Author: George Malik

My name is George Malik, and I'm the Malik Report's editor/blogger/poster. I have been blogging about the Red Wings since 2006, and have worked with MLive and Kukla's Korner. Thank you for reading!

Monroe: Walleye to open playoff series vs. Indy as heavy favorites

The Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe posted an article discussing the Toledo Walleye’s impending playoff series against the Indy Fuel, as well as Simon Denis’ return from the AHL’s Hartford Wolfpack. As Monroe notes, the Walleye are a heavy favorite in their first-round series:

The Fuel did not earn a spot in the playoffs until the season finale on Sunday. Toledo is 8-1-0 against Indy this season.

The best-of-7 series will follow a 2-3-2 format. Game 2 is Sunday at 5:15 p.m. before the series shifts to Indiana.

The Walleye have earned the No. 1 seed in the conference for the fourth straight season. They reached the conference finals last year and in 2014-15. They were ousted by Reading in the first round in 2015-16.

“Being the No. 1 seed comes with a lot of high expectations,” Watson said. “So there are several ways to handle it. I’m 100 percent excited to see how our guys respond. We are very deep at every position. We are built differently than the last few years. Everyone will have to play up to their potential for a long playoff run.”

Continued

Custance talks draft, Larkin, Mantha and AA in issuing ’13 Takeaways’

I try to reserve my post-season observations regarding the Red Wings until the team takes part in its annual team picture and locker room clean-out day.

The Wings’ players, coach and GM engage in end-of-the-season press conferences and media scrums that can be very telling in terms of shedding light upon player performances and their mindsets going forward…

And in Ken Holland’s case, a 20-to-45-minute lecture in which he shares his philosophies and “game plan” for the offseason.

The Athletic’s Craig Custance doesn’t believe that it’s too early to 13 “Before the Locker cleanout” takeaways, however, and among them are the following takes on the Wings’ draft position:

5. Ultimately, in judging the Red Wings this season, there are a couple things to look at. First is draft position. It would have been a disaster for this team to finish closer to the playoff line, stuck in the middle. Whether it was by design or not, they didn’t. They’ve put themselves in position to grab a talented player at the top of a 2018 draft strong on defense — a major need. The worst they’ll be drafting is No. 8 overall and that’s if three teams leapfrog them into the top three. It takes a lot of clicks on tankathon to get that to happen.

6. Even if we go worst-case scenario with the lottery and drop the Red Wings to No. 8, it’s not hard to come up with a list of players they’re looking hard at who would vault to the top of their prospect list  They’d still be selecting from a pool of these players, any of whom would be a nice addition to the organization (in no particular order): Rasmus Dahlin, Filip Zadina, Andrei Svechnikov, Noah Dobson, Evan Bouchard, Brady Tkachuk, Quinn Hughes, Adam Boqvist.

Custance continues…

Michael Rasmussen named WHL’s Player of the Week

This is a fairly obvious choice…

Per the WHL:

The Western Hockey League announced today that Tri-City Americans captain Michael Rasmussen has been named the WHL On the Run Player of the Week for the week ending April 8, 2018.

Rasmussen, who was selected by the Detroit Red Wings in the first round, ninth overall, of the 2017 NHL Draft, registered seven points (4G-3A) and a plus-five rating in two games as the Americans took a commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-seven Round Two series against the Victoria Royals in the 2018 WHL Playoffs.

Continue reading Michael Rasmussen named WHL’s Player of the Week

Red Wings’ Blashill to coach Team USA at the World Championship

From MLive’s Ansar Khan and the Red Wings:

The World Championships will be held in Copenhagen, Denmark this year, and Frans Nielsen (DEN), Martin Frk (CZE) and Dylan Larkin (USA) are going to play in the WC.

FYI:

Update: Here’s USA Hockey’s press release:

Continue reading Red Wings’ Blashill to coach Team USA at the World Championship

An end-of-season ‘thank you, but stay tuned’

More than a few bloggers have posted their end-of-season, “Thank you” letters to their readers, and I offer nothing different today in terms of my main message:

Starting this blog has been a bumpy road, and I am incredibly, incredibly grateful for those of you who’ve read the blog, commented upon its content, and have spread the word about this slowly-growing blog. I’m indebted to you for your support this past season, and I know it was also no easy season in which to follow the Wings…

So, to those of you who are taking a break until September, I bid you a fond farewell, but I would also encourage you to stick around for the off-season, because I’m going to be a busy bee.

