Author: George Malik

The World Junior Summer Showcase kicks into high gear on Saturday, July 29th, when Team USA Blue takes on Sweden at 1 PM EDT, and Team USA White takes on Finland at 4 PM, with both games taking place at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Michigan (tickets are $10 per person per game, or $30 per person for a whole-week pass).

The four-team matrix will also play games on Monday, July 31st, Wednesday, August 2nd and Friday, August 4th. Wednesday is actually the “Big Day” at USA Hockey Arena, because that’s when Finland plays Sweden, and Team USA White plays Team USA Blue.

As such, the last two days’ worth of practices have served as the lead-up to the games which will help determine the course of the three participating countries as they begin to determine the shape of their 2024 World Junior Championship teams.

Yesterday and today’s practices were different in both form and function: on Thursday, the Swedes and Finns gave their players a slightly gentler introduction to the structures of play which their national teams will employ over the next week, while the Americans’ two teams, which mostly consist of players who’ve taken part in the Under-17 and Under-18 National Team Development Program, snapped to a familiar and intensely disciplined form under University of Denver coach David Carle.

Today, to put things succinctly, the Swedes and Finns caught up over the course of their hour-long practices, and Team USA used home-ice advantage to an educational purpose, skating for an hour and fifteen minutes (which tended to become 90 minutes in total) instead of the usual hour.

The Hockey News’s Sam Stockton spoke with Red Wings prospect Axel Sandin Pellikka regarding his summertime spent at home in Gallivere, Sweden, as well as his belief that the Swedes will bring home Gold at the World Junior Championship in Gothenburg this winter:

While gold in Gothenburg represents the latest target for him to pursue, Sandin Pellikka is no stranger to representing his country on an international stage.  “I played with the national team now—this is my third season from U-17 to U-18 to U-20,” he explains.  “We always have the same playing system, so I’m pretty used to it, and all of the guys are used to it too.  Of course, the first practices are a little off, but you’ll get there eventually.”

He says that his experience at the 2023 World Junior in the Maritimes (at which Sweden finished fourth, falling to Czechia in overtime in the medal round and to the U.S. in the bronze medal game) “is not that much on my mind.”  

“I mean I’m just gonna go out there and play my game and help the team as much as I can, so just play my game and just be relaxed,” he continues.  

Continued

The Hockey News’s Cole Hayes posted a slightly light-hearted column as to “How Your Favorite Team Will Disappoint You in 2023-2024,” and here’s his take on the Red Wings’ gloom-o-meter:

Detroit Red Wings: The Red Wings will be fun to watch this year after adding Alex DeBrincat to a good young core. Unfortunately, Moritz Seider won’t be able to carry the defensive load on his back, and Wings fans will have to wait just a bit longer for their playoff return.

Continued; I could’ve sworn that Mo can’t do it alone, and that’s why the Red Wings went out and signed both defensemen and forwards who are two-way performers, hopefully alleviating the strain on Seider’s back.

Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond spoke with NHLPA.com’s Chris Lomon regarding the Detroit Red Wings’ November visit to Stockholm, Sweden to play the Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs:

From November 16 to 19, a set of regular-season games featuring four teams, including Raymond’s Red Wings, will take place in Stockholm. The Original Six club will be joined by the Minnesota Wild, Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs for the games.

Raymond, who is originally from Gothenburg, approximately a five-hour drive southwest of Stockholm, is expecting a large contingent of family and friends to make their way to Sweden’s capital city to catch the games.

“I can’t wait. I was so excited when we heard the news that we would be playing here,” the left-winger told NHLPA.com from Gothenburg. “To be able to play for Detroit in Sweden will be an awesome experience. Circling back to friends and family, that’s what I am most excited for, to play in front of them. It’s going to be emotional for all of us.”

Raymond also spoke with Lomon regarding his junior campaign in the NHL:

“I want to take another step in my development. I had a good feeling coming into the offseason in knowing what I wanted to work on and how I wanted to be prepared to come into the new season. Now, summer is almost over, and every day, you are more and more excited about the thought of getting back on the ice with the guys and get that season started.”

Conversations he has had with teammates throughout the summer have given Raymond ample reason to be optimistic about the team’s fortunes in 2023-24.

