RWC REPORT: Axelsson 'won't make it' without changes

By Matthew Wuest - RedWingsCentral.com / December 15, 2008

If Dick Axelsson has any hope of one day suiting up for the Detroit Red Wings, his current work habits simply aren't going to cut it.

The 21-year-old forward was effectively kicked off his Swedish Elite League team this past week for poor on- and off-ice work ethic. Djurgarden didn't have the patience for him — despite five goals and seven assists in 18 games — and jettisoned him to Farjestad for the rest of the season.

The Red Wings, who drafted him 62nd overall in 2006 and are head over heels about his skill level, will be watching Axelsson's response closely.

"It doesn't matter if you're Henrik Zetterberg or Steve Yzerman or Dick Axelsson — if you don't work hard, you don't make it," said Red Wings assistant general manager Jim Nill. "That's why Henrik Zetterberg and Steve Yzerman have made it, and until Dick Axelsson learns that, he won't make it.

"It's a good lesson for him. We'll see how he responds."

The Red Wings built a Stanley Cup champion on hard work as much as talent. Axelsson, who chief European scout Hakan Andersson compares to a "more skilled version of Mikael Samuelsson," has the talent, with size, skating ability, soft hands and a good shot. But he's there one shift, gone the next.

The 6-foot-2, 176-pounder also had a documented incident last spring when he blew his chances at representing Sweden at the IIHF world championship because he reportedly spent a night in jail for "drunk and disorderly conduct."

"He's a young kid who's been living off his skill level," Nill said. "Trouble is, every level you go up, everybody has the same skill level or better. If you're gonna make it, it comes down to work ethic. That's how you separate yourself."

Djurgarden was the worst team in the Swedish Elite League; Farjestad is a perennial contender that is currently third in the standings.

Axelsson had an assist in his first game with Farjestad. He skated on the first line with former NHLers Rickard Wallin and Lee Goren.

The Red Wings signed Axelsson to a three-year entry-level contract this past summer and would ideally like to see him in the American Hockey League with the Grand Rapids Griffins sooner rather than later.

* Defenseman Brendan Smith (Wisconsin, NCAA) fell short in his bid to make Team Canada for the world junior championship. Smith participated in the team's selection camp over the weekend and performed well, but was edged out by a eight-man unit that includes Alex Pietrangelo and Thomas Hickey.

Goaltender Thomas McCollum will be a key factor for the U.S. at the world junior, while forward Joakim Andersson will star for Sweden.

The tournament starts Boxing Day in Ottawa.

* Forward Ville Leino (Grand Rapids, AHL) has seen things go from bad to worse. He has just six assists in his past 14 games and just one assist in his past seven contests. Things really aren't going well for Leino, who looked ticketed for Detroit early in the year after a sizzling-hot start.

* Defenseman Jonathan Ericsson (Grand Rapids, AHL) has been on the shelf with a minor shoulder injury recently, while high-scoring forward Darren Helm returned to the farm after a call-up to the Red Wings.

* Forward Gustav Nyquist (Maine, NCAA) continues to enjoy great offensive success in his freshman year. He has nine goals and seven assists in 16 games, tops on his team and among the Hockey East leaders.

The following is an up-to-date statistical report for skaters:

NAME	TEAM	LEAGUE	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM
A H L
Ville Leino	Grand Rapids	AHL	24	4	17	21	8
Darren Helm	Grand Rapids	AHL	23	7	13	20	4
Justin Abdelkader	Grand Rapids	AHL	26	9	9	18	44
Mattias Ritola	Grand Rapids	AHL	25	8	7	15	12
Cory Emmerton	Grand Rapids	AHL	24	2	12	14	10
Jakub Kindl	Grand Rapids	AHL	26	4	10	14	28
Evan McGrath	Grand Rapids	AHL	19	4	9	13	6
Ryan Oulahen	Grand Rapids	AHL	26	7	2	9	9
Jamie Tardif	Grand Rapids	AHL	19	6	2	8	11
Jonathan Ericsson	Grand Rapids	AHL	22	0	7	7	28
Logan Pyett	Grand Rapids	AHL	19	0	6	6	0
Sergei Kolosov	Grand Rapids	AHL	20	0	5	5	14
Jan Mursak	Grand Rapids	AHL	18	0	2	2	6
K H L
Gennady Stolyarov	Astana Barys	KHL	25	8	5	13	16
Miroslav Blatak	Salavat Yulaev	KHL	31	1	7	8	14
S W E D E N
Dick Axelsson	Farjestad	SEL	19	5	8	13	10
Anton Axelsson	Timra	SEL	31	4	4	8	0
Joakim Andersson	Frolunda	SEL	32	2	6	8	14
Jesper Samuelsson	Timra	SEL	30	2	1	3	8
Joakim Andersson	Boras	SWE-2	4	2	2	4	2
Johan Ryno	AIK	SWE-2	4	1	2	3	2
Jesper Samuelsson	Sundsvall	SWE-2	5	0	1	1	4
C H L
Brent Raedeke	Edmonton	WHL	36	10	21	31	46
Randy Cameron	Moncton	QMJHL	28	8	20	28	12
Zack Torquato	Erie	OHL	31	15	12	27	50
Stephen Johnston	Belleville	OHL	31	10	17	27	18
Brian Lashoff	Kingston	OHL	31	1	14	15	21
N C A A
Gustav Nyquist	Maine	HE	16	9	7	16	14
Brendan Smith	Wisconsin	WCHA	17	5	9	14	38
Julien Cayer	Clarkson	WCHA	9	1	5	6	10
Bryan Rufenach	Clarkson	ECAC	13	2	3	5	26
Nick Oslund	St. Cloud State	WCHA	16	3	2	5	8
Nils Backstrom	Alaska-Anchorage	WCHA	16	2	0	2	16
U S H L
Max Nicastro	Chicago	USHL	22	5	10	15	27

The following is an up-to-date statistical report for goaltenders:

NAME	TEAM	LEAGUE	GP	W-L-O	GAA	SPCT
Thomas McCollum	Guelph	OHL	30	16-10-4	2.13	.928
Daniel Larsson	Grand Rapids	AHL	14	8-3-1	2.76	.904
Jimmy Howard	Grand Rapids	AHL	15	5-7-2	2.99	.891

LEAGUE LEGEND: AHL — American Hockey League; KHL — Kontinental Hockey League; SEL — Swedish Elite League; SWE-2 — Swedish Allsvenskan (second level); OHL — Ontario Hockey League; WHL — Western Hockey League; QMJHL — Quebec Major Junior Hockey League; WCHA — Western Collegiate Hockey Association; ECAC — East Coast Athletic Conference; HE — Hockey East; USHL — United States Hockey League.