Why does Zetterberg wear #40?
It wasn’t always the case. Coming up in Sweden with his hometown club Timra, Henrik always wore #20. That number has already been retired by the Red Eagles and hung in the rafters. In 2002, Zetterberg, then a 21 year-old prospect of the Detroit Red Wings, made the Swedish Olympic team. It was the first time he wore #40, due to his already famous #20 being worn by veteran forward Magnus Arvedson of the Ottawa Senators. It appeared that #20 would be available for Zetterberg for his eventual rookie season in Detroit, after long-time Red Wing Martin Lapointe departed in 2001. It was widely speculated that this was the number Henrik would wear when he made his NHL debut. However, that same summer the Wings signed free-agent future Hall-of-Famer Luc Robitaille, and he clearly had rights to #20. So, when Zetterberg made his NHL debut the following season, 2002-03, he reverted back to #40. Presumably, he just doubled his original uniform number when #20 wasn’t available with team Sweden, and s
