Oliver Bjorkstrand

Oliver Bjorkstrand (born 10 April 1995) is a Danish professional ice hockey forward for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). Bjorkstrand was selected by the Blue Jackets in the third round, 89th overall, of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. Born and raised in Herning, he is the son of American hockey coach Todd Bjorkstrand and the brother of Patrick Bjorkstrand.

Oliver Bjorkstrand
Bjorkstrand with the Calder Cup in 2016
Born (1995-04-10) 10 April 1995
Herning, Denmark
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 174 lb (79 kg; 12 st 6 lb)
Position Right wing
Shoots Right
NHL team
Former teams		 Columbus Blue Jackets
Herning Blue Fox
National team  Denmark
NHL Draft 89th overall, 2013
Columbus Blue Jackets
Playing career 2011–present

Playing career

Bjorkstrand made his AL-Bank Ligaen debut playing with the Herning Blue Fox during the 2011–12 season.[1] On 26 December 2013, during his second season in the Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Portland Winterhawks, Bjorkstrand signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets, the organization that drafted him in the third round, 89th overall, of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.[2]

On 16 March 2016, Bjorkstrand was recalled by the Blue Jackets and made his NHL debut the following day, 17 March, against the Detroit Red Wings. He scored his first and second NHL goals in his second NHL game on 19 March against goaltender Yann Danis of the New Jersey Devils.[3]

On 11 June 2016, while playing for Columbus' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Lake Erie Monsters, Bjorkstrand scored the game-winning goal in overtime of Game 4 in the Calder Cup Finals against the Hershey Bears, effectively winning the series for Lake Erie; Bjorkstrand also earned the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as the playoffs' most valuable player.[4]

During the 2019–20 season, Bjorkstrand suffered an ankle injury on 20 February during a game against the Philadelphia Flyers. He was expected to miss eight-10 weeks to recover.[5]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2011–12 Herning Blue Fox DEN 36 13 13 26 10 10 1 2 3 4
2012–13 Portland Winterhawks WHL 65 31 32 63 10 21 8 11 19 4
2013–14 Portland Winterhawks WHL 69 50 59 109 36 21 16 17 33 8
2014–15 Portland Winterhawks WHL 59 63 55 118 35 17 13 12 25 10
2015–16 Lake Erie Monsters AHL 51 17 12 29 10 17 10 6 16 2
2015–16 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 12 4 4 8 0 — — — — —
2016–17 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 26 6 7 13 6 5 0 1 1 0
2016–17 Cleveland Monsters AHL 37 14 12 26 6 — — — — —
2017–18 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 82 11 29 40 9 6 1 2 3 0
2018–19 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 77 23 13 36 8 10 2 3 5 0
2019–20 Columbus Blue Jackets NHL 49 21 15 36 12
NHL totals 246 65 68 133 35 21 3 6 9 0

International
Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2012 Denmark U18 10th 6 4 3 7 0
2012 Denmark WJC 10th 6 2 0 2 0
2013 Denmark WJC-D1 15th 5 5 3 8 2
2014 Denmark WJC-D1 11th 5 4 2 6 2
2015 Denmark WJC 8th 5 4 1 5 2
2015 Denmark WC 14th 3 0 0 0 2
2016 Denmark OGQ DNQ 3 0 1 1 0
2018 Denmark WC 10th 7 1 2 3 0
Junior totals 27 19 9 28 6
Senior totals 13 1 3 4 2

Awards and honours
Awards Year
WHL
First All-Star Team (West) 2013–14, 2014–15, [6]
Player of the Month (January, February, March) 2014–15 [7]
Top Scorer (Bob Clarke Trophy) 2014–15 [8]
WHL Plus-Minus Award 2014–15 [8]
AHL
Calder Cup (Lake Erie Monsters) 2016 [9]
Calder Cup MVP (Jack A. Butterfield Trophy) 2015–16

References
  1. "2011–12 Herning Blue Fox player statistics". Eliteprospects.com. 16 May 2013. Retrieved 16 May 2013.
  2. "Blue Jackets sign WHL standout Oliver Bjorkstrand to entry-level contract". Columbus Blue Jackets. 26 December 2013. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
  3. "Game Summary, Game 1073". National Hockey League. 19 March 2016. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  4. "Oliver Bjorkstrand nets OT winner as Lake Erie win Calder Cup". cumberlink.com. 12 June 2016. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
  5. "Bjorkstrand out 8-10 weeks for Blue Jackets with ankle injury". nhl.com. National Hockey League. 21 February 2020. Retrieved 6 June 2020.
  6. "WHL Announces All-Stars & Awards". Western Hockey League. 1 April 2014. Archived from the original on 24 March 2014. Retrieved 1 April 2014.
  7. "Winterhawks' Bjorkstrand Named WHL Player of the Month". Western Hockey League. 1 March 2015. Archived from the original on 27 March 2015. Retrieved 1 March 2015.
  8. "WHL Announces All-Stars & Award Finalists". Western Hockey League. 1 April 2015. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 1 April 2015.
  9. Brown, Tony (12 June 2016). "Bjorkstrand's OT goal clinches Monsters' first-ever Calder Cup championship". Columbus Blue Jackets. Retrieved 12 June 2016.
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