Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson has now played in 1,000 regular season NHL games across his 15-season career. The 33-year-old was drafted in the first round (No. 6) of the 2009 NHL Draft by the then-Phoenix Coyotes. He spent 11 seasons with the franchise, totaling 769 games. He was then traded to the Vancouver Canucks, where he played 133 games, before getting his contract bought out. After one season and a Stanley Cup victory with the Florida Panthers, he signed with the Maple Leafs this past offseason.
Ekman-Larsson became one of the NHL’s most prominent defensemen during his time with the Coyotes. He made his NHL debut on Oct. 9, 2010, against the Boston Bruins where he registered 23:47 minutes of ice time. He scored his first NHL point in his seventh career game just weeks later against the Carolina Hurricanes on Oct. 23. He then scored his first NHL goal on Jan. 17, 2011, against the San Jose Sharks.
Ekman-Larsson posted a career-high in goals (23) during the 2014-15 season with the Coyotes en route to his first career All-Star game nod. He built on his breakout season the year after, posting 21 goals and a career-high 55 points. He finished his career in Arizona with 128 goals, 260 assists, and 388 points. He was traded to the Canucks along with forward Conor Garland on July 23, 2021, for Jay Beagle, Loui Eriksson, Antoine Roussel, a 1st-round pick in the 2021 NHL Draft, a 2nd-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, and a 7th-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft.
Ekman-Larsson struggled to find his footing in Vancouver, scoring just seven goals and 51 assists in his two seasons. After having his contract bought out on June 16, 2023, he signed a one-year, prove-it contract with the Panthers. There, he had a career resurgence and played a crucial role in the team’s bottom-four en route to winning the 2024 Stanley Cup.
Following his breakout, Ekman-Larsson signed a four-year, $14 million contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs on July 1, 2024. In 17 games so far this season, he has one goal and six assists while averaging over 21 minutes per game.
