Month: December 2020

Roughly translated: Elmer Soderblom’s older brother, Arvid, speaks with Hockeysverige.se about ‘little’ Elmer

Red Wings prospect Elmer Soderblom scored a beautiful goal for Team Sweden yesterday at the World Junior Championship…

And Hockeysverige.se’s Robin Olausson spoke with Elmer’s older brother, Arvid, regarding his “little” brother’s play. What follows is roughly translated from Swedish:

“Not surprised that he scored such a goal”

Elmer Soderblom shone for Sweden in the World Junior Championship premiere with a dream goal.

Someone who is not surprised by the Frolunda talent’s success is his big brother, Arvid Soderblom, who plays for Skelleftea AIK.

“He’s quite unique in his way of playing,” says the older Soderblom to Hockeysverige.se.

The WJC premiere has completed for the Junior Crowns, and what a premiere it was!

Sweden did start tough, but then got off to a really good start and ran over the Czechs to take home the game with a 7-1 score.

One of those who sat on the bench to watch the game was Skelleftea goaltender Arvid Soderblom.

“It’s cool for them to get off to a good start, with many different goal-scorers and good goaltending. They must be happy with it, because they weren’t allowed to play any exhibition games,” says the 21-year-old to Hockeysverige.se.

Arvid Soderblom is the big brother of Elmer Soderblom, who can be found in this year’s edition of the Junior Crowns. He was impressed by his two-years-younger brother, and thought he had a good interaction with linemates Theodor Niederbach and Emil Heineman.

“Their line probably got a little sparse playing time in the first period, but then they got into it more and more. I think they all did well, and Elmer also played well,” says the older Soderblom, who continues:

“He took matters into his own hands, played his game, and was strong on the puck and took the puck to the goal as well. He created a lot going forward and played the way he can when he’s at his best.”

“JUST PLAYS WITH INSTINCT”

Elmer Soderblom was also responsible for the delicacy of the game when, in the 3rd period, he delivered an early candidate for the goal of this year’s WJC.

He stood in front of the goal on the power play, got a pass and then pulled the puck between his own legs to lift the puck into the net behind a chance-less Nick Malik in the Czech goal.

After the game, Sodeblom was praised for his artistry.

“That was unbelievable. He’s a big guy, but he has good hands, too. It was an incredible goal,” said Albin Sundsvik at the post-game press conference.

Big brother Soderblom also praises Elmer for his goal.

“He has good range and is strong there in front of the goal, and it’s fun to see.”

Is it something he’s done to you several times when you’ve trained together?

“No, not exactly that variant, but you know that he has good hands and good range. I’m not surprised that he actually scored such a goal.”

It takes some self-confidence to do so at a WJC.

“Yes, it absolutely does. It comes quite naturally to him and I think he’s playing only on instinct. That’s when it usually goes best for him.”

“HE HAS A GOOD COMBINATION”

Arvid Soderblom has basically followed his brother’s entire hockey journey, and is one of the ones who knows him best.

He believes that Elmer has several qualities that are easy to be impressed by.

“He’s so big and tall but still has control of his arms, legs and puck. He can move on the ice in a smooth way even though he’s so big. He can reach goals and score a lot of goals and points. His combination of size and skill stands out.”

The combination of size (202 centimeters tall & 108 kilos heavy) and hands is something that’s very unusual.

“He has good skills and can also do the job in front of the goal and stand there and hit rebounds. It’s a good combination.”

“That makes him a bit unique in his way of playing.”

“DIFFICULT TO FOLLOW WJC LIVE”

Bir brother Soderblom is happy that he was able to watch Saturday’s game against the Czech Republic. Considering that he both practices and plays with Skelleftea in the near future, it will be difficult for him to sit up and watch the games live to follow his little brother’s progress.

“It’s not possible to stay up at night, but it will be good when they play early games, otherwise you have to check a lot of highlights. You have to follow as best you can,” Arvid Soderblom concludes.

