By STEPHEN WHYNO
MONTREAL (AP) — Filip Forsberg had a big star from another sport in the stands supporting him and Sweden at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle was among the fans in attendance for the Sweden-Finland game on Saturday at Bell Centre. Kittle and Forsberg have gotten to know each other in recent years through their wives, Clair and Erin Alvey, who are best friends and came up with the idea for the trip.
“They’re like, hey, we have a little opening in our schedule, why would you not want to go to Montreal, Canada, in February?” Kittle told The Associated Press during the first intermission. “Super happy that I’m here. What an amazing atmosphere.”
The two-time All-Pro wore Sweden’s yellow jersey with the country’s trademark three crows and Forsberg’s name and No. 9 on the back, along with a hat featuring the Swedish flag and fake yellow and blue hair.
“Fil brought everything,” Kittle said. “Filip brought this for me and he goes, ‘You have to wear this.’ I said, ‘All right, I will do that.’”
Claire Kittle said her husband really bought in to the whole experience with the Sweden-colored hair. The couple also plans to attend the much-anticipated U.S.-Canada game on Saturday night, but George is all in on supporting Forsberg and Sweden.
“When you get to perform for your country, I think it’s a big deal and the chance to do it so close to where I can actually go see him I think is a very special thing,” Kittle said. “My first time ever doing something like this. I’ve never been to an Olympics or anything like that. A very unique experience, but you can just kind of tell how the love of hockey just goes through everybody.”
Kittle has gotten into hockey much more since becoming friends with Forsberg after playing EA Sports’ NHL video games as a kid and playing some goaltender.
“My cousins would pepper with shots,” Kittle said. “Couldn’t skate though.”
Forsberg similarly has become a fan of all things NFL, not knowing much about American football while growing up in Sweden. He said in 2023 that he did 50 hours of research for his first fantasy football draft and made the final in his first season doing it.
“I love it,” Forsberg said. “I watch Red Zone on Sundays. I’m all in. And through George I got to meet a bunch of other NFL players. I know not half the league but half the tight ends, at least because they do a tight end event in Nashville, so I got to meet a bunch of them.”
Forsberg tries to draft Kittle but doesn’t always land him in the Nashville Predators’ players league because he won’t select a tight end too early.
“Guys, they know I’m coming for him, so they draft him early, and all due respect I’ve got to have a team,” Forsberg said. “I can’t draft George in the third round. You’ve got to draft him where he’s supposed to go.”
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL
