Ulf Samuelsson

Swedish ice hockey player (born 1964)

Ice hockey player

Ulf Samuelsson

Samuelsson with the New York Rangers in 1997

Born|  (1964-03-26) March 26, 1964 (age 60)
Fagersta, Sweden
Height|  6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight|  203 lb (92 kg; 14 st 7 lb)
Position|  Defence
Shot|  Left
Played for|  Hartford Whalers
Pittsburgh Penguins
New York Rangers
Detroit Red Wings
Philadelphia Flyers
National team|  Sweden
NHL draft|  67th overall, 1982
Hartford Whalers
Playing career|  1981-2000

Ulf Bo Samuelsson (born March 26, 1964) is a Swedish-American former professional ice hockey defenceman who formerly served as assistant coach of the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League.[1] He played several seasons in the NHL with the Hartford Whalers, Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, and Philadelphia Flyers. He is a two-time Stanley Cup champion, winning with the Penguins in 1991 and 1992, and the first European-born player to have 2,000 career penalty minutes.

During his playing career, Samuelsson was viewed by NHL stars as "the most hated man in hockey"; he was described to the New York Times as "the lowest form of human being" and someone whose play is all about "trying to hurt you and knock you out of the game".[2] He is also infamous for his knee-to-knee hit on Boston Bruins Cam Neely during the 1991 playoffs that was a contributing factor of Neely's early retirement five years later. Throughout his NHL career, Samuelsson was heavily criticized by hockey commentator Don Cherry for his dirty style of play.[3]

## Playing career[edit]

Samuelsson was selected 67th overall by the Hartford Whalers in the 1982 NHL Entry Draft. In February 1987, Samuelsson played in the "Rendez-vous '87" series as a member of the NHL All-Stars. The two-game series between the NHL All-Stars and the Soviet national team took place in Quebec City and replaced the NHL's mid-season all-star game for the 1986–87 season.

He was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins along with Ron Francis in 1991 and was a member of Pittsburgh's Stanley Cup winning team in 1991 and 1992. He scored the 1991 Stanley Cup-winning goal in game six of the finals against the Minnesota North Stars, at 2:00 of the first period in what became an 8–0 blowout victory for Pittsburgh.

In a game versus the Boston Bruins during the 1991 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Samuelsson hit Bruins' star forward Cam Neely with a knee-on-knee check that injured Neely and caused him to develop a condition called myositis ossificans, which ultimately ended his career.[4]

As a member of the New York Rangers in 1995, Samuelsson was knocked unconscious by a punch to the face from Tie Domi of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Domi received an eight-game suspension and a fine for the incident.[5] Domi insisted that Samuelsson provoked the punch by repeatedly calling him "dummy".[6]

Samuelsson played 1,080 career NHL games, scoring 57 goals and 275 assists for 332 points. He accumulated 2,453 penalty minutes over the course of his career.

During the Nagano Olympics, he was ejected from the Swedish team when it was discovered that he had requested and received US citizenship. His Swedish citizenship was revoked and he was not allowed to play. The entire ordeal was listed as the seventy-second most important international story by the IIHF in their centennial celebrations in 2008.[7]

### Transactions[edit]

* March 4, 1991 – traded by the Hartford Whalers, along with Ron Francis and Grant Jennings, to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for John Cullen, Jeff Parker, and Zarley Zalapski
* August 31, 1995 – traded by the Pittsburgh Penguins, along with Luc Robitaille, to the New York Rangers in exchange for Petr Nedvěd and Sergei Zubov.
* March 23, 1999 – traded by the New York Rangers to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Detroit's 1999 second round draft choice and the Rangers' 1999 third round draft choice.
* June 25, 1999 – traded by the Detroit Red Wings to the Atlanta Thrashers in exchange for future considerations.
* October 19, 1999 – signed as a free agent by the Philadelphia Flyers.