“I think we’ve improved a lot in the offseason and you can see that everyone is excited about the season. When you get back on the ice, start talking to the guys, seeing that physical development in yourself, it makes you want to get things going again. You get some distance from the game and there comes that point where you want to get back at it. I’m sure all the guys feel that way too.”

Continued

Spending his offseason in his hometown of Gothenburg, Sweden, Lucas Raymond is looking forward to playing in a @DetroitRedWings jersey in front of friends and family in Stockholm this November for the #NHLGlobalSeries: https://t.co/AEvG8NDS54 pic.twitter.com/2jKD29mCsa

— NHLPA (@NHLPA) July 28, 2023

Detroit Hockey Now’s Tim Robinson posted an article in which the Grand Rapids Griffins’ projected roster is analyzed to determine how many of its players will be draft picks from the Steve Yzerman-led regime:

Any Detroit Red Wings fan who wants to see what the team will look like when the rebuild is completed only needs to make the 157-mile drive to watch the Grand Rapids Griffins play this season.

Depending on who makes the Red Wings roster this season, it’s possible, on some nights, 55 percent (11 players) of the Griffins’ lineup could be Steve Yzerman draft picks.  That doesn’t include Yzerman undrafted prospect free agent signings, such as Wyatt Newpower, Alexandre Doucet and John Lethemon. It also doesn’t include prospect Jared McIsaac, 23, who was a Ken Holland draftee.

Since taking over as GM in 2019, Yzerman has participated in five drafts and selected seven first round picks. Two of the first round picks (Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond) are in Detroit, and three (Sebastian Cossa, Simon Edvinsson and Marco Kasper) could start in Grand Rapids. The 2023 first rounders (Nate Danielson and Axel Sandin Pellikka) will return to their teams from last season.

Continued

DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills examines Olli Maatta’s successful 2022-2023 season with the Detroit Red Wings this morning, discussing the fact that Maatta “bet on himself” by signing a one-year contract, and won the bet in a big way:

That gamble paid off for the 28-year-old defenseman, who tallied 23 points (6-17-23) in 78 games with the Red Wings during the 2022-23 season, nearly doubling his combined point total (1-11-12 in 107 games) from 2020-22 as a member of the Los Angeles Kings.

Maatta’s impact both on and off the ice impressed Detroit’s brass enough to ink him to a two-year contract extension on Feb. 16.

“I put great value in really good, high-character people,” Red Wings Executive Vice President and General Manager Steve Yzerman said on March 3. “Olli is a real professional. He shows up every day. He’s there early, training, prepared before practice and the game, there after practice and the game. He’s been a good, solid and steady defenseman.”

Maatta began his debut season in Detroit by posting a four-game point streak from Oct. 14-21, becoming the first Red Wings blueliner to record a point in each of the first four or more games of a season since Brian Rafalski had nine (1-8-9) in seven contests in 2008-09.

According to Maatta, his training camp experience helped him burst out of the gate.

“You were at and outside the rink with the guys for seven days, which was awesome,” Maatta told Red Wings TV’s Daniella Bruce on Feb. 27.“We’re a new team with so many new guys, so you got to know everybody. I think that helped a lot. The coaching staff also put me in situations and helped me build confidence that way.”

Continued; Maatta is a very strong middle-pair defenseman, and while he’s never going to be an offensive superstar, an NHL team needs players who are willing to play in supporting roles in order to succeed, and Maatta has found his place in Detroit.

Per the Detroit Red Wings:

Hockey is coming… and single-game tickets go on sale in ONE WEEK! 🙌

Which games will you secure tickets to?!

🎟️: https://t.co/C3c7hZn1Ac pic.twitter.com/iNI5QZgYac

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) July 28, 2023

Here’s the text of an email they just sent out to their email subscribers:

The excellent Sean Shapiro is back with another selection of “Shap Shots” on his Substack, and he answers a reader question regarding the Red Wings’ hiring of Roope Koistinen as the Grand Rapids Griffins’ goaltending coach:

The Griffins named Roope Koistinen the new goalie coach. I’ve always wondered – does a goalie coach actually matter that much? If it does have a significant impact, doesn’t it seem like a fairly large gamble to put a coach with no AHL or NHL experience (playing or coaching) in place in a system that’s tasked with developing Cossa and now Trey Augustine? (From Aaron)

Yes, goalie coaches matter, a lot. I think it’s become even more important in the AHL, which is one of the most volatile leagues in the world for goalies. Having a strong goalie coach, a confidant, that can help with the ups-and-downs of the AHL can be the difference between a prospect making it or not.

