In the OHL championship series, Jordan Sambrook finished even with 2 shots in the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds’ 3-2 OT win over the Hamilton Bulldogs.
The Greyhounds’ win ties the best-of-7 series at 2 games apiece; Kaden Fulcher stopped 28 of 31 shots for Hamilton.
You can read the recap and watch highlights of the game here.
At the World Championship in Denmark:
Frans Nielsen scored a goal, finishing at +1 in 15:31 played during Denmark’s 3-2 win over Finland:
DetroitRedWings.com’s Dana Wakiji examines Vili Saarijarvi’s 2017-18 season “numbers” today, and as Wakiji notes, Saarijarvi’s got to improve upon his weight (listed at 178 pounds) and strength if he is to use next season as a springboard to the NHL. Saarijarvi’s 2017-18 season was split between the Grand Rapids Griffins and Toledo Walleye:
42 – Saarijarvi played in 42 games for the Griffins this past season.
11 – Saarijarvi played in 11 games for the Walleye in a couple of different stints this past season. He also recorded 11 assists with the Griffins.
7 – In his 11 games with the Walleye, Saarijarvi recorded two goals among seven points.
1 – In his AHL debut on Oct. 28, 2017 at Rockford, Saarijarvi recorded his first AHL point on Axel Holmstrom’s first-period goal, earning the second assist. Saarijarvi played in his first AHL playoff game on April 26, 2018 against the Manitoba Moose.
According to Crain’s Detroit Business’s Bill Shea, the City of Detroit’s auction of Joe Louis Arena seats and other items will provide a significant windfall for the city:
The city of Detroit said it expects to net at least $1 million from the online sale of seats, equipment and fixtures from Joe Louis Arena.
The Detroit Red Wings’ estimated 7,000 season tickets holders since May 1 have been able to buy seats from the shuttered city-owned arena, and several thousand have been sold, according to the auctioneer hired by the city to handle the sale.
Detroit’s building authority hired Byron Center-based appraisal and auction firm Miedema Asset Management Group Inc. and Bloomfield Hills-based industrial asset auctioneer Robert Levy Associates LLC to handle the direct sale of the seats and fixtures.
They will get a buyer’s premium on each sale, which is included in the same price, according to information provided by Mayor Mike Duggan’s office. The premium varies based on the item being sold, but the minimum is 18 percent.
The general public can buy seats beginning Saturday, and about 16,000 seats in total are being made available ranging in price from $150 to $350. For the early sale period exclusive to season-ticket holders, seats range from $200 to $350 each.
The seats are only sold in pairs, because they’re linked by a shared armrest, which means a price of $300 for the cheapest purchase.
The sale site it thejoeseats.com.
In addition to season ticket holders and regular fans, companies that sell sports arena and stadium seats are expected to buy JLA seats in bulk, Robert Levy previously told Crain’s. Arena equipment and fixtures are expected to be sold to commercial and industrial buyers. Everything from HVAC to bars to urinals to the scoreboard will be sold.
Among the Free Press’s Helene St. James’ mailbag questions:
HSJ: From people I talk to in the organization, Evan Bouchard tops their post-Dahlin defensive depth chart. He has size (6-foot-2, 193 pounds), shoots right, has a heavy shot and a great first pass. He dominated in the Ontario Hockey League with 25 goals among 87 points in 67 games, tops among OHL defensemen. Beyond that, Adam Boqvist and Michigan’s Quinn Hughes are dynamic skaters, and Noah Dobson is another big guy (6-foot-3, 180 pounds) who shoots right, makes a good first pass and skates well.
Forward Oliver Wahlstrom (40 goals among 83 points in 54 games with National Team Development Program) is an elite goal scorer, but the Wings really need an top defensive prospect.
ESPN’s Chris Peters penned an Insider-only article regarding the Red Wings’ 7 first-three-rounds-of-the-draft picks, and it’s a solid read:
It’s hard not to view the 2018 NHL draft as particularly crucial for the Detroit Red Wings. Now that Ken Holland knows his job is safe for a while longer, he has an opportunity to reshape the team a little bit. It’s probably going to end up taking longer than the Wings would like, but there is an opportunity to make some significant gains in their prospect system.
