Month: June 2019

The Detroit Red Wings’ summer development camps aren’t reserved for the Red Wings’ draft picks and signed prospects alone.

The Red Wings welcome both free agents who may never sign with the Wings and some AHL-contracted players who may never play in Detroit or even Grand Rapids to their summer development camps and fall prospect tournaments, and the invites and AHL contracts receive just as much attention and investment in terms of time, energy and money spent on equipment, on and off-ice training, education and nutrition that the Wings’ top prospects receive.

As a result, both Grand Rapids Griffins coach Ben Simon and Toledo Walleye coach Dan Watson, who both participate in the summer development camps and fall prospect tournaments, are watching and evaluating potential employees.

The Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe spoke with coach Watson regarding his status as watching possible Walleye players in action:

“If the Red Wings feel like these players need more playing time, a lot of times they will send them to us to continue their development,” Watson said.

Rookie forward Zach Gallant, who was drafted in the third round of the 2017 draft, got his first taste of pro hockey with the Walleye this past season. Gallant played in four games for Toledo at the end of the regular season and had four points with one goal and three assists. Gallant, a 20-year-old native of London, Ont., then had 12 points (6 G, 6 A) during the Walleye’s playoff run.

Forward David Pope, who was picked in the fourth round of the 2013 draft, also played for the Walleye this season.

The team also had several other players that are under contract with the Red Wings who contributed last season. Goaltenders Pat Nagle and Fulcher, along with forwards Jordan Topping, Dylan Sadowy, Bryan Moore, and defensemen Marcus Crawford and Trevor Hamilton, all were assigned to Toledo from Grand Rapids.

Walleye general manager Neil Neukam has called the relationship between Detroit, Grand Rapids, and Toledo “one of the strongest in professional hockey.”

“We look forward to its continued growth,” Neukam said.

Continued

The Detroit Red Wings’ prospects spent Tuesday generating data and working on shooting drills; Wednesday yielded a massive change-up as split squads of defensemen and then forwards worked with one of two skill development experts.

Team Lindsay, which includes players like Taro Hirose (for part of the day, at least), Gustav Lindstrom and Jesper Eliasson, worked with Swedish skill development coach Daniel Broberg, a tattooed, bearded Swede who had skaters of all varieties jumping, hopping and otherwise leaping their way through stickhandling drills that first challenged their hands and then required leaps of faith.

Team Lindsay starts the day off with some skill drills. #DRWDC pic.twitter.com/mfc25SH4ot— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) June 26, 2019

The skaters played some tag, too:

Continue reading Impressions from the second day of the Red Wings’ summer development camp ’19

The OHL’s Owen Sound Attack drafted Moritz Seider during last year’s import draft, hoping that Seider, who ended up playing for Adler Mannheim in Germany, would skate in the Canadian Hockey League this past season. According to the Owen Sound Sun-Times’ Greg Cowan, the Attack have not given up hope that Seider may yet join their ranks:

Seider has a number of options available to him for a 2019-20 landing spot including returning to Germany where he plays in the top-tier professional league (DEL) with the reigning champions, Alder Mannheim. If signed by Detroit to an entry-level contract Seider could immediately begin his North American career with the Red Wings, or their American Hockey League affiliate in Grand Rapids. The Red Wings organization may decide, in conjunction with Seider, that he is best served to spend a season in the CHL, in which case he would be assigned to the Owen Sound Attack. That would force the Attack to make an additional roster move.

“We’ll worry about that when we worry about that, which would be an absolutely fantastic problem to have,” DeGray said.

The Attack boss contacted the Red Wings following their selection of Seider, reaching out to assistant general manager Kris Draper.

“It’s so fresh. They don’t know even who the player is they selected as far as a Detroit Red Wing goes. They know him as a young kid in the German DEL men’s league, but how does that translate?” DeGray said. “I would say they know enough about Owen Sound, me, the program, that they will be comfortable sending him here if that’s the way they choose to go . . . where do we fit in the food chain? It’s probably somewhere right near the bottom.”

Continued, and as far as I know, the Wings and Seider will make their decision as to Seider’s 2019-2020 team after he participates in the prospect tournament and main training camp.

