Via Chris Zadorozny on Twitter, Paul Lukas’ Uni Watch is beginning its voting on user submissions for the Grand Rapids Griffins’ 90’s Jersey today:
Today on UW: the GR @griffinshockey design contest VOTING begins; the XFL (2.0) releases team names & logos; Paul’s adventures & MUCH MORE! [by @PhilHecken] https://t.co/8VHl9bfd0a— Paul Lukas (@UniWatch) August 22, 2019
The Athletic’s Corey Pronman is ranking each and every one of the NHL’s 31 teams’ developmental systems, and he’s produced an analysis of the 13th-ranked Red Wings this morning:
The Wings’ system changed a lot over the past year. It graduated some key prospects and had an important draft in 2019. Filip Zadina was a guy I was very enthusiastic about at this time last season, but I may have hyped him a tad too much. He remains the team’s top prospect even though I bumped him down a notch. The Wings have a lot of very good players on the way but still look to be in the early parts of their rebuild.
Key additions: Moritz Seider, Robert Mastrosimone, Albin Grewe
Key subtractions/graduations: Michael Rasmussen, Filip Hronek, Dennis Cholowski
2018 farm system ranking: No. 7
Continued (paywall)
MLive’s Ansar Khan’s scouting reports regarding Red Wings players’ 2019-2020 season outlooks continue today as Khan discusses Jonathan Bernier’s predicted trajectory for the upcoming season.
Khan believes that Bernier may end up assuming the starting goaltender’s mantle should Jimmy Howard be traded:
2019-20 outlook: Bernier’s numbers were rough, the worst of his career, but some of that can be attributed to the sub-par team defense.
Bernier will start the season as the clear-cut back-up to Jimmy Howard. But Howard, being on a one-year contract, might be moved before the trade deadline. If so, Bernier likely would be elevated to No. 1 and veteran Calvin Pickard, signed to a two-year contract on July 1 to play in Grand Rapids, probably would be brought up to be the back-up.
Red Wings alumni Eddie Mio and Joe Kocur are interviewed by DetroitRedWings.com’s Arthur J. Regner on the latest installment of the “Red and White Authority” podcast.
Kocur’s foundation is going to be holding its annual charity softball game on Saturday, August 24th in Highland, MI.
The Hockey News’s Matt Larkin penned a list of the 10 players he believes are most likely to be traded during the 2019-2020 campaign, and Larkin suggests that Red Wings defenseman Mike Green will be moved as something of a “hired gun” this year:
Mike Green, D, Detroit Red Wings
It sure feels like it’s time for Green to enter the gun-for-hire phase of his career. Teams sniffed around him at the 2018 trade deadline, but an injury stopped him from getting moved. He signed a two-year extension the ensuing summer. Now he’s on Year 2 of that pact, heading back to unrestricted free agency. On Feb. 1, 2020, his no-trade clause becomes a modified version in which he can submit a 10-team no-trade list. New GM Steve Yzerman wasn’t the one who signed Green, so there isn’t necessarily any baked-in loyalty there. Green would make sense as bait for one of Yzerman’s first major trades and, unlike in recent seasons, Green won’t have as much of a say in the matter. Green turns 34 in October and has a heck of a time staying healthy these days but remains an effective puck-mover when he’s in the lineup – and a right-handed one to boot. There will be a market for him this winter.
I don’t see a 33-year-old Mike Green having that much trade value until/if he is able to stay healthy for a lengthy period of time, and even then, I’m not sure he’d bring a large return.
Red Wings prospect Ryan Kuffner spoke with Princeton’s “Town Topics” newspaper’s Bill Alden regarding his debut with the Wings last season and his preparations for his first full pro campaign:
Staying in Detroit this summer, Kuffner focused on sharpening the fine points of his game.
“The biggest part this summer was working on my skating, having a bit more power out of uncomfortable positions around the net or in the corner, stuff that you don’t really focus on during the season because you know have a job to do,” said Kuffner.
“When I get on one-on-one time with skills coaches and skating coaches, you get to really focus on that kind of stuff, working on my shot and my passing. Getting into the gym everyday is gigantic, but it is that skating and quickness around the puck that is really going to make the difference.”
Taking part in the Red Wings Development Camp in late June, Kuffner saw that work pay dividends.
“I think even the first few months of my training really helped and having gone through the month that I did when our season was over at Princeton, I was able to learn a lot and figure out what I needed to work on, which was gigantic for my development,” said Kuffner.
