height_ft played_for death_date weight_lb shoots birth_place death_place career_end position height_in birth_date article_title ntl_team career_start
5 leksands jets -lrb- original -rrb- if djurgårdens if hockey västra frölunda if winnipeg 20 october 1987 179 left falun , sweden uppsala , sweden 1980 defense 8 4 may 1944 lars-erik sjöberg
 sweden 1962
lars-erik sjöberg

lars-erik `` taxen '' sjöberg -lrb- 4 may 1944 in falun , sweden -- 20 october 1987 in uppsala , sweden -rrb- was a swedish ice hockey defenceman .
he played in sweden from 1962 to 1974 -lrb- leksands if 1962 -- 65 ; 1967 -- 69 , djurgårdens if hockey 1965 -- 67 , and västra frölunda if 1969 -- 74 -rrb- ; and in north america for the winnipeg jets in the wha and nhl from 1974 -- 80 .
sjöberg won the golden puck as the swedish player of the year in 1968 -- 69 and was named best defenceman at the 1974 iihf world championships .
he was the first non-north american born and raised captain in the nhl , wearing the `` c '' for the winnipeg jets during their first season in the nhl .
on the jets he was nicknamed `` the professor '' and `` the little general . ''
he captained the swedish national team at the 1976 canada cup .
-lsb- http://www.legendsofhockey.net/legendsofhockey/jsp/searchplayer.jsp?player=14334] sjöberg was working as a scout for the new york rangers when he died of cancer in 1987 .
to honour him the rangers each year gives out the lars-erik sjöberg award to the best rookie in the training camp .
