Johan Holmqvist

Johan Holmqvist earned a reputation as a match-winning goalie, particularly in playoffs and qualification seriesArticle in HockeysverigeRead the sourceArticle in SportbladetRead the sourceArticle in SVT Nyheter BlekingeRead the sourceClose. In Tierp’sArticle in HockeysverigeRead the sourceClose youth hockey, Johan Holmqvist played on a team that brought together 4 age groups. In a 2019Article in HockeysverigeRead the sourceClose interview with Hockeysverige, he recalled idolising the local senior team’s players. He began playing senior hockey himself at 15 and credited his first senior coach, Lenny ErikssonArticle in HockeysverigeRead the sourceClose, with giving him confidence.

In the same retrospective interview, Holmqvist explained that he chose to attend school at home in Tierp and play senior hockey thereArticle in HockeysverigeRead the sourceClose. His later training with Team GävleArticle in HockeysverigeRead the sourceClose attracted interest from Brynäs. He played for Brynäs’s under-20 team in 1996/97 and credited Tommy SandlinArticle in HockeysverigeRead the sourceClose with helping him stay at the club and develop.

The goalies he admired as a child also extended beyond TierpArticle in HockeysverigeRead the sourceClose. In the 2019 interview, Holmqvist recalled leaning towards Färjestad because Pekka LindmarkArticle in HockeysverigeRead the sourceClose played there; he also liked Michael Sundlöv and occasionally watched Brynäs play in Gävle. Brynäs’s 2019Article in Brynäs IFRead the sourceClose historical account referred to him by the nicknames Honken and Lill-Honken. It also explained that he was not related to Leif HolmqvistArticle in Brynäs IFRead the sourceClose, although he had worn Leif’s portrait on his goalie mask for several seasons.

In JuneArticle in AftonbladetRead the sourceClose 2017, Holmqvist attended the Goaliemania goalie camp at Ritorp. In JulyArticle in HockeyNewsRead the sourceClose 2020, he worked with a training group in Gävle that included Anders Lindbäck, Jacob Markström and Jonas Johansson. Markström told HockeyNews at the time about the value of Holmqvist’s NHLArticle in HockeyNewsRead the sourceClose and AHL experience and described him as warm and helpful.