Author: George Malik

I’m a little hesitant to write the final word regarding the drafting record of Tyler Wright and his amateur scouting staff, which was in charge of the Detroit Red Wings’ drafting between 2014 and 2019, as the players from many of Wright’s drafts are still developing, but The Athletic’s Max Bultman gave it an educated stab, and his article is superb:

In hindsight, the final public comments of Tyler Wright’s tenure as the Detroit Red Wings’ amateur scouting director were fitting.

With the 2019 draft over and Wright speaking along the back wall of the draft floor in Vancouver, he was asked about the team’s development camp that would begin in a matter of days. He spoke about its value for the team’s new draftees in terms of learning and testing, but he eventually ended on a thought that sums up both the draft process and what comes next.

“You’ve gotta be able to draft right,” he said, “you’ve gotta be able to develop (and) you’ve gotta sit there and cross your fingers and hope the players turn out.”

Wright’s job, of course, was the first step. Drafting is the lifeblood of a healthy NHL organization, and for the last six years, he has overseen it for the Red Wings. When Wright selected Michael Rasmussen ninth overall in 2017, it was Detroit’s first top-10 pick since 1991. Then the Red Wings picked sixth overall each of the last two years.

Continued (paywall), and if you want me to weigh in with a way-premature assessment of the Wright administration’s work, please let me know.

Pursuant to the news that the Red Wings have let their chief of amateur scouting, two pro scouts and two amateur scouts go, with Tyler Wright leaving for the Edmonton Oilers (all thanks to hard work from the Winged Wheel Podcast’s Ryan Hana):

The Detroit News posted a staff report in which former Red Wings chief amateur scout Jeff Finley confirmed that he, Wright and amateur scout Andrew Dickson’s contracts were not renewed by the team:

“Our contracts were not renewed,” said Finley, who scouted for 10 years with the Wings. “Steve (Yzerman) said basically they had different plans. It’s the nature of the business, putting your own people in place. We’ve had a few high draft picks lately in Detroit and we feel we’ve made good picks.”

Finley, a former NHL defenseman whose three-year contract with the Wings expired this year, said he’s already had job discussions with a few other NHL teams and is “looking forward to other opportunities.”

Finley said Wright and former Detroit pro scout Archie Henderson were hired on Thursday by former Wings GM Ken Holland in Edmonton.

Finley also said amateur scout Andrew Dickson was let go by the Wings.

Update: According to the Edmonton Journal’s Jim Matheson, Jeff Finley is in talks with the St. Louis Blues, where he may become the director of amateur scouting.

The Edmonton Journal’s David Staples offers a set of “takes” regarding the news that Red Wings director of amateur scouting Tyler Wright, chief amateur scout Jeff Finley and amateur scout Andrew Dickson have been allowed to leave the Detroit organization, with Wright heading to Edmonton to join former Wings GM Ken Holland.

According to Staples, Wright did a fairly good job of drafting prospects while with the Wings:

As head of amateur scouting in Detroit, Wright somewhat reversed a run of mediocre scouting in that organization. In 2014, the Red Wings drafted Dylan Larkin 15 overall, and he’s become the team’s top young player. Detroit appears to have missed with top 2015 pick Evgeni Svechnikov, but two d-men from the 2016 draft, Dennis Cholowski and Filip Hronek, are trending well. So in those three drafts, he appears to have added three good players, which is what is needed from a scouting department, at least one good player per year. It’s not known if Wright did the same in his last three drafts. It’s too early to tell. We don’t even know if top picks like Michael Rasmussen, Filip Zadina, Joe Veleno and Moritz Seider will be busts or great buys, though not one of them is obviously a great buy at this point in time. That could change fast, however.

Continued and I’m curious as to whether you feel that “one good player per year” is enough…

Via the Red Wings on Twitter, Western Michigan University’s Erin Flynn penned an article discussing Danny DeKeyser’s decision to finish his general studies degree at WMU over the course of the past two seasons:

Congrats to @DetroitRedWings defenseman Danny DeKeyser on completing his degree from Western Michigan https://t.co/upy2Mz667w pic.twitter.com/3bOxgrR0ih— College Hockey Inc. (@collegehockey) July 11, 2019

Here’s a portion of Flynn’s article:

Students enrolled in [Extended University Programs] can take as many or as few credits at a time as they choose, while taking classes on main campus, regional campuses or—like DeKeyser—entirely online.

“When we travel, we have a little bit of down time in hotels or on plane rides, so it gave me something to do and kept me busy while I was on the road,”  DeKeyser explains.

Juggling professional and student life—and having a new baby right in the middle of it all—wasn’t easy.

“There were a few times where it was tough and I thought, ‘I don’t want to do this.’ Getting in at 3 a.m. on the road and the next day we’d have practice, and then I’d have to do homework. It was definitely different than what I was used to,” says DeKeyser. “But, overall, I liked it and enjoyed learning.” 

