The NHL is in Sweden this week, and fans of the Maple Leafs, Red Wings, Senators, and Wild can't be faulted for fearing they'll arrive home weary. Flying overseas during the season is a fun novelty, but it disrupts a team's rhythm.

The four-game jaunt faintly resembles the NHL's most elaborate Eurotrip. In the spring of 1959, the Bruins and Rangers faced off 23 times in 26 days in 10 European cities. The Original Six rivals experimented with an orange puck as Bobby Hull began his ascent to superstardom.

Chicago loaned Hull to New York for the grueling exhibition series. To conserve energy for sightseeing, he deliberately put in less effort on the ice. Hull coasted to the slot to focus on burying passes, signaling how he'd snipe 913 goals between the NHL and World Hockey Association.

"Boy, it was suddenly a whole new ballgame. I was lasting a lot longer on each shift and the goals started to go in like clockwork," Hull told the Toronto Star late in his career. "I pinpoint that European tour as the turning point in my life as a hockey player."

This weekend's finale in Sweden will be the 42nd NHL game played abroad, be it in Europe or Japan, since 1997. Preseason visits to Australia, China, and Puerto Rico have gotten people talking about the league in distant markets.

At the time, one precedent existed for the Bruins-Rangers odyssey. The Canadiens and Red Wings met in nine offseason matchups in England and France in 1938. Games were paused intermittently so that Detroit coach Jack Adams could explain the rules to the crowd. The squads combined to pot 96 goals but threw disappointingly few hits, as an expat in London reported in a letter to the Montreal Gazette:

Neither Canadiens nor Detroit tried too hard and that reflected on their showing as a whole. The English are pretty hard to fool, even about things they know little of. I think the biggest disappointment for the press and public alike was the lack of body-checking … Over here the press has made everybody believe NHL hockey is murderously rough, and there was nothing in the Earls Court show to support that idea.

In 1959, the Habs rejected a Swiss sports goods dealer's invitation to return to Europe for a month. The dealer, retired hockey pro Othmar Delnon, was undeterred. Through a New York intermediary, he convinced brothers from the legendary Patrick family - Muzz, general manager of the Rangers, and Lynn, GM of the Bruins - to barnstorm the continent following the Stanley Cup Final, which neither team reached.

The point of the series was to make money. Players earned $1,000 and a Swiss winemaker covered their expenses. Bruins forward Johnny Bucyk and head coach Milt Schmidt were among the Hall of Famers showcased to fans in six countries. Notable Rangers included goalie Gump Worsley, a future Vezina Trophy winner, and rugged defenseman Lou Fontinato, whose nose was broken that season in an epic fight with Gordie Howe.

Forbidden by NHL rules from traveling together, the teams flew to London separately to open the series. They traded close wins before Bucyk's hat trick in the fourth game fueled Boston's emphatic 12-4 triumph in Geneva.

"For the losers," United Press International reported, "the best performances were turned in by three members of the Chicago Black Hawks: Pierre Pilote, Eric Nesterenko, and Bobby Hull."

The Rangers recruited those ringers, plus Chicago captain Ed Litzenberger, to fill holes in the lineup. Hall of Fame forward Andy Bathgate, winner of the Hart Trophy in 1959, skipped the trip because his wife had just given birth. Howe agreed to replace Bathgate if the Red Wings granted permission, but he ultimately bailed because of a rib injury.

That allowed Hull, an 18-goal scorer that season at 20 years old, to tag along and dominate. Europe is where his confidence soared. Hull netted or set up dozens of goals alongside Litzenberger, an adept passer and finisher, and Rangers agitator Eddie Shack, the line's puck retriever.

Hull also saw the sights, climbing the Eiffel Tower on foot one afternoon in Paris.

"I didn't have too much in the way of legs that night," he told the Star. "I guess I only got two or three goals."

