11. Henrik Zetterberg

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Despite playing his entire career in an Original Six city, Henrik Zetterberg had a brilliant under-the-radar career. The Swedish Centre was the runner-up for the Calder Trophy in 2003, and two seasons later, he would develop into one of the most well-rounded players in the National Hockey League.

Zetterberg was a very good playmaker who would finish in the top seven in Assists four times, and he was a 70 Point scorer five times. His best season (2007-08) would see him score 92 Points with a Second Team All-Star selection. He had a career high 43 Goals that year, 10 of which were of the NHL leading Game-Winning variety. As good as that regular season was, he was far more dominant in the playoffs, where he was the leader in Goals, Points, and Plus/Minus, and would lead Detroit to win the Stanley Cup. Five times, he would finish in the top ten in Frank J. Selke voting, and three times, he was among the top vote getters for the Lady Byng Trophy. While he never finished higher than tenth in Hart Trophy voting, he was good enough to receive votes for the most prestigious individual award in hockey five times.

If you think Zetterberg is a bubble candidate, his international accomplishments should put him over. While representing Sweden, he would win a Gold Medal in the Olympics and in the World Hockey Championship, while also securing a Silver Medal in both of those events.

The Bullet Points

Country of Origin: Njurunda, Sweden
Eligible Since: Friday, 01 January 2021
Position: Left Wing
Games Played: 1127
Notable Statistics:
337 Goals
623 Assists
960 Points
+160 Plus/Minus
401 PIM
267 Blocked Shots*
471 Hits*
454 Takeaways*
482 Giveaways*
109.3 Point Shares

137 Playoff Games
57 Goals
63 Assists
120 Points
+41 Plus/Minus
79 PIM
54 Blocked Shots*
115 Hits*
59 Takeaways*
55 Giveaways*

*These stats were first implemented in the 2007/08 Season.
Played For: Detroit Red Wings
Non-NHL Teams: Team Sweden (Olympics, 2002, 2006, 2010 & 2014; World Cup 2004; World Hockey Championships (2001, 2002, 2003, 2005 & 2012; World Junior Hockey Championships, 2000))
Timra IK (Swedish League)
EV Zug (Swiss League)
Major Accolades and Awards:
Stanley Cup Rings (1) (Detroit Red Wings 2008)
Second Team All-Star (1) (2008)
All-Star (2) (2007 & 2008)
Conn Smythe Award (1) (2008)
King Clancy Award (1) (2011)
Most Game-Winning Goals (1) (2007)
Olympic Gold Medal (1) (Sweden, 2006)
Olympic Silver Medal (1) (Sweden, 2014)
World Hockey Championship Gold Medal (1) (Sweden, 2006)
World Hockey Championship Silver Medal (1) (Sweden, 2003)
World Hockey Championship Bronze Medal (2) (Sweden, 2001 & 2002)
Notable Top Ten Finishes: Top Ten Hart Trophy Finishes: 10th in 2008
Top Ten Frank J. Selke Trophy Finishes: 9th in 2006, 7th in 2007, 3rd in 2008, 4th in 2009 & 9th in 2010
Top Ten Lady Byng Trophy Finishes: 6th in 2006, 5th in 2008 & 9th in 2017
1 Top Ten Goals Finish
4 Top Ten Assists Finishes
2 Top Ten Points Finishes
2 Top Ten Plus/Minus Finishes
1 Top Ten Even Strength Goal Finish
1 Top Ten Power Play Goal Finish
1 Top Ten Short-Handed Goals Finish
4 Top Ten Game-Winning Goal Finishes
5 Top Ten Shots Finishes
1 Top Ten Offensive Point Shares Finish
Rankings: 72. Shots: 3,455
89. Game-Winning Goals: 64
91. Assists: 623
99. Assists Per Game: 0.58

These rankings are as of the end of the 2024-25 Season.