HSJ offers three reasons why the upcoming season will be better than 2019-2020

The Free Press’s Helene St. James posted an article this morning which discusses three reasons why the Red Wings’ 2020-2021 season won’t be as challenging as the previous campaign. I’d suggest that her “third reason” may be the most pertinent as she levels with the fan base:

Look, 2021 can’t possibly be as challenging as 2020. We will have to make do with a shortened season because the novel coronavirus delayed the start of the season until Jan. 13. The Wings are scheduled to play 56 games — eight each against the temporarily re-designed Central Division (the Wings, Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Florida Panthers, Nashville Predators and Tampa Bay Lightning).

The Wings project to miss the playoffs for a fifth straight season, but come autumn, the likes of recent draft picks Moritz Seider, Jonatan Berggren and Lucas Raymond could boost the rebuild. Remember: It took 14 years for Yzerman to lift the Stanley Cup, and that was with the amazing 1989 draft (when the Wings hauled in Sergei Fedorov, Nicklas Lidstrom and Vladimir Konstantinov). Next seasson may look bleak, but the future looks bright.

Continued, with praise for the “Filips” and Dylan Larkin.

I think there are lots of reasons why the 2020-2021 season could be just as challenging as the 2019-2020 one, but they involve that “novel coronavirus” more than anything else. On the ice, I’m expecting some improvement.

Prospect Round-up: Seider posts assist, Petruzzelli and Quinnipiac win again

Of prospect-related note from Saturday, December 26th:

In the ICE Hockey League, Calvin Pickard served as the back-up in the Vienna Capitals’ 2-1 loss to the Black Wings Innsbruck.

I’m curious as to why Pickard is still in Europe if he’s still in the Red Wings’ AHL goaltending plans, but the signing of Kevin Boyle last fall probably means that Boyle will start the year on the “taxi squad,” with Pickard recalled before the start of the AHL season;

Jesper Eliasson stopped 22 of 24 shots in the Red Bulls Salzburg’s 2-0 loss to HCB Foxes;

In the SHL, Moritz Seider had an assist, finishing even with 2 shots in 22:48 played as Rogle BK won 3-1 over Leksands IF:

Continue reading Prospect Round-up: Seider posts assist, Petruzzelli and Quinnipiac win again

Belated: Wings make their European recalls official

The Red Wings made their recalls of six European players official on Saturday, recalling Mathias Brome, Michael Rasmussen, Filip Zadina, Filip Hronek and Gustav Lindstrom from their European-playing teams. As mentioned last weekend at this time, Filip Larsson’s loan to Almtuna IS of the Swedish Allsvenskan has also ended:

Red Wings at the WJC: Soderblom, Niederbach score for Swedes in win over Czech Republic

Four of the Red Wings’ five Team Sweden players took part in their first World Junior Championship round robin game in Edmonton Saturday afternoon, and the Wings’ Swedes made an impact en route to a 7-1 win over the Czech Republic.

Theodor Niederbach did not center the Raymond-Holtz line, but he scored the Swedes’ 4-1 goal, off assists from Phillip Broberg and Wings prospect Elmer Soderblom…

And Soderblom scored a goal of significant repute on the power play, from Lucas Raymond:

Soderblom finished with a goal and an assist for 2 points, finishing at +1 with 5 shots in 15:31 played;

Niederbach finished with a goal and a 9-and-6 faceoff record, finishing at +1 with 2 shots in 14:31 played as Soderblom’s even-strength center;

Raymond finished with an assist, even with 3 shots in 16:38 played alongside Albin Sundsvik and Alexander Holtz;

Albert Johansson finished with an assist and a penalty, a +1 and 2 shots in 15:33 played;

And Gustav Berglund did not dress for the game.

TSN posted a full highlight clip on YouTube:

On Sunday, Eemil Viro’s Finns will battle Switzerland at 2 PM EST, and Jan Bednar’s Czechs will try to rebound vs. Russia at 9:30 PM EST. Both games will air on TSN in Canada and the NHL Network in the U.S.

The Score’s first power rankings afford Wings fans a necessary ‘gift’

The Score’s NHL staff couldn’t quite wait for the beginning of the NHL season to issue their first set of power rankings, and today, they dole out Christmastime gifts for each and every one of the league’s 31 teams, including #31 in their rankings (but #1 in your hearts):

31. Detroit Red Wings

? Patience. The Red Wings were truly horrible last season and likely won’t be much better in 2020-21. However, with Steve Yzerman overseeing the front office and some promising prospects coming down the pipe, Detroit’s rebuild is now on track. It just might be a while before the team starts to yield results at the highest level.

