An old Mattias Ohlund article from 1997

I had bookmarked a few old articles on Ohlund that I promised myself that I would eventually get to posting. Unfortunately, the sites and links died and the Ohlund articles were lost. Sigh. Anyway, here's one from when Pat Quinn matched Toronto's offer sheet on Mattias Ohlund back in 1997.

Canucks match offer sheet for Swedish D Mattias Ohlund
Posted: Thur August 7, 1997 at 4:24 p.m. EDT CNN Sports Illustrated

The Vancouver Canucks today opted to match the offer sheet for Swedish defenseman Mattias Ohlund, signed by the Toronto Maple Leafs last Friday.

Ohlund, who was the 13th overall selection in the 1994 NHL draft by Vancouver, agreed to a five-year contract worth $10 million with a signing bonus in excess of $7.5 million, according to IMG, which represents Ohlund.

Vancouver had seven days to match the offer entirely or make a deal with Toronto to deal his rights. Now that the Canucks have matched the offer, Ohlund cannot be traded for one year.

"Mattias has proven to be a solid player in international hockey and we look forward to having him play for our team this season," said Canucks president and general manager Pat Quinn. "He possesses a high skill level that will make him a valuable NHL player."

The 20-year-old Ohlund was voted the best defenseman at the past World Junior Championship tournament, and earned second all-star team honors at the World Championships in Finland.

He recorded seven goals and nine assists in 47 games last season for Lulea of the Swedish Elite League.