Gustav Nyquist jokingly complains that AHL “It’s much easier when you have someone rookie Adam Almquist – his fellow Swedish who can talk your first language,” Almquist countryman and teammate – keeps all his stories said, noting that they talk more in English than to himself. Swedish out of respect for their teammates. “It’s “Nobody knows about him,” Nyquist said. nice to be able to talk to somebody about things “He’s the man of mystery.” back home.” In his defense, Almquist says he is just a The toughest thing, according to Almquist, is good listener. If he’s perceived as being quiet, it’s paying bills, although that will likely become less just that he would prefer to let his game do the of a concern the longer he is in the U.S. and the talking. quicker he achieves his goal of Nearing the halfway “If it all came down playing in the NHL. point of his first full season Based on skill level alone, his with the Griffins, it’s obvious chances are very good. to hockey sense, he that Almquist’s play speaks “If it all came down to hockey volumes. sense, he probably would probably would have have been a first-round pick,” “For a defenseman, his skill level is excellent,” said Hakan Andersson, the Red been a first-round pick.” Wings’ director of European Griffins assistant coach Jim Paek, a former NHL scouting, said in 2009 after defenseman himself. “He’s got great hockey Detroit grabbed him with the next-to-last pick sense and knows how to read plays and position in the NHL Entry Draft. “(His) hockey sense is himself. He moves really well across the blue line, something else. It’s as good as I’ve seen in many has great vision and shows poise with the puck. years.” “What does he need to do to get better? Hockey sense is the ability to read and react to Physically, he’s still a boy and he needs to get different situations and make the right decisions stronger, because at the next level he’ll be playing under pressure. Curiously, Almquist says he against men.” found it playing soccer rather than hockey. If Almquist seems a bit reserved, it helps to “It probably came from my father,” Almquist remember that he is only 21 years old and is still said. “He was a very good soccer player, and he getting used to a new language, a new country had what you could call really good soccer sense. and a new style of hockey. He understood soccer and had a good sense of This is a kid whose Twitter account photo the game in terms of good passing and always shows him looking rather sharp in a tux, walking thinking a step ahead.” under a black umbrella in the rain – on the way Thomas Almquist played hockey until a heart to his school prom. condition prevented him from playing the sport, Coming to North America is certainly a new so instead he excelled at soccer. He played a high experience for the young Red Wings prospect, level before he settled on being a painter (houses, one which he has heartily embraced. not canvases) and teaching his two sons how to Homesick? “Not at all, actually,” he said. “I play. can Skype with family and friends, so it’s not His older brother didn’t make it past junior a problem. I really enjoy it here and I like the hockey, but young Adam continued to excel, hockey, so it’s been kind of easy.” even though he was always smaller than the He admits that there have been adjustments, other boys with whom he played. starting with the language. “I learned English “I’ve been a little guy since I was young, so I in school, but it’s not the same thing, not at all,” had to think in a different way,” Almquist said. he said. “So it starts with getting used to the He found his inspiration in watching Johan language.” Akerman, a talented, puck-moving defenseman It’s helped that he has two fellow Swedes, who played 10 seasons in Sweden, as well as Nyquist and Joakim Andersson, as teammates. in Germany, Switzerland, Norway, France and They’ve helped him adjust away from the ice, Russia. whether it’s finding an apartment or buying a car “He played in my hometown (Jonkoping) to get around town. when I was like 15-17. He was such a good
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