Matti Hagman

Matti Risto Tapio "Hakki" Hagman (21 September 1955 – 11 October 2016) was a Finnish professional ice hockey player. Hagman was the first Finnish-born and Finnish-trained player to play in the National Hockey League (NHL) and the first to play in a Stanley Cup Finals.^[1] The first Finnish-born player in NHL was Albert Pudas, who never played hockey in Finland, having moved to Canada at the age of one. Hagman's jersey number 20 is also one of the eight retired numbers in HIFK, where he was a prominent player.^[2]

Matti Hagman
Matti Hagman in 2011
Born	(1955-09-21)21 September 1955 Helsinki, Finland
Died	11 October 2016(2016-10-11) (aged 61) Espoo, Finland
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	183 lb (83 kg; 13 st 1 lb)
Position	Centre
Shot	Left
Played for	HIFK Boston Bruins Quebec Nordiques Edmonton Oilers EV Landshut Hockey Reipas
National team	Finland
NHL draft	104th overall, 1975 Boston Bruins
WHA draft	43rd overall, 1975 New England Whalers
Playing career	1972–1992

NHL & WHA career

Boston Bruins (1976–1977)

Hagman played 237 NHL games over seven seasons. He debuted for the Boston Bruins on 7 October 1976 as they hosted the Minnesota North Stars. During his time in Boston, Hagman was coached by famous Canadian Head Coach Don Cherry. During his time with the Bruins, Hagman did not get much time on ice but he did score well. During his first NHL season, Matti Hagman scored 28 points in 75 games though being played on the third and fourth lines who do not have much offensive time on ice.

Quebec Nordiques (1977–1978)

Hagman joined the WHA Quebec Nordiques in 1977 after they purchased him from Boston. Despite scoring 3 assists in his first Nordiques game, Hagman returned to Finland in 1978 unhappy with playing abroad. He joined Helsinki IFK and went on to lead the Finnish league in points in 1979–80, 1982–83, 1983–84 and 1984–85. Hagman played 3 Canada Cups, as Finland finished sixth in each tournament (1976, 1981, and 1987). He also played on the fourth-place Finnish team in the 1976 Winter Olympics.

Edmonton Oilers (1980–1982)

Hagman was more prominent a player on the Edmonton Oilers as they made the transition from WHA to NHL play. Though being originally a Center, Hagman played left wing on the line with all stars Mark Messier and Glenn Anderson during the 1980–81 campaign. Hagman moved from center to left wing because the Oilers had two top centers; Mark Messier and Wayne Gretzky. An injury in training camp the next year limited Hagman to just a few games and spelt the end to his NHL career.

After retirement

Medal record
Representing  Finland
Men's ice hockey
European Junior Championships
	1974 Switzerland

Hagman was named Martigny (Switzerland) head coach in 2004. Hagman also has coached numerous Finnish Ice Hockey teams.

Personal life

Hagman was the father of Niklas Hagman who also played in the NHL. He was also the brother-in-law of former indoor soccer star Kai Haaskivi.

Hagman's sister Riitta Salin won a gold medal in 400 metres at the 1974 European Athletics Championships.

Hagman died after a long illness in Espoo, Finland, on 11 October 2016.^[3] He died in hospital after seeking treatment a few days earlier.^[4][5]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1972–73	HIFK	SM-s		13	11	5	16	7		—	—	—	—	—
1973–74	HIFK	FIN Jr		6	10	6	16	2		—	—	—	—	—
1973–74	HIFK	SM-s		35	30	9	39	20		—	—	—	—	—
1974–75	HIFK	SM-s		33	30	16	46	27		—	—	—	—	—
1975–76	HIFK	SM-l		36	24	34	58	39		4	1	1	2	5
1976–77	Boston Bruins	NHL		75	11	17	28	0		8	0	1	1	0
1977–78	Boston Bruins	NHL		15	4	1	5	2		—	—	—	—	—
1977–78	Quebec Nordiques	WHA		53	21	35	56	16		—	—	—	—	—
1978–79	HIFK	SM-l		36	20	37	57	53		6	1	6	7	4
1979–80	HIFK	SM-l		35	37	50	87	28		7	3	10	13	6
1980–81	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		75	20	33	53	16		9	4	1	5	6
1981–82	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		72	21	38	59	18		3	1	0	1	0
1982–83	HIFK	SM-l		36	23	41	64	50		9	9	8	17	11
1983–84	HIFK	SM-l		37	22	47	69	33		2	1	1	2	2
1984–85	HIFK	SM-l		34	23	44	67	24		—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	EV Landshut	1.GBun		36	25	49	74	24		3	1	2	3	2
1986–87	HIFK	SM-l		44	17	51	68	37		3	0	1	1	10
1987–88	HIFK	SM-l		44	17	43	60	37		6	4	5	9	6
1988–89	HIFK	SM-l		44	11	30	41	23		2	0	1	1	0
1989–90	Hockey-Reipas	FIN II		44	18	47	65	4		4	2	3	5	0
1990–91	Hockey-Reipas	SM-l		44	15	35	50	24		—	—	—	—	—
1991–92	HIFK	SM-l		42	8	20	28	20		8	1	3	4	2
SM-s totals				81	71	30	101	54		—	—	—	—	—
SM-l totals				432	217	432	649	368		47	20	36	56	46
NHL totals				237	56	89	145	36		20	5	2	7	6

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1974	Finland	EJC		5	10	2	12	0
1975	Finland	WJC		5	3	2	5	9
1975	Finland	WC		9	2	3	5	4
1976	Finland	OLY		6	1	4	5	2
1976	Finland	WC		10	4	7	11	14
1976	Finland	CC		5	2	4	6	6
1978	Finland	WC		5	1	2	3	8
1981	Finland	CC		5	1	2	3	4
1983	Finland	WC		10	2	5	7	4
1987	Finland	CC		5	1	0	1	0
Junior totals				10	13	4	17	9
Senior totals				55	14	27	41	42

References

1. "1975 NHL Amateur Draft -- Matti Hagman". www.hockeydraftcentral.com. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
2. "HIFK's retired jersey numbers" (in Finnish). Retrieved 27 May 2018.
3. Lempinen Marko (12 October 2016). "Jääkiekkolegenda Matti Hagman on kuollut". Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 13 October 2016.
4. "Matti Hagman, first Finn to play in the NHL, dead at 61". Yle Uutiset. 12 October 2016. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
5. "Matti Hagman dies at age 61". NHL.com. 12 October 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2016.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database
• hockeydraftcentral profile of 1975 NHL Draft pick Hagman, No. 104 overall

Preceded by Jukka Alkula	Winner of the Jarmo Wasama memorial trophy 1973–74	Succeeded by Markus Mattsson
Preceded by Kari Makkonen	Winner of the Aarne Honkavaara trophy 1979–80	Succeeded by Arto Javanainen
Preceded by Veli-Pekka Ketola Reijo Leppänen	Winner of the Veli-Pekka Ketola trophy 1979–80 1982–83, 1983–84, 1984–85	Succeeded by Reijo Leppänen Arto Javanainen
Preceded by Heikki Riihiranta Pekka Rautakallio	Captain of HIFK 1983–85 1987–89	Succeeded by Pekka Rautakallio Simo Saarinen