One of the most legendary figures not only in Detroit sports but in hockey history turns 51 years young today.
Nicknamed “The Perfect Human”, Nicklas Lidstrom patrolled the Detroit Red Wings blue line for 20 years before his retirement from the NHL in 2012.
Happy Birthday to @DetroitRedWings legend Nicklas Lidstrom! 🎉 pic.twitter.com/TTCSomE4Ju
— NHL (@NHL) April 28, 2021
Lidstrom won four Stanley Cup championships, seven James Norris Memorial Trophies (awarded to the NHL’s top defenceman), one Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP, and was voted into 12 NHL All-Star Games. The Red Wings never missed the postseason during his career, the longest in league history for a player never missing the playoffs.
Lidstrom was the first European-born-and-trained captain of a Stanley Cup winning team, as well as the first European player named playoff MVP. Lidstrom is also the all-time leader in games played with only one NHL team and by a European-born player. Lidstrom was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on 9 November 2015. In 2017, he was named one of the ‘100 Greatest NHL Players’ in history.
