The Detroit Red Wings’ training camp participants will engage in their first of three scheduled scrimmages later this morning (DetroitRedWings.com will probably stream the scrimmage, starting at 10:20 AM), with scrimmages set to follow on Friday and Sunday.
Given that this year’s team won’t have any exhibition games leading up to their season-opener on the 14th vs. Carolina, Wings coach Jeff Blashill told the Free Press’s Helene St. James that the emphasis of the scrimmages will be on hammering home game-ready play:
“These scrimmages will be nothing like normal scrimmages in training camp,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “This is going to be as real as it gets without playing against another team.”
There won’t be any exhibition games before the Wings open a 56-game slate on Jan. 14, so these three scrimmages will serve as the best chance to impress the coaching staff.
“We’ll use it as a good evaluation,” Blashill said. “Guys understand that — whether you’re trying out for penalty killing spots, for power play spots, for spots on the team. They understand what’s at stake.”
Camp started with 40 players split into two groups, of which the Red team was made up of the front runners to be in the lineup on opening night. Darren Helm has been unfit to practice — with either an injury or illness — the past two days, so his spot on the fourth line will go to someone else.
