<p>The 4 Nations Face-Off is set to begin next week, with Team Canada taking on Team Sweden in the first game of the best-on-best tournament. Oilers fans will be watching closely as Mattias Ekholm, recently <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/connor-mcdavid-and-mattias-ekholm-named-assistant-captains-for-upcoming-4-nations-face-off">named one of Sweden’s alternate captains</a>, tries to shut down teammate Connor McDavid when he comes streaking down the ice.</p>
<p>On that note, Ekholm has represented Sweden nine times, impressively earning medals in five of those appearances. With the Swedish blueliner set to play for Tre Kronor for the tenth time at the 4 Nations Face-Off, let’s take a look into the five occasions where he’s won a medal while representing his country.</p>
<p></p>
<h2>Ekholm Won Gold at the Ivan Hlinka Tournament in 2007</h2>
<p>The 2007 Ivan Hlinka tournament, which was renamed the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in 2018, took place in the summer in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Team Sweden won all three of their preliminary games and advanced to face Finland for the gold medal.</p>
<p>Ekholm, just 16 years old at the time, was selected for the team alongside notable defencemen like Victor Hedman and Erik Karlsson. In the gold medal game, the now-Oilers blueliner opened the scoring, while Hedman scored the overtime winner to secure Sweden’s 3-2 victory and win the gold medal.</p>
<p>This was<a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/mattias-ekholm-and-viktor-arvidsson-named-to-swedens-4-nations-face-off-roster"> Ekholm’s first time representing his country</a>, and he recorded a goal and an assist in four games. Moreover, for nostalgic Oilers fans, former Oiler <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/nhl-history-oilers-trade-magnus-paajarvi-to-st-louis-blues-for-david-perron">Magnus Paajarvi</a> led Sweden in scoring with two goals and four assists in four games, while another former Oiler, Anton Lander, finished third with four goals and one assist.</p>
<h2>Ekholm Won a Bronze Medal at his First World Juniors in 2010</h2>
<p>Ekholm was drafted by <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-solidify-blueline-with-acquisition-of-mattias-ekholm">the Nashville Predators in the fourth round</a> of the 2009 NHL Draft and in 2010, while still playing in Sweden, he was selected to represent his country at the World Juniors (WJC) in Regina and Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.</p>
<p>Sweden won all four of their preliminary games, securing a spot in the semifinals. There, they faced the United States but lost 5-2. However, they bounced back in the bronze medal game, dominating Switzerland 11-4. The now-Oilers D-man <a href="https://www.thegamenashville.com/2018/12/27/world-junior-memories-mattias-ekholm/">reflected on his WJC’s experience</a>:</p>
<blockquote><p>“Yeah, at that age, it’s the biggest thing you can play in. It’s something you work hard for all your life, that one step on the ladder. We had an opportunity to be in Canada and, to see the fans and to see the atmosphere and to be a part of that, it was awesome. It was something that you will always remember and be grateful that you were a part of.”</p></blockquote>
<p>The Swedish D-man played in all six games, scoring one goal and leading Team Sweden with a team-best +10 plus/minus rating, while capturing the bronze medal.</p>
<h2>Ekholm Won Bronze in His World Championship Debut in 2014</h2>
<p>Ekholm had just wrapped up his first full season with the Predators in 2013-14, playing 62 games and recording nine points. With Nashville missing the playoffs and his NHL season complete, <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/edmonton-oilers/latest-news/sweden-makes-surprising-pick-as-two-oilers-join-national-team">he was selected to represent Sweden</a> at the IIHF World Championships in Minsk, Belarus.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Mattias Ekholm was named Sweden’s best player in their 2-1 win over Norway this afternoon. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IIHFWorlds?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IIHFWorlds</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Nashville Predators (@PredsNHL) <a href="https://twitter.com/PredsNHL/status/466341369473417216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 13, 2014</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>Sweden went 5-1-1 in seven games in the preliminary round. They beat Belarus in the quarterfinals but lost to Russia, the eventual gold medal winners, in the semis. That said, Sweden beat the Czech Republic 3-0 in the bronze medal game, with Ekholm earning his third medal while representing his country. Additionally, <a href="https://www.quanthockey.com/whc/en/teams/team-sweden-players-2014-whc-stats.html">he led all Swedish blueliners in points</a>, recording seven points in 10 games and was named Sweden’s player of the game in a preliminary game against Norway.</p>
<p>On top of winning a medal with Sweden in May 2014, <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/nhl/mattias-ekholm-re-signs-with-predators-1.2701130">Ekholm was re-signed by the Predators</a> two months later on a two-year, $2.075 million contract.</p>
<h2>Ekholm Won Another Bronze at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey</h2>
<p>Ekholm had a big season in 2015-16 with the Predators, recording a career-high 35 points and a +14 plus/minus rating, while also adding seven points in 14 postseason games. That strong performance likely influenced Team Sweden’s decision to name him to their final roster for <a href="https://www.nhlpa.com/news/1-12098/world-cup-of-hockey-2016-rosters-finalized">the 2016 World Cup of Hockey</a>, held in Toronto that September.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Congrats to <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Preds?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Preds</a> defenseman Mattias Ekholm, the newest member of Team Sweden for the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. <a href="https://t.co/JKen6eBonN">pic.twitter.com/JKen6eBonN</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Brooks Bratten (@brooksbratten) <a href="https://twitter.com/brooksbratten/status/736210902760992768?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2016</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>Sweden went 2-0-1 in the round-robin, finishing first in Group B and advancing to the semifinals. There, they faced Team Europe in a game that <a href="https://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/world-cup-of-hockey/team-europe-edges-sweden-ot-advances-world-cup-final/">was tied 2-2 and went to overtime,</a> where Tomas Tatar scored the winner. Despite the loss, Sweden secured third place and the bronze medal, while Team Canada won it all, sweeping Team Europe in the best-of-three final.</p>
<p>All in all, Ekholm played in all four games, finishing with a +2 rating but didn’t register any points.</p>
<h2>Ekholm Won His Second Gold Medal Playing for Sweden at the 2018 World Championship</h2>
<p>The Swedish blueliner wrapped up his fourth full season with the Predators by hitting double-digit goals for the first time (10) and recording 34 points during the 2017-2018 season. That said, <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/2018-19-season-preview-nashville-predators">Nashville was a regular-season powerhouse</a>, posting a 52-18-11 record to top the Central Division and finish first in the Western Conference.</p>
<p>The Predators entered the playoffs as heavy favourites, sweeping the Blackhawks in the first round. However, they suffered a heartbreaking Game 7 loss to the Jets in the second round. Ekholm tallied eight points in 13 games, and after Nashville&#8217;s elimination, he <a href="https://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/sweden-claims-gold-2018-world-hockey-championship/">joined Team Sweden at the World Championships</a> in Denmark alongside former Preds teammate Filip Forsberg and now-Oiler Viktor Arvidsson.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Filip Forsberg and Mattias Ekholm receive their Gold Medals. 🏅🏅<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IIHFWorlds?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IIHFWorlds</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Preds?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Preds</a> <a href="https://t.co/IEkakKhD70">pic.twitter.com/IEkakKhD70</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Thomas Willis (@TomAWillis) <a href="https://twitter.com/TomAWillis/status/998315611141935104?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 20, 2018</a></p></blockquote>
<p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
<p>Sweden made it to the finals, where they defeated Switzerland in the gold medal game, winning in a shootout with Forsberg scoring the decisive goal. Ekholm played in only four of the 10 games but recorded a goal and two assists, including a helper in the gold medal game. Here&#8217;s an additional fun fact—three of his current Oilers teammates were also <a href="https://www.quanthockey.com/whc/en/teams/team-sweden-players-2018-whc-stats.html">on that gold-medal-winning squad</a>: Mattias Janmark (10 points in 10 games), John Klingberg (six points in 10 games), and Arvidsson (three goals in five games).</p>
<p>Overall, Ekholm has played a huge role in his country&#8217;s hockey success throughout his career. Having said that, where do you predict Team Sweden will place at the 4 Nations Face-Off?</p>

