With a short break before the SHL Final begins, we had the chance to talk to a few members of Adam Engström’s team about the season for the club and the Montreal Canadiens defence prospect.
Patrik Bexell: A roller coaster year. It’s been a rocky road. What has changed over the … let’s say the last two weeks of the regular season and into the playoffs, where you’re undefeated right now?
Max Bohlin: I would say, actually, last 20 games of the SHL season. We did some adjustments in the way we play the system we play, especially in the defensive structure throughout the whole system. In the last 20 games we were the team that let in the least amount of goals in the league. So we came into the playoffs with a good mindset and a good self-confidence and are kind of building from that.
You’ve been the underdogs the whole playoffs, obviously being one of the last teams in. But also, if you said that you would be in the finals before the season, people would have said, ‘Yeah, it’s Rögle, they would have been.. It’s not that surprising, it’s the road there that has been twisting and turning. You mentioned the defensive adjustment. Brendan Davidson came back and has formed a very solid pair with with Adam Engström defensively, which is maybe not what we expected as Montreal Canadiens fans.
No, I really like that pair and Brandon has served as a good mentor for Adam as well. Brandon with his NHL experience, obviously learning a lot over there, so they have been [good]. On the contrary, Adam is teaching Brandon, maybe how to play with the puck more. I think they fit well as a pair.
Adam is obviously playing on his off-side, what’s the benefit of that, and what are the difficulties?
I think he’s such a good skater, so defensively with the gap, the neutral zone gap and the D-zone, there’s not a big difference. I think also his puck skills make him a defender that can play on the off-side. That’s usually how you think when you plan the defence when you don’t have enough righties We have one righty of eight defencemen, so we need to have lefties on the right side and I think Adam with his puck skills fits well there.
You also get the stick into the middle in the offensive zone, which is beneficial for Adam’s shot, even if he hasn’t used it.
Yeah, absolutely. We saw the goal against Växjö, the two-on-one goal. But he just had the puck on the right side and took two, three strides and shot. So you can also play effectively on the right side as a lefty.
Looking at Adam’s development this year, I obviously think it has been a lot of the defensive zone work, and that is not maybe as exciting, headline-wise. What have you guys worked on this year in order to prepare him for a playoff run this great?
Working with Adam’s game to play consistently over 60 minutes, to play a game that’s beneficial for the team’s success. Which means, as a defenceman, you have to make sure that you play defence and the way we changed our structure helped Adam because we play more aggressively now in the D-zone, which makes it easier for him to take those two or three strides. He’s really good at closing the gap, so that’s really beneficial for him.
It’s also a mindset. I think his growth — for the whole team — is a willingness to play ‘team-first’ and consistent hockey. That has made the team successful, and Adam successful.
We’ve seen Davidson rubbing off a little bit on Engström. He’s feisty after the after the puck is dead and you know there has been some pushing and shoving around. Is that something we should look for as Montreal fans as well? This grittiness, and his will to win that we always knew that Adam had?
Yeah, Adam has that. Don’t forget that he was one of the leading defencemen on the under-20 team winning the gold medal last year.
Who was the coach for that team?
[Laughs]: I see Adam as a championship player because he’s really growing his game. You saw this last game, too, against Växjö. The fourth game was his best game, so really happy with his push here. But it hasn’t come easy. It has been a learning year and for him to still continue to help the team but also working with his own development to, in the future, play in the NHL. It’s not going to be easier, it’s going to be harder. He’s done that really well.
We have to mention that you beat the one seed. you beat the second seed, and you’re looking at another semi-final that is still ongoing while you’re resting and preparing for the finals. What should Montreal fans look for, other than the exceptional crowd here in Ängelholm?
I mean the whole of Ängelholm, as a city, it is like they are behind us in this. We really play for our fans. They’ve been amazing [the whole year], but also controlling that as a team, controlling that and putting the energy in the right direction. It’s going to be a fun finals for sure.
Lastly; a comment on coaching against Filip Eriksson, who has had a fantastic year, first in Nybro and then coming into the playoffs and arguably in the last two games being one of the best players in Växjö?
I really like Filip Eriksson. He stands out when you coach against Växjö because he’s so smart. He makes those little plays. He sets up his teammates. Obviously, he scored two there in one game against us, so he made it hard for us. He is a player you like, especially the IQ. He’s also a really good person. I had a chance to meet him this summer [at the Montreal Canadiens development camp] too, but he’s a good guy.
