Axel Sandin-Pellikka

Axel Sandin-Pellikka has become known as an offensive defenceman with a strong shotArticle in HockeynewsRead the sourceArticle in HockeysverigeRead the sourceArticle in SVT SportRead the sourceArticle in SHLRead the sourceClose. Axel Sandin-PellikkaArticle in Gällivare kommunRead the sourceArticle in SHLRead the sourceClose grew up in Gällivare municipality and began playing hockey with Malmbergets AIF. In a January 2024Article in SHLRead the sourceClose SHLSHLSHL, the Swedish Hockey League, is Sweden’s top men’s domestic ice hockey league.Close interview, he recalled that his first sport was cross-country skiing, which his father also pursued, before his interest shifted to hockey. He also remembered receiving hockey equipment from his maternal grandfather for ChristmasArticle in SHLRead the sourceClose.

He did not start out as a defenceman: in a September 2023Article in SHLRead the sourceClose SHLSHLSHL, the Swedish Hockey League, is Sweden’s top men’s domestic ice hockey league.Close interview, he recalled first playing forward and signing up for a hockey camp as a defenceman at around age 10 because only defence places remained. He then alternated between the positions until moving to Skellefteå in 2019Article in SHLRead the sourceClose. His childhood idol was Patrick Kane, and he remembered his father returning from Chicago in 2010Article in SHLRead the sourceClose with jerseys for him and his younger brother. He also tried to copy Kane’s stickhandling from YouTube clipsArticle in SHLRead the sourceClose.

In JanuaryArticle in SHLRead the sourceClose 2024, Sandin-Pellikka said that Zeb Forsfjäll had become his first friend in Skellefteå when he moved there in 2019 and that they had shared rooms on junior national team trips. Other people featured in accounts of his hockey development: Hockeyjournalisterna’s MarchArticle in Svenska IshockeyförbundetRead the sourceClose 2025 article described Jonathan Pudas as his mentor, while Niklas Kronwall frequently visited and offered advice.

Family hockey trips were another memory in the January 2024Article in SHLRead the sourceClose interview: they travelled by caravan to hockey camps around Sweden, trips he enjoyed. He also described his grandfather’s text messages after games: one thumbs-up meant he had played well, 2 meant he had played especially wellArticle in SHLRead the sourceClose.

In its 2024/25 annual report, Malmbergets AIFArticle in Malmbergets AIFRead the sourceClose reported that Sandin-Pellikka had donated starter equipment to the club. The equipment was frequently lent out at the club’s introductory hockey sessionsArticle in Malmbergets AIFRead the sourceClose.