Month: September 2023

Here’s the ’embed code’ for tonight’s Red Wings-Stars prospect tournament game on YouTube

The Detroit Red Wings posted the YouTube link for tonight’s prospect tournament game between Detroit and the Dallas Stars’ prospects, scheduled for 6:30 PM from Centre ICE Arena.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=pSeaXz7rGPE%3Fsi%3D9puGA7YhIY66JWsM

The Wings will also stream the game on Facebook and their official website.

Update: Centre ICE Arena’s website also posted the Vimeo links for every prospect tournament game’s broadcast.

DetroitRedWings.com’s Regner profiles former Wings Swede Gustav Nyquist

DetroitRedWings.com’s Art Regner interviewed former Red Wing Gustav Nyquist regarding his status as one of the Red Wings’ more successful Swedish prospects, as a part of Regner’s “How Swede It Is” series:

As a young member of the Red Wings, Nyquist was mentored by Niklas Kronwall, whom he lived with at the start of his Wings career, and Henrik Zetterberg. He also formed a bond with Dan Cleary, the Red Wings’ current assistant director of player development.

“When I think of Gus Nyquist, I think of hockey sense,” Cleary said. “He’s got really, really good hockey sense. He’s got real good talent, like individual skill. He’s not a very big guy, maybe 5-11, 5-10, doesn’t weigh a lot but he’s strong, he’s in good shape, skates well.

“You know the one thing; he’s got a real sneaky shot. He’s got a good shot, he gets it on net quick, goalies are caught off-guard sometimes when he scores. And I think overall, I think he’s just a real smart player. He can kill penalties, he can play on the power play, he can play late in games. That’s who he is. He’s a good NHL player.”

Nyquist recorded 295 points (125 goals, 170 assists) in 481 games with Detroit from 2011-2019.

Continued

Tweets of note: Wings post videos from Red Wings prospects’ morning skate, link to broadcast details

The Red Wings posted a set of videos from the Red Wings prospects’ morning skate ahead of tonight’s 6:30 PM game vs. Dallas (to be streamed on the Red Wings’ YouTube channel, Facebook page and official site).

I may have posted some pictures to “X” as well. Pardon the tip of my index finger:

Press release: Grand Rapids Griffins’ single-game tickets go on sale Friday

Per the Grand Rapids Griffins:

GRIFFINS 2023-24 SINGLE-GAME TICKETS ON SALE FRIDAY

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Single-game tickets for each of the Grand Rapids Griffins’ 36 regular-season home games at Van Andel Arena will go on sale to the general public this Friday, Sept. 15 at 10 a.m. at griffinshockey.com/tickets.

Under first-year head coach Dan Watson, the Griffins will begin the home portion of their 72-game slate on Friday, Oct. 13 against the Colorado Eagles with Opening Night presented by Huntington Bank. The home schedule features 23 games on either Friday or Saturday nights. Click here to view this season’s promotions.

Griffins tickets can be purchased through the following methods (all purchases subject to a convenience charge):

Online through griffinshockey.com/tickets;

On the Griffins app, available for iPhone and Android;

In person at The Zone at Van Andel Arena, beginning TBD (open 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday);

By phone at (616) 774-4585 or (800) 2-HOCKEY.

Advance ticket prices start at $18 for upper level crease, $20 for upper level faceoff, $23 for upper level center ice, $24 for upper level preferred, $25 for upper level prime and $27 for upper level edge; and $26 for lower level faceoff, $30 for lower level center ice, and $35 for lower level preferred. (Additional $3 per ticket on day of game.)

On game night, tickets may be purchased without a convenience charge at the Van Andel Arena box office, beginning 90 minutes before puck drop. Fans who attend multiple games can avoid charges and receive a discount from the single-game price by purchasing a 10- or 20-game select season package. These plans, along with full-season,  FLEX ticket vouchers and group ticket packages, may be ordered by calling the Griffins’ office at (616) 774-4585 ext. 2 or visiting griffinshockey.com.

THN’s Stockton’s prospect tournament stories to watch include checking in on Big Elmer

The Hockey News’s Sam Stockton offers three prospect tournament storylines to watch over the upcoming weekend, including the following:

I. Soderblom’s Progress

At age 22 and entering his second season of North American pro hockey, Elmer Soderblom is still very much a prospect.

Nonetheless, as a 2019 draft pick (round six, pick 159 to be precise), he will be one of the most experience players at the event. With that seasoning and as an entry point to his 2023-24 season, it would be wonderful to see Soderblom dominate in Traverse City.

