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!

Red Wings sign Christian Fischer to 1-year, $1.125 million contract

Per the Detroit Red Wings on Twitter:

The Detroit Red Wings have signed Christian Fischer to a one-year, $1.125M deal. Fischer is solid at PK. Overall, another weird signing by Yzerman this summer in our eyes. pic.twitter.com/STpggypAPo— Andy & Rono (@ARHockeyStats) July 2, 2023

Christian Fischer, signed 1x$1.3M by DET, is a bottom six winger who kills penalties. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/5ftQOyTPT6— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) July 2, 2023

Here’s the press release:

Continue reading Red Wings sign Christian Fischer to 1-year, $1.125 million contract

HSJ in the morning: Reviewing the Red Wings’ first day of free agency

The Free Press’s Helene St. James posted an article in which she discusses the Red Wings’ first-day-of-free-agency moves, issuing individual grades:

Steve Yzerman added multiple forwards, defensemen and goaltenders on the first day of free agency, but did not find what the Detroit Red Wings arguably need most.

Four months after trading away Tyler Bertuzzi, Jakub Vrana and Filip Hronek, all highly skilled players in their mid-20s, the Wings filled those vacancies with J.T. Compher, Daniel Sprong and Justin Holl.

Signing goaltenders James Reimer and Alex Lyon certainly looks like upgrades over Alex Nedeljkovic and Magnus Hellberg, whose struggles last season curbed the Wings’ effectiveness. But Bertuzzi and Vrana were both proven scorers and Hronek was an offensive defenseman, and the newcomers do not have resumes that match their production.

Yzerman was not made available to reporters Saturday, but two days earlier he spoke of the challenge of finding high-end players in free agency: “We’ll fill some spots; who exactly; I’m not sure, or for how long or how much. That’s the nature of free agency.”

Yzerman had salary cap cash, but seven years of missing the playoffs has left the Wings without the cachet of being a destination for the sort of top-end free agents they used to draw. Bertuzzi was a 30-goal scorer and while Yzerman made a smart move in gaining a first-round pick (2024, top-10 protected) for a guy who otherwise could have been lost for nothing in free agency, neither Compher and Sprong have Bertuzzi’s touch around the net.

Continued

‘Reckless usage’

EP Rinkside’s Dmitri Filipovic posted an article discussing “winners and losers” after the first day of the unrestricted free agent period, and here’s what he had to say about the Red Wings’ moves:

The other team whose reckless usage of resources similarly stands out is the Detroit Red Wings. For the second straight offseason, they jumped head first into the unrestricted free agent market and spent freely on players that are fine, but don’t exactly move the needle in any significant way. Here’s the list of free agent skaters they’ve signed in that time, and the amount of future money they invested in them:

The last two I actually like. Detroit’s offence was deplorable last year, finishing 28th in 5-on-5 scoring and 31st in high-danger chance generation. At those prices, Gostisbehere and Sprong will both surely be able to help and can be easily flipped to a contender at the deadline for a decent return. 

What I don’t really understand are the long-term commitments to some of the others up at the top, especially when combining the context of where they’re at as an organization and what those players provide. When he took a sharp step back and sold off everything he could at last year’s trade deadline, general manager Steve Yzerman was fairly critical of the Red Wings, and how far away they were from competing against some of the other teams in their own division. 

That was the right assessment at the time, and it was encouraging to hear because it provided some hope for their plan of action moving forward. But the choices they just made yet again this summer don’t really gel with that, and the fact that it’s unclear what their goals are and what they’re trying to ultimately accomplish is kind of concerning.

Continued (paywall)

Duff on the ‘Yzer-pan’

Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff examines the negative reactions to Steve Yzerman’s free agency moves this morning:

From the moment he became GM of the Detroit Red Wings in 2019, it was appearing that Steve Yzerman was bulletproof. With each move he made in the rebuild of the franchise, the faithful were greeting the transaction with absolute certainty that it was the right thing to do. Stevie Y could do no wrong.

Trust in the Yzerplan was the mantra of the masses.

Has the bloom come off that rose?

Saturday, as the Red Wings began dipping their toes in the NHL UFA pool, it was impossible to drown out the noise from the Detroit fanbase as they began panning each move. Suddenly, they were also questioning Yzerman’s management acumen.

“Guys it’s looking like Yzerman is a bad GM,” posted someone billing themselves as Source on Twitter. “It pains my heart. I almost named my son after him in 2006.”

