Ekman-Larrson dedicates gold-medal win to late mother
Team Sweden's gold-medal victory last Sunday at the World Championship was a moment of mixed emotions for defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson.
The Arizona Coyotes rearguard's mother, Annika, died in March after an extended battle with cancer, and a few days after the shootout triumph over Team Canada, Ekman-Larsson explained exactly how important the medal was to him.
"That gold medal means so much to me and my family," Ekman-Larsson said Friday, according to Dave Vest of NHL.com.
"I played for my mom. She's the reason I decided to finish the season with Team Sweden, and I'm really happy that I did. She meant so much to me and was such a big part of everything I've been doing for my whole life. I'm playing hockey because she loved it. That's why I want to bring the medal to her and show her."
As Vest points out, Ekman-Larsson played through a portion of the 2016-17 season with a badly injured thumb suffered in November. Despite the ailment, the blue-liner suited up in all of the Coyotes' games last year until a three-game absence to be with his family ended his season a week early.
Playing hockey in Arizona is hard enough, but add in the injury and the loss of his mother, and Ekman-Larsson had a season that he would likely want to forget.
(Photo courtesy: Action Images)
"It was a tough season for me from the beginning until the end," Ekman-Larsson said. "But my teammates in Arizona and the Coyotes organization have been unbelievably supportive.
"When you go through something like losing your mom you realize that hockey doesn't mean everything in life and that family comes first. I'm doing all right now, but this is not something that is going to take one day or one week or one year to get over. It's something I'll have to live with for the rest of my life."
Candid words from one the best young D-men in the NHL.
At only 25, Ekman-Larsson is on the cusp of superstardom and is quickly developing into an elite-level player. In 494 career games, Ekman-Larsson has amassed 88 goals and 160 assists for 248 points - 40 of those tallies came on the man advantage.
OEL was equally impressive in Sweden's shootout victory over Canada, logging 27:40 of ice time, registering five shots on net, and scoring one of Sweden's two shootout goals.
The team success felt at the worlds may be short-lived for Ekman-Larsson, as he returns to a Coyotes squad that finished tied for the third-worst record in the league last season.