The 4 Nations Face-Off is set to begin next week, with Team Canada taking on Team Sweden in the first game of the best-on-best tournament. Oilers fans will be watching closely as Mattias Ekholm, recently <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/connor-mcdavid-and-mattias-ekholm-named-assistant-captains-for-upcoming-4-nations-face-off">named one of Sweden’s alternate captains</a>, tries to shut down teammate Connor McDavid when he comes streaking down the ice.

On that note, Ekholm has represented Sweden nine times, impressively earning medals in five of those appearances. With the Swedish blueliner set to play for Tre Kronor for the tenth time at the 4 Nations Face-Off, let’s take a look into the five occasions where he’s won a medal while representing his country.


<h2>Ekholm Won Gold at the Ivan Hlinka Tournament in 2007</h2>
The 2007 Ivan Hlinka tournament, which was renamed the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in 2018, took place in the summer in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Team Sweden won all three of their preliminary games and advanced to face Finland for the gold medal.

Ekholm, just 16 years old at the time, was selected for the team alongside notable defencemen like Victor Hedman and Erik Karlsson. In the gold medal game, the now-Oilers blueliner opened the scoring, while Hedman scored the overtime winner to secure Sweden’s 3-2 victory and win the gold medal.

This was<a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/mattias-ekholm-and-viktor-arvidsson-named-to-swedens-4-nations-face-off-roster"> Ekholm’s first time representing his country</a>, and he recorded a goal and an assist in four games. Moreover, for nostalgic Oilers fans, former Oiler <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/nhl-history-oilers-trade-magnus-paajarvi-to-st-louis-blues-for-david-perron">Magnus Paajarvi</a> led Sweden in scoring with two goals and four assists in four games, while another former Oiler, Anton Lander, finished third with four goals and one assist.
<h2>Ekholm Won a Bronze Medal at his First World Juniors in 2010</h2>
Ekholm was drafted by <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/edmonton-oilers-solidify-blueline-with-acquisition-of-mattias-ekholm">the Nashville Predators in the fourth round</a> of the 2009 NHL Draft and in 2010, while still playing in Sweden, he was selected to represent his country at the World Juniors (WJC) in Regina and Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.