After tomorrow’s locker room clean-out, coverage will shift toward the Grand Rapids Griffins and Toledo Walleye’s playoff runs, with my goal being to attend as many Griffins playoff games as possible;

We already know that Dylan Larkin, Martin Frk and Frans Nielsen will be taking part in the World Championship in Denmark in May;

The draft lottery will be held at the end of this month, with the draft to follow in late June (11 Wings picks included);

And who knows what might happen in terms of free agency…

And in between, there’s going to be more than enough time to work on the blog’s design, logo, to fund-raise (sorry, but I’ve got to do it).

For me, this is going to be a busy spring and summer, full of hockey coverage both foreign and domestic, and I hope that you stick around for the ride.

The Athletic’s Scott: Wings still need more ‘difference-makers’

Today, The Athletic’s Topher Scott wraps up a season of examining the Red Wings “on film” from a coach’s perspective, and Scott suggests that the Red Wings simply need more talent to compete for a playoff spot:

Let me be clear: I would take almost every player on the Red Wings’ roster on my team. I think they battled hard a majority of the year and got the most out of their potential. But it’s almost like they have a team of second, third and fourth lines. Good, honest, NHL players. But no superstars in their prime.

Larkin and Mantha can be those guys if they have a great offseason of training. I think they are ready to take that next step. Ken Holland and the management team have a stable of picks in the first few rounds of the draft. I think they can hit on one or two of those picks.

The foundation and culture are there. The difference-makers are not. But if Detroit can find a way to draft or develop a few of those guys, I think you’ll see a successful rebuild sooner rather than later.

Scott continues at length (paywall)…

Ken Holland appears on WDFN’s Matt Sheppard show

Red Wings GM Ken Holland appeared on the Matt Sheppard show earlier this morning:

Listen to “Red Wings GM Ken Holland 4-9-18” on Spreaker.
 

Khan’s mailbag: AA not an untouchable commodity

MLive’s Ansar Khan filed a mailbag column this morning, and Khan suggests that Red Wings forward Andreas Athanasiou is not an untouchable commodity looking toward this summer:

From my understanding, the Red Wings were open to trading anyone on their current roster at the deadline except Henrik Zetterberg, Dylan Larkin, Anthony Mantha and Tyler Bertuzzi, who they like because of his competitiveness and the different dimension he brings.

Athanasiou was not in that “unavailable” category but they were hesitant to move him and would have only done so for a good, young defenseman.

I don’t know if the Jets will try to move Trouba or if they’d be interested in Athanasiou, but it wouldn’t surprise me if the Red Wings looked to trade Athanasiou in the off-season or next season.

I wouldn’t have thought that a year ago because his elite speed and finishing ability are at such a premium, especially for a team that struggles to score, and he has so much upside. But his compete level wasn’t good enough on many nights — he was called out multiple times by coach Jeff Blashill and once by Henrik Zetterberg (though not by name) — and you wonder if that will change.

Athanasiou is a restricted free agent with arbitration rights, which he lacked last summer, and is coming off a contract with a $1.387 million cap hit. If he doesn’t file, the team can file, and that would assure him of having a contract by early August. Getting him signed shouldn’t be a problem this year. He’s not going to play in Russia. That was a negotiating ploy by his agent.

Khan continues…

 

 

Morning news: Wojo on KH’s re-signing; Kulfan’s player grades and Sportsworks Wings

Of Red Wings-related note this morning:

  1. The Detroit News’s Bob Wojnowski penned an article discussing the Red Wings’ decision to retain Ken Holland’s services, with Wojnowski suggesting that Christopher Ilitch made a safe, steady pick with the hopes that the Wings’ GM can turn over a new leaf:

In some ways, Ilitch is doing what Holland has done for many years — practicing loyalty. He’s also acknowledging a long, painful process has just begun, and he wants an experienced leader in charge. It’s not necessarily Holland’s 21 seasons as GM that protected him, but his 12 years before that, as a respected scout and director of amateur scouting.

Holland, 62, is returning to his roots, scouring the amateur ranks for prospects rather than focusing on win-now moves. Those days are over, and will be for several years, and in the interim, Ilitch is going with what he knows.

