While much of the focus from Anaheim’s camp was on the reunited Getzlaf-Perry-Penner line, another forward combo is starting to snag headlines.
Teemu Selanne, the NHL’s oldest player, opened camp alongside 22-year-old Jakob Silfverberg.
Silfverberg, a Swedish winger acquired from Ottawa in the Bobby Ryan trade, acknowledged that it’s an honor to skate with a living legend.
“He’s been around for such a long time and he’s been one of the best players in the league for many, many years,” Silfverberg told the L.A. Times. “Playing with him is a great experience. You can learn a lot from him.”
Centered by Nick Bonino (who is relatively young, at age 25), the Selanne-Silfverberg connection has a lot of interesting storylines.
For instance, Silfverberg was two years old when Selanne broke in with the Jets in 1992 and famously set a rookie scoring record with 76 goals.
What’s more, Selanne’s oldest son -- Eemil, who plays at Santa Margarita High -- is just six years younger than Silfverberg.
All this doesn’t seem to make any difference to Ducks head coach Bruce Boudreau. He’s extremely high on his new winger, especially after a rookie campaign with the Sens in which the Swede scored 10 goals in 48 games.
“Every game that I watched Ottawa play — and I watched quite a few of them — Silfverberg’s name was being brought up in a positive mode,” Boudreau told the Times. “Two-way player. Plays both ends of the ice.
“Smooth skater. Solid, great shot. And you see those things.”