The competitive series - New York went 11-9-3 and outscored Boston 104-101 - was violent at the outset. Bruins center Bronco Horvath threatened to fly home in the first week, citing fatigue from the season and annoyance at the Rangers' headhunting. Bruins captain Fernie Flaman sat down with Rangers counterpart Red Sullivan to defuse the tension, Horvath said in NHL.com's 2009 retrospective of the trip.

The relentless schedule took a toll. Off days - there were three in total - were dedicated to traveling long distances. Certain performances were lethargic, and others drew small crowds. Ticket prices, unfamiliarity with the sport, and the warm spring weather were blamed for poor turnouts of 700 people in Paris and 500 apiece in Antwerp and West Berlin.

"Maybe They Don't Like Hockey," surmised an Edmonton Journal headline following the games in Belgium.

"The hockey tour has been laying an egg of monstrous proportions," famed sportswriter Red Fisher opined in the Montreal Star. "The Rangers and Bruins are strangers to Europeans, and with nobody to root for, apathy sets in."

Other observers came away impressed. Geneva's arena welcomed 18,000 spectators over two nights. Foreign reporters praised the precise passes, slick stickhandling, and timely defensive interventions the NHLers exhibited. France's L'Equipe newspaper remarked, "It's been a long time since we saw such virtuosos on ice."

"The Russians would be chased out of the rink by these ice hockey players," Austrian journalist Walter Schwarz wrote in a dispatch for the Associated Press. "As concerns speed, lightning-fast reaction, body control, and sheer physical power, the North American professionals have no equals."

Multiple winning streaks - first in Games 8-10 in Antwerp and Zurich, then in Games 15-17 in Essen and Krefeld - enlarged New York's series lead. In the clincher, Hull scored in the opening minute of the first and second periods as the Rangers won 3-2 in Berlin. Shack tallied twice in the spirited 4-4 tie at Vienna that closed the tour.

"Several players received major penalties for fighting in Sunday's rough match," the AP reported, "but all was serene afterward as Red Sullivan of the Rangers received a big cup for his team's series victory."

The scene was significant for a few reasons. Czechoslovak players crossed the Iron Curtain to watch the finale in Vienna, foreshadowing that the NHL would internationalize late in the Cold War.

The series was a graceful sendoff for Hall of Fame official Red Storey, who refereed all 23 games. Storey resigned from the NHL weeks before the Eurotrip, stung when league president Clarence Campbell slammed him in the press for missing calls during the playoffs.

"Can't understand the fans over here," Storey wrote in a postcard from Paris to the Toronto Star. "They even appreciate the officials."

The trip deterred Campbell from making a radical rule change. The Bruins and Rangers packed 288 pucks that had a bright orange side, agreeing to test the designer's hunch that they'd be easier for fans and goalies to track.

"We paid all that excess weight charges on those dizzy things and they were a pure flop," Muzz Patrick told reporters after the series, per the Detroit Free Press. "The players said they couldn't see the puck and wouldn't use them after the first try. They would be good only on black ice. European teams are going to use them, however, because we gave them away free."

The Black Hawks ringers sparkled when NHL play resumed. Hull edged Horvath by a point to win the 1960 scoring title. He teamed with Pilote - a budding three-time Norris Trophy winner - and Stan Mikita to lead Chicago to the Stanley Cup in 1961. Litzenberger and Nesterenko also helped deliver the franchise's only championship of the Original Six era.

In retirement, players retained fond memories of European restaurants. They ate palm-sized steaks at an upscale London hotel, Pilote marveled in his 2013 autobiography. Waiters laughed at Rangers coach Phil Watson, a Montreal native, when he bungled Parisian pronunciations of French words while trying to get a beer, Schmidt recalled in the NHL.com retrospective.

The only gripes about the Eurotrip were minor, Sullivan told the Canadian Press when the journey ended. Some players got stomach aches from overindulging at meals. Rushing to the next game minimized their time in each country.

