Nicklas Backstrom\u2019s return season in the SHL has ended sooner than he would have wished. Backstrom and the rest of Bryn\u00e4s IF were eliminated in five games by the V\u00e4xj\u00f6 Lakers in the quarterfinals of the league\u2019s postseason.<\/p>\n
Backstrom recorded an assist in the team\u2019s elimination loss on Wednesday, but Bryn\u00e4s ultimately fell 2-1. After the loss, the 38-year-old centerman was asked in a TV4 Hockey interview<\/a> about his first season back in Sweden since the 2006-07 campaign and if he achieved what he set out to do for his hometown club.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s been great fun,\u201d Backstrom said<\/a>, as translated via Google Translate. \u201cI had no expectations before the year. The guys have been great. The reason I came home is because I love the sport, and because I want to play hockey. I\u2019m incredibly grateful to Bryn\u00e4s for giving me the chance to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n Backstrom also broached the topic of his future playing career and whether the one season back in his homeland would be his last.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a tough question right now,\u201d Backstrom said. \u201cWe have to evaluate, and then we\u2019ll see what the management wants. Then it remains to be seen. Now I\u2019m just going home to my family.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Backstrom recorded 30 points (3g, 27a) in 45 games for Bryn\u00e4s this season, tied for fourth on the team in scoring with fellow former NHL players Johan Larsson and Kieffer Bellows. He then added two assists in five playoff games.<\/p>\n Backstrom\u2019s contract with Bryn\u00e4s, signed last July<\/a>, was for one year, with an option for a one-year extension. He told Swedish outlet Expressen<\/a> that he and the team did not discuss that option during the season.<\/p>\n \u201cOf course, it\u2019s been really fun, even if you\u2019re disappointed right now,\u201d Backstrom said<\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s been a great experience to come back and play ice hockey. People had higher expectations, maybe, but I\u2019ve been sitting on the sidelines for two years, and I\u2019m just incredibly happy to be doing what I love.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can feel that people in town breathe hockey. There has been an incredible drive in town. The fact that I have received so much love and emotion at home has been appreciated and nothing I expected. I will live with that for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n While Backstrom may not have his mind made up yet, Bryn\u00e4s\u2019s sporting director, Johan Alc\u00e9n, has already done so.<\/p>\n \u201cHe is a fantastic person and teammate,\u201d Alc\u00e9n said. \u201cWe obviously hope he plays in Bryn\u00e4s next year.\u201d<\/p>\n Backstrom played the 2025-26 season with many familiar faces from his past with the Washington Capitals, including Larsson, Axel Jonsson-Fjallby, Michal Kempny, and Christian Djoos.<\/p>\n The Capitals franchise legend spent 17 seasons in Washington and played his last game for the club on October 29, 2023. Backstrom joined Bryn\u00e4s after spending years dealing with chronic hip issues, including an extended absence after undergoing hip resurfacing surgery in 2022.<\/p>\n Backstrom\u2019s impending decision on whether to continue playing comes as his good friend, linemate, and longtime Capitals teammate, Alex Ovechkin<\/a>, is preparing to make the same decision about his NHL future.<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t