Filip Forsberg’s “13th forward” role less a demotion and more a compliment to his versatility
Nashville Predators forward Filip Forsberg is one of the most well-regarded Swedes in the NHL. The 31-year-old veteran is having another solid season in Nashville, with 24 goals and 23 assists for 47 points in 57 games. He’s also answered the bell for Team Sweden on numerous occasions, representing his country at last year’s 4 Nations Face-Off, the 2016 World Cup of Hockey, and three IIHF World Championships.
It might be surprising, then, to see Forsberg listed as the 13th forward on the Swedish men’s national team for the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics. It’s important to remember, though, that the 13th forward dresses and is available to play in Olympic hockey, which means Forsberg could still factor heavily in Sweden’s plans, even if he’s not currently listed among their four forward lines.
On Wednesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, hosts Tyler Yaremchuk and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton discussed how Sweden could deploy Forsberg as their 13th forward.
Tyler Yaremchuk: They had Filip Forsberg listed as their 13th forward, and I’m curious about that, because I don’t think you’re putting Filip Forsberg as your 13th guy on merit. I’m actually more curious to see how they use a guy like that, because again you can dress that extra forward in Olympic hockey. I wonder if they’re just going to move him around, where he kind of gets a shift with everyone. Maybe putting him as the 13th forward isn’t so much a demotion and more a sign that they trust him to be the guy who bounces around the lineup and he can kind of play with everybody.
Carter Hutton: Who knows if it stays this way. I can’t see Filip Forsberg not getting a regular shift. Like we saw with Canada, I don’t know if you saw that (Nick) Suzuki got bumped down and (Sam) Reinhart got moved up to that line at practice. I still feel like there is a little bit of that learning curve of where guys fit and how it’s going to go. I think it’s going to be constant changes when we look at these rosters. A player like Filip Forsberg, I lump him into the category of a game-breaker in this scenario. He is a guy who can score goals, you’re going to want to see him. If you’re playing against Sweden, he is going to be a player you’re trying to match, because he is a guy who can change a game in an instant.
You can catch the full discussion and the rest of Wednesday’s episode here…