Mattias Öhlund, a native of Sweden, was the Vancouver Canucks’ first pick, 13th overall, in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft.

Playing 77 games as a rookie, Öhlund tied for the team lead in scoring among defencemen with 7 goals and 30 points and was awarded the Babe Pratt Trophy, given to the Canucks’ best defenceman.  In addition, he was nominated for the Calder Memorial Trophy as the best rookie in the league, finishing second in voting. He earned a position on the NHL All-Rookie Team.

Prior to the start of the 1999-00 NHL season, a puck deflected and struck Öhlund in the right eye. He underwent surgery to correct his vision and returned to the Canucks scoring 20 points in 42 games and again won the Babe Pratt Trophy as the Canucks’ best defenceman. In 2003–04, he tallied a career-high 14 goals and played in all 82 games with Vancouver and was again named the winner of the Babe Pratt Trophy.

Over 11 seasons with the Canucks, Öhlund registered team records of 93 goals and 325 points as a defenceman. His 232 assists ranked 4th among all-time Canucks defencemen while his 770 games played was 2nd among defencemen and 5th overall. He signed as an unrestricted free agent with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2009, and was inducted into the Canucks’ Ring of Honour on December 16, 2016.