So I understand your concern about Koistinen, he’s never coached in North America. But I really like the hire, and some people I’ve spoken to in both Finland and North America also keen on his work he’s done developing young goalies in Finland with both Karpat and the national team program.

Sebastian Cossa needs more of a tactician to work with in his next goalie coach. He needs someone who will help create some more calmness in his game, and remove some of the wasted movements/energy. That’s something that Finnish goalies tend to be very good at, so for Cossa in general, Koistinen could be an ideal fit, even without North American experience.

Continued (paywall); Sean offers a set of reader questions about topics all over the hockey map, he discusses how writing about soccer made him a better hockey writer, and he shares some of his goaltending superstitions. I really enjoy Sean’s work.

Anyway, my thoughts on the Koistinen hire:

1. Koistinen almost entirely worked with Karpat Oulu’s under-18 and under-20 teams as their goaltending coach, so he’s specialized in development. He’s only 30 years old, which is particularly young for a goaltending hire, but the Red Wings seem to want a younger coach that can relate to the players they’ll be working with (in this case, Alex Lyon, Sebastian Cossa and John Lethemon), as was the case with Brian Mahoney-Wilson.
2. The Wings then have an older coach, Phil Osaer, working as their roving goaltending development consultant, and he will be spending his time working with and checking in on all the Red Wings’ goaltending prospects, be they at the AHL, ECHL or other developmental levels. Trey Augustine is an interesting case (as is Carter Gylander) in that the Red Wings can’t technically work with their NCAA prospects on the ice at any time of year save development camp, but coach Osaer can still go over video with them and offer feedback and suggestions.
3. As far as Cossa is specifically concerned, Sean’s right in suggesting that Cossa needs to refine the technical details of his game. He’s still a remarkably talented, 6’6,” 229-pound goaltender, but the little holes in his blocker and five-hole, the fact that he can be “turned around” and struggle…Those are detail-oriented mistakes that need to be fixed through repetition and reinforcement.

Per Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff:

Wayne Maxner replaced one Detroit Red Wings legend and inadvertently wound up playing a role in the arrival of another.

Maxner, who died Thursday at the age of 80, was Detroit coach from 1980-82. His hiring came on Nov. 25. Maxner was given promotion from Detroit’s AHL farm club at the time, the Adirondack Red Wings, where he was serving as head coach.

Maxner was replacing Red Wings legend Ted Lindsay as coach in Detroit. Immediately, he was announcing plans to reunite what had previously been the club’s top line of Dale McCourt between John Ogrodnick and Mike Foligno.

Continued

WOOD TV8 in Grand Rapids reports that several current and former Grand Rapids Griffins will be raising money for the Cascade Township Firefighters (and more charities) via a charity hockey game this weekend:

It’s almost time for the puck to drop at the Patterson Ice Center for the annual Cascade Firefighters’ Association Charity Hockey game.

This is the third year of the charity game and organizers said they hope it’s the biggest year yet. The event starts Saturday with a parking lot party at 4 p.m. There will be games, a food truck and fire trucks.

The puck drops at 5:30 p.m. The two teams are made up of current and former professional hockey players.

This year, many Grand Rapids Griffins players are returning to the ice for the charity game, including Dominik Shine and Tyler Spezia. Another big name expected to play is Mitch Callahan, who won two Calder Cups with the Griffins and played for the Detroit Red Wings.

All proceeds for the game go to Riding for Ryan, an organization that provides free bike flags for kids, Brody’s Be Café, a coffee shop that employs people with intellectual struggles and special needs and the Cascade Firefighters’ Association.

Organizers expect hundreds of people at the game and said it connects the community.

“Everybody is together, and you see the kids’ faces light up when somebody scores a goal or it’s just a sense of togetherness and community with this hockey game,” Jon Snyder, firefighter and treasurer for the Cascade Firefighters’ Association, said.