As excited as I am to head up to Traverse City for the Red Wings’ prospect tournament and training camp, I’m always cautious regarding projections suggesting that the Red Wings’ players have somehow established themselves as bona-fide NHL’ers, or have wrecked their NHL careers, based upon the 3 prospect tournament games in which they play.
That’s all-or-nothing thinking in a nutshell, and the more prospect tournaments I attend, the more I realize that the tournament is a big stepping stone that’s part of a larger preseason progression through training camp and the exhibition season.
All of that being said, there’s no doubt that, as Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen suggests, a strong prospect tournament can serve as the first step upon a big lily pad across the NHL-career-starting pond:
This weekend, a new group of promising draft picks, led by defenseman Simon Edvinsson (sixth overall, 2021) and 6-foot-8 forward Elmer Soderblom (159th overall, 2019), will be competing in the NHL Prospect Tournament trying to persuade Yzerman they are ready for the show. Edvinsson was a finalist for Swedish Hockey League Rookie of the year and Soderblom netted 21 goals in the SHL.
The tournament features the top prospects from the Red Wings, Columbus Blue Jackets, Toronto Maple Leafs, St. Louis Blues and Dallas Stars. Because the teams will play an unbalanced schedule, the teams will not crown a champion this year.
This tournament is important for 2021 Red Wings’ first-round pick Sebastian Cossa (20th overall) because Yzerman will have to make a decision on where to send him this season. Will he end up back in the Western Hockey League or in the American Hockey League?
Defenseman Albert Johansson will be playing his first pro games in North America in this tournament. He is considered one of Detroit’s best prospects.
Yzerman doesn’t set aside roster spots for youngsters. He wants them to earn spots. Yzerman likes them to do what Raymond did, start off their fall by playing well at the NHL Prospect Tournament and continue playing well. Edvinsson is expected to make the team, but Yzerman isn’t setting aside a roster spot for him.
“I’d like them to push somebody out as opposed to throw them in there and if they’re not ready then what do you do?,” Yzerman said.
Continued; I definitely look toward the prospect tournament as a first step toward what is hopefully consistent performances over the course of training camp and the exhibition season.
Last year, there’s no doubt that, as Allen notes, Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider took their first steps toward NHL duty with strong prospect tournament performances, but the fact that they stepped up and continued to play well once the NHL’ers came to town was the key.
