"I think I tried to model my game a little bit of David Pastrnak," he continued, answering questions from Black and Red members, "I think his game is, it's a lot of fun to watch and is a very good player. Of course, I tried to like, be like Steven Stamkos sometimes, also Filip Forsberg.Those three are like, yeah, the guys that are comparable to me."
That's a formidable list.
While great, they are just models. For Alexander Holtz, he wants to be the best version of himself, taking tips and tricks from the players he watches intently and he's already out on the ice with Djurgardens of the Swedish Hockey League, looking to improve. He's off to a hot start with three goals and two assists in the opening seven games, two points behind the team leader. That would be Sebastian Strandberg, who is 33 years old. Holtz is still just 18.
"I think I can do better," Holtz shared, "Of course, I get a lot of ice time. So, I want to do better also, of course, the biggest thing I want my team to win. And we got two wins and three losses on these first five games. So, I want that to be even better. I want the next couple of games to be we're going to end with a win."
Holtz scored one of his three goals just two days after being drafted seventh overall by the Devils, now on Devils fans radar, he gave them a taste of his current development and abilities and flashes of who he can be. When that time comes, Holtz, who is never short of confidence, feels the smaller North American ice will be an asset, having learned the game on the European sized ice.
"I love the smaller rink," he said, "I think you have a good chance to shoot like when you get to the offensive zone all the time. So, you can shoot from almost everywhere. So, I think I'm more of a smaller guy, a smaller ice guy."
This season, Holtz has jumped to the top-line winger, skating on the right-wing of former New Jersey Devil Jacob Josefson.His time on ice has increased, so has his role and while we often hear about how lethal his shot can be, you can also point to his incredible skating ability along with his pinpoint shot accuracy as highlights to his game, but Holtz won't rest on his laurels. There's work to be done, and he's the first to admit it.
"I think to be like a more overall good player," he said of where he'd like to see improvements. "I think like it's almost the same things you need to work on. It's like everything, I want my shot to be even better, I want it to be faster and like, harder and even more accurate. So yeah, everything to be like better all the time."
Holtz was the second Swedish player taken in the 2020 draft, behind his friend Lucas Raymond. They're part of a new generation of Swedish talent that is expected to make an impact when they join their respective NHL clubs. Raymond was drafted by Detroit, fourth overall. They'll follow in the footsteps of many great Swedish players, including current player William Nylander, who Holtz qualifies as the most popular right now in Sweden, and Elias Pettersson. There is, however, one former player who is the most famous of all.
"I think maybe I would say Mats Sundin," he said of a player he'd like to meet. "He's a phenomenal Swede. Of course, he's been captain for the Toronto Maple Leafs for a lot of years and had a very successful career in NHL. And he's from Djurgårdens [system] also, so I think maybe, yeah, to meet him. And I don't know exactly what I would say to him, but it will be fun to meet him."
For now, he'll continue his growth, perhaps now a member of an NHL team, he'll have the chance to cross paths with Sundin, who retired in 2009 when Holtz was just seven years old. It's a reminder of how much young talent, now 2002 born players are drafted, is about to be injected into NHL rosters. So much so that 2020 draft picks may well one day be suiting up against players they've watched from afar.
Holtz is no exception.
"Of course, Alexander Ovechkin. Because I grew up watching him, watching him score a lot of goals. And yeah, I had him, when I was younger, I had him on on my wall, so I think that would be now very exciting."
