Former Lightning winger Fredrik “Freddy” Modin has announced his retirement after 15 seasons in the NHL. A native of Njurunda, Sweden, Modin has been plagued by chronic back problems of late. He finished his career as a member of the Calgary Flames, where he played only four games and didn’t record a point.
His most productive years in the NHL came with the Lightning after being acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs prior to the 1999-00 season. During his time in Tampa Bay, he played in 445 games, scoring 145 goals and notching 141 assists.
Known for his booming slapshot, he was a key contributor to the Lightning’s Stanley Cup winning team in 2004, scoring 19 points (8 goals, 11 assists) during the playoff run. He was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets after the 2005-06 season for goalie Marc Denis.
In addition to his accomplishments in the NHL, he successfully represented Sweden in international competition, winning an IIHF World Championship gold medal in 1998 and an Olympic gold medal in 2006.
From IIHF.com:
“It is not an easy decision to make,” said Modin to the Swedish Dagbladet newspaper. “But it the right decision for the future. The most important thing is to be healthy and my back has been hurting for a while now. After all, I am soon 37 and things don’t get any easier…I will definitely do something in hockey in the future. Whether it will be as a coach or in another function, we’ll see. I will definitely take my time to consider what I really want to do.”
