Month: October 2024

On Saturday’s shot-blocking odyssey

The Red Wings surrendered 42 shots and 89 shot attempts over the course of Saturday night’s 3-0 victory over the Nashville Predators.

That’s not a sustainable number of shot attempts to be allowing your opponents to wind up and unleash upon you, even when the Red Wings blocked 31 of those shot attempts, and Cam Talbot stopped 42 more of them.

For one night, however–or every once in a while–hockey can be a game of survival, and the Hockey News’s Connor Eargood asked defenseman Justin Holl and coach Derek Lalonde about the Wings‘ in-the-moment perspectives on the shot-blocking job that the team undertook on Saturday:

“It’s kind of funny when you’re out there because you’re so focused on trying to make the playing and blocking the shot that even if it hurts, it still feels good mentally. “Like, ‘OK I did my job,’ ” said defenseman Justin Holl, who blocked four shots Saturday in his season debut. “But obviously you’ll have some bumps and bruises.”

These blocks came from a variety of sources. Eleven out of 18 skaters recorded at least one. Defenseman Moritz Seider led with seven. Defensemen Ben Chiarot and Simon Edvinsson blocked four and three, respectively. Among forwards, Joe Veleno‘s three blocks paced the group. Even scoring winger Alex DeBrincat, not known as a particularly strong defender, made two blocks. All of these players paid up to help out Talbot. 

This all begs the question: How sustainable is a 31-block night? As much as the Red Wings’ defense can be happy to have pitched a shutout, having to block 31 shots in a game requires them to go through a lot of pain and potential injury risk. Right now, both are necessary when Detroit sees 87 shot attempts, as the Predators took Saturday night. But the next step is for the Red Wings to whittle down those shot attempts so they don’t have to block so many.

Even if the Red Wings limited the amount of attempts that reached Cam Talbot, who pitched a shutout for his seventh NHL team Saturday, they still would rather deny attempts in general. By denying shooting lanes, possessing the puck and staying on top of opposing skaters, Detroit can limit the attempts it faces. In other words, improved defensive play can take away the need to lay out in front of a shot to begin with.

Puck possession definitely limits shot attempts against, and strong defensive play, where you’re playing close to your opponent and preventing their sticks from accessing time and space in which to shoot pucks at the goal via stick-checking and generally good body position, all add up. Moreover, if you’re playing with the puck in the other team’s zone, you’re threatening to shoot on the other team instead.

Coach Lalonde acknowledged as much:

Continue reading On Saturday’s shot-blocking odyssey

Prospect round-up: Miller backs up in the Soo; Finnie’s Blazers fall

Of Red Wings prospect-related note in North America Sunday night:

In the OHL, Landon Miller served as the back-up goaltender in the Soo Greyhounds’ 3-2 win over the Saginaw Spirit;

And in the WHL, Emmitt Finnie finished even with 3 shots and a 20-for-32 faceoff record as the Kamloops Blazers lost 5-3 to Tri-City.

Red Wings hope to have the blueprint to defeat the Blueshirts

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan asked Justin Holl and coach Derek Lalonde about the Red Wings’ imminent home-and-home series against the New York Rangers, who possess a 1-0-and-1 record:

The Wings play two consecutive games (Thursday’s game at Little Caesars Arena) against the Rangers, last season’s Presidents Trophy (best regular-season record) winner, who look just as deep and talented this time around.

This will be a good early litmus test for the Wings.

“They have a real good team, it’s a playoff team and has been for the last couple of years,” Holl said. “It’s going to be a big challenge. But we feel pretty confident if we play our game the right way, we can play with anybody and beat anybody. It’ll be a big challenge but with big challenges come big opportunities too.”

The Wings want to replicate the type of defensive game they played against Nashville.

“It has to look a little bit like (Saturday) again,” Lalonde said. “We don’t want to spend the entire time in our zone like we did at time, but the urgency defensively, and if you give them easy offense with the type of talent they have, it could be a long night for us. We limited odd-man chances, Grade-A chances, and we limited Grade-A slot chances (against Nashville), especially five-on-five. It’ll have to look similar to be successful against a team like that.”

Continued

Tweet of note: This Zetterday in history…

The Red Wings posted a “Blast From the Past” Tweet noting that Henrik Zetterberg scored his first NHL goal on this day in 2002, against the same Anaheim Ducks that would vex the Wings in the spring of 2003…

What gets me, though, is the lineup. Zetterberg centering Luc Robitaille and Brendan Shanahan, along with Chris Chelios and Dmitri Bykov on defense. Three Hockey Hall of Famers, one who should join them shortly, and a guy who played one great NHL season and went home.

