The Athletic’s Max Bultman spoke with several Red Wings players regarding their difficult searches for the flavors of home this morning, and, as you might expect, it’s not as easy as going to IKEA for the Wings’ Swedes…Though IKEA helps…
Gustav Lindstrom is in his third pro hockey season in North America. He left his native Sweden to come stateside in 2019, and by all hockey measures, he’s making the adjustment quite well — slowly but surely working his way into becoming a regular in the Red Wings lineup.
But Lindstrom is still just 23, and still a long way from home. And one of the places that distance can become most obvious is at the dinner table.
“Doesn’t matter what you eat, really, but it feels like the taste is like, different,” Lindstrom said recently. “It’s kind of (the) same food, but it still tastes a little different.”
He’s not alone in this. Hockey is a global game, and the NHL is made up of players from all around the world. The Red Wings alone have nine Europeans on the roster.
So when Swiss-born Pius Suter was told after a recent practice about Lindstrom’s experience with the different flavors in his new home, Suter was quick with a quip.
“He go to Ikea?” Suter laughed.
Continued (paywall); this is a fun one.