“I think for me personally, it showed what kind of progress I was making, just feeling a bit more comfortable on my skates. I felt a lot stronger so I think that was a stepping stone for what is ahead in the future.”
DetroitRedWings.com’s Arthur J. Regner examines Red Wings prospect Ryan Kuffner’s 2018-2019 season “By the Numbers” today. Among the significant figures from Kuffner’s senior season at Princeton are the following:
22 – Kuffner’s 22 goals led the Tigers, ranked first in the ECAC and fourth in the nation when he signed with the Red Wings last March. He also doled out 22 assists, which placed him second on the team behind fellow forward Max Veronneau, who paced the Tigers with 24 helpers.
44 – His 44 total points led Princeton, was third in the ECAC and tied him for 12th overall in the nation.
1.42 – Playing on a deficient Princeton team, Kuffner’s 1.42 points-per-game average was tops in college hockey.
Paige on Adlerfans.de’s message board was kind enough to post the text of an article from Rheinpfalz.de in which sportswriter Oliver Wehner suggests that the Red Wings will find a way to keep Moritz Seider in their system after he takes part in the prospect tournament and main camp this September.
I’m not so sure that there’s room for Seider in Detroit or Grand Rapids, never mind an appetite to press Seider to perform in North America unless he steals a spot from a veteran–or perhaps one of the many youngsters trying to make the Wings’ roster alongside Seider.
Anyway, here’s a rough translation of Wehner’s article:
Continue reading Roughly translated: making a big assumption about ‘Mo’ SeiderOf brief Red Wings-related note this morning:
PowerTech Hockey is bringing current NHL stars and other top players from the area to their first PowerTech Charity All-Star 3-On-3 Tournament on Thursday, August 22nd at Tecumseh Arena.
Zach Kassian of the Edmonton Oilers, Dalton Prout of the San Jose Sharks, Matt Puempel of the Detroit Red Wings and Mike Weber former NHL Player will be the team captains of the tournament, which will also include Windsor Spitfires, members of the University of Windsor Lancers program and other ex-professional players from Windsor- Essex.
All proceeds from the event will support Play For a Cure and the Cancer Research Collaboration Fund. The goal is to raise $5000 from the event.
2. Also, the Hockey News’s Steven Ellis pondered the personnel that Team Canada will employ at the World Junior Championship, with Ellis suggesting that Joe Veleno will play a large part in the team’s plans…
The top line is a no brainer: the chemistry between Lafreniere, Dach and Veleno was clear in Plymouth, with the trio combining for eight points and many highlight-reel plays. Assuming Detroit allows Veleno to leave Grand Rapids to play – and play with a potential future teammate in Lafreniere – this will be one of Canada’s best lines in many years, combining speed, skill, size and two-way acumen. All three could challenge for tournament MVP.
Ellis also suggests that Hockey Canada’s inclusion of injured defenseman Jared McIsaac on their World Junior Summer Showcase roster indicates that he’ll crack the roster should his shoulder heal in time for the WJC.
MLive’s Ansar Khan continues his series of player profiles this morning with a look at Jonathan Ericsson.
As Khan notes, the massive defender was banged up for a good portion of this past season, and Khan wonders whether Ericsson will be able to shake the injury bug:
2019-20 outlook: Ericsson was plagued by injuries at the start and end of the season and struggled with consistency once again. After a good start in the 2017-18 season, he has posted a minus-23 rating in his past 95 games.
Ericsson was a healthy scratch for back-to-back games on a couple of occasions, for the first time in his career. He’ll likely start the season alongside Trevor Daley as the third pairing (depending on the unit’s health), but unlike past seasons, Ericsson won’t have a guaranteed spot in the lineup. It’ll depend on his performance.
Defense continues to be the weak spot on this team, but coach Jeff Blashill will have other options for the third pairing (Danny DeKeyser, Mike Green, Patrik Nemeth and Filip Hronek are projected as the top four) – including Madison Bowey or Oliwer Kaski. Dennis Cholowski, who started strong last season before fading and being sent to Grand Rapids, also will be competing for a spot.
Ericsson is among the veteran defensemen the Red Wings will try to move at the trade deadline (along with Green and Daley, but he’ll need to be healthy and playing reasonably well to draw interest for a draft pick.
Continued; I don’t personally see much of a market for Ericsson, but I’m more curious as to whether Ericsson’s going to retire at the end of this season. He once told Norrkoping’s Tidningar that he would retire at 36, resting his always-sore hip, but I’m not sure that he’s done quite yet.
