Month: August 2025

Congratulations on your 30th anniversary, Avs…

This entry’s just a light-hearted one for the fun of it:

The Colorado Avalanche have compiled a list and a Tweet encapsulating their franchise’s 30 best goals over the course of the team’s 30-year tenure in Denver. Some of them were of course against the Red Wings, given that they did win the 1996 Western Conference Final against Detroit…

But let’s just remember that the Red Wings won their playoff series vs. Colorado in 1997 and 2002, and that the Wings still lead in Stanley Cups over the last 30 years by a 4-3 margin.

That, and the Red Wings were on, as they say, “the right side of history” against Claude Lemieux, Patrick Roy, Adam Foote and the rest of those arrogant bastards:

Lucas Raymond expects to improve over the course of the 2025-2026 season

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan filed a notebook article this afternoon which discusses Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond, who suggested at his end-of-the-season press conference that he’s got more to give:

Raymond, 23, posted career-highs of 80 points and 53 assists last season, to go along with 27 goals. Raymond has made steady progress since entering the league in 2021-22 and putting up 57 points (23 goals, 34 assists) and establishing himself quickly as a player to watch, after being the fourth overall pick in 2020.

Raymond is confident the upcoming season will be another positive step toward joining the elite class of NHL wingers.

“I want to take another step in my game,” said Raymond. “I did feel like I took a step this year but I feel like I have a lot more left. You go into the summer, every year, and you focus on maybe a couple things that you really want to pinpoint and develop. For me, it’s just the game. Put in the work and hopefully get a good result.”

Interestingly, when NHL.com released its list of top 20 wingers this month, Raymond didn’t make the cut. Raymond was included among a group of under-age 25 wingers who could make the top 20 list next year, along with talented young players such as Cole Caufield (Montreal), Matthew Knies (Toronto) and Quinton Byfield (Los Angeles).

The website, in its fantasy previews, projected Raymond as an 82-point scorer in 2025-26 and said Raymond “should be considered a fringe top 50 overall player in standard leagues and fringe top 20 option in keeper and dynasty formats.”

Raymond’s 152 points the last two seasons ranks 29th in the NHL. Raymond was especially prolific on the Wings’ potent power play last season, given his 37 points on the power play trailed only Tampa’s Nikita Kucherov (46 points) and Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon (38) in the NHL.

“A lot of the power play, it does run through Lucas and Patrick (Kane), but Lucas gets a lot of touches there and he makes really good plays with it,” said captain Dylan Larkin, Raymond’s linemate. “You look at all the big guys in the league that put up points consistently, they get the puck on the power play and they make it count when they have it. And I see (Raymond) doing that really all over the ice. He wants it on his stick. He’s built confidence and when he’s got it, he is looking to make the other team pay.”

Continued (paywall); Raymond won’t care very much about the NHL Network’s snub, but he’s definitely going to have a chip on his shoulder as he prepares to find some real consistency in both the goal-scoring and set-up departments.

Raymond can score, he can pass and make plays, he skates well, and he’s got a bit of an edge to his game. To me, Raymond is the Swedish version of a Swiss Army Knife, capable in all situations, and it will be very interesting to see how well he reacts to a full season under coach Todd McLellan’s guidance.

Trey Augustine, Sebastian Cossa named in EliteProspects’ Top 20 NHL-affiliated goaltending prospects list

Two days ago, EliteProspects’ Mitch Brown listed 6 Red Wings prospects among his “Top 100 NHL-affiliated skater prospects,” and this morning, the multi-talented Sean Shapiro lists EliteProspects’ top 20 goaltending prospects:

#3 Trey Augustine

As a pair of similar-aged goalies, Trey Augustine and [Canadiens prospect Jacob] Fowler are going to be compared side-by-side throughout their careers. Last season we had Augustine ranked 5th and Fowler at No. 6, and it would be shocking if they are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 next season since both will likely be Calder Eligible at this time next season.   

Augustine has one of the most impressive résumés of any international goalie, junior or otherwise. He won back-to-back World Junior championships as the starter, has gold medals from Under-18 and already had a successful stint on the senior nation team. At Michigan State, his performance and impact have become the bedrock for a team that’s now a national title contender.

