Author: George Malik

If you caught Fox 2’s SportsWorks round-table on Sunday, the Oakland Press’s Pat Caputo got particularly angry when discussing the Red Wings’ free agent moves…

Given they already had little cap space to work with in a hard cap league, this could preclude the Red Wings making value-for-value trades for players other organizations desire to move because of cost, that would fit the Red Wings better in the long-range future. But then again, Holland NEVER makes player-for-player trades in the off season. He ALWAYS falls into the trap of overpaying veterans in free agency to set the roster before it needs to be. He is ALWAYS overvaluing his own players. Come on, why is this particular organization signing 33- and 34-year-old veteran free agent skaters like Green and Thomas Vanek as free agents? It’s about as nonsensical as it gets.

And please, spare us the line about “veteran presence to help the youngsters.” The Red Wings already have a whole bunch of that because of bad-value deals Holland handed out in the past.

Caputo continues, and I know that some of you feel similarly…

The Free Press’s Helene St. James posted a profile of David Pope this afternoon:

Pope, who turns 24 in September, was among the older prospects at development camp, having spent the last four years playing wing at Nebraska-Omaha. Originally drafted 109th overall in 2013, Pope signed with the Wings in May with the understanding he’ll get some opportunities in the exhibition season as he vies for a role in Detroit.

“I have a shot to make the NHL and I just have to have a good summer, work on a few things,” Pope said during last week’s camp at Little Caesars Arena. “For me it’s more about skating – not necessarily technique or anything, but about stamina. I’ve been working with a skating coach in Detroit and should be good in the fall.”

Pope, 6 feet 3 and 198 pounds, has good offensive instincts and soft hands, and knows how to get open away from play. He recorded career highs in his senior year and led the Mavericks with 20 goals (12 on the power play) and 21 assists in 35 games. He’s a power play half-wall guy with a shoot-first mentality that should be welcome on the Wings, who ranked 25th with a 30.2 shots-per-game average in 2017-18.

“David is a scorer,” director of player development Shawn Horcoff said. “You can tell he is a shooter – he’s not a guy that’s going to lug the puck through the neutral zone or be creative – he is going to get it, give it to skill, and get open. And when he does get it, he’s going to shoot. He is going to get a lot of pucks to the net. He’s got a great shot.  I know he’s looking to come to camp and vie for a spot.”

Continued

According to The Athletic’s Craig Custance, the Red Wings are not part of the Erik Karlsson sweepstakes, but their abundance of cap space during the 2019 offseason means that the Wings will be bidding for top free agents next year at this time:

According to an NHL source, the Red Wings are not currently involved in Karlsson trade talks. They’re just now getting to the point in the rebuild where they’re assembling the kind of young talent necessary to successfully turn things around. They don’t have the desire to give up a huge package of those players for a crack at Karlsson.

The preferred plan is to stockpile picks and prospects and when the cap space is created, try and lure a high-end player without tapping into that collective talent pool.

As we’re seeing, that might be the hardest part of the plan. When a player of that caliber reaches free agency, the competition to land him is off the charts. Just look at the John Tavares sweepstakes. And that’s in the rare case a player like him becomes available.

But a look at the Red Wings’ cap situation as it stands now reveals that they should be well-positioned to make some noise in free agency on July 1, 2019.

Custance continues (paywall)…

Of Red Wings-related note this morning:

1. USA Hockey’s Jayson Hron penned an article regarding Red Wings draft pick Ryan O’Reilly:

Dallas native Ryan O’Reilly considers Detroit a home away from home. He played a portion of his youth hockey with Little Caesars, so it was only fitting that he was on the ice at Little Caesars Arena last week, skating at the Detroit Red Wings 2018 Development Camp.

For O’Reilly, it was a case of familiar surroundings in more ways than one.

Detroit’s fourth-round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, O’Reilly attended USA Hockey’s National Player Development Camps in 2015, 2016 and 2017, so being back at an elite-level summer camp was nothing new.

“Growing up doing all those USA Hockey camps, especially the three years I did them in Buffalo, it gets you pretty familiar with these situations,” said O’Reilly, who scored 21 goals with Madison in the USHL last season. “You don’t know anyone and you don’t have any chemistry yet, so you’ve got to find a way to showcase yourself and your skills.”

Continued

2. On Twitter, this cannot possibly be a surprise:

Based on current roster projections, the five oldest teams are:

1. Detroit
2. Los Angeles
3. NY Islanders
4. Minnesota
5. Chicago

— Roster Resource NHL (@NHLRosters) July 3, 2018

3. Of Grand Rapids Griffins-related note, from yesterday:

A couple of Griffins alumni notes:

Today, Dan Renouf signed with CAR;
Matt Lorito signed with NYI;
Jared Coreau and Ben Street signed with ANH.

— George Malik (@georgemalik) July 2, 2018

The Detroit News has posted a 25-minute audio-and-or-video “Red Wings Report” in which Ted Kulfan, Gregg Krupa and John Niyo discuss the Red Wings’ development camp and free agency moves:

Of Red Wings and Grand Rapids Griffins-related note this afternoon:

1. The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan wrote an article about Red Wings first round draft pick Joel Veleno:

“We had him extremely high on the board,” [Wings director of amateur scouting Tyler] Wright said. “We wanted to target centers, as well. He’s captain of Team Canada at Ivan Hlinka, he’s captain of the under-18 world championship team. Special exemption in the Quebec Major Junior League as a 15-year-old. If you’d have told me we were walking out with Veleno at 30, I would have been shocked. I don’t want to do a lot of comparisons by he skated a lot like Dylan Larkin.”