As noted by The Athletic’s Max Bultman on Twitter…

There’s a Nyquist-Detroit nugget in this one ? https://t.co/F0rdcOCzgn— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) June 26, 2019

The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun posted a notebook article regarding free agents-to-be, including one Gustav Nyquist:

Gustav Nyquist was a nice fit with the Sharks as a trade deadline pick up and San Jose, despite its cap issues, hasn’t closed the door bringing him back. Of course, other teams are calling this week on the four-time 20-plus goal scorer, including the likes of Edmonton and Detroit, according to sources.

LeBrun continues (paywall)…

Updated at 6:01 PM: The Red Wings’ beat writers filed their afternoon notebooks today, and most of them focused on acerbic forward Albin Grewe.

1. MLive’s Ansar Khan discussed the bite with which the 66th overall draft pick this past weekend in Vancouver plays:

Grewe, 18, has a particular trait that could make him a fan favorite and an irritant to the rest of the league if and when he reaches the NHL.

“I like to go under my opponents’ skin, too,” Grewe said. “I like to hit my opponents. Stuff like that. It’s enjoyable. I like it.”

The Red Wings selected the 6-foot, 187-pound left-shooting right wing in the third round (66th overall), with their fifth pick, from the Djurgardens junior team. He and nine other 2019 picks are among more than 40 prospects and free agents getting instructed and educate while taking part in on-ice drills and off-ice workouts this week at Red Wings development camp at Little Caesars Arena.

It’s somehow fitting Grewe was given No. 18, the jersey worn by long-time Red Wings forward Kirk Maltby, a thorn in the side of opponents for 16 NHL seasons.

Like many Swedes, Grewe grew up idolizing Peter Forsberg. Unlike many Swedes, or anyone else outside of Boston, he is now a big Brad Marchand fan.

Djurgardens coach Robert Ohlsson referred to Grewe as “T-Rex.”

“He said it once in an interview, but now it’s a nickname for me, so it’s funny,” Grewe said.

Khan continues, and he posted a video from Grewe’s scrum interview with the press:

2. The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan filed a notebook article which focuses on Grewe, too…

Continue reading Afternoon news: All about Albin Grewe, a bit about Moritz Seider and photo galleries

According to MLive’s Patrick Nothaft, Western Michigan University will earn his college diploma during this Saturday’s summer commencement ceremony:

It would have been easy for a person in DeKeyser’s shoes to scoff at the thought of obtaining an undergraduate degree after signing a two-year, $4.375-million deal with the Wings in 2014, but once he adjusted to life as a pro hockey player, he found enough down time to explore taking classes through WMU’s Extended University Programs, which integrates prior coursework from almost any major into a bachelor’s degree in university studies.

“I think it was one of those things where I had been in the league for a few years and had established myself a little bit as an NHLer, and I didn’t have any kids at the time or anything like that, and all I was doing was focusing on training for hockey and skating in the summers and stuff, and so I thought it would be a good time to start it back up,” he said. “On the road when we travel, we have a little bit of down time in the hotel or on the plane rides and stuff like that, so it actually gave me something to do and kept me busy while I was away from home.”

While most students have the ability to meet with their classmates or professors for study groups or help with assignments, the people surrounding DeKeyser weren’t as well-versed in college coursework, and that challenged him, particularly in a math class that occupied his time on a nightly basis during the spring semester.

“There were a few times where it was tough, and it was getting in late, 3 a.m. on the road or something like that, and then the next day we’d have a practice, and then I’d have to do some homework,” he said. “It was definitely different than what I was used to when I started in the NHL.

“I didn’t have anything else going on, I could just focus on hockey, but I had to keep tabs on my schooling, so it was definitely different, but overall I liked it. I enjoyed learning and stuff like that.”

Continued

Okay, so I’ve gotten this question a lot, and:

Yes, there are ways to support The Malik Report both during and after the summer development camp.

Many of you have already stepped up with generous assistance–enough that I can pay my $200 loan back to my mom. It was weird to see my bank account go all the way down to $0.00 seven months after my mom’s first breast cancer scare, but two hospitalizations for urinary tract infections and a “no cancer” biopsy later, I’m back at work, and it’s weird to see the bank account no longer at zeros.