Truthfully there’s nothing left for Augustine to accomplish at the amateur level (if we can still call college athletics amateur). But he returned for his junior season at Michigan State to chase a national title, and he might even win the Hobey Baker Award in the process. 

…

#4 Sebastian Cossa

Sebastian Cossa is an interesting case study as he’s a goaltender who was drafted high, shown consistent strides of improvement, but has fallen out of favour in public discourse due to his situation, lacking meaningful NHL experience as Detroit has crowded the crease ahead of him the past few years and the success of Augustine at Michigan State making Cossa, at times, feel expandable. But for any organization outside of Detroit, San Jose, and Montreal, Cossa would instantly upgrade a franchise’s long-term outlook in net. 

Cossa is one of the most effective users of his size at 6-foot-6, with a great frame on direct shots and when low in the crease, he’s able to completely cover the entire bottom of the net without leaving his five-hole open. He’s also exceptional along the post as well, leaving no room for shooters. Positionally he’s sound, boasting good depth, angles, with the only area of improvements being route selection and occasionally playing too aggressive. All the while, Cossa has the skating and athletic profile of a goaltender much shorter than him.  

Cossa will likely still be on this list next season, but it’s only because of the lack of NHL opportunity. And in the long-term it’ll be a fascinating development to see how and who the Red Wings eventually pick to pay as their No. 1 goalies between him and Augustine when both are hitting their mid-20s. 

Tweet of note: Praise for Dylan Larkin from the NHL Network’s Mike Rupp

It’s always nice to hear praise for Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin:

Tweet of note: 97.1 the Ticket to broadcast Wings’ four exhibition home games

According to Red Wings play-by-play announcer Ken Kal, 97.1 the Ticket will broadcast four of the Wings’ 8 exhibition games:

The four exhibition games are the Wings’ home exhibition games.

Grayden Robertson-Palmer making the adjustment from high school hockey to the QMJHL

Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff profiles Red Wings 2025 draft pick Grayden Robertson-Palmer this morning, discussing the uphill battle which the 204th overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft faces:

Robertson-Palmer has been turning heads in Moncton [Wildcats’] training camp. He tallied a highlight-reel goal during a scrimmage. He scored a goal in the Wildcats’ most recent QMJHL preseason game.

Stepping into the major junior ranks from high-school hockey, Roberson-Palmer is expecting the transition to be challenging.

“I think having to learn how to like read off plays, move my body different ways, cut back in different ways and keep my head up all the time so I don’t sustain any big injuries,” he assesses as his main challenges. “I think that’s going to be the biggest difference for me.”

Those who know him best, his teammates at Phillips Andover, praise the leadership qualities that Robertson-Palmer exhibits.

Whether it was organizing a team dinner or a Secret Santa, or providing a teammate with a non-judgmental sounding board, his teammates talk about how they could always count on Robertson-Palmer to be at the forefront of the team’s leadership group.

“I feel like he’s the kind of guy who’s always there for you if you need something or just want to talk,” teammate Edouard Lord told The Phillipian. “He’s good at making sure everyone’s in a good mental state.”

Continued; Robertson-Palmer won’t be playing alongside Guimond as the goaltender committed to Yale University, but the 5’11,” 196-pound center suggests that his 16 goals and 23 assists in only 30 games played for Phillips Andover Academy (while wearing the captain’s “C”) emphasize his strength as a playmaking forward.

Tweets of note via Duff: Red Savage officially signs 2-year contract with the AHL’s Rochester Americans

Yesterday, the Hockey News’s Ken Campbell reported that former Red Wings prospect Red Savage signed a 2-year contract with the AHL’s Rochester Americans, and, as noted by Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff, that contract was made official today:

Audio link: Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond appear on ‘100% Hockey with Millard and Shannon’

Follow the links to listen on your preferred podcast platform…

It’s an hour-and-five-minute long podcast in which Darren Millard and John Shannon speak with Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond…And here’s a 10-minute highlight clip of Ken and Mick being Ken and Mick:

Tweet of note: NHL Network’s Mike Rupp praises Pavel Datsyuk

Here’s the NHL Network’s Mike Rupp raving about Pavel Datsyuk’s skill set as one of the most underrated superstars of all time: