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!

Tweets of note: Red Wings to split goaltending duties vs. Blackhawks; Hawks’ Nazar looking forward to playing against his hometown team

The Red Wings are taking a mixed lineup to Chicago tonight to battle the Blackhawks (8 PM EDT on DetroitRedWings.com), and EP Rinkside’s Sean Shapiro reports that the Wings are going to split their netminding duties this evening:

Meanwhile, in Chicago…

Coach Lalonde discusses the challenges of playing exhibition hockey

DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills posted a preview of tonight’s game between the Red Wings and the Chicago Blackhawks (8 PM EDT start on DetroitRedWings.com), mostly quoting Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde regarding the Wings’ tasks ahead as they begin a stretch of playing 8 games over the course of only 12 nights:

“You plan on it and around [the exhibition season], but it’s exciting too,” Lalonde said. “Obviously it’s rinse and repeat. “You’re running two teams, basically one at once, and these fly-in, fly-out road trips. It’s all part of it.”

Detroit reduced its expanded Training Camp roster to 57 players on Sunday. That number will continue to be trimmed over the next couple weeks, as the Red Wings have until 5 p.m. ET on Oct. 7 to submit their maximum 23-man Opening Night roster.

“I think you’re going to see a lot of mixed lineups, maybe a couple of NHL-experienced lines with a couple of new guys,” Lalonde said. “That’s what we’ll see [Wednesday].”

…

“I liked our intensity in Traverse City, so I’d like to keep that at a high,” Lalonde said. “Obviously your takeaways from that Red & White game – there was some growth in it, some teaching [Tuesday], which happens a lot. A lot of ill-advised turnovers that’ll get us in trouble, which is understandable. We want to keep growing our game in every area.”

Lalonde also spoke about the importance of using these exhibition games to give the organization’s prospects extended opportunity to play alongside and against NHL-caliber talent.

“We’d love to play those guys a ton, but you might be asking those guys to play some back-to-backs, some three [games] in four [days] down the stretch,” Lalonde said. “But yes, we want to give all those guys an opportunity. If you recall last year, we played Simon [Edvinsson] a ton and we thought that was extremely valuable for him and his growth. It will be similar for those young guys.”

Continued

Red Wings-Blackhawks morning skate Tweets, part 2: Chicago’s playing a strong lineup tonight

The Detroit Red Wings’ “game-day group” hit the ice at 9:45 AM for their morning skate ahead of tonight’s game vs. Chicago (8 PM EDT start on DetroitRedWings.com), and after the skate, Michael Brandsegg-Nygard and Albert Johansson spoke with the Wings’ media corps (click the last link for video).

The Blackhawks didn’t take to the ice in the Windy City until 10:35 AM local time, and here’s how they lined up:

Update: The Hawks’ website posted their team’s lineup for tonight, via MLive’s Ansar Khan on Twitter:

Video: Michael Brandsegg-Nygard and Albert Joansson speak with the media

Red Wings prospects Michael Brandsegg-Nygard and Albert Johansson spoke with the media after today’s morning skate, combining for 16:49 worth of press conference time. Brandsegg-Nygard discussed whether he might play in the SHL or AHL this upcoming season.

Post-morning skate Tweets: Brandsegg-Nygard discusses his SHL-or-AHL options

The Red Wings’ “game group” held a 9:45 AM morning skate ahead of tonight’s game vs. Chicago in the Windy City (8 PM EDT on DetroitRedWings.com).

After the morning skate…

The AHL would be ideal for the Red Wings, but MBN has repeatedly stated that he wants to play for Skelleftea AIK. I wonder whether the language barrier might be an issue for him.

Speaking of which…

Allen on why Axel Sandin Pellikka remains in Europe this season

After Axel Sandin Pellikka scored that “ankle-breaking” goal yesterday in Skelleftea AIK’s win, Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen reminded us why ASP remains in Sweden this season:

“And you might ask why, and I don’t really have a good answer for that, but we just, the plan was to leave him there,” Yzerman said. “He’s in a good spot. He knows our expectations of him and what our plan for him is. And so, no, it wasn’t. We wanted to bring Michael over here to spend a little bit of time with, again with our staff, you know, the Red Wings staff, but also our skills and skating people and our development people. Take a little bit of time here and play a couple of preseason games. You know, he’s a little bit different, he’s a little bigger, stronger. Axe, being a defenseman just felt like…he’s in a good spot there.”

As a general rule, it takes longer for young defensemen to develop.  Also, the Grand Rapids defense has Shai Buium, Antti Tuomisto, William Wallinder and Eemil Viro all vying for playing. Youngsters Albert Johansson and Simon Edvinsson are moving to the Red Wings this season.

Adding Sandin Pellikka to the mix would have made it more crowded.

Continued; my sense is that the Red Wings want to determine whether Tuomisto or Wallinder have NHL futures before bringing ASP into that crowded blueline, which is also going to include William Lagesson and Josiah Didier.

