Tommy Westlund is a former professional

Professional

A professional is a person who is paid to undertake a specialised set of tasks and to complete them for a fee. The traditional professions were doctors, lawyers, clergymen, and commissioned military officers. Today, the term is applied to estate agents, surveyors , environmental scientists,...

 ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 right winger

Winger (ice hockey)

Winger, in the game of hockey, is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play on the ice is along the outer playing area. They typically work by flanking the centre forward. Originally the name was given to forward players who went up and down the sides of the rink...

 who played four seasons in the National Hockey League

National Hockey League

The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

 from 1999 to 2003 for the Carolina Hurricanes

Carolina Hurricanes

The Carolina Hurricanes are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. They are members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League , and play their home games at the 18,680-seat RBC Center...

.

Westlund began his career in Sweden's third tier league with Avesta BK. Impressive performances earned him a contract with Brynäs IF

Brynäs IF

Brynäs IF is a professional Swedish ice hockey team from Gävle. The club plays in the highest Swedish league , and has done so since 1960.-History:...

 of the Elitserien

Elitserien

Elitserien, is a professional ice hockey league composed of twelve teams in Sweden...

. Westlund was drafted 93rd overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft

1998 NHL Entry Draft

The 1998 NHL Entry Draft was held on June 27 at the Marine Midland Arena in Buffalo, New York. A total of 258 players were drafted.- Selections by round :Club teams are located in North America unless otherwise noted.- Round one :- Round two :...

. After spending a season in the American Hockey League

American Hockey League

The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...

 with the Beast of New Haven

Beast of New Haven

The Beast of New Haven were an ice hockey team in the American Hockey League in the 1997–98 and 1998–99 seasons. The team was based in New Haven, Connecticut, and played at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum, which was demolished in 2007. The Beast were affiliated with the Carolina Hurricanes and the...

, he made his NHL debut in 1999. He played 203 career NHL games scoring 9 goals and 13 assists for 22 points. He missed the majority of the 2001-02 season after suffering a back injury during a game against the Columbus Blue Jackets

Columbus Blue Jackets

The Columbus Blue Jackets are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio, United States. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...

 on November 19, 2001. He made a recovery, but spent most of the 2002-03 season as a healthy scratch. He returned to Sweden in 2003 with Leksands IF

Leksands IF

Leksands Idrottsförening is a Swedish ice hockey team from the town of Leksand in the region of Dalarna. The team is currently playing in the second highest league in Sweden, HockeyAllsvenskan. Leksand has played 53 seasons in the top Swedish league – between 1951 to 2001, 2002 to 2004, and 2005–06...

 before retiring from hockey.

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