Tweet of note: ‘Secret ancient man’

From the NHL’s PR Twitter account, this one slipped under the radar, but it’s still pretty cool to note:

Don’t give up on the youth movement just yet

Detroit Hockey Now’s Max Smith posted “Two Truths and a Lie” about Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman and the so-called “Yzerplan,” and I want to emphasize point #1:

Truth: This Red Wings roster should look different by the trade deadline

Marco Kasper put on a show in the Red Wings’ preseason. Many people in the media were wondering how Kasper didn’t make the opening night roster. In the preseason game against Ottawa, Kasper had two goals and nearly pulled off a hat trick in the first period. He was also solid defensively.

Albert Johansson is currently the seventh defenseman on the team. But GM Steve Yzerman has praised his capacity for adjustment and improvement in his time in the AHL. The Red Wings are keeping their top lines close to what they were last season, which leaves some room for Kasper in to appear sooner rather than later in the case of injury or if someone isn’t performing up to expectations.  

 Said Lalonde, “Grand Rapids is two hours away. We’ll have played 33 players by Christmas.” 

Kasper is just as likely to be getting someone on the forecheck as he is to be breaking away with the puck for a one timer and his skillset makes it so that those moments often happen together.

Carter Mazur and Nate Danielson made some plays in the preseason. If they can become more physical and play a little bigger in the AHL, there won’t be a reason to keep them down. If Yzerman thinks they’re playing better than the likes of Tyler Motte (on a one-year deal) and could be dealt away for the replacement is needed in the AHL if Danielson or Mazur is called up.  

Continued; the Red Wings are going to suffer more injuries, and I fully believe that some of their young players are going to “steal jobs” if they are afforded opportunities to impress over the second half of the regular season.

I wouldn’t be spotlighting Motte, a hard-working grinder, as the candidate to be traded or waived if the Wings bring up a youngster, but I do believe that a veteran or two might be moved in some fashion if Kasper, Danielson, Mazur or Johansson “steal a job.” That’s a very realistic expectation.

A bit of praise for Copp, Compher and the Wings’ ‘ground game’

The Hockey News’s Sam Stockton takes a look back at some important statistical and oral storylines from the Red Wings’ 3-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Saturday night:

Copp, Compher, Zone Time, and the Red Wings’ Ground Game: Between Motte’s performance, Dylan Larkin‘s empty-netter, and five-a-side goals from Andrew Copp and J.T. Compher, it was a big night for the Red Wings’ sizable contingent of University of Michigan alumni.

With Copp and Compher in particular, the goals were a supplement to strong performances that ran much deeper.  “They were both on, committed to playing the right game,” said Lalonde of the former Wolverine teammates.  “When they’re playing their game, it’s a lot of winning shifts…They both got us offense, but they were winning shifts with some really hard match-ups with that type of lineup.  I’m glad they both got rewarded with some offense.”

A key element of that success was Copp and Compher’s effectiveness in driving their lines to some sustained spells in the offensive zone on a night in which Nashville made that difficult.  Though the Preds accrued far more chances than mustered their hosts, both non-empty net Red Wing goals came from offensive zone play.  Detroit’s top line threatened throughout the night off the rush but could never quite connect.  Meanwhile, from Compher down, the Red Wings did manage to relieve pressure at least on occasion via the offensive zone cycle, and it was that style of offense that produced both Detroit goals.

“Everyone’s into underlying numbers now,” said Lalonde of that dynamic this afternoon. “They’re pretty good for us. We out-chanced them. In our underlying numbers, we out Grade A’d them 2-1, but there was a ton of volume [against] on shots. Obviously we had extended zone time, so there is that balance where you need stops, you want to lessen zone time. It’s a little bit on both ends. It’s one, on our defensive end, getting stops, but two, it’s spending some more time in the offensive zone with the puck. And we did have some possession, and it was kind of a point of emphasis. We rushed to the slot, which is sometimes positive, but it doesn’t help what we call a ‘ground game,’ the O zone time, so there’s a balance…Last night’s a perfect example. We’ll certainly take that game—the way we defended, the type of slot chances and Grade A’s we gave up—but that’s a hard volume game and a lot of zone time, lot of shots against.”

