Brodin is carrying on Sweden's rich tradition of producing successful NHL defensemen.

Selected by the Minnesota Wild with the No. 10 pick in the 2011 NHL Draft, Brodin began his North American pro career with Houston of the American Hockey League during the 2012-13 NHL lockout. He played nine AHL games before sustaining a broken clavicle and missing nearly three months.

At 19, Brodin was the youngest defenseman in the NHL when he made his debut with the Wild against the Detroit Red Wings on Jan. 25, 2013. Brodin got his first NHL point, an assist, in that game, a 5-3 loss. He played most of the season playing with Ryan Suter on Minnesota's top defense pair and led all NHL rookies by averaging 23:13 of ice time per game.

It took Brodin 23 games to score his first NHL goal. On March 14, 2013, his shot from the left face-off dot helped the Wild to a 5-3 win against the Colorado Avalanche. Brodin finished the 2012-13 season with two goals and 11 points in 45 games and just missed being named a finalist for the Calder Trophy as the top rookie in the NHL.

More importantly to the Wild, Brodin's play next to Suter helped Minnesota return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in five years. He improved in his second season with eight goals and 19 points in 79 games while finishing second to Suter on the Wild in blocked shots (117) and average ice time (23:54).

Minnesota signed Brodin to a six-year contract Oct. 12, 2014. He promptly rewarded the Wild's faith with another solid season that saw him earn his first votes as a Norris Trophy candidate. In the 2016 postseason, Brodin scored his first playoff goal in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference First Round against the Dallas Stars. He played at least 68 games in each of his first seven full NHL seasons, averaging at least 20 minutes of ice time in six of them.

Brodin signed a seven-year, $42 million contact with the the Wild on Sept. 15, 2020. He had one assist in his 800th NHL game, a 7-2 loss at the Vegas Golden Knights on April 12, 2024, becoming the third player in team history to reach the milestone (Mikko Koivu, Jared Spurgeon).

Brodin, named to Sweden's roster for the 4 Nations Face-Off, helped his country win bronze at the 2024 IIHF World Championship with four points (one goal, three assists) in 10 games. He was chosen to represent Team Sweden at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, but replaced by Boston Bruins defenseman Hampus Lindholm because of an injury.