Month: August 2019

From the Toledo Walleye:

Toledo, OH – Forwards Zack Phillips and Abbott Girduckis (gurr-duck-ihs) have agreed to terms with the Toledo Walleye for the 2019-20 season.

Phillips was drafted in the first round (#28 overall) by the Minnesota Wild in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. While never making the NHL, the 26 year old has extensive pro experience with 260 career games at the AHL level spanning four full seasons. Phillips has spent the last three seasons playing in Sweden, Germany and Austria amassing 158 games with 36 goals, 67 assists and 48 penalty minutes.

“Zack brings so much experience to us,” said Head Coach Dan Watson. “He is a dynamic forward with a high compete level that will fit right in with what we are trying to accomplish here.”

Continue reading Toledo Walleye add a pair of forwards in Zack Phillips, Abbott Girduckis

DetroitRedWings.com’s Arthur J. Regner examines Albert Johansson and Gustav Berglund’s 2018-2019 seasons “By the Numbers” this morning, and we’ll take a look at what Red Wings director of player development Shawn Horcoff has to say about Johansson:

Quotable: “Very, very good skater. Obviously at development camp I was really impressed with his edges, his balance, his stride, very, very smooth, he’s got a great glide, it’s right on top of the ice. Good offensive skills, really shifty, good puck skills, can move the puck well. But he’s another guy that’s just underdeveloped, he needs to put on strength. Still seems to be growing a little bit, but there’s good upside there offensively.” — Shawn Horcoff, Red Wings director of player development

Quotable II: “When I was very small (my favorite player) was Nick Lidstrom because he was the biggest defenseman. Down the years it was Erik Karlsson and John Klingberg. With the Swedish defensemen, I look at the offensive game. I like that.” — Johansson

Regner continues

MLive’s Ansar Khan examines Frans Nielsen’s season outlook this morning:

2019-20 outlook: Nielsen was signed to a six-year, $31.5 million contract on July 1, 2016, when the Red Wings were desperate for a center after Pavel Datsyuk left for Russia and were trying to extend their playoff streak rather than rebuild.

The move hasn’t panned out. Nielsen’s production has declined the past two seasons and his contract could be an issue next off-season, when the team might need to consider a buyout.

For now, Nielsen will be the second- or third-line center (Valtteri Filppula will fill the other spot). He’ll continue to kill penalties. It remains to be seen how much he’ll play on their power play, where he wasn’t as effective last season (no goals, eight assists). He wasn’t nearly as effective in shootouts but remains one of the best in the game and will still be one of the top team’s three options.

Continued

The Canadian Hockey League’s website posted an interview with Red Wings prospect Joe Veleno, discussing his lengthy playing history for Hockey Canada as Veleno attempts to earn another spot on the Canadian World Junior Championship team:

For Veleno, the chance to return to the national stage follows past opportunities not only including last year’s world juniors, but a pair of appearances at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup – Veleno captained Canada to a gold medal win in 2017 – plus a five-game showing with Team Canada Black at the 2015 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge.

In all, there has been no shortage of big moments preparing Veleno for the national spotlight, including multiple appearances in the CIBC Canada Russia Series, an invaluable tune up for players and talent evaluators alike ahead of the World Juniors.

“It’s one of the steps to playing for Team Canada,” Veleno told the Canadian Hockey League. “The Summer Showcase is No. 1, and the next step is a little bit of your season, but then it’s the Canada Russia Series, which is really important. Ever since I played my first series, the first thing I think about is Hockey Canada. It’s a way for them to view where you are and if you’re going to get invited to camp and make the team.”

After finishing an unsatisfying sixth place at last year’s World Juniors, Veleno is hopeful for a different outcome his second time around.

“I think last year was really big. It was obviously one of my goals to play for Team Canada at 18. I worked really hard for that, it was obviously a disappointing result, but hopefully this time around we step up and win that gold medal.”

Continued

The Toledo Walleye announced the signing of forward Branden Troock this afternoon:

Toledo, OH – Forward Branden Troock has agreed to terms with the Toledo Walleye for the 2019-2020 season.

Troock was drafted in the fifth round of the 2012 draft (#134 overall) by the Dallas Stars. The Edmonton, Alberta native spent last year splitting his time between Atlanta and Maine of the ECHL. In 27 total games, he picked up 10 goals with seven assists and 12 penalty minutes. Troock has appeared in 100 ECHL games since turning professional in 2014 with 84 points (37G, 47A) and 52 penalty minutes.

