Month: September 2019

The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 5-3 last night at Little Caesars Arena, and AWood40 (a.k.a. Alex Wood) has posted a 9-minute highlight clip from the game:

I’ve spent the last two weeks in Traverse City, but today I’m heading back to South Lyon.

I will miss the Wings’ morning skate and probably resurface sometime before tonight’s game vs. Chicago (8:30 PM EDT on the NHL Network, NHL.tv and WXYZ AM 1270), but I’m not making any promises.

I’ve decided to take Thursday completely off as I’m feeling a bit burnt out from the heavy workload during the prospect tournament and main training camp; I will try to get my butt back to work by Friday or Saturday at the latest. I want to take a little break, but I don’t want a short hiccup in coverage to become a longer-term thing this season.

I want to thank you for your support over the course of the last two weeks, in terms of readership, constructive criticism and financial support. I wouldn’t have been able to get up here without you, and the workload wouldn’t have been worth it if you weren’t my audience.

I’ll see you later today.

The Athletic’s Chris Meaney examines “top breakout candidates” for fantasy hockey poolies this upcoming season, and Meaney believes that Anthony Mantha and his linemates are solid fantasy picks…

Anthony Mantha, DET — Mantha scored a career-high 25 goals last season, despite missing 15 games. He has 51 goals combined in the past two seasons and at least 17 in each of his past three seasons. Mantha will continue to see an uptick in ice time and his linemates (Dylan Larkin and Tyler Bertuzzi), will continue to grow offensively. The trio were one of the most underrated lines in the final few weeks of the season and Mantha was a big part of that: 15 goals and 23 points in his final 26 games.

As is one Filip Hronek…

Filip Hronek, DET — There’s not a lot to like in Detroit and if you play with that silly stat called plus/minus, you probably want nothing to do with Filip Hronek. Which is too bad, because the Red Wings’ defenseman will open up the season on the top pair and it won’t take long to overtake Mike Green on the No. 1 PP unit. Hronek averaged 20 minutes per game and he picked up 23 points (five PPP) in 46 games as a rookie. The 21-year-old could have 23 points by the all-star break.

Continued (paywall)

Of Red Wings-related note this morning:

1. MLive’s Ansar Khan posted a morning notebook in which he discusses Michael Rasmussen’s play during last night’s exhibition win over Chicago:

Rasmussen looks forward to playing center, his natural position, this season after playing almost exclusively at wing in 62 games as a rookie with the Red Wings. He is competing for a roster spot because he can be assigned to the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins this season.

“Just way more skating (at center),” Rasmussen said. “I need to get my body up and down the ice a little bit different than wing. Just getting up and down and you got to play as the third D-man pretty much in the zone.”

Rasmussen’s net-front ability on the power play could give him an edge in competition for a spot on the third line.

“He knows how to screen the goalie, he knows how to present his stick, he’s got pretty soft hands in those areas,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “We’ll keep working on trying to find different ways to be super-dangerous when he gets the puck there.”

2. The Athletic’s Max Bultman also discussed Rasmussen and Dennis Cholowski’s uphill battles in terms of earning spots on the Red Wings’ crowded roster:

Continue reading Two things: Khan discusses Michael Rasmussen’s play; Bultman discusses Rasmussen and Cholowski’s uphill battles

This one’s a little late, and a little frustrating: at Tuesday’s morning skate, Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill had this to say regarding the Red Wings players nursing nagging injuries, as noted by DetroitRedWings.com’s Dana Wakiji:

Forwards Dylan Larkin, Andreas Athanasiou and Darren Helm are all fighting through a few nagging things following training camp.

Blashill said there was nothing really new on them.

“Again, like I said the other day, I don’t want two days to turn into two weeks,” Blashill said. “It’s a lot of soft tissue stuff. So we’ll take our time with it. I don’t anticipate any of those guys necessarily being in tomorrow but we’re looking at Friday as potential so we’ll see, but nothing big.”

Defenseman Mike Green, who missed the Red and White Game along with Larkin and Helm, could be ready a little sooner.

“Mike could potentially play tomorrow,” Blashill said. “I’m looking at him potentially for tomorrow, maybe Friday.”

The Red Wings’ heavy exhibition schedule includes a game in Chicago tonight, and then the Wings host the Islanders on Friday, Pittsburgh on Sunday, and they head to Long Island for a Monday game.

Red Wings prospect/forward Evgeny Svechnikov looked like he was skating fine during training camp, but a big ice bag on his right knee on the second day told an honest story–the truth of the matter is that his ACL is still healing almost a year after he had reconstructive surgery

Svechnikov spoke with the media on Tuesday morning at Little Caesars Arena, and he admitted that his ACL is still sore, and both Svechnikov and coach Jeff Blashill weighed in on big #37’s rehabilitation process.

They spoke with MLive’s Ansar Khan…

Four intense days of skating in training camp were tough but helped him prepare.

“It’s a little bit, I wouldn’t say not in shape, but I can feel that I was not on the ice for all season,” Svechnikov said. “It’s kind of double work for me. It’s conditioning-wise and just feeling the game again. I feel it’s going to take a little bit of time, but it’s coming. Every day it’s better and better and it feels like it’s going to be getting better. I’m looking forward to it feeling better.”

A good-sized winger (6-3, 212) with offensive ability, Svechnikov, 22, will be skating on a line with Michael Rasmussen at center and Taro Hirose.

