Edmonton Oilers defenseman makes shocking retirement announcement

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Daniel Lucente
August 8, 2024 (9:51 PM)

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Former Edmonton Oilers defenseman Oscar Klefbom who vanished four years ago has made the difficult decision of retiring from the sport due to nagging injuries.

Oscar Klefbom was recently interviewed by Nya Wermlands Tidningen of NWT, where he stated: "Now it's over".

Klefbom played his final game in the NHL on August 7, 2020, nearly four years to this day, when the Oilers were knocked out by the Chicago Blackhawks in the playoff bubble's qualifying round.

After this heartbreaking elimination, the Swedish defenseman underwent surgery to try and fix a shoulder injury that he had been dealing with since his junior years in 2012-13. The surgery would keep him out for good, as he never fully recovered and therefore never suited up for the Oilers again.

Klefbom was a member of the Oilers for seven seasons. Unfortunately for him, he only played a full season once ever, and that was in 2016-17. During that season in his 82 games, he scored 12 goals and added 26 assists, while also maintaining a solid plus/minus of +7. He also collected five points in the playoffs for the Oilers.

In his overall NHL career, Klefbom scored 34 goals and had 122 assists for 156 points in 378 NHL games. He wasn't too solid in his own end over his career, as he finished with an atrocious career rating of -64 in the plus/minus category. Klefbom also played in 16 career playoff games where he collected seven points.

Klefbom stated that this injury has taken a huge toll on him mentally, and he's been too sad to watch any Oilers games since he left in 2020, as he struggled with fear of missing out (FOMO).

We wish Klefbom a happy retirement and here's hoping we get to see him around the game again at some point down the road.

Source: Daily Faceoff
Former NHL defenseman Oskar Klefbom announces retirement

Source: HockeyDB
Oscar Klefbom Stats