Asking Rickard about his own father, a tennis coach in their native Sweden, led to an answer that lasted over two minutes.
“He's always been so supportive. It doesn't matter if it's sports or in life or anything,” Rickard said. “He’s never held my siblings and I back. Like, both my parents always let us do whatever we wanted, as long as it wasn’t dangerous. So, I think that was good for us. We always had to find out our own way, but they have always been there to give us a helping hand or advice.”
Like a lot of hockey dads, Roland watches virtually all of his son’s games. Unlike a lot of hockey dads, they start in the middle of the night his time. But starting when Rickard moved to Michigan to play junior hockey for the Ontario Hockey League’s Plymouth Whalers, Roland didn’t miss one for well over a decade.
“It was one stretch just a couple years ago where he was like, I'm too tired now. I need a couple weeks of a break,” Rickard said with a laugh. “He always will text me after the games, and he knows exactly my mood. It’s like, the support never stops. I'm super grateful for that.”
Rickard said he always pictured being a dad himself at some point. But for a time, it wasn’t top of mind. He was enjoying life with Emmeli and their adventure in California, where Rickard was part of the Anaheim Ducks organization.
“But then I think for both me and Emmeli, we just kind of got to that point in our lives where we felt like we explored so much together,” Rickard said. “We really traveled a lot and did things just the two of us. After that, we felt like it was time for us to start a family. Just kind of felt right.”
Emmeli said that growing up, Rickard was close with his mom Annika and sister Rebecka, so she knew he would love having a daughter.
“But he was like, I didn’t think I would love it this much. He looks at her like he wants to eat her. Like, he’s obsessed with her,” Emmeli said with a laugh.
“I’m the cuddly dad,” Rickard agreed. “I'm asking her for hugs and kisses all the time. She keeps refusing me. But I love trying to explore her boundaries, like if we're in the park and I’m trying to get her to climb a little bit higher and see how far she will go. But it doesn't really matter what it is, I just love spending time with her.”
It’s one thing in the summer, when the schedule opens up. But it’s much different during the grind of an 82-game season that requires so much travel, and Emmeli marvels at how well Rickard balances work and fatherhood.
“He never complains, is never tired. I tell Rickard all the time, I'm just so impressed how you can find that energy and do what you do and then come home and never be tired. And he meets hormones at the door!” Emmeli said. “He’s still so good, and I’m like, how are you functioning? I just don’t get it. It’s just remarkable.”
It obviously helps that Rickard is a kind and patient person at his core. So does a lot of coffee. However, he's also the first to admit that he’s not perfect and doesn’t have all the answers. What helps Rickard is trying to live in the moment.
“I think for me, when I'm home, I like to put my phone away and just spend time with them and Daisy and do whatever she wants to do,” Rickard said. “Not like phone calls or texting. All of that feels like that has to wait when we're not home that much, and especially when she wants my attention. Like, we're gone for a long time, and then she's excited when I get home. So, I'm trying to take advantage of that.”
It also means everything to Rickard that Daisy is starting to understand that hockey is significant in their family. Whenever she sees the Penguins logo on TV or out somewhere, “she goes crazy because she knows that I play for that team,” Rickard said. “Whenever she comes to the games she tells everyone her dad plays hockey.
“Just for her, coming into the locker room and everybody from the training staff to players, everybody being so nice to them, all the kids, and letting them share this moment, I think it's huge. Because I’m living my dream, and I can only imagine if I got to (be around the rink) when I was her age. As she's getting older and when Ziggy is older, for them to be around this, it will definitely be one of the highlights in my life after I'm done playing – just to have been able to share this with my whole family.”