"But what we saw was pleasant. Girls are pretty and have good figures, the food was good, and the crowds were friendly," Sullivan said. "They have one thing in common: They like to see something for their money. And believe me, our games were no picnic."

Nick Faris is a features writer at theScore.

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No Patrice Bergeron, no David Krejci, no problem for David Pastrnak.

Although the Boston Bruins lost their top two centers to retirement in the offseason - plus key left-wingers Tyler Bertuzzi and Taylor Hall departed via free agency and trade - Pastrnak hasn't skipped a beat. After finishing second in Hart Trophy voting last season thanks to a 61-goal, 113-point campaign, Pastrnak is currently on pace for 60 goals and 131 points in 2023-24.

Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery is among those who are surprised Pastrnak's been able to maintain his elite production.

"I thought that he would have a harder time producing without Bergy and obviously Krejci to work with," Montgomery said Wednesday, per the Boston Globe's Conor Ryan. "But I do know, at my year-end meeting with him I said, 'There's gonna be a lot more put on you next year.'

"Because we figured (Bergeron and Krejci) were moving on. And he just looked and he goes 'Yeah, I'm expecting it. Don't worry about it.' That's what he said to me. And now I don't worry about it."

It hasn't all been unfamiliar for Pastrnak. He's currently playing on a line with long-time running mate Brad Marchand at left wing, and Pavel Zacha - who played left wing opposite Pastrnak for most of last season - at center.

Pastrnak has altered his game a bit, though. While he's still one of the game's most lethal snipers, he's improved his passing, as evidenced by his 13 helpers through 15 games. He's on pace for a career-high 71 assists.

"Pasta's become more of a puck possession guy," Montgomery said. "I think it's a little bit intentional, understanding that it's going to take a while to create the kind of creativity that naturally happens when you play with a Krejci or a Bergeron because they're such intelligent hockey players."

The Bruins as a whole have shown no signs of regression despite their key offseason departures. After setting the NHL record for wins and points last season, their .867 points percentage is the league's best in 2023-24.

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Calgary Flames defenseman Chris Tanev has some lofty praise for his former blue line partner Quinn Hughes.

"Right now, he is probably the best player in the league," Tanev said of the Vancouver Canucks captain prior to Thursday's meeting between the Pacific Division rivals, per the Calgary Sun's Wes Gilbertson.

"If you watch him play right now, he has the puck the whole game," Tanev continued. "He controls a lot of the game. ... He's so smart out there. There are guys who are one step ahead of everyone, but I feel like he is two steps ahead of everyone. And just how he skates, how he uses his edges, he is able to create so much space for himself."

The 33-year-old veteran is familiar with Hughes' game. The duo served as Vancouver's busiest pairing during Hughes' rookie campaign in 2019-20, logging over 700 minutes together at five-on-five, per Evolving-Hockey. That partnership was short-lived, though, as Tanev signed with the Flames as an unrestricted free agent during the 2020 offseason.

Still, Tanev recognized Hughes' sky-high potential quickly.

"I think when I left (Vancouver), I said I thought he was going to be the best defenseman in the league at some point," he said. "He's playing like that right now, for sure."

Hughes has dominated on both ends of the ice through the early goings of the 2023-24 campaign and is seen as a realistic candidate for both the Hart and Norris trophies.

Entering Thursday's action, Hughes was one of three Canucks leading the league in offensive production with 26 points. He has six goals and 20 assists through 16 games while leading Vancouver in average ice time (24:21).

The 24-year-old is also a team-high plus-18, and the Canucks have outscored opponents 20-7 with him on the ice at five-on-five, according to Natural Stat Trick. Hughes was not on the ice for a goal against at even strength until his fifth game of the season.

Hughes has spent the bulk of his five-on-five ice time with Filip Hronek this campaign. The duo is dictating 72.9% of the goals and 54.7% of the expected goals in just over 200 minutes together, per Evolving-Hockey.

