The Stampede City is a long way from home for Axel Hurtig.
But it’s exactly where he wants to be.
The Swedish defender is spending the summer here after a successful first WHL season with the Calgary Hitmen, a year that brought team and individual accolades.
The Hitmen reached the second round of the WHL playoffs for the first time in six years, while Hurtig was named the team’s top defenceman after a campaign that saw him record 16 points and a +39 rating in 55 games.
Hurtig, who came over to North America last summer after being selected by the Flames in the seventh round of the 2023 NHL Draft, has designs on making this upcoming season even better than the last.
“I’m feeling good, taking a lot of strides so far this summer, I’m excited for the rest of it,” he said. “I feel like I’m getting better every day.
“It’s really exciting getting on the ice, feeling the more power that I’ve got.”
At the recently-concluded Flames Development Camp, Hurtig had some fellow Swedes to break bread with, too.
He was grouped alongside fellow blueliner Jakob Leander, but also took time to show second-round pick Theo Stockselius the ropes over their first visits to Alberta as Flames prospects.
“It’s usually like that when you’ve got other Swedes around, you usually get together like a flock,” Hurtig said with a grin. “It (was) nice to talk some Swedish during the day, too, I don’t usually get to do that.
“I’m really happy for those guys, getting drafted by the Flames. It’s a great organization. Just trying to help them out, get settled and everything will work out.”
For Hurtig, though, this summer is a big one. And it’s a big reason as to why he stayed in Calgary instead of returning home.
In junior hockey-speak, he’s set to enter his 20-year-old campaign in the fall, meaning he could be eligible to make the jump to the pro game.
The Canadian Hockey League recently expanded the number of European player slots on their club rosters from two to three, too, meaning Hurtig could also land back with the Hitmen as a ‘two-spotter,’ occupying both an import and overage slot on the roster.
Naturally, he has pro aspirations (Hurtig made his SHL debut in 2023-24, appearing in seven games for Rogle), but he remains laser-focused on the process, and letting the chips fall where they may, citing last year’s WHL campaign as a season of personal growth and on-ice development.
“Last year was a really exciting year for me, I got to learn how to play on a smaller rink, learn the Canadian way to play hockey - it’s a little tougher, a little grittier than I’m used to,” he said. “I’m just going to take that experience, ‘cause the first 20 games probably weren’t the best of mine.
“I feel like I grew for every game I played; from the first game to the last game, there were two different players on the ice. That’s just the steps I want to keep on taking, learning from every mistake I make on the ice and learning from the good things I do, too, how to make them better.
“I’m just trying to take advantage of the opportunity.”
Settling into life in Canada helped, too.
As the lone Swede on the Hitmen roster, it took time for Hurtig to feel comfortable in his new environs. But the 6-foot-5 rearguard - and his stellar English - became an intangible part of that Calgary lineup.
“After a while, you settle in,” he explained. “I have great billets, they take really good care of me.
“You settle in, everything gets comfortable; you get to know your teammates a lot, you get to hang out, make friends, and that really helps out to take your mind off hockey, too.”
He’s getting to know Flames Director of Sports Performance Rick Davis and his staff pretty well this summer, too, putting in shift after shift in the gym, trying to get bigger, faster, stronger.
All in a bid to take another big step forward in this, his new hockey home.
“I feel like the development to get here - with Rick (Davis) and those guys - they help you out a lot,” said Hurtig. “I feel like every day, I’m working hard here, I’m taking strides, I feel like it’s worth it.
“My mindset is ‘I’ll have fun later.’ Right now, it’s a grind, just trying to get better every day. And they’ve got the opportunity for me here to do that.”
