Author: George Malik

The Grand Rapids Griffins posted a press release regarding their annual New Year’s Eve game, and it’s noteworthy for both the fact that the Griffins are hosting the Milwaukee Admirals, as well as the fact that the Griffins hold what they say is the largest indoor fireworks show in Michigan after the game ends:

The Grand Rapids Griffins’ website posted an article today which profiles goaltender Calvin Pickard. Derek Patterson discusses the netminder’s steady presence for the Griffins over the course of the past two seasons:

Two years ago, goaltender Calvin Pickard signed a contract with the Detroit Red Wings. Since then, he has been the key goaltender for the Grand Rapids Griffins, the primary affiliate of Detroit.

During this 2021-22 campaign, Pickard has been between the pipes in 20 of the 23 Griffins’ games and has solidified himself as one of the top goaltenders in the AHL. Pickard has played in a career-best 16 consecutive games, which he set from Nov.5- Dec. 22. The netminder is fifth on the circuit with a save percentage of 0.927, and his 2.44 goals against average is tied for 11th in the league. He is also tied for sixth in the AHL with nine wins.

The Moncton, New Brunswick, native first broke into professional hockey in 2010 when he was the Colorado Avalanche’s second-round draft choice. Since then, he has played for eight different franchises between the AHL and NHL. Pickard has seen how different systems work, but his experience with the Red Wings has been a particularly enjoyable one.

“My experience has been great with the Red Wings. I’ve played against [Detroit] in the NHL and played a lot of games against the Griffins,” Pickard said. “I was excited for a new organization and a fresh start. I’ve been treated very well since day one here. The staff, players and the fans are great.”

One of Pickard’s favorite things about the Red Wings has been the easy transition when he first arrived and the professionalism that the organization carries at all levels of competition.

“I’ve definitely been with my fair share of organizations, and a couple of them try to make you into something that you’re not,” Pickard explained. “But when I came over here, they treated me like a true professional from day one. For the most part they make sure I’m ready and comfortable going into each game and that’s where I’ve earned most of my success.”

Continued

CBS Sports’ Austin Nivision posted a set of power rankings today, and he reports that Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin’s “fancy stats” back up his offensive flourishing:

21. Red Wings: Dylan Larkin is on pace for a career high in the goals category. On the one hand, that is driven by a 19.2 shooting percentage that is roughly 10 points higher than his career average. On the other, Larkin is 12th in the NHL in individual expected goals at five-on-five, so he is doing something right.

Continued

This is an intriguing video from IceHockeyGifs of Twitter and YouTube fame:

This notebook from yesterday slipped under the radar, but TSN’s Mark Masters spoke with Sebastian Cossa and his Team Canada teammates regarding the big netminder’s intimidating presence in the net, big mouth included:

Cossa, the first goalie picked in the 2021 NHL draft (15th overall to Detroit), is good and isn’t shy about [it].  

“I’m pretty loose before the game and during the game,” he said. “I like to have fun and chirping comes along with that so definitely not scared to throw around a chirp.”

What sort of thing will he say? 

“Just guaranteeing they won’t score on me,” he said. “Putting money on the line. I’ll bet money that they won’t score on me and when they don’t score, I let them know.”

He’s also not afraid to tell the coach that he wants to play. Cossa got into 19 of Edmonton’s 23 games last season. 

“He wants that net every night,” said Oil Kings coach Brad Lauer. “Last year was a shortened season and at the end of the season his numbers were outstanding, and he didn’t need to play. I said, ‘You’ve played enough. I can get you in one game and we’ll give another kid a game.’ He just said, ‘I want the net. I want to play. I want to finish this thing off right.'”

Continued; in Masters’ Thursday notebook, he reports that Cossa and Dylan Garand will split the net tonight vs. the Russians at 7 PM.

Update: There’s a video accompanying the story.

Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff filed a notebook article which discusses Vladislav Namestnikov’s superb 2021-2022 season performance thus far:

He can’t put his finger on exactly what it is. All that Vladislav Namestnikov can assess with any semblance of accurate precision is that something was definitely off last season, his debut campaign with the Detroit Red Wings.

“Just last year was a weird year for me,” Namestnikov said. “The pandemic, a lot of posts. Sometimes that happens.”

So far this year, it’s fair to say that a lot is on in terms of Namestnikov’s game. He’s certainly been one of the pleasant developments for the club as the were entering the holiday break.

“I think I’m just more comfortable in the room,” said Namestnikov, the nephew of two-time Red Wings Stanley Cup winner Slava Kozlov. “I know the systems now. I’m out there and I’m just playing hockey.”

The stats sheet already shows him scoring nine goals in 31 games. That’s one more than Namestnikov’s production during 53 games of the 2021 campaign.

Continued

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan filed a notebook article which discusses Dylan Larkin’s offensive renaissance with the Red Wings this season, a season in which Larkin has persevered through adversity:

This season hasn’t gone completely smoothly, either. Larkin was suspended for a game after sucker-punching Tampa’s Mathieu Joseph — after Joseph had boarded Larkin — and Larkin missed a week in November for personal reasons. Larkin also was pulled from a game after two periods after testing positive for COVID-19 — only to find out it was a “false-positive” the next day. Through it all, Larkin has persevered.

“It’s not been easy,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “It has been a lot of stops and starts in terms of games he’s been in and not been able to play. He’s done a really good job of staying focused on what he can control and that’s his effort level and his output in games.”

One thing last season did teach Larkin was controlling only what a person can control, and attempting to let go of the stuff you can’t. 

“The highs and lows of this league, they’re pretty dramatic at times,” Larkin said after the COVID scare. “Especially if you let them, and at times I feel like I’ve really let them get to me. This year I really worked on not letting that happen, whether it’s going well or it’s not. Whether things come into your life and take you out of the lineup for a week, or you can’t play a third period, I’m really just trying not to let it get to me and be grateful that I’m here.”

Continued

Pro Hockey Talk’s Adam Gretz offers a “holiday gift” for each and every one of the NHL’s 32 teams, and despite the hype surrounding Anaheim Ducks rookie Trevor Zegras, Gretz still believes that the Calder Trophy for the NHL’s best rookie will go to a Red Wings player:

Detroit Red Wings. A Calder Trophy for one of their standout rookies. If this team gets into the playoffs (not out of the question) Lucas Raymond or Moritz Seider should be the runaway rookie of the year favorites.

Continued

Via the Red Wings on Twitter comes this great remembrance from the Winter Classic back in 2009:

Our countdown of the top-10 #WinterClassic plays continues today with Pavel Datsyuk and the @DetroitRedWings! pic.twitter.com/6cGuJE34j7

— NHLonTNT (@NHL_On_TNT) December 23, 2021

Sportsnet’s Sam Cosentino posted a list of 3 watchable World Junior Championship players from each and every one of the teams participating in the WJC, and one Red Wings prospect made his list:

Simon Edvinsson, D, Frolunda (SHL): Won’t be long before he’s playing next to Moritz Seider on Detroit’s top pairing. Has been a force in the SHL and should be a dominant, all-situations minute eater for Swedish coach Tomas Monten. (Detroit, sixth overall pick in 2021)

Continued; the Wings have seven other players taking part in the WJC.