Boikov, Lindholm Ready To Make Their Mark

CENTENNIAL, Colo.—Sergei Boikov and Anton Lindholm took different routes to get to the Colorado Avalanche’s Rookie Camp, but both young defensemen could find themselves in the team’s lineup sooner rather than later.

After being drafted by the Avs in 2014 and signing entry-level contracts with the club this past summer, the two foreigners are set to begin their first professional campaigns with either the NHL squad or in the American Hockey League with the San Antonio Rampage.

The Russian Boikov and Swede Lindholm didn’t look out of place during this past weekend’s Rookie Showcase and both enjoyed the experience of competing against their peers in a game scenario.

“The games against San Jose and Anaheim, they were exciting games,” Boikov said after practice on Monday at Family Sports Center. “You can take a lot from them. You have to watch everything, what other players are doing; you have to understand your partner.

“It was very exciting. When you wear the jersey, you understand that not a lot of guys can do that and get this chance.”

Boikov played in both contests, while Lindholm only dressed for Saturday’s matchup against the San Jose Sharks.

It was Lindholm’s first taste of what North American professional hockey is all about.

Lindholm has appeared in 75 Swedish Hockey League games with his hometown club, Skelleftea, over the past five seasons, playing a significant role the past two. He will need to get used the smaller ice surface found in the majority of rinks in the United States and Canada since the SHL plays on international ice sheets, which are 15 feet wider than in the NHL.

“I like the physicality and I like the speed of the game. I like the smaller rink,” Lindholm said. “It’s just going to take some adjustment time to adjust my game to the smaller surface. Not searching for the tape-to-tape passes up the middle all the time, use the glass, use the boards, which I’m not used to. On bigger ice surfaces, you can land tape-to-tape passes every time. It’s a fun game. It’s straightforward. It’s hard. I like it.”

Getting accustomed to the faster style in a tighter space seems to be Lindholm’s only hurdle so far in camp.

“Certainly playing on the big ice there, it’s different, but [he’s] a very competitive guy and comes from an excellent organization, Skelleftea—a top development organization, always in the top,” said Colorado assistant general manager Craig Billington of the Swede. “He is coming from what we consider a great breeding ground in itself.”

Lindholm seems to be the type of defender that will fit in nicely in new Avs head coach Jared Bednar’s system and structure.

Bednar has said he is looking for his players to play fast, moving the puck quickly out of the defensive zone …

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