StaTuesday: Wild's Niederreiter continues rise among all-time best Swiss NHLers
At just 24 years old, Minnesota Wild forward Nino Niederreiter is already one of the most accomplished Swiss-born players in NHL history.
Following back-to-back 20-goal seasons Niederreiter has continued his rise, and finished the season with career highs in points (57), goals (25) and assists (32). He finished the season ranked third on the Wild in scoring.
It's the third 20-goal season of his six-year career. He's the only Swiss player to do it even once.
Including Niederreiter, hockey-reference.com lists 13 active Swiss NHL players and 30 all-time, including the nation's career leader in NHL scoring: Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Mark Streit.
| Player | Years | Pos | GP | G | A | PTS | +/- | City |
| Mark Streit | 2006-17 | D | 784 | 96 | 338 | 434 | -71 | Bern |
| Nino Niederreiter | 2011-17 | RW | 389 | 85 | 91 | 176 | 10 | Chur |
| Roman Josi | 2012-17 | D | 406 | 64 | 175 | 239 | 11 | Bern |
| Mark Hardy | 1980-94 | D | 915 | 62 | 306 | 368 | -92 | Samedan |
| Sven Baertschi | 2012-17 | LW | 206 | 43 | 50 | 93 | -25 | Bern |
| Damien Brunner | 2013-15 | RW | 121 | 25 | 33 | 58 | -18 | Oberlunkhofen |
| Yannick Weber | 2009-17 | D | 347 | 23 | 55 | 78 | -33 | Morges |
| Sven Andrighetto | 2015-17 | RW | 102 | 16 | 27 | 43 | 2 | Zurich |
| Kevin Fiala | 2015-17 | LW | 60 | 12 | 5 | 17 | 0 | St. Gallen |
| Raphael Diaz | 2012-15 | D | 201 | 8 | 41 | 49 | -8 | Baar |
Erik Karlsson, he is not.
Streit has played in 784 games since entering the league in 2006, scoring 96 goals and racking up 434 points.
Niederreiter is already well on his way to overtaking him.
The 6-foot-2 right wing has scored 85 goals and 176 points since being drafted fifth overall in 2010.
| Season | Age | Tm | GP | G | A | PTS | +/- | PIM | PPG |
| 2010-11 | 18 | Islanders | 9 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 8 | 0 |
| 2011-12 | 19 | Islanders | 55 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -29 | 12 | 0 |
| 2013-14 | 21 | Wild | 81 | 14 | 22 | 36 | 12 | 44 | 2 |
| 2014-15 | 22 | Wild | 80 | 24 | 13 | 37 | 2 | 28 | 6 |
| 2015-16 | 23 | Wild | 82 | 20 | 23 | 43 | 9 | 36 | 2 |
| 2016-17 | 24 | Wild | 82 | 25 | 32 | 57 | 17 | 53 | 8 |
After two seasons in the New York Islanders organization, during which he appeared in a meager 64 NHL games, Niederreiter was traded to the Wild at just 20 years old.
The price was relatively low for a player just three years removed from his draft year: A third-round pick and fan favorite Cal Clutterbuck, a hard-nosed winger and reliable depth scorer.
So far the Wild have emerged as the clear winners of the deal.
