Set your clocks for some afternoon hockey (if you’re in the metro area) next November: The Detroit Red Wings are headed back to Sweden.
The NHL announced Wednesday that the Wings, Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators and Minnesota Wild will play in the 2023 Global Series. That means two games in Sweden — home to Wings forwards Lucas Raymond and Jonatan Berggren — early next season.
The Wings are scheduled to play the Senators on Nov. 16 and the Maple Leafs on Nov. 17. The Senators and Wild play Nov. 18 and the Leafs and Wild on Nov. 19. All games will be at Avicii Arena in Stockholm. Both Wings games will start at 8 pm in Sweden, six hours ahead of Eastern time.
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It marks the second time the Wings have played in Sweden. They were there at the start of the 2009-10 season, losing a pair of games to the St. Louis Blues. Back then, the arena was called the Ericsson Globe, or Globen to locals. In 2021, it was renamed in honor of the late Swedish DJ Avicii, who died in 2018.
In addition to Raymond and Berggren, defenseman Simon Edvinsson is likely to be a part of next season’s lineup. Elmer Söderblom started last season with the Wings, then was assigned to the minors in early January after being made a healthy scratch, right around the time Robby Fabbri returned. Söderblom dealt with injuries during the second half.
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There are other players who have ties to Sweden: Moritz Seider played there in 2020-21 because of the pandemic, enjoying a standout performance with Rögle BK. Joe Veleno likewise played for Malmö during the pandemic.
Back in 2009, the lineup included Swedes Jonathan Ericcsson, Tomas Holmstrom, Niklas Kronwall, Nicklas Lidstrom and Henrik Zetterberg.
Contact Helene St. At James [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Red Wings head back to Sweden for a pair of games in 2023-24