“Branden brings a lot of championship experience to the Walleye,” said Head Coach Dan Watson. “He will add some scoring punch to our forward unit.”

The 25-year-old  played 119 career AHL games including a 2014 Calder Cup Championship when he was a member of the Texas Stars. Troock scored 13 career goals at the AHL level with 24 assists and 80 penalty minutes. Most of his AHL appearances have been with Texas that includes 98 games played for the Stars. Prior to his professional career, Troock spent parts of five seasons with Seattle in the WHL. The 6’2”, 220 pound forward picked up 101 points (45G, 56A) in 144 career junior contests.

The Grand Rapids Griffins posted a one-minute interview with Moritz Seider based upon comments that Seider made during the Wings’ summer development camp:

Dylan Larkin was attending the Power Edge Pro hockey camp in Toronto today, and he spoke with TSN’s Mark Masters in a non-embeddable video, speaking for four minutes regarding a number of topics. Here’s TSN’s teaser:

As he prepares for his fifth season in the NHL, Dylan Larkin is ready to take on a greater leadership role with the Red Wings. “I feel ready for it,” Larkin said when asked about the team’s captaincy, which has been vacant since the retirement of Henrik Zetterberg. “It’s something that I can’t focus on, I can’t lose sleep about, I can’t control it.”

Update: Here’s the video in YouTube format, via TSN’s YouTube page:

Update: Here’s a bit more from NHL.com’s Mike Battaglino:

Dylan Larkin said Tuesday he would welcome becoming captain of the Detroit Red Wings.

“I feel ready for it,” the center told TSN. “I think it’s something that I can’t focus on, I can’t lose sleep about it, can’t control it, I just try and be myself and play the game that I love and play with a lot of passion.

“Everyone in the NHL has been a leader at some point in their careers. I’m lucky that we have great veteran leadership and it’s taken a lot of pressure off me, but a letter’s a letter, but being a captain of a franchise like the Detroit Red Wings would mean a lot to me.”

The Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe reports that the Toledo Walleye will not re-sign A.J. Jenks for the 2019-2020 season:

The 29-year-old native of Wolverine Lake, Mich., ranks among the franchise’s top five all-time leaders in points, goals, assists, games played, and penalty minutes.

The Walleye have made the playoffs in all five seasons with Jenks on the roster, and he has become one of the franchise’s most well-liked players.

A team official, who did not wish to be named, said Jenks was the odd-man out due to the ECHL’s veteran rule. ECHL teams are allowed to carry only four vets — those who have played in 260 or more pro games — on the roster.

Jenks, who has played in 488 pro games, is still recuperating from a lower-body injury he suffered last season. He has remained in the area in the offseason instructing young players at local camps and clinics. Jenks confirmed the team’s decision but opted not to comment on it.

Continued

CBS Sports’ Sasha Yodashkin discusses “interesting position battles” from a fantasy hockey perspective, and Yodashkin believes that the players who constitute the Red Wings’ first line bear watching going into the 2019-2020 season:

Larkin’s wing men

There’s a major drop in center quality from first-liner Dylan Larkin to second-liner Frans Nielsen, so getting on Larkin’s wing will be imperative to finding Fantasy success in Detroit. Four candidates are in the mix for the two spots around Larkin: Anthony Mantha, Tyler Bertuzzi, Andreas Athanasiou and Filip Zadina. 

Athanasiou has the highest upside of the group coming off a 30-goal campaign, but his struggles defensively and the desire to infuse the second line with more scoring will likely keep him away from Larkin. Bertuzzi looks like the safest candidate to lock down a top-line role after posting 47 points in his first full NHL season. The 6-foot-5, 225-pound Mantha has plateaued with 48 points in each of the past two seasons, so the rebuilding Red Wings would love to give Zadina the right-wing role on the top line over him. But is the sixth overall pick from the 2018 draft ready for that responsibility?

I’m raising an eyebrow regarding the concept that the Red Wings “would love” to see Zadina unseat Mantha on the first line…but that’s just me.

Via WXYZ’s Mike Foss, Sportsnet posted its Hockey Night in Canada broadcast schedule for the 2019-2020 season, and the Wings will appear four times on HNIC:

Sat. Oct. 12

7:00 PM

Toronto

Detroit

Sat. Dec. 14

7:00 PM

Detroit

Montreal

Sat. Dec. 21

7:00 PM

Detroit

Toronto

Sat. Feb. 29

7:00 PM

Detroit

Ottawa