BLOG: Arvidsson already feels good with the Oilers

Arvidsson shared a locker room with Ekholm in Nashville for seven seasons from 2014 to 2021, including their trip to the 2017 Stanley Cup Finals, where the Predators were eliminated in five games by the Pittsburgh Penguins. The two Swedes and their families have a close relationship that dates back to their time together in Nashville, with both Arvidsson and Ekholm having conversations about the potential of reuniting in Edmonton.

Arvidsson is originally from Kusmark, SWE, a town north of Skellefteå, the birthplace of both Philip Broberg and former Oilers defenseman Adam Larsson. He has spent the past few months watching from afar as Ekholm and the Oilers reached Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals after knocking out the Kings in the first round for the third straight season.

“I spoke to Ekky for a bit and it’s amazing to see that you can get this far, and I did it once,” Arvidsson said. “That’s an amazing feeling.”

“He probably didn’t want to play me anymore, but we were competitors,” Arvidsson said with a laugh. “We’ve fought a lot in practice, so that’s just part of the game. He just told me what a great place to be and where the team is going, and he was really excited about me coming to Edmonton, so that helped a lot. Our families know each other well, too.”

Like Ekholm, Arvidsson has an affinity for Edmonton’s climate, having lived in Nashville and Los Angeles his entire career, but growing up in the colder north of Sweden.

“Well, I was raised like that from where I come from,” he said. “I bet you all know Adam Larsson, he and I are from the same city, so I was raised with a lot of snow and cold winters. So living in Nashville and then LA, I think something that we kind of missed as a family was all four seasons and stuff like that, so I think it’s going to be fun and exciting to have some snow again.”