Three years ago today, journeyman checking left winger Viktor Stålberg retired from hockey after nine NHL seasons and four more in the Swiss League (plus a 29-game stint in the KHL after his second season in Switzerland).
Hailing from Gothenburg, Sweden, Stålberg grew up idolizing Toronto Maple Leafs star Mats Sundin, so it was a dream come true when the Leafs selected him 161st overall (in the sixth round) in 2006, after which he signed on to play with the University of Vermont Catamounts, where he was the school's first Hobey Baker finalist since Martin St-Louis. He has since rejoined his alma mater as an advisor to the coaching staff.
After just one season in Toronto, he would be traded to the Chicago Blackhawks, where he would post a career-high 43 points (22 goals and 21 assists, both marks nearly double what he would be able to produce in any other NHL season) and win the Stanley Cup in 2013, before leaving as a free agent to join the Nashville Predators on a four-year, $12M deal that would be bought out halfway.
He would sign on with the New York Rangers for the 2015-16 season and split the following year between the Carolina Hurricanes and the Ottawa Senators, with whom he reached Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Final.
Throughout his NHL career, Stålberg was officially diagnosed with three concussions (one of which he barely missed a couple of games for) and a slew of shoulder, knee and rib injuries, often playing through pain and grinding out tough minutes at a rate of 13-14 per game on average.
Upon returning to Europe, free from covering the other team's top players, he finished fourth in Swill League scoring 22 goals and 50 points in 48 games, making the media's All-Star Team and being named Best Forward by the same group. His final two seasons were also productive, as he posted 31 points (14 goals and 17 assists) in 46 games in 2019–20 and 29 points (13 goals and 16 assists) in just 35 games in 2020–21.
He signed this Rangers puck in thin silver sharpie while playing for the Canes in 2016:
