Modo Hockey facts for kids

Quick facts for kids MoDo Hockey
City	Örnsköldsvik, Sweden
League	HockeyAllsvenskan
Founded	27 March 1921
Home arena	Hägglunds Arena
Colors	Red, white, green
General manager	Henrik Gradin
Head coach	Mattias Karlin
Captain	David Rundblad
Website	modohockey.se
Franchise history
1921–1963	Alfredshems IK
1964–86	MoDo AIK
1987–present	MoDo Hockey
Le Mat Trophy	1979, 2007

Modo Hockey is a professional ice hockey team from Örnsköldsvik, Sweden. The team is also known as MoDo. They currently play in HockeyAllsvenskan, which is Sweden's second-highest league. Modo Hockey was founded on March 27, 1921.

The team won the Swedish championship, called the Le Mat trophy, in 1979 and again in 2007. Since 2006, their home arena has been Hägglunds Arena. Before that, they played at Kempehallen starting in 1964.

Team History: From Alfredshems IK to MoDo Hockey

How the Club Started (1921–1987)

The club began on March 27, 1921, as Alfredshems IK. However, they did not have an ice hockey team until 1938. In 1958, the club joined Hockeyallsvenskan, which was the top league in Sweden at that time.

In 1963, Alfredshems IK changed its name to Modo AIK. This new name came from their main sponsor, a company called Mo och Domsjö AB (shortened to MoDo). The next year, in 1964, the team moved into their new home arena, Kempehallen.

In 1975, Modo AIK became one of the first ten teams in the Elitserien, which was the new premier league. Four seasons later, in 1979, Modo AIK won their first regular-season championship. They then beat Djurgårdens IF to win their first Le Mat trophy as playoff champions.

MoDo Hockey Today (1987–Present)

In 1987, the club changed its name again to simply Modo Hockey. After their big win in 1979, the team had some tough years in the 1980s.

However, new stars began to emerge from their junior program. Peter Forsberg and Markus Näslund, both from Örnsköldsvik, started playing for the senior team in 1990–91. Näslund became the team's top scorer in his second season. Forsberg won the Guldpucken award as Sweden's best player in 1993 and 1994.

Both Forsberg and Näslund were chosen early in the 1991 NHL Entry Draft by NHL teams. Näslund left for the NHL in 1993. Forsberg stayed and led Modo to the playoff final in 1994, but they lost. After Forsberg left for the NHL in 1995, twin brothers Daniel and Henrik Sedin became the next big talents. They won the Guldpucken award together in 1999. They also helped Modo win their second regular-season title that year. Daniel and Henrik were drafted second and third overall in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft and left for the NHL in 2000.

Even without these stars, Modo kept playing well. They reached the playoff finals three times between 1999 and 2002, but lost each time.

During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, many former Modo stars, including Forsberg, Näslund, and the Sedin brothers, returned to play for the team. Other NHL players also joined. Despite a strong team, Modo finished sixth in the regular season.

In 2006, Modo moved into the new Swedbank Arena. This arena was partly funded by Peter Forsberg and his father. On April 14, 2007, Modo won their second Le Mat trophy by defeating Linköpings HC. This was their first championship in 28 years. The team included Per Svartvadet, who won the Guldpucken award in 2007, and top scorer Per-Åge Skrøder.

In the 2008–09 season, the team did not make the playoffs. In 2009–10, Forsberg and Näslund both returned to play for Modo. They even played without salaries! Despite their return, the team missed the playoffs again. After that season, Näslund retired again and later became the general manager of Modo.

In the 2010–11 season, Modo almost dropped to a lower league. They had to play in a special series called Kvalserien to stay in Elitserien. In the final game, Modo won 2–0 against Södertälje, which kept them in the top league.

Modo's Women's Team

Modo Hockey also has a women's team, known as Modo Hockey Dam. In the 2012–13 Riksserien season, the women's team finished first in the regular season. However, they were eliminated in the semifinals by Brynäs IF.

NHL Stars from Modo Hockey

Banners of retired numbers at Hägglunds Arena

Örnsköldsvik is a small town, but it has produced many talented hockey players who went on to play in the NHL. The town loves hockey and has six indoor rinks. The Hägglunds Arena often has 7,000 fans for Modo home games.

Anders Hedberg was one of the first Swedish players to do well in the NHL in the 1970s. In the early 1990s, Peter Forsberg and Markus Näslund came from Modo's junior system. They were drafted high in the 1991 NHL Entry Draft. Forsberg won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL's best rookie in 1995. He also won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's Most Valuable Player in 2003. Näslund won the Lester B. Pearson Award as the NHL's MVP chosen by the players in 2003. In 2003, Forsberg and Näslund were the top two scorers in the league. That season, 13 NHL players came from Modo, and seven more were from nearby Örnsköldsvik.

Eight years after Forsberg and Näslund, twin brothers Daniel and Henrik Sedin were drafted second and third overall in 1999. They joined Näslund on the Vancouver Canucks. From 1998–99 to 2016–17, only Näslund, Henrik, or Daniel led the Canucks in scoring. In 2009–10, Henrik Sedin won the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL's top scorer and the Hart Memorial Trophy as league MVP. The next year, his brother Daniel won the Art Ross Trophy. This was the first time in NHL history that two brothers won scoring titles in a row.

In 2009, defenceman Victor Hedman was drafted second overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning. This matched Daniel Sedin as the highest-drafted Modo player ever. More recently, Victor Olofsson joined the Buffalo Sabres in 2019 and became a key player for them.

Retired Player Numbers

Modo Hockey honors its legendary players by retiring their jersey numbers. This means no other player on the team can wear that number again.

Team Trophies and Player Awards

Team Achievements

Individual Player Awards