Sweden won all four of their preliminary games, securing a spot in the semifinals. There, they faced the United States but lost 5-2. However, they bounced back in the bronze medal game, dominating Switzerland 11-4. The now-Oilers D-man <a href="https://www.thegamenashville.com/2018/12/27/world-junior-memories-mattias-ekholm/">reflected on his WJC’s experience</a>:
<blockquote>“Yeah, at that age, it’s the biggest thing you can play in. It’s something you work hard for all your life, that one step on the ladder. We had an opportunity to be in Canada and, to see the fans and to see the atmosphere and to be a part of that, it was awesome. It was something that you will always remember and be grateful that you were a part of.”</blockquote>
The Swedish D-man played in all six games, scoring one goal and leading Team Sweden with a team-best +10 plus/minus rating, while capturing the bronze medal.
<h2>Ekholm Won Bronze in His World Championship Debut in 2014</h2>
Ekholm had just wrapped up his first full season with the Predators in 2013-14, playing 62 games and recording nine points. With Nashville missing the playoffs and his NHL season complete, <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/edmonton-oilers/latest-news/sweden-makes-surprising-pick-as-two-oilers-join-national-team">he was selected to represent Sweden</a> at the IIHF World Championships in Minsk, Belarus.

https://twitter.com/PredsNHL/status/466341369473417216

Sweden went 5-1-1 in seven games in the preliminary round. They beat Belarus in the quarterfinals but lost to Russia, the eventual gold medal winners, in the semis. That said, Sweden beat the Czech Republic 3-0 in the bronze medal game, with Ekholm earning his third medal while representing his country. Additionally, <a href="https://www.quanthockey.com/whc/en/teams/team-sweden-players-2014-whc-stats.html">he led all Swedish blueliners in points</a>, recording seven points in 10 games and was named Sweden’s player of the game in a preliminary game against Norway.

On top of winning a medal with Sweden in May 2014, <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/nhl/mattias-ekholm-re-signs-with-predators-1.2701130">Ekholm was re-signed by the Predators</a> two months later on a two-year, $2.075 million contract.
<h2>Ekholm Won Another Bronze at the 2016 World Cup of Hockey</h2>
Ekholm had a big season in 2015-16 with the Predators, recording a career-high 35 points and a +14 plus/minus rating, while also adding seven points in 14 postseason games. That strong performance likely influenced Team Sweden’s decision to name him to their final roster for <a href="https://www.nhlpa.com/news/1-12098/world-cup-of-hockey-2016-rosters-finalized">the 2016 World Cup of Hockey</a>, held in Toronto that September.

https://twitter.com/brooksbratten/status/736210902760992768

Sweden went 2-0-1 in the round-robin, finishing first in Group B and advancing to the semifinals. There, they faced Team Europe in a game that <a href="https://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/world-cup-of-hockey/team-europe-edges-sweden-ot-advances-world-cup-final/">was tied 2-2 and went to overtime,</a> where Tomas Tatar scored the winner. Despite the loss, Sweden secured third place and the bronze medal, while Team Canada won it all, sweeping Team Europe in the best-of-three final.

All in all, Ekholm played in all four games, finishing with a +2 rating but didn’t register any points.
<h2>Ekholm Won His Second Gold Medal Playing for Sweden at the 2018 World Championship</h2>
The Swedish blueliner wrapped up his fourth full season with the Predators by hitting double-digit goals for the first time (10) and recording 34 points during the 2017-2018 season. That said, <a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/news/2018-19-season-preview-nashville-predators">Nashville was a regular-season powerhouse</a>, posting a 52-18-11 record to top the Central Division and finish first in the Western Conference.

The Predators entered the playoffs as heavy favourites, sweeping the Blackhawks in the first round. However, they suffered a heartbreaking Game 7 loss to the Jets in the second round. Ekholm tallied eight points in 13 games, and after Nashville's elimination, he <a href="https://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/sweden-claims-gold-2018-world-hockey-championship/">joined Team Sweden at the World Championships</a> in Denmark alongside former Preds teammate Filip Forsberg and now-Oiler Viktor Arvidsson.

https://twitter.com/TomAWillis/status/998315611141935104

Sweden made it to the finals, where they defeated Switzerland in the gold medal game, winning in a shootout with Forsberg scoring the decisive goal. Ekholm played in only four of the 10 games but recorded a goal and two assists, including a helper in the gold medal game. Here's an additional fun fact—three of his current Oilers teammates were also <a href="https://www.quanthockey.com/whc/en/teams/team-sweden-players-2018-whc-stats.html">on that gold-medal-winning squad</a>: Mattias Janmark (10 points in 10 games), John Klingberg (six points in 10 games), and Arvidsson (three goals in five games).

Overall, Ekholm has played a huge role in his country's hockey success throughout his career. Having said that, where do you predict Team Sweden will place at the 4 Nations Face-Off?

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