Mikkel Bødker (surname alternately spelled Boedker; born 16 December 1989) is a Danish former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

right winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

. He was selected eighth overall by the

Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are an inactive professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division (1996–1998, 2021–2024) and ...

in the

2008 NHL Entry Draft The 2008 NHL entry draft was the 46th entry draft for the National Hockey League. It was hosted by the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa, Ontario, on June 20–21, 2008. The Senators were originally awarded the 2005 NHL entry draft ...

, making him the highest-ever drafted Danish player. He also featured on the cover of the video game ''

NHL 10 ''NHL 10'' is a video game in the NHL series developed and released by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts, and is the 19th game in the series. The game debuted at Hockey Fest '09, a three-day interactive festival celebrating the sport ...

'' in Denmark and

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

Playing career

Bødker was brought up in the highly regarded youth hockey program of Rødovre SIK. In 2005, at the age of 15, he moved to

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 ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

, where he played on Frölunda's junior team. He had an impressive 2006–07 season with 49 points (19 goals and 30 assists) in 39 games. The team won the national junior championships, and Bødker also made his debut with the men's team in the Swedish Elite League. After the season, Bødker was drafted by the

Kitchener Rangers The Kitchener Rangers are a major junior ice hockey team based in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Midwest Division of the Western Conference of the Ontario Hockey League. The Rangers have won the J. Ross Robertson Cup as OHL ...

in the 2007

Canadian Hockey League The Canadian Hockey League (CHL; , LCH) is an umbrella organization that represents the three Canada-based major junior ice hockey leagues. The CHL was founded in 1975 as the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League, and is composed of its three me ...

(CHL) Import Draft, and he joined the team for the 2007–08 season. He had a successful first season in the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; ) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League, alongside the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The league is for players ag ...

(OHL), where he played on the Rangers' second line. He scored 29 goals and 44 assists for a total of 73 points in 62 regular season games. He enjoyed even more success in the playoffs, with 35 points in 20 games en route to helping the Rangers win the OHL playoff championship. In the

Memorial Cup The Memorial Cup () is the national championship of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), a consortium of three Junior ice hockey, major junior ice hockey leagues operating in Canada and parts of the United States. It is a four-team round-robin tou ...

, he had six points in five games as the Rangers finished runner-up, losing in the finals to the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior hocke ...

(WHL)'s

Spokane Chiefs The Spokane Chiefs are an American major junior ice hockey team based in Spokane, Washington. The Chiefs play in the U.S. Division of the Western Hockey League's Western Conference, playing home games at Spokane Arena. The Chiefs are two-time M ...

. Bødker was selected 8th overall by the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

(NHL)'s

Arizona Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are an inactive professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. They competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division (1996–1998, 2021–2024) and ...

in the first round of the

. He made his Coyotes debut in the 2008–09 season and scored his first NHL goal on 12 October 2008, against

Jean-Sébastien Giguère Jean-Sébastien Giguère (; born May 16, 1977) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. He played with the Halifax Mooseheads in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), and was drafted 13th overall by the Hartford Whalers ...

of the

Anaheim Ducks The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California. The Ducks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Confere ...

. Bødker also played in the NHL YoungStars Game in 2009 at the year's All-Star weekend festivities in

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

. In the

2012 Stanley Cup playoffs The 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs was the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL) for the 2011–12 season. It began on April 11, 2012, after the conclusion of the regular season, and ended on June 11, with the Los Angeles Kings def ...

, Bødker had an impressive showing, scoring two straight overtime-winning goals in Games 3 and 4 of the first-round series against the

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (N ...

. The Coyotes would go on to a franchise-record-setting playoff run to the Western Conference Finals, where the team ultimately lost to the eventual

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup () is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, and the International Ic ...

champion

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The Kings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. ...

in five games. Bødker scored four goals and four assists during the Coyotes' playoff run. Due to the

2012–13 NHL lockout 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to ...

, Bødker went overseas to find work and signed with

Rauman Lukko Rauman Lukko (Finnish for "lock") is a Finnish sports club based in Rauma, Finland, best known for its men's professional ice hockey team. The club was founded as Rauma Woodin Lukko in 1936. The representative team currently plays in the Finni ...

of the Finnish League. In the following lockout-shortened 2012–13 season, Bødker had seven goals and 26 points. A

restricted free agent A restricted free agent (RFA) is a type of free agent in some sports leagues, such as the National Football League (NFL), National Hockey League (NHL), and National Basketball Association (NBA). Such players have special restrictions on the term ...

following the season's end, Bødker signed a two-year agreement to keep him in Arizona. In the first year of his new contract, the 2013–14 season, he established career-highs in goals, assists and points (19, 32, and 51 respectively) in 82 games. On 15 October 2014, Bødker scored his first career NHL

hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...

against the

Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. Th ...

to lead the Coyotes to a 7–4 victory. He finished the season with 14 goals and 28 points in 45 games before undergoing surgery to have his

spleen The spleen (, from Ancient Greek '' σπλήν'', splḗn) is an organ (biology), organ found in almost all vertebrates. Similar in structure to a large lymph node, it acts primarily as a blood filter. The spleen plays important roles in reg ...

removed that ended his season. Following the

2014–15 NHL season The 2014–15 NHL season was the 98th season of operation (97th season of play) of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Phoenix Coyotes changed their name to the Arizona Coyotes prior to the season. The Los Angeles Kings became the first team ...

, Bødker became a restricted free agent under the

NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement The NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) is the basic contract between the National Hockey League (NHL) (32 team owners and NHL commissioner) and the NHL Players' Association (NHLPA), designed to be arrived at through the typical labour–ma ...