Is it the easy, safe move? Probably.

Is it a defensible move? It is, based on Holland’s record and reputation around the league.

Wojnowski continues at extended length…

2. The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan posted a set of Red Wings final grades via-a-photo-gallery, prefaced with the following:

Zetterberg, and general manager Ken Holland — who Saturday signed a two-year contract extension — and coach Jeff Blashill (who is expected to return next season) see firm opening steps to a rebuild.

Young players such as Dylan Larkin (team-leading 63 points) and Anthony Mantha (team-leading 24 goals), along with Andreas Athanasiou and Tyler Bertuzzi, and several prospects on the way, offer promising days ahead.

And for June’s Entry Draft, no team has as many the Red Wings’ 11 draft picks (and 10 in 2019) through aggressive dealing at the trade deadline.

The work this season was impressive from certain corners, and not as much from others.

Kulfan continues, and as usual, my question to you is, “Would my grades be worth your time–or mine–given that all the beat writers weigh in?”

3. On Fox 2’s Sportsworks program, Wojnowski, the Free Press’s Jamie Samuelssen (also Wojnowski’s co-radio host) and Woody Woodriffe eventually discuss the Red Wings, weighing in on Holland’s extension at the 8:10 mark, questioning whether the Wings have the talent to emerge from their rebuild sooner than later:

4. Also, in the prospect department, Givani Smith finished at -1 with 1 shot in the Kitchener Rangers’ 3-2 OT loss to the Sarnia Sting.

The second-round playoff series between the teams is now tied at 1 game apiece.

Toledo Walleye to play Indy Fuel in 1st round of ECHL playoffs

From the Toledo Walleye and the Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe:

2018 Kelly Cup Playoffs schedule

DIVISION SEMIFINALS: Best-of-Seven Series

  • Game 1: Friday, April 13 at 7:35 p.m. |  Walleye vs. Indy Fuel |
  • Game 2: Sunday, April 15 at 5:15 p.m. | Walleye vs. Indy Fuel |
  • Game 3: Wednesday, April 18 at 7:05 p.m. | Walleye at Indy Fuel
  • Game 4: Thursday, April 19 at 7:05 p.m. | Walleye at Indy Fuel
  • Game 5 (if necessary): Saturday, April 21 at 7:35 p.m. | Walleye at Indy Fuel
  • Game 6 (if necessary): Tuesday, April 24 at 7:35 p.m. |  Walleye vs. Indy Fuel
  • Game 7 (if necessary): Wednesday, April 25 at 7:35 p.m. | Walleye vs. Indy Fuel

CONFERENCE SEMIFINALS: Best-of-Seven Series | April 27 to May 9

CONFERENCE FINALS: Best-of-Seven Series  | May 11 to May 23

KELLY CUP FINALS: Best-of-Seven Series  | May 25 to June 6

Here’s something of a scouting report from Monroe and Walleye coach Dan Watson:

Toledo is 8-1-0 against Indy this season, including a stunning 5-4 win in overtime at Indy on Saturday night. The Walleye are 23-2-1 all-time versus the Fuel.

“We’re excited to get ready for playoffs,” Walleye coach Dan Watson said. “We know Indy can be very dangerous. They won out. We know they will be tough. I think we were 6-0 in their building. But the playoffs are not the regular season. The slates are wiped clean.”

The Walleye were 2-1 at home against the Fuel and 6-0 on the road.

Indy (36-30-6) needed to secure two points in its season finale on Sunday against Kalamazoo. The Fuel took a 2-0 lead. But the Wings, who also could have earned the final spot with a win, scored in the third period to make it 2-1. However, the Fuel held on before a crowd of 3,603 at Indiana Farmers Coliseum.

Watson said he watched the Indy/Kalamazoo game intently on Sunday. He said the players also were keeping close tabs on the contest.

“It was a well-played game by both sides,” he said. “Indy got off to another quick start. Kalamazoo made a push. Indy did a good job of capitalizing on mistakes like they always do.”

Several ECHL playoff spots were not determined until the 72nd and final game of the regular season on Sunday.

“It just shows how good our league is and how close these races really are,” Watson said. “Any team can win on any given night. That’s why you want to collect as many points as possible by getting points on the road and taking care of home ice. We got a spot early but the other races were so tight. It’s great for hockey and great for the league that these games do mean something.”

Continued