Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff reports that Red Wings forward Carter Mazur knows that, at 24 years of age, the non-waiver-exempt checker from Jackson, MI is on the cusp of making the Red Wings’ roster…and he’s on the cusp of not making the roster, too. Mazur told Duff that it’s “do or die” time in terms of trying to make the team:
“It’s a dream of mine to be a part of the Detroit Red Wings, and I feel like I have a lot more to show,” Mazur said.
He’s absolutely right on that count. The Mazur who has played for the Red Wings, both during this preseason and his eight-game audition late last season, isn’t anywhere near the same player who has looked dominant at times in the AHL with the Grand Rapids Griffins.
Mazur displays a scoring touch in GR that’s never been evident during his time with the Red Wings. He’s been pointless as an NHLer. Last season, Mazur scored 11 goals in 16 games with the Griffins.
He willingly shoulders some of the blame for that absence of NHL offense. Mazur is proving guilty of a crime many young players commit. So concerned are they about not making a mistake when on the ice, they forget to display the ability that earned them this chance.
“Yeah, I think mainly it’s been, for me, more systematic,” Mazur said of his struggles to shine as an NHLer. “I feel like I’ve kind of been relying on that more so than my own game. So I just need to get to that comfortability of the system so I don’t need to think about it during the game and I can just play.”
Wings coach Todd McLellan told Duff that Mazur’s potential remains high:
“He goes, ‘It’s hard just to get a shot off in the NHL. Way harder than the American League,’” McLellan said. “And then you look at the number of scoring chances that were in front of him. Maybe not as many as he would get in the American League. So your opportunity shrinks so much. But the good thing is he understands that, and he’s got to work through that and create a sandpaper type that scores; that’s what I think his role is.”
…
“He’s got to be a gritty player,” McLellan said. “He’s got to be abrasive and hard to play against. And, every now and then, he’s got to shoot the puck into the net. And if we can get that from him, then we’ve got a really good player.”