Tanev spent the first 10 seasons of his career with the Canucks and is in the midst of his fourth campaign with the Flames. A pending unrestricted free agent, Calgary is reportedly willing to listen to offers for Tanev's services, as well as other players on expiring deals, such as Nikita Zadorov, Elias Lindholm, and Noah Hanifin.

The Canucks are apparently among the teams interested in prying Zadorov - a 6-foot-6 defenseman - away from the Flames.

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The Canucks are in the middle of a busy stretch, but the wins keep coming! Matt and Blake take a look back at the win versus the Isles, the Bo Horvat return, and what lies ahead versus the Flames. 

Patrick Johnston of the Province returns with his take on the Canucks having the top 3 scorers in the NHL, and what they may have to add going forward in light of the injury to Carson Soucy. 

Then it’s time for Rob Williams from The Daily Hive, and his take that the Canucks might indeed be Stanley Cup contenders? Plus, was it just the right amount of cheers, boos and tears for Horvat? Lastly, the daily poll question: Is Quinn Hughes having the greatest season in Canucks history? Presented by Applewood Auto Group.

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USA Hockey named Florida Panthers assistant general manager Brett Peterson the GM of its senior men's national team Thursday.

He's the team's first-ever Black general manager, according to NHL.com's William Douglas.

Peterson will oversee the assembly of the American squad that will play at the World Championship hosted by Czechia in May 2024.

"It's a great honor, and I'm excited to get a group of fantastic individuals together and see what we can do," Peterson told Douglas.

"I'm very happy that our game and our sport continues to evolve and grow where there can be 'firsts' and 'seconds' and 'thirds,'" he continued. "I think it just speaks to what USA Hockey has done creating opportunities for so many different people to play the game, myself included, and then to continue to fall in love with it and continue to want to chase our dreams to the highest level."

Peterson became the first Black assistant GM in NHL history when the Panthers hired him in November 2020. He'd been a player agent since 2009 and was vice president of hockey for Wasserman Media Group before joining Florida.

He played five seasons as a defenseman in the AHL, ECHL, and IHL after playing four with Boston College.

The U.S. Men's National Team Advisory Group will assist Peterson. It's led by USA Hockey assistant executive director of hockey operations John Vanbiesbrouck and features 10 NHL GMs, including Kevyn Adams (Buffalo Sabres), Craig Conroy (Calgary Flames), Lou Lamoriello (New York Islanders), and Chris Drury (New York Rangers).

The Americans finished fourth at the Worlds this past spring.

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A game in Stockholm between the Ottawa Senators and Detroit Red Wings would be incomplete without Daniel Alfredsson's involvement, but Swedish fans need not worry.

Alfredsson will be on the bench for both of Ottawa's games in his home country this week, namely Thursday's clash between his two former clubs and then Saturday's tilt between the Senators and the Minnesota Wild.

"(I) talked to the coaching staff (and) they asked me if I would like to join them," he told TSN 1200. "I guess I've done a decent enough job that they trust me. I'm really looking forward to that, being part of the action and (seeing) it up close."

However, the former winger isn't going to take the Global Series lightly.

"These are big games for both teams. Every point matters," he said. "We know it's going to be a tight race through most of the season, so obviously if I'm going to be on the bench for these two games, I want us to be successful. So I'll be nervous, but it's going to be really fun and I'm definitely looking forward to it."

Red Wings legend Nicklas Lidstrom, who's also on hand for Thursday's game, helped Alfredsson out by translating his quip about playing.

Alfredsson, who'll turn 51 on Dec. 11, rejoined the Senators in October in a role that includes player development and coaching. He served as a senior adviser to hockey operations for Ottawa after retiring as a player but left the team in 2017 before returning this fall.

The Swedish great personified the Senators during his 17-year tenure. He's still the franchise's all-time leader in goals, assists, and points, and he ranks second to Chris Phillips in games played by one. Alfredsson also played one season with the Red Wings before signing a one-day contract to conclude his career with Ottawa.

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