“One thing that stood out a bit was Mike’s early interest,” Lindholm’s agent, Erik Wallström, told Maple Leafs Hot Stove. “He’s watched lots of games and is really sure what kind of player he’s getting.”
Playing 4C for Babcock involves meeting a certain standard of defensive play, penalty killing contributions, and faceoff ability. As far as the faceoff dot goes, Lindholm finished top five in the SHL with a 58.3% success rate while taking more draws than anyone else in top-flight Swedish hockey.
“He’s played on the penalty kill,” added Wallström. “Being strong on faceoffs and also reading the play very well, he’s well suited to be playing the PK.”
While he’s occupied a top scoring role in the past couple of seasons for Skellefteå AIK, Lindholm started his career in the SHL playing lower down the roster learning to play a responsible checking game.
“He started out as a pretty defensive-minded center, but as time went on and he got more confidence, he climbed the ladder on his Swedish team,” Uffe Bodin of HockeySverige.se told MLHS.
“You can pretty much put him anywhere on your roster and he’ll adapt to that role,” continued Bodin. “The past two seasons he has been a very effective offensive player in the SHL. I’d have to think that Babcock sees him as a potential third or fourth line center… more skilled than a Frederik Gauthier or a Dominic Moore type.”