Over the years, the NHL has made a consistent effort to take the game global. One of the interesting manifestations of this move has been the NHL Global Series, launched 8 years ago. “They [the NHL] are looking to make the game as global as possible because we operate in a global economy,” said professor Rick Burton of Syracuse University. And really it’s a solid plan; what better international marketing than allowing overseas fans to witness a game in their own countries? Not to mention the excitement it drums up for players—just ask Sidney Crosby.

This year, a couple of games will be held outside North America, featuring the Pittsburgh Penguins against the Nashville Predators on November 14th and 16th. The regular-season games will take place in Stockholm, Sweden, at the Avicii Arena. Amidst the 2025 NHL Global Series raising several eyebrows, Sidney Crosby cleared the air on playing in Sweden.

While there has been much excitement surrounding this in the Penguins’ roster, the team isn’t in a good position of late. They are languishing second from the bottom in the Metropolitan Division, and the playoffs are but a distant dream. Nonetheless, Crosby looked forward to the opportunity of playing in Stockholm. Recently, the trio of Crosby, Erik Karlsson, and Rickard Rakell appeared on the Pens Inside Scoop podcast, during which they opened up about playing in Sweden, the native country of Rakell and Karlsson.

While the two locals were looking forward to playing in their home country, Crosby couldn’t control his excitement of featuring in the NHL Global Series either. He revealed, “I know Raks spent time there in the offseason, and Karl’s pretty aware of the good spots in Stockholm. So, they’ll be great hosts. It’s been a while since I’ve been back, so I’m excited about that. We’re with the right guys to show us around; there’s no doubt.”

Interestingly, this will also mark the first time that the Penguins will be playing abroad in years, having last played overseas against the Senators in 2008. Coincidentally enough, the game took place in Stockholm! Furthermore, Sweden is one of the NHL’s most important global markets and also has the most number of players playing in the league outside of North America. Meanwhile, the Predators CEO, Sean Henry, was also excited about being selected to play in the NHL Global Series.

Not just Sidney Crosby, the Predators are also excited about the Sweden games

Now, unlike the Penguins, the Predators are actually quite the Global Series veterans. Back in 2022, the Predators were chosen by the NHL to play in the Czech Republic against the San Jose Sharks. Henry was elated by the opportunity to make their return to the global stage, especially considering the Predators have a few Swedish stars of their own.

He revealed, “This event will be particularly special for Filip Forsberg, who adores his home country, and the other Sweden natives on our team and in our organization. We had such an incredible time with our fans at the 2022 Global Series in Bern and Prague, and we can’t wait for them to bring even more energy and enthusiasm in November.”

Indeed, Filip Forsberg was also excited about the chance to play in his native country. “Obviously it’s going to be a great time, a great opportunity for me,” he said, as per the NHL website. “I have a lot of people that might not be able to travel here to watch that get their chance to watch me play in the NHL at home. It’s pretty special. I mean second to my home town (Ostervala), it’s the best place in the world. Stockholm is beautiful. It’s a great city. November shouldn’t be too bad weather-wise either. Watching the best players in the world in Avicii Arena? Can’t beat that.”

The excitement is palpable, but November is still quite a way away. However, for now, Crosby and the Penguins would look to get their NHL campaign back on track and prepare for the coming season so they can head into the Global Series at full strength.