Ulf Sterner

Ulf Ivar Erik Sterner (born 11 February 1941) is a Swedish former professional ice hockey forward. He played in nine IIHF World Championships for Sweden, where the team won seven medals: one gold, five silver, and one bronze. He was also a member of the silver medal team at the 1964 Winter Olympics. Sterner played for Forshaga IF from 1956 to 1961, Västra Frölunda IF from 1961 to 1964, and for the New York Rangers in 1964–65, before returning to Sweden to play for Rögle BK and Färjestads BK. He finished his career in England with the London Lions in 1973–74. On 27 January 1965, he became the first European-trained player to play in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2001.

Playing career Sterner made his hockey debut at 15 when he was accepted onto a second-division club where he made a name for himself with his speed and scoring ability. On 12 November 1959, he made his international debut with Tre Kronor in a friendly match against Czechoslovakia's team. He scored his first goal in that game, which Tre Kronor won 11–3. He was the team's youngest player of all time. Through the late 1950s and early 1960s, he was one of Sweden's most popular players. He is also credited with inventing the "stick to skate to stick" maneuver. At the 1962 World Ice Hockey Championships, Sterner scored what he described as his most memorable goal when he scored the 3–0 goal against Team Canada. His team won the game 5–3 and took the gold medal. At the 1963 World Championship, he scored a hat trick against Canada in a 4–1 win. After the game, he and teammate Sven "Tumba" Johansson met King Gustaf VI Adolf and received a royal congratulations.

Ultimately, Sterner played only four games in the NHL, and he did not register a point although Rangers coach Red Sullivan praised Sterner for his puckhandling skills. But he had been reluctant to play physically or to instigate physical play. He was sent back down to the AHL, and it soon became clear that he was not willing to return to the NHL for the 1965-66 season although he had signed a two-year contract. As much as his skills carried him through games in the AHL, he simply did not have the training to play 60-minute games with full contact. In 1969, the IIHF adopted the same body-checking rules as the NHL, and four years later, Börje Salming joined the Toronto Maple Leafs, ending up playing 17 years in the NHL.

Personal life Sterner, his wife Pia, and their family currently live on a farm near Karlstad, where they keep four horses. He nicknames his horses after former teammates and friends; when one of the horses smashed his nose, he nicknamed it Alexander Ragulin.

Statistics

Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1956–57 Forshaga IF SWE 7 3 0 3 — — — — — — 1957–58 Forshaga IF SWE 14 2 0 2 — — — — — — 1958–59 Forshaga IF SWE 11 7 8 15 — — — — — — 1959–60 Forshaga IF SWE 14 17 6 23 14 — — — — — 1960–61 Forshaga IF SWE 13 14 8 22 2 — — — — — 1961–62 Västra Frölunda IF SWE 13 12 9 21 26 7 6 4 10 5 1962–63 Västra Frölunda IF SWE 14 14 6 20 6 7 7 4 11 0 1963–64 Västra Frölunda IF SWE 12 10 2 12 6 7 1 4 5 10 1964–65 New York Rangers NHL 4 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 1964–65 St. Paul Rangers CPHL 16 12 9 21 2 — — — — — 1964–65 Baltimore Clippers AHL 52 18 26 44 12 5 1 0 1 2 1965–66 Rögle BK SWE.2 15 32 11 43 — 6 12 3 15 — 1966–67 Rögle BK SWE 19 4 11 15 11 — — — — — 1967–68 Färjestad BK SWE 21 16 8 24 19 — — — — — 1968–69 Västra Frölunda IF SWE 19 19 20 39 10 7 5 7 12 2 1969–70 Färjestad BK SWE.2 17 14 22 36 — 5 4 3 7 2 1970–71 Färjestad BK SWE 6 4 7 11 13 14 10 3 13 14 1971–72 Färjestad BK SWE 14 10 15 25 28 14 5 6 11 24 1972–73 Färjestad BK SWE 14 7 15 22 23 14 10 2 12 29 1973–74 London Lions GBR 64 27 88 115 71 2 0 2 2 0 1974–75 BK Bäcken SWE.3 22 14 30 44 63 — — — — — 1975–76 BK Bäcken SWE.2 22 17 23 40 31 — — — — — 1976–77 BK Bäcken SWE.2 24 14 24 38 — — — — — — 1977–78 Vänersborgs HC SWE.3 15 17 16 33 — — — — — — 1988–89 Hammarö HC SWE.3 — — — — — — — — — — 1989–90 Hammarö HC SWE.3 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — — SWE.2 totals 78 77 80 157 20 11 15 7 22 2 SWE totals 191 139 115 254 158 70 44 30 74 84 NHL totals 4 0 0 0 0 — — — — —

International

YearTeamEvent GPGAPtsPIM 1960 Sweden OLY 5 0 1 1 0 1961 Sweden WC 7 5 0 5 2 1962 Sweden WC 7 9 7 16 2 1963 Sweden WC 7 7 2 9 2 1964 Sweden OLY 7 6 5 11 0 1966 Sweden WC 7 4 1 5 0 1967 Sweden WC 7 2 3 5 7 1969 Sweden WC 10 5 9 14 8 1970 Sweden WC 10 1 7 8 7 1971 Sweden WC 10 2 2 4 2 1973 Sweden WC 9 5 2 7 6 Senior totals 86 46 39 85 36

Coaching Team Year Regular season G W L T OTL Pts Win % FinishBayreuth SV1986–87362196 0 48 .667 3rd in 2.Bundesliga SouthMunich Hedos1987–883625101 0 51 .708 2nd in 2.Bundesliga SouthFuessen EV1988–893414175 0 33 .458 6th in 2.Bundesliga South

Awards Won the Golden Puck as Sweden's Player of the Year in 1962–63. Named the best forward at the IIHF World Championships in 1969. Inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2001. WEC-A All-Star Team (1962, 1969).