Johnny Oduya

Johnny Oduya was an NHL defenceman valued above all for his defensive playArticle in SportbladetRead the sourceArticle in SportbladetRead the sourceArticle in HockeysverigeRead the sourceClose. Johnny OduyaArticle in KingRead the sourceClose began at Hammarby IF’s hockey school, as his older brother Fredrik had done. Looking back in an interview with Sportbladet, he recalled growing up playing hockey at Hammarby in Stockholm, where training mattered more than gamesArticle in AftonbladetRead the sourceClose.

In the same interview, Oduya said he had not been selected for TV-puckenTV-pucken is a Swedish youth hockey tournament played between regional representative teams.Article in AftonbladetRead the sourceClose and had never attended a hockeygymnasiumhockeygymnasiumA Swedish hockeygymnasium combines upper-secondary (high school) studies with scheduled ice hockey training.Close, an upper secondary school programme combining education with hockey training. He also recalled training for 29 consecutive days when he joined Hammarby, while stressing that he did not recommend that approachArticle in AftonbladetRead the sourceClose.

Speaking to Sportsnet in April 2022Article in SportsnetRead the sourceClose, Oduya described learning positional play under Larry Robinson and Jacques Laperriere. The article also reported on a mindful defence camp he ran with his former coach Daniel BrobergArticle in SportsnetRead the sourceClose.

Oduya’s father was from KenyaArticle in SportsnetRead the sourceClose. In the 2022Article in SportsnetRead the sourceClose Sportsnet interview, Oduya also recalled playing street hockey in Nairobi with Oliver Kylington in 2021.

In his biography on Hale’s website, Oduya described exploring meditation after his hockey career and rediscovering breathwork during a trip to BaliArticle in HaleRead the sourceClose. The biography presented him as a co-founder and breath guideArticle in HaleRead the sourceClose.