Erika Grahm’s Next Chapter

A day after Damkronorna forward Erika Grahm announced her new contract with Brynäs IF, the former MODO Hockey captain penned an emotional farewell to her longtime club on Instagram and Twitter.

”After 13 years as active in the association and 7 years in the office, I now pack the trunks for this time,” she wrote. “There are no words that can describe how grateful I am for all MODO Hockey has done for me.”

Grahm, 27, shared a childhood photo of herself wearing a team hat and wrote, “A little girl at two years old who has no idea what MODO Hockey will mean to her for so many years (read: all her life.)” She also shared pictures of her SDHL (then Rikserien) gold medal and snapshots of her on the ice in the club’s home reds. She started with MODO hockey in 2005 at 14 years old, played 288 regular season games, and scored 302 points. In addition to playing, she spent seven years in MODO’s ticket sales department.

En liten tjej på 2 år som inte har en aning om vad MODO Hockey kommer att betyda för henne i så många år (läs hela livet) framöver. Efter 13 år som aktiv i föreningen och 7 år på kontoret packar jag nu trunken för den här gången. Det finns inte ord som kan beskriva hur tacksam jag är över allt MODO Hockey gjort för mig. Alla ledare, kollegor, fans och framförallt lagkamrater. Det är så många att tacka och jag hoppas innerligt att ni vet vilka ni är. Säger som jag sagt förut: ”Det är få förunnat att ha möjligheten att spela för laget i sitt hjärta”. Jag fick äran i 13 år. Tack, tack, tack alla MODOiter för oförglömliga år. ❤️💚 Nu är det snart dags för ett nytt kapitel i livet. Hej Gävle och Brynäs IF! Örnsköldsvik, på återseende! 🙆🏼‍♀️ 🥇

A post shared by Erika Grahm (@erikagrahm) on May 30, 2018 at 11:14am PDT

Grahm ended her post with “Now it’s time for a new chapter in life. Hello Gävle and Brynäs IF!”

Her two-year deal with Brynäs goes beyond hockey: Grahm will also serve as a business developer for girl’s and women’s hockey, with an eye towards a more prominent role when her on-ice career concludes.

“Erika and Brynäs IF’s common goal is that she will grow and develop in the future to become Brynäs IF Sports Manager,” Sustainability and Brand Development director Johan Cahling told the club’s website.

Grahm described the opportunity to help grow girl’s hockey as “inspiring” and “exciting” while praising Brynäs’s commitment to the region’s young female players. “My dream is to continue working in hockey so this solution fits me perfectly,” she added.

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Erika Grahm goes all in

After last season’s 8th-place finish and complaints about poor treatment from departing stars like goaltender Sara Grahn and forward Anna Borgqvist, Brynäs undertook a major reset. So far that’s included firing head coach Åke Lilljebjörn, new development initiatives for girl’s hockey, and recruiting foreign talent like Swiss Olympian Sarah Forster and former CWHL goaltender Sonja van der Bliek.

So far actions are indeed speaking louder than words: Brynäs is putting real energy into this rebuild. While Grahm’s on-ice impact has yet to be seen, her signing in Gävle remains of the SDHL’s biggest shockers this offseason and shows a superstar with confidence in the club’s new direction.