## Personal life[edit]

Samuelsson is a resident of Scottsdale, Arizona.[8] Samuelsson's sons, Philip,[9] Henrik and Adam are professional hockey players. His daughter, Victoria, played hockey at Penn State University.[10]

## Coaching career[edit]

On May 2, 2011, Samuelsson accepted the head coaching position of Modo Hockey,[11] a position he held for two seasons.[12][13]

On May 31, 2016, it was announced that Samuelsson accepted a head coach position with the Charlotte Checkers of the American Hockey League.[11][14] In 2017 Samuelsson was hired as an assistant coach with the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League.[15] On November 6, 2018, he was fired along with head coach Joel Quenneville.[16]

* 2003–04, head coach, Phantoms Ice Hockey Club squirt minor AAA
* 2004–05, assistant coach, Avon Old Farms School
* 2005–06, assistant coach, Hartford Wolf Pack
* 2006–11, assistant coach, Phoenix Coyotes
* 2011–13, head coach, Modo Hockey
* 2013–16, assistant coach, New York Rangers
* 2016–17, head coach, Charlotte Checkers
* 2017–18, assistant coach, Chicago Blackhawks
* 2019–20, pro scout, Seattle Kraken
* 2019–20, head coach, Leksands IF
* 2020–21, assistant coach, Florida Panthers

## Career statistics[edit]

### Regular season and playoffs[edit]

|  | Regular season |  | Playoffs

|
|
|
|

Season | Team  | League  | GP  | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP  | G  | A  | Pts  | PIM
1980–81  | Fagersta AIK  | SWE III | 22  | 11  | 5  | 16  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
1981–82 | Leksands IF | SEL | 31  | 3  | 1  | 4  | 40  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
1982–83 | Leksands IF  | SEL  | 33  | 9  | 6  | 15  | 72  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
1983–84 | Leksands IF  | SEL  | 36  | 5  | 11  | 16  | 53  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
1984–85 | Hartford Whalers | NHL  | 41  | 2  | 6  | 8  | 83  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
1984–85 | Binghamton Whalers | AHL | 36  | 5  | 11  | 16  | 92  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
1985–86 | Hartford Whalers  | NHL  | 80  | 5  | 19  | 24  | 174  | 10  | 1  | 2  | 3  | 38
1986–87 | Hartford Whalers  | NHL  | 78  | 2  | 31  | 33  | 162  | 5  | 0  | 1  | 1  | 41
1987–88 | Hartford Whalers  | NHL  | 76  | 8  | 33  | 41  | 159  | 5  | 0  | 0  | 0  | 8
1988–89 | Hartford Whalers  | NHL  | 71  | 9  | 26  | 35  | 181  | 4  | 0  | 2  | 2  | 4
1989–90 | Hartford Whalers  | NHL  | 55  | 2  | 11  | 13  | 177  | 7  | 1  | 0  | 1  | 2
1990–91 | Hartford Whalers  | NHL  | 62  | 3  | 18  | 21  | 174  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
1990–91  | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL  | 14  | 1  | 4  | 5  | 37  | 20  | 3  | 2  | 5  | 34
1991–92 | Pittsburgh Penguins  | NHL  | 62  | 1  | 14  | 15  | 206  | 21  | 0  | 2  | 2  | 39
1992–93 | Pittsburgh Penguins  | NHL  | 77  | 3  | 26  | 29  | 249  | 12  | 1  | 5  | 6  | 24
1993–94 | Pittsburgh Penguins  | NHL  | 80  | 5  | 24  | 29  | 199  | 6  | 0  | 1  | 1  | 18
1994–95 | Leksands IF  | SEL  | 2  | 0  | 0  | 0  | 8  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
1994–95 | Pittsburgh Penguins  | NHL  | 44  | 1  | 15  | 16  | 113  | 7  | 0  | 2  | 2  | 8
1995–96 | New York Rangers | NHL  | 74  | 1  | 18  | 19  | 122  | 11  | 1  | 5  | 6  | 16
1996–97 | New York Rangers  | NHL  | 73  | 6  | 11  | 17  | 136  | 15  | 0  | 2  | 2  | 30
1997–98 | New York Rangers  | NHL  | 73  | 3  | 9  | 12  | 122  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
1998–99 | New York Rangers  | NHL  | 67  | 3  | 9  | 12  | 93  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
1998–99  | Detroit Red Wings | NHL  | 4  | 0  | 0  | 0  | 6  | 9  | 0  | 3  | 3  | 10
1999–2000 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL  | 49  | 1  | 2  | 3  | 58  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —
NHL totals  | 1,080  | 57  | 275  | 332  | 2,453  | 132  | 7  | 27  | 34  | 272
SEL totals  | 102  | 17  | 18  | 35  | 173  | —  | —  | —  | —  | —

### International[edit]

Year  | Team  | Event  |  | GP  | G  | A  | Pts  | PIM

|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

1982 | Sweden | EJC | 5  | 2  | 1  | 3  | 10
1982 | Sweden  | WJC | 7  | 1  | 2  | 3  | 18
1983 | Sweden  | WJC  | 1  | 0  | 1  | 1  | 2
1984 | Sweden  | WJC  | 7  | 1  | 4  | 5  | 10
1985 | Sweden | WC | 9  | 1  | 2  | 3  | 22
1990 | Sweden  | WC  | 7  | 2  | 0  | 2  | 18
1991 | Sweden  | CC | 3  | 0  | 0  | 0  | 4
1998 | Sweden  | OG | 3  | 0  | 1  | 1  | 4
Junior totals  | 20  | 4  | 8  | 12  | 40
Senior totals  | 22  | 3  | 3  | 6  | 48

## Career achievements[edit]

* 2× Stanley Cup champion – 1991, 1992

## See also[edit]

* List of NHL players with 1,000 games played
* List of NHL players with 2,000 career penalty minutes

## References[edit]

1. ^ "Florida Panthers Name Ulf Samuelsson Assistant Coach". NHL.com/panthers. November 9, 2020. Retrieved 2020-11-09.
2. ^ "How to Slash, Maul and Jab Your Way to Stardom". New York Times. January 21, 1996. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
3. ^ Kurtzberg, Brad. "The 15 Dirtiest Players in NHL History and the Hits that Prove It". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
4. ^ "The One That Got Away". nwsportsbeat.com. March 25, 2012. Archived from the original on 5 November 2016. Retrieved 2016-10-30.
5. ^ "The NHL's cheapest shots - Tie Domi on Ulf Samuelsson". msn.com. Archived from the original on 2014-03-31. Retrieved 2016-10-30.
6. ^ Dreger: Sucker-punch considered among most dangerous http://www.tiedomi.com/?p=843
7. ^ "Reporter's scoop reveals that Samuelsson is not a Swede in Nagano-98". IIHF. 2008. Retrieved 2009-04-09.
8. ^ O'Donell, Chuck. "Ulf Samuelsson: the fearsome defender recalls the night the Penguins' bid for a third straight Stanley Cup title came to an end – The Game I'll Never Forget", Hockey Digest, May 2003. Accessed December 8, 2007. "Samuelsson has dabbled in broadcasting, calling the Salt Lake City Olympics for a television station in Sweden. But mostly, he enjoys hanging out in his home in the Arizona suburb of North Scottsdale, A.Z., with his family."
9. ^ Gintonio, Jim. Samuelsson's son makes name for himself, Arizona Republic, April 12, 2009. Accessed April 30, 2009
10. ^ "Penn State Welcomes Four for 2015-16 Season :: Official Athletic Site of Penn State :: Official Athletic Site of Penn State :: Women's Ice Hockey". Gopsusports.com. Retrieved 2016-10-30.
11. ^ a b "Ulf Samuelsson Named Charlotte Checkers Head Coach". OurSports Central. May 31, 2016.
12. ^ "MODO Hockey". Eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 2016-10-30.
13. ^ "MODO Hockey". Eliteprospects.com. Retrieved 2016-10-30.
14. ^ "Ulf Samuelsson to coach Charlotte Checkers | News & Observer". Newsobserver.com. 2016-05-31. Retrieved 2016-10-30.
15. ^ "SAMUELSSON NAMED ASSISTANT COACH IN CHICAGO". American Hockey League. June 15, 2017.
16. ^ "RELEASE: Blackhawks make coaching change". NHL.com. November 6, 2018. Retrieved November 6, 2018.

## External links[edit]

* Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
* Hockey Draft Central