Many Detroit fans who in the past have walked in lockstep right alongside Yzerman on this journey were doing a harsh 180 in reaction to his latest personnel decisions.

Continued

Khan wonders whether the Red Wings bettered themselves in free agency

MLive’s Ansar Khan discusses the Red Wings’ six major free agency signings and trade acquisitions (one Klim Kostin) this evening, and Khan wonders aloud whether GM Steve Yzerman improved the team’s outlook for the 2023-2024 season:

Are they better than they were at the start of last season, when they had Tyler Bertuzzi, Jakub Vrana, Filip Hronek and Alex Nedeljkovic among others?

If so, only marginally it would seem. With a little more than $9 million in cap space, Yzerman has some flexibility to make a trade or two before the start of training camp or during the season (Ottawa still hasn’t moved Alex DeBrincat).

Regardless, the Red Wings need growth from younger players like Lucas Raymond, Michael Rasmussen, Jonatan Berggren and Joe Veleno. They need a prospect or two, like Simon Edvinsson, Elmer Soderblom or 2022 top pick Marco Kasper to contribute. They need Dylan Larkin and Moritz Seider to be at least as good as they were last season. They need better health.

Most of last year’s free agents/trade acquisitions made a positive contribution. David Perron was second on the team in goals (24) and points (56). Andrew Copp didn’t score much (nine goals) but had a career-high 38 assists, checked and killed penalties. Olli Maatta was a steady bottom-four defenseman. Goaltender Ville Husso might have been their most valuable player before fading near the end under a heavy workload.

This year’s newcomers must make an impact, too, if the Red Wings, who finished 12 points out of a playoff spot, can take the next step in this lengthy rebuild.

Continued; by hook or by crook, the Red Wings still need to add an elite offensive talent up front if they are to really improve upon last season’s record, and that player may have to come via a trade.

Daily Faceoff’s Matt Larkin deems the Red Wings’ free agent performance one for the ‘murky middle’

Daily Faceoff’s Matt Larkin doesn’t deem the Red Wings to be a first-day-of-free-agency “winner,” but he doesn’t believe that they’ve “lost,” either. Instead, he places the Red Wings front and center in the “murky middle“:

Red Wings: Steve Yzerman keeps adding up the middle. After backing up Dylan Larkin with Andrew Copp last season, he landed two-way maven J.T. Compher, who was legitimately one of the top pivots available in the depressed market. While he won’t score in Detroit like he did with Mikko Rantanen in Colorado, Compher will be useful in a shutdown role. On the other hand: Compher’s defensive acumen is offset by, er, whatever Justin Holl was doing out there for the Maple Leafs. Lacking in confidence and seemingly tilting the ice for the Leafs’ opponents every shift during the playoffs, Holl could be a worthy reclamation project for a lower-pressure market in theory given his past success as a penalty killer. But at $3.4 million per for three seasons, there was absolutely no discount on the signing. The additions of Daniel Sprong and Shayne Gostisbehere fortified Detroit’s depth, but the Holl head scratcher put a damper on things.

Continued

Grand Rapids Griffins sign D Josiah Didier to AHL contract

Per the Grand Rapids Griffins:

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Grand Rapids Griffins on Saturday signed defenseman Josiah Didier (DIH-dee-ay) to an American Hockey League contract.

Didier, a nine-year AHL veteran, has captained the Providence Bruins for the past two campaigns. During the 2022-23 campaign, the 30-year-old posted 13 points (4-9—13) and 61 penalty minutes in 69 regular-season games with the Bruins. Didier has spent time in the AHL with the Hamilton Bulldogs (2014-15), St. John’s IceCaps (2015-17), Charlotte Checkers (2017-19) and Providence (2019-23), making his pro debut with the Bulldogs on April 2, 2015. He became a Calder Cup champion in 2019 when he aided Charlotte with four assists and a plus-12 rating in 19 playoff appearances. With the Bruins in 2019-20, Didier paced the AHL with a plus-32 rating in 61 contests, while scoring a career-high 15 points (3-12—15). Drafted with the 97th overall pick by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft, the 6-foot-3 defenseman has accumulated 67 points (16-51—67), 423 penalty minutes and a plus-61 rating throughout 377 regular-season AHL outings. In the postseason, he has added one goal and eight helpers in 34 Calder Cup Playoff appearances.

Continue reading Grand Rapids Griffins sign D Josiah Didier to AHL contract