Continued; I know that Copp has been a massive disappointment in terms of his offensive contributions, but he and Compher are superb defensive players, and while they may both be #3 centers, they do a hell of a job in terms of pushing puck possession into the offensive zone.

I love the way that the Rasmussen-Copp-Fischer line serves as an “identity line” that can be tossed over the boards when the Wings are taking on water, so to speak, and Compher is a hard-working center who I believe has a little more offensive potential than we might think.

Summarizing the narratives regarding Ville Husso’s waiving so that Detroit may call up a ‘veteran guy’

Of Red Wings-related note from today’s optional practice at Little Caesars Arena’s BELFOR Training Center:

  1. Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde told the Wings’ media corps that Christian Fischer (upper-body) and Jeff Petry (upper-body) are both out for Monday’s game against the Rangers, and, as Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff notes, the Wings would waive a player. That turned out to be Ville Husso:

“We probably have to do some moving around,” Detroit coach Derek Lalonde said of the club’s 23-player roster. “Potentially send someone through waivers to get a body available.”

Husso was the most logical candidate to go on waivers.

Now that we know it’s Husso who is going, the next question is who’s arriving?

Don’t get your hopes up that it will be 2020 first-round draft pick Marco Kasper. Since it’s likely only to be a short-term need, veteran pros such as Austin Watson or Sheldon Dries are probably the more likely fit.

“Being a short term call up, might be a more veteran guy,” Lalonde admitted.

2. Why Husso? Because the Wings gain $1.15 million in cap space by assigning him to Grand Rapids, even temporarily, and as the Red Wings are only carrying 12 forwards, they need to clear some cap space to call up that “more veteran guy,” as the Hockey News’s Sam Stockton noted:

“We probably have to do some moving around, potentially send someone through waivers to potentially get a body available, because I think both [Fischer] and Petry…will not be IR candidates,” added Lalonde, as to the team’s short-term plans.  In other words, because neither Fischer nor Petry is expected to miss more than a week, Detroit can’t free up a roster spot by simply moving one or both to injured reserve.

As it stands, the Red Wings have 11 healthy forwards and seven healthy defensemen.  Lalonde noted that Detroit could potentially go with an 11-seven lineup tomorrow night, though it appears a roster move is likely coming nonetheless.

Justin Holl is the only Detroit defenseman who could be sent down without clearing waivers (because he did so earlier in the week, thus giving him a 30-day window in which he can pass freely), but without Petry, Lalonde values having Holl as an additional right-shot defenseman in the lineup.  Therefore, to get an extra spot to add a 12th forward to the roster, the Red Wings elected to waive goaltender Ville Husso this afternoon.

Husso’s season got off to a disappointing start Thursday night, and, because of his $4.75 million cap hit, he is unlikely to be claimed on waivers.  Clearing waivers would allow Detroit to send him to Grand Rapids to call up an extra forward.

Now I would encourage you to not write off Husso or the Red Wings’ concept of utilizing a 3-goaltender system just yet. Justin Holl spent all of a couple of days in Grand Rapids before being called up, and he’s back in the lineup, contributing positively; it’s entirely possible, if not probable, that Husso might do the same.

3. Who might that veteran forward be? MLive’s Ansar Khan considered a few more names, and two of them aren’t veterans…

Possibilities include veteran Austin Watson, signed last week to a one-year deal, or prospects Carter Mazur or Marco Kasper. Kasper, their top pick in 2022, had a terrific camp and preseason, but for a short-term recall, the Red Wings might look to bring up a veteran.

4. While the Free Press’s Helene St. James put the situation bluntly:

Husso landing on waivers isn’t a great look for the 29-year-old former No. 1 netminder, but he didn’t help his case when he allowed four goals on 14 shots in some 25 minutes in Thursday’s loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Free-agent signee Cam Talbot, meanwhile, stymied the Nashville Predators on 42 shots in Saturday’s 3-0 victory.

Husso is also coming off an injury-plagued season which limited him to 19 games in 2023-24.

With the Red Wings being a “cap team” this year, I do not anticipate this being the last time that Husso or Holl find themselves on waivers and/or assigned to Grand Rapids.

That’s okay. It’s not bad general managerial skills by Steve Yzerman–it’s just the cost of survival in the NHL when your roster is at the salary cap’s upper limit.

Red Wings waive Ville Husso

Per Elliotte Friedman:

Husso will probably clear waivers and head to Grand Rapids for as long as the Wings need an extra forward…