Continued; I wish and hope that the Red Wings don’t finish last again (lottery odds be damned), but if they do, I hope that the 2020-2021 season isn’t quite as miserable as the 2019-20 season was, for all of our sakes.

Kulfan’s notes: captaincy requires multiple duties

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan filed a three-topic notebook article late Friday night, discussing the Red Wings’ European-playing prospects’ “leg up” on their training camp competition, the effects of divisional realignment upon the Red Wings and their fans, and the high probability that Dylan Larkin will be named the Wings’ captain sooner than later:

Yzerman confirmed the organization still plans on naming a captain this season, with most analysts expecting that’ll be Dylan Larkin.

An alternate captain the last two seasons, Larkin would be the Wings’ first captain since Henrik Zetterberg in 2018.

Yzerman, who was a Wings’ captain for 22 seasons, noted the increased responsibility in that role.

“I just think you take a lot more things into consideration that you may not normally,” Yzerman said. “Whether it’s a call by an official, or a situation off the ice with a teammate, just anything to do with the team, as a captain you get a little bit more sense of responsibility regarding every situation.”

Continued

Prospect round-up: Viro’s Finns win WJC debut

The Detroit News took note of Red Wings prospect Eemil Viro’s participation in Friday’s World Junior Championship opener for the Finns:

Red Wings draft pick Eemil Viro was plus-1 in Finland’s 5-3 victory over short-handed Germany on Friday night at the world junior hockey championship in Edmonton.

Viro, a 6-0, 165-pound defenseman who was one of three 2020 second-round draft picks, had two shots and 27 shifts in 19:31 of ice time.

Aku Raty, Henri Nikkanen, and Topi Niemela each had a goal and an assist for the Finns, who are seeking their sixth world junior gold medal of all time. They last triumphed in Vancouver (2019) on Kaapo Kakko’s late 3-2 winner versus the Americans.

Germany, which was missing nine players because of the coronavius, had only 14 skaters – nine forwards and five defensemen. Three players can return to the tournament Sunday and another five Tuesday, barring more positive tests.

Viro finished at +1 with 2 shots in 19:31 played for Finland.

On Saturday, Sweden will play against the Czech Republic at 2 PM EST (on TSN and the NHL Network).

Praise for Seider, Veleno and Berggren from DobberProspects

DobberProspects’ Tomas Zahorak highlights the exploits of three Red Wings prospects playing in the SHL this morning:

Moritz Seider, RHD, Rögle BK (Detroit Red Wings): A human wrecking ball. There is no better way of describing Seider’s recent performance. He has been throwing around his opponents like he was playing with kids. Even though he is only 19 and plays against much older competition, his physicality is just on another level. However, he has been dominant in almost every other possible way, not just wrestling with other players. 

His defense is stunning. He plays with great poise, reads the game well, and just as much contributes offensively, which is an underrated part of his excellent overall game. He has recorded two goals and 12 points in 17 outings with roughly over 20 minutes of ice time per game. He has been so much fun to watch lately. 

…

Joe Veleno, C/RW, Malmö Redhawks (Detroit Red Wings): Veleno has found a new place on the roster. Coaches have put him on the right wing next to Fredrik Händemark (SJS) on the first line. This role suits him well, as he is on a three-game point streak as we speak. The 20-year-old forward has put up six goals and 11 points in 21 games so far. He has been very dangerous offensively, creating a lot of high-quality scoring chances around the net.

Veleno has been a threat on the power play too, where he moves all-around the offensive zone, uses his quick hands, agile and dynamic skating, and good one-timer to make a lot of noise. He seems to be getting more and more comfortable as the season progresses. 

…

Jonatan Berggren, LW, Skellefteå AIK (Detroit Red Wings): Berggren is having a lot of fun this season. He still has the most assists (19) and points (24) on his team and is second in assists and fourth in points overall. Despite being penalized for three games in late November for a crosscheck to the head, he got back on track in December. Although he has not been as dominant as he was at the beginning of the season, he has collected four points (all assists) in five outings after the suspension. He is still driving plays, creating tons of chances, and being an exceptional player at this level. 

Continued