Soderblom has always been a unique prospect. There aren’t many 6-foot-8 people who play hockey, so there was never going to be a surplus of options as comparables. He has also been perceived as something of a “project” from the moment he was drafted, the expectation having always been that he would require some refinement to crack an NHL roster.

The towering Swede did just that after an outstanding training camp a year ago and played 21 games with the Wings in ’22-23, tallying five goals and three assists. However, after a combination of injuries and a dip in form sent him back to Grand Rapids, Soderblom managed the exact same output (five goals and three assists) in 20 games with the Griffins. It’s a perplexing combination, but scoring doesn’t come easily in the AHL and progress is seldom linear.

In Traverse City, you’d like to see something resembling domination out of Soderblom. Despite his stature, he profiles as more dependent on skill than brawn. As he looks to re-claim a place in the Wings’ line-up, he will need both. His stickhandling and finishing touch have been essential to his progress thus far as a player, and Detroit will benefit from their presence. Still, Soderblom realistically needs to be a player who wins battles and makes an impact on the cycle and forecheck to become an everyday NHL player. The prospect tournament will offer the first sample of his progress for the year.

Continued

Pronman’s keeping an eye on Marco Kasper

The Athletic’s Corey Pronman picked 32 (actually a little more than 32) prospects which intrigue him ahead of the start of NHL training camps, and his pick for the Red Wings has, thus far, proven to be worth the hype:

Detroit Red Wings: Marco Kasper, C: Marco Kasper is still just a teenager and will need to make a strong impression to make the Wings, as Detroit acquired several veteran forwards over the summer. Still, after being selected in the top 10, expectations are high for him. Whether he makes it difficult for Detroit to cut him or looks a few years away will be something to watch as he enters his first NHL camp.

Continued (paywall); I don’t expect Kasper to make the team out of training camp, barring a significant injury, but he’s going to be competing on the periphery of the roster, and the 19-year-old hopes to make a strong initial impression over the course of this weekend’s 2023 Prospect Tournament.

After finishing his high school diploma (in Sweden) last spring, Kasper trained with his father/agent Marco’s pro team, Klagenfurt AC, and he’s ready to put his professional pedigree to work.

HSJ in the morning: at ‘first blush,’ the prospect tournament matters

The Free Press’s Helene St. James wrote a morning-posted article which discusses the importance of the Red Wings’ 2023 Prospect Tournament, and prospect tournaments in general:

One of the signs that a young player is ready for the next level of hockey is to judge how he performs against his peers.

That’s an opportunity the likes of Marco Kasper and Elmer Söderblom will have over the coming days as they partake in the prospects tournament that precedes main training camp for the Detroit Red Wings in Traverse City.

Those two are among the dozens of draftees and invitees who will compete against three other NHL teams’ top young players while management and NHL coaching staffs watch from the stands. A standout performance could lead to a look next to a veteran once main camp begins Sept. 21.

The Wings have been holding these prospects tournaments for years, at times hosting as many as seven teams. But the events have become popular around the league — there are also prospects tournaments hosted by the Buffalo Sabres, the Florida Panthers and the Vegas Golden Knights, among others — and this year the Wings host the Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars and Toronto Maple Leafs for four straight days of round-robin action, with each team playing three games.

After that comes a three-day break, and then the veterans show up and other young players arrive.

Continued; nobody wins or loses a job on a team’s NHL roster during the prospect tournament, and it’s incredibly important to see whether a player who’s dominant during the tournament falters when main camp begins…

But this is an important evaluation tool for the four participating NHL teams’ coaches and scouting/front office personnel, and prospect tournaments help establish something of an initial pecking order for young players.

Coach Dan Watson will be eying potential contributors to his Grand Rapids Griffins team, as will Toledo Walleye coach Pat Mikesch, and, as St. James suggests, a fantastic prospect tournament can earn a player an excellent opportunity in training camp lineups.

Just as importantly, the try-outs are trying not only to impress their respective employers, but they’re also trying to impress some of the dozens of pro scouts who attend the Traverse City tournament, dangling AHL and European contracts. I’ve seen many a try-out who was “just okay” during the tournament land as a professional hockey player somewhere other than Detroit.

FYI: this year’s prospect tournament and training camp tickets are ‘general admission’

The Traverse City Record-Eagle’s James Cook posted his first of many articles about the Red Wings’ prospect tournament and training camp, and Cook reports that this year’s 2023 Prospect Tournament is a little different (and not just because the field of teams has narrowed to four):

All remaining tickets to Prospects games are for sale only at the door, which opens one hour prior to each day’s first game. Tickets to all Prospects games and the first two days of Red Wings training camp (Sept. 21-22) are all general admission instead of assigned seating as they’ve been in past years.

