I plain old had to spend Sunday in bed because of three days’ worth of over-exertion at the World Junior Summer Showcase. It’s been particularly difficult to give everything I can to generating coverage and then coming home to take care of my aunt, and I’m still learning how to balance those two things with getting actual rest.
As such, NHL.com’s Adam Kimelman will bridge the gap for me tonight in reporting that yes, Axel Sandin Pellikka will play on Monday as Sweden battles USA White at 7 PM EDT.
I’m glad to hear that Team Sweden coach Hugo Havelid wasn’t telling a fib when he told us that ASP and most other Swedish defenders would only play in 3 of the 4 games taking place at the WJSS, in no small part because, in ASP’s case, his club team’s GM in Skelleftea wanted Axel to get a serious day’s worth of work in the gym.
Back to work on the ice on Monday, reports Kimelman:
Having seen what Sandin Pellikka can do at the 2023 WJC, Havelid doesn’t need to focus too much on him.
“The way he sees the ice, moves the puck, makes the right decisions,” Havelid said. “You can use him on every special teams, penalty kill or power play. He’s a really talented player.”
Sandin Pellikka had one assist and averaged 19:54 of ice time in seven games for Sweden, which finished fourth. He is expected to make a bigger contribution at the 2024 WJC.
“I want to be a threat on the ice, and I want the other team to know that when I have the puck something creative can happen,” he said.
Sandin Pellikka’s offensive gifts are what convinced the Red Wings to select him with the No. 17 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. He had 36 points (16 goals, 20 assists) in 31 games with Skelleftea’s team in Sweden’s junior league, and 11 points (two goals, nine assists) in seven games at the 2023 IIHF Under-18 World Championship. But Sandin Pellikka wants to be known as more of a two-way defenseman.
“I want to help the team as much as I can in every zone,” he said. “Especially in the [defensive] zone, I want to just pick up my players in time and box them out. I’m not the biggest defender, but I still want to be smart and pick up my players early so I can box them out easily.”
Continued; at 5’11” and 181 pounds, Sandin Pellikka is definitely “undersized” by today’s standards, and while he has the offensive part of his game “down pat,” his defensive game is a work in progress.
It will be interesting to see how he manages to balance his immense offensive talent with more focus on playing actual defense this week.
