned I played hockey they made sure to tell me all about how great Peter Forsberg is, and I was just like yes I know! Born in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden, Forsberg started his professional career with his home town team Modo Hockey. He played with the organization in the U20 and HockeyAllsvenskan (second tier league) until he was able to join the team in the top league Elitserien (Swedish Elite League). He was drafted to the Philadelphia Flyers 6th overall in 1991 after his first full season in the SEL. The main pick everyone wanted was Eric Lindros who was drafted by the Nordiques though, and the Flyers would trade for him along with the help of the New York Rangers. The Nordiques would receive Steve Duchesne, Ron Hextall, Kerry Huffman, Mike Ricci, the rights to Forsberg, two first round picks, and $15 million. He would remain with Modo for the next couple season winning the Guldpucken (Player of the Year) and Guldhjälmen (MVP voted by players). He finally signed a contract with the Nordiques and officially joined the team after the 1994-95 lockout. He continued his dominance his rookie season winning the Calder. The next season the Nordiques were sold and the team moved to Denver and became the Colorado Avalanche. Forsberg would help lead his team to the Stanley Cup Final, winning the title their first season and setting a career high points wise. He played 8 more seasons with the Avalanche, winning another Stanley Cup and other accolades, until the 2004-05 lockout where he went back to Sweden to play for Modo. With the implementation of the salary cap, the Avalanche would have trouble retaining Forsberg and he would sign with the Flyers for two years. He became the Flyers captain during his second season replacing Derian Hatcher and Keith Primeau, but was traded to the Nashville Predators for Ryan Parent, Scottie Upshall, a first round pick, and a third round pick because he was starting to get bit by the injury bug and was unsure of his future. As a unrestricted free agent, he signed back with the Avalanche but missed most of the season due to injuries. He returned back to Sweden and Modo for the next couple years to rest and try to make a comeback to the NHL. He was actually able to return during the end of the 2010-11 season with the Avalanche, but only played in two games before he deemed himself unable to play and retired from hockey in 2011.
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Forsberg is one of the strongest players I've seen play the game. He played an extremely heavy game which ultimately caught up with him later in his career. He underwent so many surgeries and so much physical therapy that I have no clue how he had as long a career as he did. He was still able to play in 14 seasons in the NHL playing 708 games scoring 249 goals and 885 points. His postseason stats were just as good playing in 151 games scoring 64 goals and 171 points. In the SEL, he was able to play 8 seasons playing 214 games scoring 88 goals and 225 points. Like I mentioned before, Forsberg won two Stanley Cups in 1996 and 2001 and was able to grab an Art Ross, Hart Memorial, and Bud Light Plus/Minus award in 2003. He was on the NHL All-Rookie Team his Calder winning year in 1995 and was an NHL First All-Star in 1998-99, and 2003. He would play in the All-Star game from 1996-2001 and in 2003.
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Forsberg would represent Sweden internationally playing in as many tournaments as he could. He played in the 1991 IIHF European Junior Championship. He would play in two IIHF World Junior Championships in 1992 and 1993 winning silver in both and racking up a tournament record 31 points in 7 games in 1993. He would play in the IIHF World Championship winning gold in 1992 and 1998, and winning silver in 1993, 2003, and 2004. He would play in the 1996 and 2004 World Cup of Hockey. He would play in the Winter Olympics in 1998 and 2010 and would win gold in 1994 and 2006. He would join the Triple Gold Club in 1996 after winning the Stanley Cup becoming a member twice after the 2006 Winter Olympic gold. He still ranks first in career points for the IIHF World Junior Championship with 42 points, is ranked 8th in the NHL all time points-per-game with 1.25, and is ranked 4th all-time in NHL assists with 0.898 behind only Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Bobby Orr. After his retirement, Forsberg's number was retired by the Avalanche in 2011 and by Modo in 2015. He was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2013 and the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2014. He was also named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players in history in 2017. Forsberg became the assistant General Manager of Modo hockey in 2011 but stepped down in 2016 and is enjoying retirement with his family in-between Switzerland and Sweden.