Red Wings 2022 8th overall draft pick Marco Kasper met with the Red Wings’ media corps for the first time this afternoon, and Kasper struck me as particularly poised and sharp for an 18-year-old who’s still in high school. Kasper spoke about his experiences playing for Rogle of the SHL with the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan…
A native of Austria, Kasper made the decision to learn Swedish before beginning his junior career there.
“Because I wanted to fit in,” Kasper said of his decision to learn the Swedish language. “I was going to school right away and I just talked to the guys in the locker room, and they helped me a lot. School helped.”
Kasper feels playing in the SHL will help him at this point, before he arrives in the NHL in the next year or two.
“It’s a really structured league,” Kasper said of the SHL. “A little bigger ice, and they’re real good players in that league. It’s hard to play because of the structure.”
But Kasper also said that he felt very happy about the fact that three members of the Red Wings (including one who I believe was in attendance today) called or texted him to congratulate his status as a new member of the Red Wings’ family:
“Dylan Larkin called me,” Kasper said after Monday’s camp session. “That was real cool.”
And it wasn’t just Larkin.
“Lucas Raymond and Michael Rasmussen texted me,” Kasper said.
Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff also took note of Kasper’s comments regarding his dedication to detail work:
“I’m trying to get [my license] right now,” Kasper explained. “You’re not allowed to get it before you’re 18 in Sweden.”
If you’re basing the outcome on Kasper’s life history, he should be passing his driving test with flying colors. This is a young man who is focused and driven. He’s someone who is constantly paying attention to the small details.
When Kasper made the decision to leave his native Austria, with the goal of furthering his hockey career in Sweden with Rogle, he dedicated himself to learning to speak Swedish as quickly as possible.
“I wanted to fit into Swedish culture and fit in right away,” Kasper said. “I’m going to school there, so that’s why I had to learn Swedish.”
Seeing the dedication of their teenage teammate, the Swedish players on the Rogle roster went out of their way to further his deep dive into their native tongue.
“I just tried to talk (the language) and then the guys in the locker room helped me a lot,” Kasper said. “They tried to speak Swedish with me right away and also in school they helped me. Sometimes I said maybe some weird stuff in Swedish but it got better really quick and that’s good.”
Duff continues, noting that Kasper had a supporting role in an Austrian movie when he was 12, too…
