The trophies keep coming for Gustav Forsling.
Fresh off helping the Florida Panthers capture their first-ever Stanley Cup in June, the smooth-skating defenseman was recently awarded with the Goldenpucken (Golden Puck), which has been given out annually since 1956 to the top hockey player from Sweden.
Forsling is the third blueliner to win the award since voting was expanded in 2015-16 to include players competing in leagues outside of Sweden, joining Erik Karlsson (2016, 2017, 2023) and Victor Hedman (2015, 2021).
Voting is done by the newspaper Expressen and the Swedish Ice Hockey Association
During the regular season, the 28-year-old led Florida’s defensemen in goals (10), assists (29) and points (39), while also leading the NHL with a +56 plus/minus rating in 79 games.
Forsling’s plus/minus was the best by a defenseman in the NHL since 1995-96.
In the playoffs, the Linkoping, Sweden native recorded 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 24 games, including scoring the series-winning goal against the Boston Bruins in Round 2.
Outside of points, Forsling also stood out as one of the premier defenders of the postseason.
If you know Swedish, you can watch him talk about his latest honor in the clip below.
