EP Rinkside’s Jimmy Hamrin offers a “stock watch” assessment of various NHL prospects playing in Sweden today, and here’s what he has to say about someone whose stock “remains steady”:
Axel Sandin-Pellikka, D, Skellefteå AIK (Detroit Red Wings)
Axel Sandin-Pellikka is an interesting case, as many undersized skilled defencemen from Sweden have failed to live up to hopes of becoming the next Erik Karlsson over the past 6-7 years. However, Sandin-Pellikka seems to have better odds, as his offensive game is borderline elite. His skill and mobility along the blue line are top-notch in the SHL, and he consistently makes smart decisions with the puck. He is poised and rarely rushes a bad pass, scanning the ice and staying in control. If teams aren’t ready to defend the neutral zone when Sandin-Pellikka has the puck, he’ll hurt them.
The question for his NHL future is his ability to defend the rush, battle in front of the net, and retrieve pucks in the corners against bigger and faster opponents on the smaller rink. He isn’t an elite skater like Karlsson, and how he adapts to these situations will determine his NHL success. So far this season, his puck skills have progressed, but I have yet to see him dominate defensively or in puck retrievals.
Continued (paywall); I’m going to be honest here. I don’t think that Axel Sandin Pellikka is the next Erik Karlsson, despite his tremendous skating. He’s going to take some time and seasoning in North America to really bear down defensively, and I’m not going to freak out because he’s not the most elegant SHL’er when it comes to “dominating defensively” on the big ice.