. The Arizona Coyotes made him a

qualifying offer A restricted free agent (RFA) is a type of free agent in some sports leagues, such as the National Football League (NFL), National Hockey League (NHL), and National Basketball Association (NBA). Such players have special restrictions on the term ...

to retain his NHL rights and, on 5 July 2015, Bødker filed for salary arbitration. However, on 7 July 2015, the Coyotes and Bødker reached a one-year agreement that avoided going to arbitration. In the 2015–16 season, Bødker became the first player in franchise history to record two hat tricks in one season against the same team, Bødker's target being the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. The Senators compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Di ...

. His first came against the Senators in Ottawa on 24 October 2015 in a 4–1 win, ending the Coyotes four-game winless streak. His second hat trick against the Senators came on 28 November 2015 in Arizona in a 4–3 win. A possible free agent in the offseason, on 29 February 2016, Bødker was traded to the

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. The Avalanche compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Con ...

in exchange for Alex Tanguay, Conner Bleackley and prospect Kyle Wood, to assist the Avalanche in their playoff pursuit. At the time of the trade, Bødker was fifth in team goals with 13 and third in points with 39. Ultimately though, Colorado would not qualify for the postseason. He added four goals and 12 points with the Avalanche. With the Avalanche unable to come to terms with Bødker, he left as an

unrestricted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

in the off-season, signing a four-year $16 million contract with

finalists, the

San Jose Sharks The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California. The Sharks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Con ...

on 1 July 2016. In the following

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...

Bødker scored a hat trick in a 5–3 over the Edmonton Oilers on 10 January 2017. In the 2017–18 season he had a two-goal game that helped the Sharks beat the

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. The Stars compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The Stars ...

on 18 February 2018. On 8 March he scored the Sharks first

power play "Power play" is a sporting term used to describe a period of play where one team has a numerical advantage in players, usually due to a rule violation by the opposing team. Temporary numerical advantage in players during a team sport In several ...

goal in two months in a 2–0 win over the

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. Th ...

. On 19 June 2018, he was traded by the Sharks alongside Julius Bergman and a sixth-round pick of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft to the Ottawa Senators in exchange for Mike Hoffman, Cody Donaghey and a fifth-round pick in the 2020 Draft. Bødker saw reduced use in Ottawa. In the 2019–20 season, his final season with the Senators, he appeared in only 20 games before the season ended early due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. On 19 May 2020, Bødker agreed to a two-year deal with

HC Lugano Hockey Club Lugano, often abbreviated to HC Lugano or HCL, is a professional ice hockey club based in Lugano, Switzerland. The team competes in the National League (NL) and has won seven Swiss championships. History The founding of HC Lugano took ...

of the

National League National League often refers to: *National League (baseball), one of the two baseball leagues constituting Major League Baseball in the United States and Canada *National League (division), the fifth division of the English football (soccer) system ...

(NL), beginning in the 2020–21 season. He then signed a one-year contract with

HV71 HV71 (), often referred to as just HV, is a Swedish professional ice hockey club based in Jönköping, playing in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL), the first tier of Swedish ice hockey. The team played in the 2008–09 Champions Hockey League ...

of the

Swedish Hockey League The Swedish Hockey League (SHL; ) is a professional ice hockey league in Sweden and the highest level of the ice hockey in Sweden, Swedish ice hockey system. The league currently consists of 14 teams. The league was founded in 1975, and while Li ...

(SHL), as announced by the club on 26 June 2022. Bødker announced his retirement from professional ice hockey on 23 May 2023.

International play

Bødker's older brother Mads is a former defenceman with

SønderjyskE Ishockey SønderjyskE Ishockey is a professional ice hockey team playing in the top Danish ice hockey league Metal Ligaen. The team is part of SønderjyskE which is a sports umbrella with Association football, football, Team handball, handball and ice hoc ...

in the Danish league

Metal Ligaen The Superisligaen, known as the Metal Ligaen for sponsorship reasons, is the highest-level ice hockey league in Denmark. The league consists of 9 professional teams. Teams from the Superisligaen can participate in the IIHF's annual Champions Ho ...

and a regular player with the Danish national team. The two brothers teamed up on the Danish junior national team at the 2007 Division I World Junior Championships and helped Denmark gain promotion to the top division for the first time. Playing against opponents up to two years older, Mikkel Bødker scored one goal in five games. Bødker again played for Denmark at the

2008 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships The 2008 IIHF World U20 Championship, commonly referred to as the 2008 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships (2008 WJHC), was the 32nd edition of the IIHF World U20 Championship, Ice Hockey World Junior Championship. The tournamement was held in ...

. He finished second in team scoring behind

Lars Eller Lars Fosgaard Eller (born 8 May 1989) is a Danish professional ice hockey player for the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed "the Tiger", he was drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the first round, 13th overall, in th ...

, notching two goals and four assists in six games.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bodker, Mikkel 1989 births Living people Arizona Coyotes draft picks Arizona Coyotes players Colorado Avalanche players Danish expatriate sportspeople in Canada Danish expatriate sportspeople in Finland Danish expatriate sportspeople in Switzerland Danish ice hockey right wingers Expatriate ice hockey players in Canada Expatriate ice hockey players in Finland Danish expatriate ice hockey players in Sweden Expatriate ice hockey players in Switzerland Danish expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Frölunda HC players HC Lugano players HV71 players Ice hockey players at the 2022 Winter Olympics Kitchener Rangers players Lukko players NHL first-round draft picks Olympic ice hockey players for Denmark Ottawa Senators players People from Brøndby Municipality Phoenix Coyotes players Rødovre Mighty Bulls players San Antonio Rampage players San Jose Sharks players Ice hockey people from the Capital Region of Denmark