Niklas Per Andersson (born 20 May 1971) is a
Swedish
Swedish or ' may refer to:
Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
former professional
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...
left winger
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
. In his career, he spent time with several
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
(NHL) teams as well as various minor professional teams in North America, but mostly played for
Frölunda HC
Frölunda Hockey Club, previously known as the Frölunda Indians, is a Swedish professional ice hockey club based in Gothenburg. They currently play in the highest Swedish league, the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), formerly the Elitserien, where th ...
in the Swedish
Elitserien
Elitserien (literally, "the Elite League") is the name of several Swedish nationwide sport leagues. In many sports, Elitserien is the highest league, with the second highest named Allsvenskan.
Elitserien leagues at present:
* Elitserien (badmint ...
. He is the younger brother of former hockey player
Mikael Andersson and the father of
Lias Andersson
Lias Andersson (born 13 October 1998) is a Swedish professional ice hockey forward for the Ontario Reign in the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract to the Los Angeles Kings of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the ...
.
Playing career
Andersson was selected in the 4th round (68th overall) of the
1989 NHL Entry Draft
The 1989 NHL Entry Draft was the 27th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 17 at the Met Center in Bloomington, Minnesota. The Detroit Red Wings' 1989 draft has been noted as exceptionally successful, with 5,955 total NHL games played by the pla ...
by the
Quebec Nordiques
The Quebec Nordiques (french: Nordiques de Québec, pronounced in Quebec French, in Canadian English; translated "Quebec City Northmen" or "Northerners") were a professional ice hockey team based in Quebec City. The Nordiques played in the W ...
, while he was playing in his native Sweden for
Västra Frölunda HC. At the age of 20, he left Frölunda to play in the
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...
(AHL) for the Nordiques' affiliate, the
Halifax Citadels
The Halifax Citadels were a professional ice hockey team based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. They played in the American Hockey League between 1988 and 1993. They were created by the relocation of the Fredericton Express and filled a void left by th ...
. He played there for two years until the team moved to
Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
, Ontario. After a year with Cornwall he was signed as a free agent by the
New York Islanders
The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...
, and assigned to their
International Hockey League (IHL) club, the
Denver Grizzlies
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
(which became the
Utah Grizzlies
The Utah Grizzlies are a professional ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Maverik Center in West Valley City, Utah.
Franchise history
The current Utah Grizzlies franchise started in 1981 as the Nashville South Stars ...
the following year), until being recalled halfway through the
1995–96 season. He finished that year with the Islanders, and played another two before signing with the
San Jose Sharks
The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference, and are owned by San Jose Sports & Entertainm ...
prior to the
1997–98 season.
Andersson spent the following year with two minor clubs, one in the AHL and one in the IHL. He was not re-signed by the Sharks, and instead went to the
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...
. He never played in the NHL for the Leafs, and was instead sent to the IHL's
Chicago Wolves
The Chicago Wolves are a professional ice hockey team playing in the American Hockey League and are the top minor-league affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League. The Wolves play home games at the Allstate Arena in the C ...
until he traded back to the Islanders on 17 August 1999 for
Craig Charron
Craig Charron (November 15, 1967 – October 19, 2010) was an American professional ice hockey center from North Easton, Massachusetts. He attended the University of Massachusetts Lowell, where he played for four seasons and served as captai ...
. Partway through the season he was claimed off of waivers by the
Nashville Predators
The Nashville Predators (commonly referred to as the Preds) are a professional ice hockey team based in Nashville, Tennessee. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and ha ...
and played seven games for them before being placed back on waivers and picked up by the Islanders again. He finished the year with them, playing in 17 games and scoring 10 points.
During the following off season he was signed by the
Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary. The Flames compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...
, but played most of the season in the IHL with the
Chicago Wolves
The Chicago Wolves are a professional ice hockey team playing in the American Hockey League and are the top minor-league affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes of the National Hockey League. The Wolves play home games at the Allstate Arena in the C ...
again. After that season, he returned to his native Sweden and his old club
Frölunda HC
Frölunda Hockey Club, previously known as the Frölunda Indians, is a Swedish professional ice hockey club based in Gothenburg. They currently play in the highest Swedish league, the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), formerly the Elitserien, where th ...
, for whom he had been a key player the past nine seasons.
On 9 March 2011, Andersson decided to retire completely from hockey, having played 763 games for
Frölunda HC
Frölunda Hockey Club, previously known as the Frölunda Indians, is a Swedish professional ice hockey club based in Gothenburg. They currently play in the highest Swedish league, the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), formerly the Elitserien, where th ...
. He is currently an amateur scout covering
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
for the
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...
.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
International
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Andersson, Niklas
1971 births
Living people
Calgary Flames players
Chicago Wolves (IHL) players
Cornwall Aces players
Denver Grizzlies players
Frölunda HC players
Kentucky Thoroughblades players
Halifax Citadels players
Los Angeles Kings scouts
Nashville Predators players
New York Islanders players
People from Kungälv Municipality
Quebec Nordiques draft picks
Quebec Nordiques players
San Jose Sharks players
Swedish expatriate ice hockey people
Swedish expatriate sportspeople in Canada
Swedish expatriate sportspeople in the United States
Swedish ice hockey left wingers
Utah Grizzlies (IHL) players
Sportspeople from Västra Götaland County