“I think it’s a long time to be out and super hard,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “No real high expectations; let him go out and feel his way into this thing. You got to get used to how your leg feels. Anyone who’s had any kind of injury knows it’s never the same. It’s hard at the beginning of any year to have all your habits ingrained and be able to play without thinking, but it’s really hard for a guy who’s missed tons of time to play without thinking. That’s the way you have to play to be faster.”

Hockeybuzz’s Bob Duff…

Svechnikov was to [play in] his first game action in a year when the Wings opened the NHL preseason on Tuesday at Little Caesars Arena against the Chicago Blackhawks.

“It just brings a lot of stuff in my head and what I went through,” said Svechnikov told Mlive.com. He was slated to skate on a line with Taro Hirose and Michael Rasmussen. “This is it. This is the day. I was counting for this day all year. I’m super excited, super pumped, also tired but that’s really nothing that matters now. The camp was real tough but it’s all behind and now. It’s fun time to go.”

Throughout his ordeal, Svechnikov sought the counsel of teammates who’d been down the road before. That support group included Grand Rapids (AHL) teammate Matt Lorito and ex-Wings defenseman Niklas Kronwall.

“Lorito said it takes a while,” Svechnikov noted.. “He said he’s just feeling good after 16, 17 months. He’s just feeling normal. Kronner said he was playing after six months. So it’s everybody different but we’ll see how I feel.”

And the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan:

“For sure, it’s big,” Svechnikov said of the coming season. “Every year is big, like I said before, but this is the (biggest) one. When I do good and when I feel good on the ice, when I feel like my knee is good, I’m just good. We will talk about it, but I have to do it.”

Coach Jeff Blashill agreed this might be a key season for Svechnikov, but said he believes Svechnikov can face the pressure.

But what’ll be important for Svechnikov is to relax and not put undue, added pressure on himself — something Svechnikov has tended to do through his young career.

“It’s a big year for him, especially after missing a full year,” Blashill said. “The league always has room for great players, so just play great. He tends to put lots of pressure on himself. He can’t. Just relax and just go and play and understand it’s a marathon and not a sprint .He’s going to have good moments, going to have bad moments. He just has to keep working through it.”

MLive’s Khan also posted a clip of Svechnikov’s comments to the media:

Updated 3x at 9 AM: The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 5-3 in the teams’ preseason opener at Little Caesars Arena.

The teams will play again on Wednesday in Chicago (8:30 PM EDT on the NHL Network, NBCS Chicago Plus and NHL.tv).

NHL.com posted a quick game recap of Tuesday night’s game…

Michael Rasmussen broke a tie with 4:37 remaining in the third period, and the Detroit Red Wings defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 5-3 at Little Caesars Arena.

It was the first preseason game for the Red Wings.

Rasmussen scored on the power play when his backhand deflected in off Blackhawks defenseman Carl Dahlstrom.

Matt Puempel, Matthew Ford, Chris Terry and Luke Glendening (empty net) scored for Detroit. Jimmy Howard made seven saves on eight shots for the Red Wings, and Calvin Pickard made 15 saves on 17 shots in relief.

Dominik Kubalik scored twice, and Philip Holm had a goal and an assist for Chicago.

Starter Robin Lehner made 15 saves on 17 shots in his Blackhawks debut, and Kevin Lankinen made 19 saves on 21 shots.

MLive’s Ansar Khan also filed a recap…

Continue reading Recaps and wrap-ups: Red Wings beat Blackhawks 5-3 in preseason opener

Fox Sports Detroit made its debut 23 years ago tonight, and “The 313″ showed a clip of the very first broadcast, a Wings-Penguins preseason game:

Very cool news from Fox Sports Detroit: the station will air the Jamie Daniels Foundation’s celebrity roast of Mickey Redmond on September 27th:

Oh, you wanted more of a peek? Well, how about some jabs?
Be sure to watch on Sept. 27th before and after Red Wings Hockey for the entire night of the @JDanielsFund Celebrity Roast of Mickey Redmond. pic.twitter.com/od0hPFKVB3

— FOX Sports Detroit (@FOXSportsDet) September 18, 2019

Thanks to all who attended our Roast on September 7th! We’re humbled by the support and couldn’t have put this night together without our Presenting Sponsor @DeltaDentalMI and the support of the @ChildrensFndn. Thank you to @FOXSportsDet for continuing to champion our mission! pic.twitter.com/AMmunuM6iF— Jamie Daniels Foundation (@JDanielsFund) September 18, 2019

This is a neat little story from WDIV: “golf pro” Bob Krause is working with 2SP sports, his friend Mickey Redmond and Red Wings nutritionist Lisa McDowell in order to get in shape to try out for the PGA Senior Tour:

If you’re not a video person, Steve Garagiola tells Krause’s tale:

Krause said he’s going to take the next six months to get physically ready. He is not taking this journey alone though.  He has powerful pack of friends helping him along the way including his longtime friend and Red Wings legend Mickey Redmond. As always, Redmond is a force. 

“We are going to take this year to get Bob in condition both mentally and physically and put him in place,” says Redmond. “He’s got a great tool box on the golf course. We got to get it all together so he can get those tools out of the box and go shoot 65, 66 every day.”

This plan begins at 2SP, a training facility in Madison Heights, where many off-season professional athletes also workout. Red Wings goalie Jimmy Howard frequently works out there.  He’s also getting help from Red Wings dietitian Lisa McDowell.