Month: November 2021

Prospect round-up Europe: Johansson, Niederbach post assists; Edvinsson sick

Of Red Wings prospect-related note in Europe today:

In the Finnish Liiga, Otto Kivenmaki finished even with 1 shots in 12:04 played as the Lahti Pelicans lost 5-1 to IFK Helsinki;

In the SHL, Albert Johansson had an assist, finishing at +2 in 20:10 of ice time as Farjestads BK lost 5-3 to Djurgarden;

William Wallinder finished even in 16:44 played as Rogle BK won 6-2 over Vaxjo;

And, in the Frolunda Indians’ 3-1 win over Timra:

Simon Edvinsson missed the game with a cold;

Theodor Niederbach had an assist, finishing even with 1 shot in 10:09 played:

Elmer Soderblom finished at +1 with 1 shot in 18:02 played;

Liam Dower Nilsson took a penalty in 6:02 played.

Pre-game notebooks from Kulfan, Khan: Rasmussen steps in with Larkin out

Of Red Wings-related note this evening from the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan and MLive’s Ansar Khan:

Kulfan penned a notebook regarding Michael Rasmussen’s status as stepping in for Dylan Larkin, who will miss tonight’s game due to personal reasons…

Unlike past seasons, the Wings are better prepared for situations where key offensive players are out of the lineup.

“We have improved our depth,” Blashill said. “We’ve worked hard as a coaching staff to make sure we’re getting ice time to other lines and the other lines have responded. Other people have responded with good play. We’ve moved a number of young players into our lineup and they’re growing with the added responsibility.”

Blashill wouldn’t speculate as to how long Larkin would be out, but he looks upon it as a day-to-day situation.

“I’m not going to expand further than that,” Blashill said. “He’ll just miss tonight’s game for personal reasons and that’s it.”

Bertuzzi is expected to rejoin the Wings on Wednesday in Boston and be available to play Thursday against the Bruins. But with scoring depth from the likes of Lucas Raymond, Robby Fabbri and Filip Zadina, among others, there isn’t the blatant concern there would be in previous seasons.

“Depth matters a ton and part of that depth might be Joe Veleno coming in and can he have a real good game for us?” Blashill said. “Carter Rowney is a guy who has played well the last little bit after being a healthy scratch. Can Givani Smith chip in offensively, something we know he’s capable of doing. Certainly depth matters.”

And Khan let Rasmussen speak about his role on the team:

“I’m going to try to help out Razor and Fabbs, create some space for them, make some plays,” Rasmussen said. “But just play the same way, play hard, play good defensively. Just give the puck to those guys. They can make a lot of plays.”

Rasmussen is averaging 16:05 in ice time, playing more on the penalty kill than before while continuing to rotate in on the power play in a net-front role.

“Ras has been tasked with lots,” Blashill said. “He’s out there a lot of times against other team’s good players and I think he’s done a good job. He’s a big body, his skating has improved dramatically from when he first turned pro, he’s played hard, he’s doing lots of good things. He’s a guy whose impact isn’t going to be felt just on his offense, it’s going to be felt in his overall game and it’s continuing to grow.”

Blashill said Rasmussen’s skating has improved significantly from his rookie season of 2018-19.

“It’s shown in the impact of his game,” Blashill said. “He’s a big body that’s had to fill into his frame and that’s not easy. A lot of times those big bodies take a little longer. He’s worked really hard in the offseason, spent lots of time in Detroit and really built up his body and his skating has definitely improved.”

Allen: Red Wings’ Seider, Raymond burn 1 year of entry-level deals this evening

According to Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen, Red Wings rookies Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond’s contracts officialy toll this evening vs. Montreal:

Seider has logged less than 20 minutes in a game only once thus far, and he has played as many as 26:31 (against Florida). He owns a 50.8 Corsi rating, which is an indicator of puck possession when he’s on the ice. He has nine hits and 11 blocked shot.

Tonight will be his 10th game, meaning he officially burns up one seasons of his entry level contract. The same goes for Lucas Raymond. That means both will become restricted free agents in 2024.

It may not be an ideal situation for the Red Wings to have both Seider and Raymond negotiating a new deal at the same time. Younger defensemen in particular,  Cale Makar and Charlie McAvoy for example, are getting more lucrative deals. McAvoy had only played 235 NHL games when the Bruins committed $9.5 million per season him. Makar had played 101 games when the Colorado Avalanche gave him $9 million per season for six years.

Both Raymond and Seider could be looking for big paydays in 2024. Filip Hronek will also be an RFA that year. Dylan Larkin, Jakub Vrana and Alex Nedeljkovic will be an unrestricted free agent this season.

Sebastian Cossa named WHL’s goalie of the month

Per the WHL, via the Red Wings:

Here’s the press release:

Continue reading Sebastian Cossa named WHL’s goalie of the month

Moritz Seider named NHL’s Rookie of the Month for October

Moritz Seider has been named the NHL’s “Rookie of the Month” for October.

Seider became the first @DetroitRedWings rookie (forward or defenseman) with at least eight assists in a calendar month since January 2002 (Pavel Datsyuk: 8 A in 13 GP).#NHLStats: https://t.co/W7ndhNR4KN pic.twitter.com/ADmZFejkx2— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) November 2, 2021

Eight points in nine games played. @DetroitRedWings defenseman Moritz Seider is your Rookie of the Month! ? pic.twitter.com/C9XN4U2fze— NHL (@NHL) November 2, 2021

Congrats, Mo! ? pic.twitter.com/Q7xYXjUfkG— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) November 2, 2021

MO-TOWN.#LGRW pic.twitter.com/3VD5iLZVpl— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) November 2, 2021

Here’s the NHL’s press release:

Continue reading Moritz Seider named NHL’s Rookie of the Month for October

Red Wings-Canadiens morning skate video: Coach Blashill, Michael Rasmussen

The Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens held morning skates ahead of tonight’s match-up (7 PM EDT on Bally Sports Detroit/TSN2/RDS/97.1 FM)…

And we found out that Dylan Larkin would miss tonight’s game for personal reasons, with Michael Rasmussen slotting into Larkin’s spot on the top line with Robby Fabbri and Lucas Raymond.

