TAMPA -- Victor Hedman chuckles when he thinks about the days leading up to the 2009 NHL Draft.
“I remember I had a breakfast with the Islanders,” Hedman said. “And they said, ‘If we pick you, how would I feel if the fan base back home booed me?’ That’s when I had a feeling they weren’t going to pick me.”
The Islanders instead took John Tavares, and Hedman went No. 2 to the Tampa Bay Lightning, setting the stage for a career that he seen Hedman win the Norris Trophy in 2018 voted as the top defenseman in the NHL, the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2020 as the most valuable player in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, and the Stanley Cup in 2020 and 2021.
He’ll hit a major milestone Monday, playing his 1,000th NHL game when the Lightning host the Dallas Stars at Amalie Arena (7 p.m. ET; BSSUN, BSSW).
“Just doing it for the same team means the world to me,” Hedman said Monday morning. “You don’t take anything for granted in this league. It was kind of a rough start to my career. A lot of ups and downs, but I found my way and here we are. I’m going to embrace this whole day. I’m going to treat it like a normal gameday during the day, but tonight is going to be very special with all of my family and friends here.”
Much of the same group that will be in Tampa on Monday were there at the Bell Centre in Montreal at the 2009 Draft. That includes his wife, Sanna, his parents, Olle and Elizabeth, and his brothers, Oscar and Johan. The new additions to the group are his two young sons, Rio and Viggo.
Olle Hedman, in a letter to his son that was posted on the Lightning’s website Monday, said Victor got to 1,000 games “the right way.”
“You will never think you’re any better than the person next to you. You treat everyone with respect. Son, you’ve done it all the right way,” Olle Hedman wrote. “You came to this town at 18 years old with the weight of the world on your shoulders. They labeled you the ‘best Swedish defenseman since Nicklas Lidstrom.’
“You took that pressure as a privilege. You embraced it and took it in stride.”
Hedman is the first Lightning defenseman to reach 1,000 games and third Tampa Bay player, joining Vincent Lecavalier (1,037) and Steven Stamkos (1,026 entering Monday). He is first among Lightning defensemen in points (677), goals (148) and assists (529). The next closest one in points is teammate Mikhail Sergachev with 254.
Hedman will become the seventh Sweden-born player at his position to reach 1,000 games and 18th overall from the country.
A familiar face on Hedman’s journey to 1,000 games is Stamkos, who was selected No. 1 by the Lightning in the 2008 NHL Draft.
“We’ve gone through so many ups and downs together and have come out on the right side of it,” Stamkos said. “I didn’t know what to expect when we first met, but we were pretty much thrown in this league together around the same time. We became close, our girlfriends, who are now our wives, became close. We will always be there for each other.”
Hedman admits to getting emotional when thinking about Stamkos’ 1,000th game last April, and their accomplishments together, which include winning the Stanley Cup twice.
“For us to do this together, him last year and me this year, it’s special,” Hedman said. “We’ve grown from boys to men together, came in as 18-year-olds and now we’re parents with kids back home. We’re early to bed now, but we appreciate each other and what we’ve done for this team and what the team has done for us. We’re super fortunate it worked out the way it did.”
The appreciation for Hedman goes through the Lightning organization, where his professionalism and work ethic are lauded by teammates and around the League.
“He’s just great at everything,” Sergachev said. “He works so hard, and he sets a great example for me from the time I got here to now. On the ice there are very few like him. His skill, his skating and he’s so tall with his length (6-foot-7, 246 pounds). It’s almost not fair.”
Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson and Hedman have been friends since their days in Sweden. Karlsson said that Hedman has managed to exceed the expectations placed on him when he was young.
“He was someone that kind of came into this league ready to play right away, very hyped up, a lot of expectations on him,” Karlsson said. “I think he's done more than live up to them, which tells a lot about the character that he has. We've seen many guys try and fail, so good for him to be able to be at this level this early in his career and play his 1,000 games. He still has a lot more left in him. I'm excited for his milestone and excited to see what he can do in the next upcoming years as well.”
Hedman has a list of people he wants to thank for helping him find his way in the NHL. Lidstrom, a Hockey Hall of Famer, remains his idol, and he credits Mattias Ohlund for taking him under his wing and showing him how to carry himself as an NHL player.
“It’s very special. It doesn’t seem real that we’ve come this far,” Hedman said. “Time has flown by. It’s been 14-15 years and for me to be standing him in the same rink and in front of so many people that have been here the whole time, it’s very special.”
NHL.com independent correspondent Wes Crosby contributed to this report
