Aron Nielsen Biography [2/2]

[solas 1,946]

CARRYING THE WEIGHT OF A NATION
Minnesota Storm defenseman Aron Nielsen will become the first person from the Faroe Islands to play in the VHL.  But how did he get here?

 

 

The city of Tórshavn, the capital of the Faroe Islands, isn’t famous internationally.  Nor is the nation it’s a part of.  The Faroe Islands have a population of just over 51,000 people (roughly 13,000 of which live in the capital), are located north of Scotland and southeast of Iceland.  Not only are they dwarfed by most other European countries, the islands have a history of being relatively isolated culturally despite being territory of Norway (until 1840) and Denmark.  As a result of their small population and relative isolation, there aren’t many (if any) people that would be largely recognized on an international stage.  But now, one native son of Tórshavn is starting to make a name for himself, with a chance to make waves in a sport that’s relatively unpopular in the Faroe Islands.

 

“I’ve never really thought of my journey as that unique or outstanding,” says Aron Nielsen.  “Maybe it’s just because it’s my life and I’m used to it.”  As he says this, he’s sitting in the home locker room of the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.  That’s roughly 3,400 miles away from the city he was born in.  He’s also just finished playing for the VHLM’s Minnesota Storm in a 7-3 win over the Halifax 21st, where he recorded an assist, 2 hits, and 2 blocked shots.  Nielsen hadn’t even heard of the VHLM until about two years ago.  It appears that he will likely be the first Faroese person to play professional hockey in North America - and is possibly the first to play professional hockey period.  I bring this all up to him.  He chuckles.  “Good point.  I guess I doing something different and getting out of my comfort zone.”

 

Nielsen was born on January 23, 2000, in the National Hospital of the Faroe Islands in Tórshavn.  He had a fairly modest upbringing - both his mother and father worked in the fishing industry, the largest industry in the islands.  As a result, the family was fairly comfortable economically but not particularly rich.  Aron was an adventurous and active child almost since birth, getting involved in just about every athletic activity that he could.  Living in the Faroe Islands, however, that mostly meant playing soccer - that was the sport that just about every one of the most well known Faroese athletes played.  For most of his childhood, Nielsen played soccer like just about every other kid.

 

Tórshavn, the city where Aron Nielsen grew up.

 

After a while, however, something changed.  Nielsen’s mother, Anja, ended up getting multiple promotions within the fishing company that she worked for.  As a result, the family ended up making more trips out of the country, particularly to Norway and Denmark.  And on those extended trips, Aron found an interest in ice hockey.  He very quickly took to skating, and would watch games on television whenever he could.  Unfortunately, it wouldn’t be until 2011, when Aron was 11 years old, that the Faroe Islands would build its first-ever ice rink.  Even though it was never used for hockey, that didn’t stop him from going there to practice skating almost every day.  

 

There was, however, a major life change that made his hockey passion a lot easier.  A year later, when Aron was 12 years old, his family moved full-time from the Faroe Islands to Aalborg, Denmark.  Since the Faroe Islands are Danish territory, and many of the people there speak Danish along with Faroese (the Nielsens themselves are descended from Danish settlers), culture shock wasn’t too much of a problem.  The biggest challenge for the family, however, was adjusting to a more heavily populated area.  While they had been outside the country before, the city of Aalborg also had twice as many people as the entire Faroe Islands, and living there permanently was a new challenge.  It took some time to adjust, but Aron seemed to fit in almost perfectly.

 

“I always enjoyed socializing and meeting new people,” Nielsen says of the move.  “And there were so much more people in Denmark that after a while I couldn’t even imagine going back to Tórshavn.”  While ice hockey isn’t as popular in Denmark as it is in places like Sweden, Finland, Russia, or Canada, there was far more infrastructure and opportunities in Aalborg than there were anywhere in the Faroe Islands.  And Nielsen would gladly take those opportunities.

