What's it like to play hockey in Norway?
Tony Bretzman played overseas in Norway and his answers below will help provide context for you regarding his experience playing hockey in Europe.
Player's Name: Tony Bretzman
Who'd you play for during the 19-20 season (Team, League, Country):
Manglerud Star in GET-Ligaen, Norway.
Favorite part about playing for your club/organization this past season?
Being able to see the various beautiful places in Norway was fun when traveling, but given Manglerud is basically in Oslo, the city offered a great variety of fun activities and restaurants.
How many years of pro have you played in Europe?
1
Off the ice, describe how your experience of living & playing hockey in Norway has been. What is everyday life like outside of the arena? culture/language/etc…
The culture in Norway is very friendly and most people speak very good English.
In your words, how would you describe the style/level of play in the league? Pace, physical vs open, specific systems, and so on...
GET-Ligaen (call Eliteserien) is a fast league built on creativity and skill. Although some teams have NHL size rinks, most have Olympic size sheets which allows for an offensively minded game. However, there is rarely any fighting in the league due to harsh punishments associated with it from the league, which I found to be a negative when the refereeing is sub par.
This year, how many import players are allowed per team in the league? How did you like playing there with the other imports on & off the ice?
We had a great group of imports and all were friendly with each other. Year to year the import rules, but we usually carried 6-7 imports throughout the season.
What's a favorite story or 2 of yours from playing hockey in Norway & overseas in general? Could be an awesome on ice experience like a big win in a packed away arena or a funny off ice story related to culture that has nothing to do with hockey….
When I arrived in Manglerud (Norway) we were last in the league, but we clawed our way into the last playoff spot by the end of the season, a very rewarding feeling. The camaraderie with teammates was a good feeling.
One last question: Favorite word/phrase you learned (or like using) in the foreign language where you played?
Nothing in particular but I always thought thank you was fun to say - “Takk” - pronounced ‘tuck’ in English.
---
What's it like to Play Hockey in Italy?