There’s nothing that the Red Wings can do without Larkin (here’s hoping that everything is okay with Larkin and his family) and Bertuzzi (who is missing the game for some very different “personal reasons”), and the Wings got hammered 6-1 in their last game in Montreal–exactly one week ago–so the team will have to band together tonight.

Here’s coach Jeff Blashill’s morning media availability:

Here’s Michael Rasmussen as well:

Ken Kal remains optimistic about the game:

Canadiens return home after west coast road trip. 1st game back after a long road trip is always tough on a team. Red Wings will try and catch them tonight but the Wings are without Larkin & Bertuzzi.— Ken Kal (@KenKalDRW) November 2, 2021

Post-Wings/Habs morning skate Tweets: Larkin out for ‘personal reasons’

Red Wings-Canadiens game preview: check. Morning skate news about the Canadiens (game-time decision on Gallagher, Petry probable, etc.) and Red Wings (no Larkin) ahead of tonight’s game between Detroit and Montreal (7 PM EDT on Bally Sports Detroit Plus/TSN2/97.1 FM): check.

And here are your post-morning skate Tweets from the Wings’ beat writers:

Jeff Blashill says Dylan Larkin will miss tonight’s game for personal reasons— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) November 2, 2021

Jeff Blashill said Dylan Larkin will miss today’s game for personal reasons. #LGRW @DetroitRedWings— Daniella Bruce (@daniellabruce_) November 2, 2021

Jeff Blashill said Red Wings’ Dylan Larkin will miss tonight’s Montreal game “for personal reasons.”— Helene St. James (@HeleneStJames) November 2, 2021

Blashill said Larkin will miss tonight’s game in Montreal due to personal reasons. Rasmussen will move into that top line center spot. #RedWings— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) November 2, 2021

Also:

Jeff Blashill said he anticipates Adam Erne will play tonight. @DetroitRedWings #LGRW— Daniella Bruce (@daniellabruce_) November 2, 2021

Hello, Wings’ main account:

Continue reading Post-Wings/Habs morning skate Tweets: Larkin out for ‘personal reasons’

Red Wings-Canadiens morning skate Tweets and articles: Game previews; Petry probable, Gallagher game-time for MTL; Larkin absent from morning skate

The Detroit Red Wings face a familiar foe in the Montreal Canadiens this evening (7 PM EDT start on Bally Sports Detroit Plus/TSN2/RDS/97.1 FM), and none other than NHL.com’s Dave Stubbs leads off today’s set of morning skate Tweets and articles:

#GoHabsGo meet #LGRW tonight for 599th time in their regular-season history, Canadiens leading 291-207-96-4. Here, fierce rivals and dear friends Jean Béliveau and Gordie Howe and top 20 in scoring vs each other all time. No new names will join these lists tonight… pic.twitter.com/eRw6awwnzu— Dave Stubbs ?? (@Dave_Stubbs) November 2, 2021

The Red Wings said, “Happy Tuesday!” by wishing one of their own a happy birthday…

.@hronek_filip ?? pic.twitter.com/lDw7bfjoct— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) November 2, 2021

And the Canadiens “took an optional” this morning, so there wasn’t that much to report, in English or in French, save a recall from the AHL:

Continue reading Red Wings-Canadiens morning skate Tweets and articles: Game previews; Petry probable, Gallagher game-time for MTL; Larkin absent from morning skate

Even more kind-of-sort-of fantasy hockey praise for the Red Wings

The Athletic’s Shayna Goldman examines “fantasy hockey trends” this morning, and she suggests that poolies pick up Lucas Raymond as a Red Wings first-liner, if not Dylan Larkin as well…some of the time:

Lucas Raymond, LW/RW, DET | 52% Yahoo: The Red Wings have probably exceeded the expectations of many to open this season and much of that is due to their top line of Tyler Bertuzzi, Dylan Larkin, and Lucas Raymond. The lefty, we don’t recommend since he won’t be with his team anytime they go into Canada (and we advise you to be weary of the team’s play without him, since his absence seriously is influencing this team). But when they’re together, they’re high-quality offense at one of the highest rates.

So, if you’re among the 26 percent who can scoop up Larkin and need a center who will boost your shot columns, go off. If you’re seeking for a wing, look no further than rookie Raymond, who has infused more skill into this Detroit team.

She also has this to say about Moritz Seider:

Moritz Seider, D, DET | 55% Yahoo: Managers are catching on to Seider quickly, and rightfully so as the rookie is making his case each game while averaging about 22.5 minutes through nine tilts. First, he’s played his way onto the top pair at even strength. What really stands out is how little their opponents are creating, both in terms of quality and quantity, with him deployed. And then, of course, there’s the scoring aspects both at 5-on-5 and on the top unit of the power play alongside some of the team’s best.

What’s key here for Seider, and Raymond as well, is the scheduling to maximize your moves. The Red Wings are in action four times this week: Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Continued (paywall); the Red Wings play 4 games over the course of the next 6 nights, then 3 games in 5 nights, then 4 games in 6 nights again, all before November 20th–so that’s a total of 11 games in 19 nights–so now would be a good time to pick up any of the Wings’ players.