In what is considered a deep draft, particularly within the top 50, the Red Wings have two first-rounders and two early second-round picks. Add in three more third-rounders, and the Red Wings have seven of the first 90 picks in the draft. Of the years to have a surplus of early picks, this should be a particularly fruitful one. The Wings join the New York Rangers as the only two teams with seven picks in the first three rounds of the draft this year. To finish out the draft, Detroit additionally has a fourth-rounder, a pair of sixth-round picks and a seventh-rounder.
Of the picks, No. 6 overall is obviously the one they can’t miss on. This is a year in which the top 10 looks particularly strong. Not winning the draft lottery likely does not afford the Red Wings an NHL-ready asset next season, but they could still net a player who instantly becomes the top prospect in their system and a player with a great opportunity to have a lasting impact on the franchise. It all comes down to finding the right fit for the organization.
The rest of the picks have a chance to fill out a system that has some intrigue, but there are a lot of unknowns and longer-term projects for Detroit right now. There won’t be any quick-fix options in the draft, but there is enough here to aid the Red Wings a few years down the line when they’re a little further along in their transitional phase.
Peters continues, picking Quinn Hughes 6th overall…
FYI in terms of today’s World Championship schedule and a Dylan Larkin interview, per the Red Wings on Twitter:
Today’s #RedWings action at the #2018MWC: | #IIHFWorlds
?? vs. ?? | 2:15 p.m. (ET)
?? vs. ?? | 2:15 p.m. (ET) – @NHLNetwork pic.twitter.com/jluWDQapwx— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) May 9, 2018
“It’s been fun. Doing anything it takes to win.” @Dylanlarkin39 speaks to the media in Denmark following today’s practice day. #IIHFWorlds
Next up for @usahockey: Latvia tomorrow at 10:15 a.m. (ET). pic.twitter.com/4OcrmzByXt
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) May 9, 2018
According to MLive’s Ansar Khan, the Red Wings are hoping that recently-signed prospect David Pope can compete for a roster spot right out of training camp. Pope has developed into a sniper with a skill set that impresses Wings director of player development Shawn Horcoff:
“He’s a kid that has improved his skating over the years and I think that’s helped him get to the areas where he can score,” Horcoff said. “He’s great on the power play, he’s got a real good one-timer off the flank and a great wrist shot in stride. He’s a kid that’s really come on the last couple of years and had a great senior year.”
The Red Wings selected Pope in the fifth round in 2013 (109th overall). He had 20 goals and 41 points in 35 games this past season.
Horcoff said Pope is wiry, has a long reach and is hard to knock down.
“He’s had to earn everything in his life,” Horcoff said. “He’s a little bit of a late bloomer. He’s a winger that gets up and down the ice well and he’s a guy that can shoot it. Put him with good players, put him in position to score goals, he’s going to put it away. We’re hoping he can come to camp and show us that.”
Khan continues, and I remember when Pope first came to the Wings’ summer development camp as a 165-pound sniper. He has built up his body and his game significantly over the past four years.
The Toledo Walleye faced some stiff odds in heading to Fort Wayne down 3-2 in the teams’ second-round series, but the Walleye rallied from a 1-0 deficit on goals from Zach Nastasiuk and Austen Brassard…
Only to surrender a late-first-period and halfway-through-the-second-period goal, as well as an empty-netter, en route to a season-ending 4-2 loss.
The Walleye fell short of championship expectations by a fair amount, and the Walleye’s website posted a game recap:
Continue reading Walleye bow out of playoffs, losing to Fort Wayne in 6 games
At the World Championship in Denmark:
Libor Sulak finished even in 15:26 played (with 2 minor penalties taken) and Filip Hronek had 2 shots in 18:27 as the Czech Republic won 5-4 in a shootout over Switzerland.
Here are highlights from the game:
