Author: George Malik

Fox 17 posted a video previewing Friday night’s New Year’s Eve game between the Grand Rapids Griffins and Milwaukee Admirals, which includes an indoor fireworks show:

Of Red Wings prospect-related note in North America on Thursday night:

In the WHL, Sebastian Cossa’s Edmonton Oil Kings won 3-2 over Brandon;

And Alex Cotton finished at -2 with 6 shots and a penalty taken in the Vancouver Giants’ 6-3 loss to Victoria.

The Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe reports from Fifth Third Field in Toledo, where the Walleye Alumni and Red Wings Alumni took the game outside:

There were plenty of smiles on the benches at the Winterfest alumni game on Thursday night but the legends also quickly rediscovered their competitive juices at the special outdoor event.

Fog blanketed the lights at Fifth Third Field where a crowd of 6,095 gathered to recognize the local Toledo greats along with Detroit Red Wings legends.

Former Toledo Storm forward Iain Duncan scored for the Toledo team late in the first period at the Mud Hens baseball stadium.

“This brings back so many great memories of this area,” said Duncan, a former Bowling Green State University standout who went on to play in the NHL for the Winnipeg Jets. “We were talking about it after the hall of fame banquet [on Wednesday]. Hockey is an emotional sport. We have a lot tied up in this sport. We’re big tough guys but we’d also do anything for anybody. I played against a couple of those guys in the NHL. It was great to see Joey Kocur and Larry Murphy again.”

The Toledo legends, who were coached by Walleye head scout Ed Burkholder and 2021 Toledo hockey hall of fame inductee Lorne Molleken, fell 7-4. The Red Wings, who were coached by Nick Libett and Phil Myre, scored on the first shot of the game.

…

Kocur, the former Red Wings tough guy, scored for a 4-1 Detroit lead. Kocur, who led the Red Wings to Stanley Cups in 1997 and 1998, said the last time he played in such an event was against the Colorado Avalanche and Toronto Maple Leafs.

“It’s just so much fun to get out here under the stars or under the clouds in this case,” Kocur said. “To be outside is a lot of fun. That’s how we all grew up playing the game. It’s perfect weather, too.”

Continued; a photo gallery accompanies the story.

Red Wings forward Robby Fabbri has impressed Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff with his ability to fit into the lineup in various roles and be presented with different responsibilities:

The latest opportunity for Robby Fabbri to display his value to the Detroit Red Wings was scuttled on Thursday. However, in this case, that was good news for the team.

Lucas Raymond is out of COVID-19 protocol and that means he’ll be able to take up his usual slot on the right wing of Detroit’s top forward line with captain Dylan Larkin and Tyler Bertuzzi for Friday’s game against the Washington Capitals. Had Raymond not been good to go, Fabbri was the one who would’ve been going into his spot.

It would’ve marked the third time that Fabbri had been elevated to the top line. Previously, he’s filled in for Larkin (personal leave) and Bertuzzi (unvaccinated for COVID-19 and unable to play in Canada). That meant had the original plan come together, Fabbri would’ve found himself filling in for a third different player on the team’s top line.

“Fabbs feels comfortable playing all the positions,” Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said. “He’s played some center for us and feels comfortable there for us, and I’ve used him mid-game sometimes, even coming out of a penalty kill.

“Certainly when Larks wasn’t there I used him a little bit. He can play either wing. That’s certainly one of the things that makes him valuable.”

Continued

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan filed a notebook article in which he discusses the Red Wings’ desire to get back to work after their long NHL-imposed pause due to COVID issues:

“Eager to get back in a game,” Blashill said. “It was good to watch (Wednesday’s games) and you could see there was a lot of emotion getting back at it. This is what we do and to a large degree, what we live for. It’s good to get going.”

Forwards Lucas Raymond and Adam Erne, and defenseman Jordan Oesterle, were removed from the protocol list Thursday, leaving defenseman Nick Leddy as the lone Wings’ player on the list. Leddy will not play Friday. Many of the Wings who’ve been on the list recently have only missed one game, at most, before the NHL shut things down. From that perspective, the Wings feel fortunate.

“We’re real lucky,” Seider said. “The guys didn’t have to sit out, and we had a real good practice (Thursday) and we can build on that and go from there.”

The Wings are also able to return to game action at Little Caesars Arena, which has been a decided home-ice advantage. The Wings are 11-3-2 at LCA — one of those losses, to Washington — while only 4-10-1 on the road.

There’s also the knowledge the New Year’s Eve crowd is usually one of the more festive and loud gatherings of the season.

“The crowd has been awesome, and I’m certain (Friday’s) crowd will be awesome,” Blashill said. “New Year’s Eve is always a great crowd. I’ve got a large contingent of the family coming down to be here. These types of nights just increases it (the emotion).”

Continued

MLive’s Ansar Khan filed an article focusing on five areas of the Red Wings’ game coming out of their nearly two-week break, and its preface is as good as the items of focus:

“It was good to watch last night’s games; you could see there was a lot of emotion,” [Red Wings coach Jeff] Blashill said. “That’s great, just getting back at it. This is what we do and to a large degree what we live for, so it’s great to get back going.”

The Capitals returned to play after a nine-day break with a 5-3 win over Nashville Wednesday, so they might have a leg up in shaking off the rust.

“Probably the biggest challenge is playing 60 minutes of competitive hockey,” Red Wings defenseman Moritz Seider said. “I think if we find a way to figure that out, we can be very successful during the next stretch. I think everybody’s really looking forward to playing games again. I know it was a rough stretch for us, but all in all I think the boys are really hungry and are willing to give every single thing to go back to work.”

The Red Wings had as many as 11 players in protocol at one time during the break. Many reported only mild symptoms.

“I think we were really lucky,” Seider said. “A lot of guys didn’t even have to sit out for even one game. We had a really good practice today. I think we can build on that and go from there and get excited for tomorrow.”

Continued, with those 5 items of note…

From the Red Wings:

RED WINGS REASSIGN BARBER TO GRAND RAPIDS  

… Veteran Winger Made Red Wings Debut on Dec. 18 …

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today reassigned left wing Riley Barber to the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins from the team’s taxi squad.

Barber, 27, joined the organization when he signed a two-year contract with the Red Wings prior the 2020-21 season and made his Red Wings debut on Dec. 18 vs. New Jersey. Barber has appeared in 53 games with the Griffins over the last two seasons, totaling 50 points (27-23-50) and 36 penalty minutes. Last season, he was named to the Central Division All-Star Team after leading Grand Rapids with 20 goals and 34 points in 32 games. The Pittsburgh, Penn., native is a veteran of 336 AHL games, posting 267 points (133-134-267) and 240 penalty minutes over seven seasons with the Hershey Bears, Laval Rocket, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins and Griffins. Barber previously saw NHL action with the Washington Capitals (2016-17) and Montreal Canadiens (2019-20), picking up two penalty minutes in 12 games. The 6-foot, 190-pound winger also has 15 points (5-10-15) in 38 career AHL postseason games.

Originally drafted by the Capitals in the sixth round (167th overall) of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, Barber signed with Washington after spending three seasons at Miami University, where he scored at over a point-per-game pace with 123 points (54-69-123), a plus-24 rating and 62 penalty minutes in 116 games. Barber earned several collegiate honors, including CCHA Rookie of the Year and First All-Star Team in 2012-13 and NCHC Second All-Star Team in 2013-14, and helped the RedHawks to a conference championship in 2014-15. He also won a 2011 Clark Cup championship in the United States Hockey League with the Dubuque Fighting Saints and spent the 2011-12 season with the U.S. National Team Development Program. Barber also captained the United States at the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship after winning gold at the event in 2013, combining for 12 points (7-5-12) in 12 games between the two tournaments.

Via Carley Johnston on Twitter, the Red Wings have posted their daily practice report:

Of Red Wings prospect-related note in Europe on Thursday:

In the Finnish Liiga, Eemil Viro’s TPS Turku lost 3-2 in a shootout to Assat Pori;

Otto Kivenmaki finished even with 1 shot in 13:24 played as the Lahti Pelicans won 3-2 in a shootout over SaiPa;

In the Swedish Allsvenskan, Filip Larsson was the back-up in HV71 Jonkoping’s 5-3 win over Tingsryds IF;

And again, Albin Grewe was unable to play due to a concussion in Mora IK’s 5-4 shootout win over Vita Hasten;

In the SHL, William Wallinder had an assist, finishing even in 20:00 played in Rogle BK’s 3-1 win over IK Oskarshamn:

William Wallinder's point shot becomes a perfect pass for Rögle's 2-0 goal, Wallinder's 11th point of the season #LGRW pic.twitter.com/bvpx3rBizy

— IcehockeyGifs (@IcehockeyG) December 30, 2021

And, in Farjestads BK’s 3-1 win over Brynas:

Albert Johansson finished at -1 with 2 shots in 16:29 played;

And Gustav Berglund finished even in 5:56 played.

Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill is a passionate supporter of USA Hockey, for whom he’s served as a coach several times, and he spoke about the cancellation of the 2022 World Junior Championship today, as noted by MLive’s Ansar Khan:

“I had a chance to talk to the (U.S.) World Junior team before the tournament and like a lot of people I was really excited to see this group,” Blashill said. “It’s honestly devastating. I was crushed to see it. It’s been a really hard couple years for a lot of people. These are these young people’s dreams. These are huge moments. I’ve had a chance to coach in the World Juniors.”

The United States, Czechia and Russia each had to forfeit a preliminary-round game after players tested positive for COVID-19.

The Red Wings had eight prospects from their past two drafts participating – forwards Carter Mazur and Red Savage of the U.S., defenseman and top 2021 pick Simon Edvinsson and center Theodor Niederbach of Sweden, goaltender Sebastian Cossa and defenseman Donovan Sebrango of Canada, defenseman Eemil Viro of Finland and goalie Jan Bednar of Czechia.

“This World Junior group, the older guys on the team, if you go back to the start of this pandemic, they had their World Under-18s canceled (scheduled for Plymouth in April 2020),” Blashill said. “I know how much work goes into it, how much passion is involved. For it to just end on a drop of a dime is just crushing for everybody involved.

“It’s a great tournament and a great opportunity to showcase for the upcoming NHL draft. There’s tons of scouts out there that all the sudden don’t get to have those looks that they depend on to a large degree. Everybody is equal, we’re all going to adjust. I understand perspective. There are worse things in the world, I get that for sure. But when you’re talking about dreams of young people, it’s crushing. I think life is about experiences. They don’t get to have that experience. I feel terrible for them.”

Continued; TSN’s Darren Dreger and Bob McKenzie reported that 5 more players tested positive today, which was confirmed by the IIHF, and that really sucks. Here’s hoping that everyone who’s been affected by COVID gets well soon, and that the players get to go home ASAP.