In other words, I am grateful for your support. As I said when I came back, my goal is to continue to be qualify for my State of Michigan health insurance, and starting in January of 2020, that will mean having to earn the equivalent of 20 hours a week of minimum wage work, or about $750.00 a month. I hope that by that time I’m able to do so…

In the interim, https://paypal.me/TheMalikReport and https://patreon.com/TheMalikReport are great ways to help. Paypal yields one-time payments, and I’m making about $65 a month from Patreon, mostly from friends and family who are chipping in to help the blog.

That’s my story for now. I hope that you are enjoying the coverage of the summer development camp, and I hope that in the future, we’ll find a way to get TMR to yield enough money for me to start saving up for things like training camp (already!) and a newer computer (Gamera, my 8-year-old Toshiba laptop, has seen me through many a storm, but she’s getting old) and just a plain old income…

For now, though, I’ve gotta go home and get a tank of gas and some pop and snacks for tomorrow, and you’ve allowed me to afford that, which is amazing. Thanks for your support.

USA Hockey Arena is selling tickets to the World Junior Summer Showcase in Plymouth, MI from July 26th through August 3rd. I highly, highly recommend taking in the tournament if you are able to do so as the top Under-18 players for the U.S., Canada, Finland and Sweden all take part–as will several Red Wings draft picks.

I’m not sure whether I’ll make the tournament as it’s possible that I will be on vacation in Grand Marais, MI, but this is an event that’s so much fun that I would almost be willing to sacrifice my vacation to attend.

Here’s part of USA Hockey’s press release announcing the sale of tickets:

Tickets On Sale for 2019 WJSS

Event Set for July 26-August 3 in Detroit Suburb of Plymouth at USA Hockey Arena

Daily ticket passes are on sale now for the 2019 World Junior Summer Showcase, which will take place July 26-August 3 in the Detroit suburb of Plymouth at USA Hockey Arena.

The event features the best Under-20 players from four nations – the U.S., Canada, Finland and Sweden – auditioning for a spot to represent their country in the 2020 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship set for Dec. 26, 2018 – Jan. 5, 2019, in Ostrava and Trinec, Czech Republic. Several of the expected participants are notable NHL prospects, including 22 alumni of USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program, which is based out of USA Hockey Arena.

Tickets to the games are available at the USA Hockey Arena Box Office (14900 Beck Road, Plymouth, Michigan) or by calling (734) 453-8400 or at USAHockeyArena.com. All sessions are day tickets (one price for both games) with the exception of Tuesday, July 30, which will be a one-game pass. Games on Saturday, July 27, and Sunday, July 30, are $5, while games on Tuesday, July 30, Wednesday, July 31 and Friday, August 2, will be $10. Tickets for Saturday, August 3, will be $20. All tickets are general admission with the exception of Saturday, August 3, which will have reserved seating. Parking is free with the exception of August 3, where there will be a $5 charge per vehicle.

The Detroit Red Wings broadcast a full hour’s worth of commentary from Arthur J. Regner and Ken Kal during the second day of the Wings’ summer development camp, and the Wings archived the footage:

The afternoon media availability session at the Red Wings’ summer development camp was very productive. We were able to speak with six players in “scrum” interviews, including the following:

Chase Pearson, who turned pro after his junior season at the University of Maine, discussed his decision-making process, what he’s learning in terms of adjusting to the pro game both during his stint with the Grand Rapids Griffins and during this summer, and Pearson talked about his father’s influence upon his game as a former NHL player:

Massive 6’7″ forward Elmer Soderblom discussed being drafted by the Wings in a more soft-spoken interview, speaking about the advantages and disadvantages of being such a massive forward. He said that he’s “always been big,” so there was no growth spurt that propelled Soderblom to his towering size:

Continue reading Audio from the second day of the Red Wings’ summer development camp ’19: Chase Pearson, Elmer Soderblom, Ryan Kuffner, Albin Grewe and Jesper Eliasson