Nicklas Backstrom, a longtime player for the Washington Capitals, has officially signed a one-year deal with Brynas IF in the Swedish Hockey League. It’s a meaningful return to the team where his professional career started. After being out for almost two seasons because of ongoing hip problems and having resurfacing surgery in 2022, Backstrom’s choice to get back to playing in his hometown feels like a personal comeback and a return to Gavle.
“I have always felt that I would like to represent Brynas again someday if the opportunity arose. I have long had a strong desire to return to Brynas,” the hockey star shared about his return home. It’s definitely a significant update in his career, and who knows, he could be gearing up for the 2026 Winter Olympics! But when you take a look at Team Sweden, the stats aren’t really that exciting for them.
Team Sweden didn’t quite hit the mark at the recent 4 Nations Face-Off, which took place from February 12 to 20, 2025, in Montreal and Boston. So, the tournament had NHL players and was the first real best-on-best showdown since 2016. Sweden really struggled in group play, getting beaten by the heavyweights Canada and the United States, and they ended up not making it to the final match. With those results in mind, Sweden’s GM Josef Boumedienne has expressed a sense of urgency as we look ahead to the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina.
According to a report by the NHL, Boumedienne has described the 4 Nations Face‑Off as a valuable learning experience, stating, “First of all, it was an exciting tournament, you know? It was good. It was the first best-on-best since 2016, so that was awesome to begin with. We learned about our team and we learned about our players. We hadn’t had the chance to spend a whole lot of time with our NHL players, so we learned bits and pieces about the guys the more we spent time with them. We were fortunate to have a few of them at the Worlds last year and then the 4 Nations, and a lot of them at Worlds this year. We learned a lot along the way about our players.”
That analysis is now a key part of Sweden’s overall plan as they work towards winning Olympic gold. Bringing together these elements—Backstrom coming back to Brynas and Sweden’s Olympic adjustments—gives us a better understanding of where Swedish hockey stands right now.
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Backstrom, who played 17 seasons as the Washington Capitals’ main playmaker and was Alex Ovechkin’s go-to teammate, is making a comeback to bring his experience and solid structure back to the team after facing some physical challenges in his NHL career. His return to the SHL fits right in with Sweden’s need to boost depth and leadership at home, especially with the national team getting ready for the Olympics. However, earlier this year, Backstrom had the chance to see a really special moment in the NHL, and he also received a huge shout-out from his now-former teammate.
Alex Ovechkin got emotional when he saw his Washington Capitals teammate
On April 6, 2025, Alex Ovechkin made history by scoring his 895th career NHL goal, surpassing Wayne Gretzky’s legendary record in a game against the New York Islanders. The goal happened during a power play. He got a cross-ice pass from his teammate Tom Wilson and fired off one of his signature shots from the left faceoff circle, which is known as his “office.” Even though the Washington Capitals lost 4–1, the big news was all about Ovechkin.
At 39, he became the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer, matching Gretzky’s total games played and breaking a record that had been around for 31 years. Nicklas Backstrom and T.J. Oshie, who have been with Ovechkin on the Capitals for a long time and even won the Stanley Cup together in 2018, were there to see the milestone happen in person. Even though both were out because of injuries, having them there really highlighted how emotional the moment was.
“As soon as I saw ‘Nicky,’ I just wanted to cry,” Ovechkin said. “And we hold (each other). He was such a big part of my success, and we’ve grown up together. We play together, we’ve been in so many different situations together, and that relationship in that moment with him and ‘Osh’ (T.J. Oshie) being here, yeah, it’s tremendous. It’s support. It’s always been like that. I tell him, ‘Without you, I would never reach that milestone.’”
Backstrom has been the one to set up more of Ovechkin’s goals than anyone else—279 times, to be exact—while Oshie has also been a big help over the years. It was pretty clear that Ovi got a bit emotional when he spotted them in the crowd for his record-breaking game.
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