A quick note:
This is our first Fanpost on 2.0, brought to you by Swedish prospect watcher and possible Odin – Karel Gut. A big stick-tap to Karel for putting this together – it’s tough for a lot of us in the States to find or make time to catch SHL games, or any European games for that matter. One of the great things about Wings fans is they’re like Yankees fans – wherever the sport lives, you’ll find a couple. And we’re lucky to have Karel close enough and interested enough to watch prospects like ASP.
By Karel Gut
The season before Steve Yzerman so wisely picked him at #17 ASP started in U20 but as the season progressed he got more and more looks with the men, both in CHL as well as in SHL and by the end of the season he was playing full time against men.
His game grew a lot last season, especially his defensive play matured and the rookie mistakes that he made during the WJC-20 last winter were mostly gone late in the season in the SHL.
His start this season in the SHL has been stellar stat-wise. The reality is a bit more tempered. His scoring ability have never been doubted by me (or Håkan Andersson) but a large part of his point production so far this season is entirely due to how he is being used on the powerplay and not really related to his overall qualities as a defender.
Skellefteå have three good right shooting defenders. The undisputed #1 is Jonathan Pudas who was voted Best Defender in SHL last season. The 2nd pair RD is Elias Salomonsson. Elias was picked by the Jets at #55 in 2022, he is also 7½ months older than ASP is and that matters (a lot) at their age. ASP is the 3rd pair choice this season. Elias Salomonsson attended the Winnipeg training camp and that (and a suspension for a game misconduct) has limited him to 6 games so far this season so there have been some opportunities for ASP to get icetime as 2nd pair but his natural spot this season is 3rd pair plus PP-time on the top unit as a shooter on the left half wall (AKA Ovechkin’s Office).
Comparing Axel’s stat progression with Elias’ for the last two seasons is interesting (even if Elias numbers are based on a small sample size):
Sandin Pellikka ATOI 22/23 08:34, ATOI 23/24 18:45
Salomonsson ATOI 22/23 14:26, ATOI 23/24 15:34
SOG/game ASP in 22/23 0.73, in 23/24 2.19
SOG/game Elias in 22/23 1.52, in 23/24 2.5
Even if Axel is getting all that icetime on the top PP-unit and Elias isn’t, Elias is still producing more offense. Neither SHL (nor CHL) track PP-time for players so I can’t say exactly how much of Axel’s production is due to being on the powerplay but it’s the majority. 4 of his 6 goals in the SHL this season have come on the PP.
What have impressed me most this season is how much better ASP is as a defender compared with how he looked a year ago at this time. He is never going to hit like Seider or Kronwall but he has learnt how to effectively cut off an attacker and pin him to the boards and he defends really well with his stick. His positioning in the defensive zone is pretty good and he doesn’t shy away from physical contact (he has 9 hits so far this season) and he can keep the crease clean, not by force but by good positioning on the attacker.
It is still way too early to say anything about how his offensive game will progress against men but all the tools are there. Axel is a fantastic skater and his puck handling skills and passing skills are no worse than any defender on the current roster of the Red Wings. The confidence he shows with the puck and his hockey-IQ and his creativity are totally off the charts. If he can put everything together as a package he’s destined for stardom.
ASP will be on this year’s WJC-20 team and I will enjoy seeing how much he has progressed since last year’s version where he ended up being the defender with most icetime on the team but with only a single assist and a -4 on the tournament.
ASP is currently:
3rd in points among all junior players in the SHL
1st in points among all junior defenders in the SHL
1st in icetime among all junior players in the SHL
2nd in goals among all junior players in the SHL
1st in shots on goal among all junior players in the SHL
5th in hits among all junior players in the SHL
2nd in blocked shots among all junior players in the SHL (Anton Johansson is 1st)
1st in goals among all defenders in the SHL
19th in points among all defenders in the SHL
1st in PP-goals among all defenders in the SHL
9th in shots on goal among all defenders in the SHL
30th in hits among all defenders in the SHL
58th in blocked shots among all defenders in the SHL
47th in icetime among all defenders in the SHL
As the last three stat lines above shows, ASP is, despite his stellar start to the season, still very much an unfinished player. A very promising prospect but there is some way to go before he’ll win the Norris yet…
What The Hockey Guy had to say about him (comments are good, read them):
Quotes:
“It’s a really cool guy, I’m almost star-struck. He has done so much for Detroit, it shows that he means a lot to them” ASP on Niklas Kronwall
“We had a couple of good talks during the combine, with Steve Yzerman and before that with the swedish scouts. I had a good feeling when it was their turn to pick in the draft.” ASP on the draft
“I have most contact with Kronwall, that’s the player developer in Detroit. We regularly SMS each other. He’s been to Skellefteå and checked out a few games. I’ve talked with him then and I plan to meet him today as well.” ASP after a recent game
Thanks again, Karel, for putting this together for us!
Fanposts have always been an important part of the WIIM experience. They bring a sense of involvement, community, and new perspectives that make this a special place. Fanposts are even how I got my start back during 1.0 (ah, Playoff Scoreboard Watch posts, you are remembered fondly).
Obviously, this looks a little different from the original Fanpost experience. But we’re going to make it work. If you’d like to put together your own Fanpost, you can reach out to any of the 2.0 staff on the subscriber Discord channel for coordinating, proofing, and publishing.