Continued

The Athletic’s Max Bultman discusses the Red Wings’ contractual obligations as they apply to the 2020 free agent period today, looking a year ahead and examining what should be an in-flux Wings roster:

The most striking thing about the Red Wings’ cap sheet a year out is the mass exodus coming on defense. Three veteran defensemen (Mike Green, Trevor Daley and Jonathan Ericsson) are entering their final season under contract, so money and space will be freed up. Contrast that with the forward group, where not a single player under contract as of now will be an unrestricted free agent next July.

Detroit will have three high-profile restricted free agents in Anthony Mantha, Andreas Athanasiou and Tyler Bertuzzi, but all three are core pieces in the team’s rebuild, so none is likely to be going anywhere (barring an unexpected trade, or, *gasp* an offer sheet). Their situation could, however, affect the Red Wings’ plans significantly depending on the team’s comfort level with going into an open market with so much talent up in the air. Maybe they’re all signed before July, or maybe, like so many RFAs right now, they’re not. But as of now, all three would figure to have at least some incentive to back up their breakout seasons in 2018 in order to bolster their RFA positions in 2020. How long the negotiations take after that remains to be seen.

Detroit won’t, however, be crunched in a way even remotely resembling some of the notable RFA-heavy teams this offseason.

Continued (paywall)

Per MLive’s Ansar Khan (and great work by the Winged Wheel Podcast’s Ryan Hana yesterday):

Tyler Wright has been let go as director of amateur scouting for the Detroit Red Wings as part of a significant purge of their scouting staff under general manager Steve Yzerman, a source confirmed to M-Live.Wright, 46, had held the position since 2013.

Kris Draper is expected to be named the team’s director of amateur scouting. Draper had been serving as assistant to the general manager.

Wright is expected to join former Red Wings general manager Ken Holland with the Edmonton Oilers.

The Red Wings couldn’t be reached for comment.

Jeff Finley, chief amateur scout, and amateur scout Andrew Dickson also have been released.

Long-time pro scout Glenn Merkosky has retired. Fellow pro scout Archie Henderson is expected to join the Oilers.

And Sportsnet’s Mark Spector…

Changes coming to Edmonton Oilers scouting staff.
Former DET Dir. of Amateur Scouting Tyler Wright will join EDM staff, as will pro scout Archie Henderson.
Former DET scout Jeff Finley will not join GM Ken Holland in EDM.— Mark Spector (@SportsnetSpec) July 11, 2019

Update: Hockeybuzz’s Bob Duff confirms:

On July 1, when Detroit Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman was asked if he planned any changes in the club’s hockey operations department, his answer was short and to the point.

“No I don’t,” Yzerman said.

Then he gutted the team’s scouting department.

Out of a job in Detroit is director of amateur scouting Tyler Wright, who oversaw last month’s NHL entry draft, as well as chief amateur scout Jeff Finley, amateur scout Andrew Dickson and pro scouts Glenn Merkosky and Archie Henderson.

A team source indicated that Merkosky, 59, had decided to retire. A former Wings player and coach of the AHL farm club when it was the Adirondack Red Wings, Merkosky had been a scout with the club for 21 years and part of the organization for 28 seasons.

Henderson, 62, a former NHL player as well, joined the Wings scouting staff in 2015.

Pro scouts Mark Howe, Bruce Haralson and Kirk Maltby were retained, as were North American amateur scouts Kelly Harper, Mark Mullen, Marty Stein and Ross Yates. Detroit’s entire European scouting staff – director Hakan Andersson, Vladimir Havluj, Nikolai Vakourov and Antonin Routa – all remain on staff.

Update #2: The Free Press’s Helene St. James also confirms:

New general manager Steve Yzerman has shaken up his scouting staff.

While there has been no official word from Yzerman or the Detroit Red Wings organization, the team’s home page no longer lists Tyler Wright, Jeff Findlay or Andrew Dickson among team employees. Those were the three men primarily in charge of running the amateur draft under former general manager Ken Holland. They were at the draft table when the Wings shook up the first round of the 2019 draft in June by selecting German defenseman Moritz Seider at sixth overall. The final call, , of course, belonged to Yzerman. 

A source familiar with the situation who did not wish to be quoted said Wright will join Holland with the Edmonton Oilers. So will pro scout Archie Henderson, who also worked under Holland in Detroit. No other Wings personnel is headed to Edmonton.

Holland was named general manager of the Oilers on May 7, less than three weeks after Yzerman was named GM of the Wings.

One of Yzerman’s first shakeups was to bring in Pat Verbeek, Yzerman’s right-hand man while he was GM of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Yzerman said during a June 13 meeting with reporters more changes could be coming to his staff. 

Hakan Andersson remains chief of European scouting, and Mark Howe remains director of pro scouting.

