In the Spotlight
Jan. 17, 2001
By P.J. Slinger
College hockey was a foreign concept to Bjorn Engstrom about five years ago. But that only makes sense, since Engstrom is a foreigner. The senior forward for the University of Denver is a native of Sweden, and never gave any thought to playing hockey while in college. That's because in Sweden, sports and education aren't inextricably linked like they are in the U.S.
"So after juniors, you play for club teams or you go to college," Engstrom said.
After juniors in Sweden, there are several levels of hockey to play, with the top being the Elite Division. Engstrom gave it a shot, but said he wasn't quite good enough to be a full-time player on the Elite team. "I knew I wouldn't play a lot for that team," he said. "They are good. But I didn't want to give up hockey, either. And if I did play hockey and then it didn't work out, I would have wasted all those years. This way I can play hockey and go to school."
Engstrom said he first heard about American college hockey from Brian McReynolds, a former recruit of Denver coach George Gwozdecky when he was assistant coach at Michigan State. McReynolds was playing on the Elite team when Engstrom first gave it a shot.
"Brian McReynolds played college hockey and somehow he knew Gwozdecky and that's how I got involved here," Engstrom said.
And Gwozdecky has been known to sign Europeans. Along with Engstrom, Gwozdecky has coached Erik Andersson, Anders Bjork and Sinuhe Wallinheimo, all Swedes, and Antti Laaksonen, a Finlander.
"Those guys gave me the courage to move over here to play," Engstrom said. "They told me all about it and how to prepare at this level." In fact, until last season, a Swedish player had been the Pioneers' MVP for the previous five seasons, including Engstrom two years ago as a sophomore.
"We've got a good (recruiting) network over there," Gwozdecky said. "We get a number of inquiries every year, but if you haven't seen them play, you have to go by tapes and what others say about them. Brian (McReynolds) called us on him and we never did see him (Engstrom) play. But I thought we had a pretty good handle on him."
Gwozdecky said the hard part about bringing European players over to the U.S. is the transition to the North American style of hockey.
"As a coach you try to describe to them what to do, but they have played a certain style for so long, so it's a very difficult adjustment for them to go to this physical game," he said. "But of all the European players we had in the past six or seven years, Bjorn has adjusted the quickest." Engstrom said the transition was difficult because of the emphasis on the physical game.
"Swedish hockey is on a big surface and relies on passing and skating more. It's really different from North American hockey. I think (the level of U.S.) college hockey is between (the Swedish) Elite and Division I, but it's hard to tell because the styles are so different."
Engstrom said it was more than the hockey adjustment to make. It was the whole cultural difference.
"My first year it was really difficult," he said. "It was never to the point where I said I wanted to go home, though. But looking back, I can see things were pretty tough for me back then. The hockey part wasn't tough. Once you put the game gear on, everyone speaks the same language."
As a kid, Engstrom, like many Swedes, played soccer and hockey.
"Those are the two big sports in Sweden," he said. "My dad played in the Swedish Elite League and then he coached after that. So I was about 3 or 4 when I started skating and 6 when I started playing hockey. My dad was always there telling me what to do."
Engstrom said of the two sports, soccer was his favorite as a kid. "I actually enjoyed soccer more because I was better at that than hockey," he said. "But when I was about 13 or 14 I quit soccer because it became impossible to do both at the same time. I still love soccer, but my decision back then just felt right. I'm not much of a soccer player anymore, although I still play with my friends. It was just a life decision I made."
And it appears it was a good decision. Engstrom is second on the Pioneers with 23 points this season and has 103 points in his career at Denver.
"When I was a freshman I saw they had a thing called the Century Club for people who scored 100 points in their career," he said. "That's what I wanted to do. I just did that over the break when both Kelly Popadynetz and I reached it in the same game."
Before the start of the 2000-2001 season, Engstrom was selected as a member of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association All-Star Team that traveled to Norway.
"Oslo was an eight-hour drive from where my parents live," Engstrom said. "But my parents made it to all the games. It was kind of like being home in a way, but also it was different people, different language, different country."
Engstrom said college hockey has been everything he hoped it would be, although there's always that next step.
"Everyone always wants to produce more," he said. "I'm never quite satisfied, but the thing I really hate is losing. When we won the WCHA playoff championship two years ago, that was the highlight of my career."
Engstrom, who is earning a chemistry degree, said medical school is in his plans, but hopefully not immediately.
"After this season is over, I still want to play hockey. Here is where
the best hockey is. The NHL is the best the world has. That's what I'm
aiming for."
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