The Maryland Black Bears will host a ‘Salute to Sweden Night’ to honor the country of Sweden and Swedish Black Bear Players Hampus Rydqvist and Filip Jakobsson. Lars-Erik Tindre, the Public Diplomacy, Press- and Communications Counselor will be in attendance to represent the Embassy of Sweden. The game will include integrative themes celebrating the nation of Sweden.

Assistant Captain and Defenseman, Hampus Rydqvist is from Gothenburg, Sweden and Forward, Filip Jakobsson, is from Stockholm, Sweden. The two players have been key contributors to the Black Bears during the 2019-2020 NAHL Season. Rydqvist has 6 goals and 22 assists in 32 games played and Jakobsson has 2 goals and 12 assists in 29 games played.

President of the Maryland Black Bears, Robyn Remick, issued the following statement:

“The Maryland Black Bears’ Salute to Sweden Night will be a true celebration of a hockey-loving country that has provided Black Bear Nation with two unique players,” said Robyn Remick. “While the majority of our players are North American, we are blessed with two talented Swedes who add a certain flavor on and off the ice to our community. Saturday will be a way to show Hampus and Filip how much we appreciate what they bring to this franchise. A special thank you to Lars-Erik from the Embassy of Sweden for joining us at the Den to honor his country.”  

Public Diplomacy, Press- and Communications Counselor, Lars-Erik Tindre responded with the following:

“The deep and long-standing cooperation and exchange between the ice hockey community in the United States and Sweden has benefited both our countries,” said Lars-Erik Tindre. “The impressive ice hockey played in North America is a great source of inspiration for Swedish players and it is very interesting to follow the development of the talented players in the U.S. junior leagues.”