Update #3:

Can confirm that Tyler Wright, Jeff Finley and Andrew Dickson are all no longer with Detroit’s amateur scouting staff. Glenn Merkosky and Archie Henderson (on the pro-side) also moving on as reported.— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) July 11, 2019

Red Wings super-video-maker Alex Wood, a.k.a. AWood40 on YouTube, has produced a 58-minute highlight clip of Henrik Zetterberg’s early career, from his NHL debut in 2003 to the Wings’ Conference Final appearance in 2007:

The Toledo Blade is examining the “state of sports” in Toledo and Northwest Ohio, and today, the Blade’s Mark Monroe discusses the phenomenon that is the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye. The Walleye draw huge crowds, play damn well, and help develop the occasional Red Wings prospect. Monroe notes that the state of the sport–for now, anyway–is very good:

The Walleye organization has enjoyed steady support since its inception, but a recent uptick in success on the ice has led to record-setting attendance.

The team has enjoyed consistent success at the turnstiles in the ECHL — annually ranking near the top in total attendance.

After they failed to make the playoffs in three of their first five seasons, the Walleye bottomed out with a 21-44-7 record in 2013-14. Former coach Derek Lalonde, an unknown commodity when he took charge in 2014-15, led Toledo to the greatest turnaround in ECHL history. Lalonde, who is now an NHL assistant in Tampa Bay, turned the keys over to current coach Dan Watson after leading the Walleye to the Brabham Cup (regular-season title).

Toledo has since earned a playoff berth in five consecutive seasons and has reached the conference finals three times in that span.

Watson earned ECHL coach of the year honors in 2017, and general manager Neil Neukam has been named ECHL executive of the year the past two seasons.

“With the excitement and energy of our brand, the city and region have fallen in love with the organization,” said Neukam, whose franchise hosted the ECHL All-Star Game for the first time in January. “It’s a great game, and you don’t have to be a fan to love it. It’s a very special sport.”

The Walleye set a team attendance record for the fifth consecutive year.

“What has made the Walleye so successful, and the reason why they are one of the few teams in Double-A hockey to turn a profit, is that they sell family entertainment,” Saevig said.

Continued at length…

I am a little wary of posting this as the Wings website’s personnel listings can be wonky, but the Winged Wheel Podcast’s Ryan Hana noted some significant changes made to the Wings’ hockey operations webpage:

Tyler Wright, Director of Amateur Scouting, is no longer listed on the Detroit Red Wings official Hockey Operations page. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/mdQIYaPiQd— Ryan Hana (@RyanHanaWWP) July 10, 2019

Jeff Finley (Chief Amateur Scout), Andrew Dickson (Amateur Scout), Glenn Merkosky (Pro Scout), Archie Henderson (Pro Scout) are all also no longer listed. #LGRW— Ryan Hana (@RyanHanaWWP) July 10, 2019

Wright, Finley and Dickson worked as a unit and all hail from the Vernon, BC area, which is Ken Holland’s home. The Oilers’ website still lists Edmonton’s normal staff, and the Lightning’s website still lists Al Murray as their chief of amateur scouting, so you may discuss this among yourselves.

My best guess? I would assume that the Red Wings let the contracts of Wright, Finley and Dickson expire on July 1st, and that Henderson and Merkosky followed Holland to Edmonton.

If I may put it bluntly, Wright’s staff landed some very solid second-and-later-round picks, but their first-round drafting was…sketchy.

Where do they go from here? Pat Verbeek and Ryan Martin (who runs the Griffins) are assistant GM’s and Kris Draper remains a special assistant to the GM, so there’s enough talent to go around, assuming that Steve Yzerman doesn’t want to bring in his own staff.

Via the Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe on Twitter, the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye made a player-signing announcement today:

Forward Justin Buzzeo (buzz-ee-oh) has agreed to terms with the Toledo Walleye for the 2019-20 season.

Buzzeo has spent the past two seasons in Europe including appearing in a total of 43 games this past season with 12 goals and 21 assists. The Windsor, Ontario native last played in the ECHL in the 2016-17 season when he split the year between Atlanta and Orlando. That season Buzzeo posted career highs scoring 19 goals with 44 assists in 69 games played. In 139 career ECHL games played he has 31 goals, 63 assists with 66 penalty minutes.

“Justin is a tremendous hockey player,” said Head Coach Dan Watson. “He has parlayed a strong college career into a terrific professional one that will make him a great asset for us.”

The 5’11”, 174 pound forward spent four years (2011-2015) at Ferris State University prior to turning professional. Buzzeo posted 68 points (29G, 39A) in 122 career game for the Bulldogs. His 32 points (14G, 18A) in 2013-14 tied for the team lead over 42 games. Twice Buzzeo landed on the WCHA All-Academic Team from 2013-2015.

Justin Buzzeo played with former @ToledoWalleye D Simon Denis and F Kyle Bonis at Ferris State. https://t.co/kdQHUn7hBs— Mark Monroe (@MonroeBlade) July 10, 2019