Is Pavel Datsyuk the 15th-best player since Wayne Gretzky retired?

The Score’s John Matisz and Nick Faris are attempting to discern the top 25 NHL players who played in the league since Wayne Gretzky retired in the 1999-2000 season, and Pavel Datsyuk makes the list at 15th, which is kind of laughable:

#15. Pavel Datsyuk:

Era teams: Detroit Red Wings 2001-16

Signature performance: Clutch in the 2008 postseason, Datsyuk had six points over the final two games of a second-round sweep of the Avalanche. He bagged his only career hat trick against the Stars in Round 3. When the Red Wings beat the Penguins for the Stanley Cup, he assisted linemate Henrik Zetterberg’s winner by spinning to find the puck in a thicket of legs.

Zetterberg was the only Red Wing to best Datsyuk’s 23 playoff points as the franchise clinched its 11th and latest title.

Why he’s here: Datsyuk’s puckhandling wizardry and defensive mastery made him a uniquely complete and exciting center. He was a face of powerhouse teams that backed up their dominance in the regular season – Detroit averaged 110.7 points over Datsyuk’s first 10 years in the NHL – with championship conquests.

He debuted with the unstoppable 2001-02 Red Wings, who iced 10 future Hall of Famers, and promptly won the first of two Cups. Datsyuk went on to stockpile three straight Selke Trophies and four straight Lady Byng Trophies as a dexterous takeaway machine who stayed out of the box.

When the “Magic Man” had the puck, his obscene dangles and cross-ice passing ability showed his hands and mind were in perfect sync. Datsyuk and Connor McDavid were the only players in the era to exceed 300 goals and 600 helpers in fewer than 1,000 games played.

Datsyuk oozed skill, possessing rare gifts that made him a dynamo and an innovator. He unleashed a powerful backhand shot to pick corners from strange angles. Some of his 40 shootout goals were scored with his patented move – fake a wrist shot and drag the puck away from the outstretched, frozen, helpless goalie.

The product of Yekaterinburg, Russia, is closely associated with two Swedes – Zetterberg and Lidstrom. The renowned trio was together for much of Detroit’s 25-year playoff qualification streak that finally ended as soon as Datsyuk left the NHL. – Nick Faris

Continued; I would argue that Datsyuk’s worth ethic was equal to his level of talent, to say the very least.

Morning skate Tweets: the game-day lineup is skating ahead of tonight’s game vs. Chicago

The Detroit Red Wings battle the Chicago Blackhawks tonight in Chicago (8 PM EDT start on DetroitRedWings.com), and the Wings’ game day group is already skating at Little Caesars Arena:

In the FYI Department:

Continue reading Morning skate Tweets: the game-day lineup is skating ahead of tonight’s game vs. Chicago

Morning news: It’s an exhibition game day, and we may see an Edvinsson-Seider pairing in Chicago tonight

Tonight, the Detroit Red Wings kick off their 8-games-in-12-nights exhibition season against the Chicago Blackhawks (8 PM start on DetroitRedWings.com):

Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen took note of the fact that Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde won’t necessarily be loading up the roster in order to smack down opponents. On the contrary, the Red Wings’ coaching staff will be experimenting with different lines, different lineups and prospects over the course of the next 12 nights:

Detroit opens the preseason tonight on the road against the Chicago Blackhawks. Coach Derek Lalonde said he will use a mixed lineup of youngsters and veterans. “I think the exhibition game matrix is complicated; We end up with five games in six days and three in three,” Lalonde said. “Certainly is not ideal, especially with some of the objectives we want to accomplish in camp.”

The Red Wings want youngsters like Marco Kasper, Nate Danielson, Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, etc. to see plenty of game time.

“I think you’re going to see a lot of mixed lineups,” Lalonde said. “Maybe a couple of NHL-experienced lines and with a couple of new guys. That’s what we’ll see tomorrow night.”

Also of Red Wings-related note this morning: The Free Press’s Helene St. James wrote a subscriber-only column which discusses Moritz Seider’s remarks made during yesterday’s press conference…

    “I want to get better every year and there’s definitely a lot more that hopefully I can show in the future,” Seider said Tuesday. “It’s just about making the next step, being more consistent, trying to eliminate off nights as much as possible. And then trying to contribute on both ends even more; hopefully offense can come a little more, too.” 

    Coach Derek Lalonde elaborated on areas where Seider can improve.

    “His defensive game can continue to grow,” Lalonde said. “Even with him, he’s had some lapses in some of his play. I think he can improve his skating, which is very exciting. I think he’s still very raw. I think there’s a lot of room for growth in him.”

    And St. James noted that the Red Wings’ coaches will experiment with a Simon Edvinsson-Seider defensive pairing this exhibition season:

    Continue reading Morning news: It’s an exhibition game day, and we may see an Edvinsson-Seider pairing in Chicago tonight