That’s what Shawn Horcoff, the Wings’ director of player development, also saw during last week’s development camp.

“Incredible,” was Horcoff’s word to describe Veleno’s skating. “He has a good skill set, too. He’s just a guy you can see out there. Can he become that kind of penalty killer with skill, a guy hard to play against and chip in with offense? There’s a lot of areas in the game he could influence.”

Veleno admits there were difficult times as a 15-year-old trying to break into the Quebec League.

“It was (tough),” Veleno said. “There were ups and down. It wasn’t easy, at first, getting used to the pace and strength of the guys. I fell into a great organization in Saint John, and the veterans really helped me, the staff helped me. It became easier the following year. (But as a 15-year-old) I don’t think I really matured. I didn’t start shaving yet. In the playoffs, I couldn’t grow any (facial hair).”

Kulfan continues…

2. Grand Rapids Griffins defenseman Dan Renouf found a landing spot…

The #Canes have signed Dan Renouf to a one-year deal.

The two-way contract will pay $650,000 on the NHL level or $70,000 on the AHL level in 2018-19, with a guarantee of at least $100,000.

?: https://t.co/5k4Svi9oUE pic.twitter.com/9bkLNi6XQ8

— Carolina Hurricanes (@NHLCanes) July 2, 2018

3. And the Red Wings posted a video in which Michael Rasmussen and Givani Smith try not to laugh:

Per WXYZ’s Max White and MLive’s Andy Biolchini, Michigan sports fans will now be able to support their team with license places benefiting professional teams’ charities.

Here’s WXYZ’s White’s report:

You can now get your favorite Detroit sports team logo on a license plate in Michigan. Gov. Rick Snyder signed Senate Bill 178 on Monday.

Senate Bill 178 was introduced by State Sen. Jim Stamas in February 2017 and would allow the Detroit Red Wings, Detroit Pistons, Detroit Tigers, Detroit Lions and Michigan International Speedway to put their official logos on license plates.

“Michigan has incredible sports teams and I’m proud our residents can now display their support while donating to a worthy cause,” Snyder said.

And MLive’s Biolchini weighs in:

The Detroit team plates will join a list of fundraising license plates that the state offers — including Michigan’s public universities and various causes like breast cancer awareness and lighthouse preservation.

Proceeds from the sale of the fundraising plates will go to a charity designated for each of the sports teams.

For the Pistons, that’s the Come Together Foundation. The remaining Detroit teams have charities designated with their names: the Detroit Lions Charities, the Detroit Tigers Foundation and the Detroit Red Wings Foundation.

The new law requires the plates be available by August 2019.

The Grand Rapids Griffins have named their assistant coaches today:

MACDONALD AND TAPPER JOIN GRIFFINS ‘ COACHING STAFF

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Detroit Red Wings on Monday announced the hiring of Matt Macdonald  and Brad Tapper as assistant coaches for the Grand Rapids Griffins. Both served as head coaches in the ECHL last season and previously either played or coached with new Griffins head coach Ben Simon.

The duo’s addition completes the Griffins’ 2018-19 coaching staff, as assistant coach Mike Knuble, goaltending coach Brian Mahoney-Wilson and video coach Bill LeRoy will continue in their roles.

Continue reading Grand Rapids Griffins name Matt Macdonald and Brad Tapper assistant coaches

MLive’s Ansar Khan penned an article discussing the Red Wings’ signing of Jonathan Bernier to back up Jimmy Howard:

“I know Jimmy a little bit, playing against him, and we’re going to push each other to bring this team back in the playoffs,” Bernier said. “I didn’t want to be in a position where I played 15-20 games, I want to come in and have a chance to play as much as possible. Obviously, depending on my play, but I just thought it was a great opportunity that me and Jimmy can battle for games.”

The Red Wings signed Bernier to a three-year, $9 million contract on Sunday. Howard, 34, is entering the final year of his contract. If he plays well, the Red Wings are expected to offer him a short-term extension.

Regardless, Bernier, who’ll be playing for his fourth team in four season, has bigger aspirations that being a little-used backup.

“I could have stayed in Colorado with (Semyon Varlamov having) one year left, but I just decided to move on,” Bernier said. “I’ll be going on 30 (on Aug. 7), but my body still feels like I’m 25 years old. I know how to take care of my body better than when I was younger. I’m more mature now. I’ve been through ups and downs in my career, but I think I know how to handle a lot more situations now.

“I just think it was very appealing to me to come down to Detroit and be part of something special. There’s a lot of history in this organization and this town and I’m excited to be part of it.”

Continued

The Grand Rapids Press’s Peter J. Wallner has penned a lengthy article explaining the player personnel changes made by the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins:

The look of the Grand Rapids Griffins changed dramatically over the weekend following a number of moves and signings by the Detroit Red Wings.

The team signed four players who most likely will wind up with the Griffins this season, including two past AHL scoring champs.

The look in goal also promises to be different after veteran goalie Jared Coreau left for Anaheim.

Plus, veteran goalie Tom McCollum told MLive on Monday that he will not return to the Griffins.

Here’s a look at the newcomers to get you up to speed, along with others from last year’s team still out there and some other recent moves.

Continued