Paul Popiel Vancouver Canucks 1970
Poul Popiel First Danish Born Player in NHL

Popiel was in the news briefly in early 2007. The New York Islanders recalled Frans Nielsen and he made his NHL debut on January 6. At the time of his recall, the Islanders believed that Nielsen would be the first Danish-born player to play in the NHL. It turned out that Popiel had him beaten—by about forty years.

Popiel played 3 games for the Boston Bruins early in the 1965-66 season, getting 1 assist and 1 penalty.

Popiel (whose family moved to Canada in 1951 when he was a child) had become an American citizen prior to his debut, however, leaving Nielsen with the honour of being the first Danish citizen to appear in an NHL game. Additionally, Nielsen is the first Danish NHL player at least partially trained in the Danish junior Hockey system.