Only a few short seasons ago, Otto Axelsson was out of hockey completely and looked like yet another bust Fast forward three seasons and Otto is coming off of a Continental Cup victory with the HC Davos Dynamo. It appeared that things were looking up for the 25-year-old Swede, but even he did not expect that the best was yet to come. Axelsson can currently find himself second on the league leaderboards in total points scored but the more impressive stat is that the pass-first winger has buried twelve goals in just seven contests this season. Many have said that Axelsson's torrid pace to start the season is not sustainable and Otto himself has echoed these statements.
"I was not prepared to be so hot to start the season. It feels like every time the puck is on my stick I have a good chance to score. I worked hard on my shot the last season and again this off-season but even I was not ready for this. I am like a 6% shooting percentage for my career. My stick will cool off eventually but for right now I am enjoying the success."
While Axelsson was right about his career shooting percentage, which is good on him btw, he has clearly not spent the time dissecting the numbers as we have. Axelsson scored only 7 goals on 174 shots as a rookie with the Bears which means he scored on 4% of his shots. When Otto arrived in Davos, coaches recognized he was too one-dimensional and urged him to shoot more. The result was a 171% increase in goals on a 41% increase in shot volume; the coaching staff were smart to encourage Otto to work on his scoring ability. Otto has seen his shooting percentage jump from 4 to 7% and while this seasons 32% is highly likely to regress it should fall somewhere over 10%.
It is not just Axelsson's shooting that has noticeably increased either, Otto is noticeably faster on the ice this season. The former Bear was noted as a heavy-footed player in his draft but he has worked on it each and every season and now he is seeing the fruits of his labour. Coaches have noticed that Otto is one of the fastest players in practices now and he uses his speed to get himself into prime scoring areas that allow him to showcase his finely tuned shot.
The Dynamo are enjoying a hot start to their season thanks to not only Otto but a host of talented players. The general manager of the Dynamo did not rest on his laurels this offseason; trading for David Kiaskov to replace the retiring Roux and bringing up some rookie defenders in Jokinen and Smith has really given the team some depth. Rumours are swirling that the GM has another move or two up his sleeve to really put the Dynamo over the top as they look to defend their Continental Cup against the rest of the league, with the ever-feisty Calgary looking like the top competitor.
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