Coach Johan Hedberg wears gloves in the booth at Mora.
The reason is that he suffers from a rare disease, Raynaud’s syndrome.
– These are my killer gloves, I understand that they look unusual and that many people are wondering, he says.
A diagnosis of Raynaud’s syndrome means that Johan Hedberg has poor blood flow in his hands and feet.
When exposed to cold, he may experience throbbing pain.
– My hands and feet are incredibly cold. I freeze, I don’t like to freeze. They become completely blue and white. It may also be red and swollen. Johan Hedberg says: I can hardly hold a pencil.
It changes at every break
Problems began to arise during his last years as a goalkeeper in the NHL.
– For me, it began to be felt in adulthood, although I may have been feeling it all my life. It has only gotten worse over the years, I get very cold. In the last seven or eight seasons as a goalkeeper, I’ve had to change at every break and jump in the jacuzzi to get my circulation going, says Johan Hedberg.
The team’s glove training in the booth attracted attention.
– There is no problem to talk about it, because many people have noticed the gloves and are asking about them. Other than wearing gloves, says Johan Hedberg, there are no problems for me in my work.
On Wednesday evening, the Hockeyallsvenskan semi-finals will return to North Dalarna.
Series winners Modu lead 2-0 in a best-of-seven match after two opening home wins over third-placed Mora.
On the way to Orebro
Successful coach Johan Hedberg, 49, from Leksand is in his third season as head coach on the northern shore of Ceylon.
Over the previous two seasons, Mora passed SHL players such as Oskar Stål-Lyrenäs, Ludvig Larsson, Lukas Wernblom, Oscar Eklind and Axel Bergkvist.
Of the current successful team with its fast and playable identity, it is rumored that there are about ten players in the SHL.
Johan Hedberg himself will take over as head coach at Örebro next season, but it has not yet been officially presented.
Previously, he played, among other things, 13 seasons in the NHL, won the gold medal with Tre Kronor in Switzerland in 1998 and was the goaltending coach of the San Jose Sharks for five seasons.