 

Aron quickly proved himself to be a natural skater, but playing the actual game of hockey was a bit more difficult.  “I had watched as many games as I could, and I’d played games when I could on our trips to continental Europe,” Nielsen explains, “but I hadn’t really played that often.  I wasn’t used to holding a stick in my hand, I didn’t have the experience of playing in an actual game.  I’d absorbed a lot just by watching because I was so interested in the sport, but when I went to Denmark I was up against kids who had been playing organized hockey since they were 8 years old.”  

Nielsen had much less experience than his peers, but as he began to play more and more, he gained a much better understanding of the game and his natural talent and athleticism became apparent - so much so that he got the attention of the Aalborg Pirates, the local hockey team.  The Pirates, who compete in Denmark’s Metal Ligaen, had noticed Nielsen and offered him the opportunity to join their youth team.  Naturally, he jumped at the chance

 

Nielsen's hockey career took off with his family's move to Aalborg, Denmark.

 

Things proved difficult at the start.  The Pirates weren’t looking at Nielsen as an elite player, and while they knew he had talent he was still one of many players in their setup.  He was still much more of a raw, unrefined player than those who were the same age, and it took him a while to properly acquit himself.  But three years into his stint in the academy, when he was 17 years old, something changed.

 

“I was about to go back home from practice one day, and one of the coaches came up to me,” Nielsen says.  “He told me I was close to getting released.  I was a winger and the time, and he said to me that I was a good player, and I could possibly make it as a professional player elsewhere.  But I wasn’t cut out to play on the wing.  I went home and cried at first.  Then I thought a bit.  The next day, I went to practice and told the coach I wanted to be a defenseman.”

 

This was a shock to most of his coaches.  Nielsen wasn’t very big, and he wasn’t very well known for throwing his body around.  But they acquiesced, and he was put on the blueline for that day’s drills and scrimmage.  He didn’t move back.  

 

From the moment he changed positions, Nielsen immediately felt much more at home.  He gained a ton of momentum, and rode that momentum to a professional contract and some sparse appearances with the pro team at age 18.  The next season, at 19 years old, he became a permanent member of the Aalborg Pirates pro roster.  Nielsen didn’t stop there, as he had a huge breakout season in what would end up being his final year with the team.  Aalborg won the Metal Ligaen for the first time since 1980-81, and Nielsen established himself as one of the team’s top 4 defensemen and a force on the power play seemingly out of nowhere.  And because the Faroe Islands are a part of Denmark, he also played for the Danish team in the U-20 World Championships.

 

Winning the Danish Metal Ligaen with Aalborg was Nielsen's first taste of big-time success.

 

But his ambitions reached beyond Denmark.  “When I first watched hockey on television, I didn’t watch Danish hockey,” Nielsen explains.  “I watched leagues like the VHL.  I saw teams across Europe and North America.  I will always appreciate the opportunity Aalborg gave me, but as we’ve gone over I’m an adventurous person.  I wanted to do something different.”

 

To the surprise of many, Nielsen turned down the option to stay with Aalborg for another year or join a larger European team to join the VHLM.  Now, as part of the massive Season 66 draft, he has the opportunity to test himself on a massive stage unlike any he’s been on before.  And Nielsen wouldn’t have it any other way.  “If I hadn’t tested myself in the past,” he says, “I wouldn’t be where I am today.  No reason to stop now.  This doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten where I came from.  I want to build up the sport of ice hockey in the Faroe Islands and Denmark as best as I can.  I want to take advantage of this opportunity.”
 

Edited April 6, 2019 by solas

[leafssteen 50]

Review: I really liked this bio and found it to be a lot more unique then most.The pictures and titles made the bio look very nice. Also I really enjoyed the quotes and felt they made it more interesting. Great job and good luck with your career!  

[Greg_Di 933]

Review:

Really enjoyed readings this. Quotes made the article that much more authentic and it made the article read like a real biography. Use of pictures and small text underneath was also great and gives the reader  some extra information. I liked reading about the Faroe Islands and brought context to where the player grew up. Well done!