“It’s critical (fans) understand that,” Rodes said. “They should get there early.”

Every game of the Prospect Tournament streams live on vimeo.com, with links available on Centre Ice’s website under DRW Events. All Red Wings games are be carried live on DetroitRedWings.com, Red Wings Facebook and YouTube.

“Ticket sales are ahead of last year a bit,” Centre Ice director Todd Spaulding said. “The Red-White game sold out quickly.”

Detroit’s Prospects roster includes first-round draft picks from each of the last three seasons — goaltender Sebastian Cossa (2021), center Marco Kasper (2022) and center Nate Danielson (2023). However, only three of the team’s 11 selections in the 2023 draft are on the squad, including Danielson, second-round defenseman Andrew Gibson and seventh-round center Emmitt Finnie.

Continued; the Vimeo links for every game can be found here on Centre ICE’s webpage, per Sean Shapiro on Twitter.

NHL.com’s Morreale surveys the NHL’s various prospect tournaments, offers three prospects to watch in Traverse City

NHL.com’s Mike G. Morreale posted an article discussing prospects to watch at the six prospect tournaments which take place every September, and he took note of three grade-A prospects who are participating in the Red Wings’ 2023 Prospect Tournament:

Adam Fantilli, F, Columbus Blue Jackets: The 18-year-old, chosen with the No. 3 pick in the 2023 NHL Draft, is expected to play a big role in his first season with the Blue Jackets. Fantilli (6-foot-2, 195 pounds) was the third freshman to win the Hobey Baker Award as the best NCAA men’s ice hockey player after he led all Division I players last season with 65 points (30 goals, 36 assists) in 36 games with the University of Michigan. He also helped Canada win the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship and the 2023 IIHF World Championship.

Marco Kasper, F, Detroit Red Wings: Kasper (6-1, 183) is ready for another chance in the lineup after sustaining a season-ending knee injury in his NHL debut April 2. Prior to that, the 19-year-old had 23 points (eight goals, 15 assists) in 52 games for Rogle in the Swedish Hockey League. “I’m trying to work as hard as I can to recover from the injury and get ready for camp,” Kasper said. “You are always working at getting stronger and scoring more goals, but in this league, it is all about getting the details right.”

Logan Stankoven, F, Dallas Stars: The 20-year-old (5-7, 170) was one of the final cuts from Stars training camp last season, playing five preseason games before being returned to Kamloops of the Western Hockey League, where he had 97 points (34 goals, 63 assists) in 48 regular-season games and a WHL-leading 30 points (10 goals, 20 assists) in 14 playoff games. Stankoven also starred for Canada at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, with 11 points (three goals, eight assists) in seven games to help it win the gold medal.

Continued; the Red Wings begin their prospect tournament on Thursday facing Stankoven’s Dallas Stars at 6:30 PM (to be streamed on the Red Wings’ YouTube channel, Facebook page and official homepage).

The Wings will then take a practice day, battle Columbus on Saturday at 3:30 PM, and the prospect tournament wraps up with Detroit vs. Toronto at 2:00 PM on Sunday.

You can follow along statistically on PointStreak, which has the schedule, a daily scoreboard which will post box scores, and a player database, with the Wings players’ game stats and vital statistics available as well

DHN’s Allen looks on the bright side…and the not-so-bright side…

Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen envisions five “best case” and “worst case scenarios” for the Red Wings this upcoming season as a behind-the-paywall article. Here’s one of Allen’s scenarios:

Best Case Scenario: Spunky Alex DeBrincat scores 40 goals to  spearhead a much-improved Red Wings. With DeBrincat tallying 40, the Red Wings’ power play is much improved.

How it happens: DeBrincat develops instant chemistry with Dylan Larkin who enjoys the best season of his career. 

Worst Case Scenario: DeBrincat is closer to 20 goals than 40 and the Red Wings’ don’t find the improvement they need to become an upper echelon scoring team.

How it happens: He’s facing greater pressure in Detroit when he’s expected to be No. 1 scorer. DeBrincat has reached 40 twice, but he’s averaging 31 goals per season. Over his six NHL season, he’s been in the 20s twice and scored as few as 18 goals in 2019-20. He’s facing greater pressure in Detroit when he’s expected to be No. 1 scorer.

Continued (paywall)