Author: George Malik

MLive’s Ansar Khan filed a notebook article in which Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill and captain Dylan Larkin expressed understandable concerns about playing the Carolina Hurricanes Thursday despite a widespread COVID outbreak on the Canes:

The Red Wings placed forwards Robby Fabbri and Michael Rasmussen in COVID protocol on Wednesday. They will not be in the lineup Thursday against the Carolina Hurricanes at PNC Arena (7 p.m., Bally Sports Detroit). The team recalled forwards Kyle Criscuolo and Taro Hirose from the Grand Rapids Griffins.

That game is still on even though six Hurricanes were placed in COVID protocol the past two days – including stars Sebastien Aho and Andrei Svechnikov – and the team’s game at Minnesota Tuesday was postponed.

The Red Wings experienced a rash of COVID cases early last season after playing consecutive games against the Hurricanes. Blashill admitted there is some concern about playing the game.

“Part of the problem when you’re sitting in my seat right now is I don’t have all the information,” Blashill said. “I don’t know exactly when everybody in Carolina got the virus. I know a number of guys tested negative today. I guess I’m relying on medical experts to say that it’s safe. I certainly believe that their best intentions are that if they thought they were putting us at risk to spread it that we wouldn’t play the game.

“I have trepidation. I certainly don’t want to see my team exposed to any more cases than we have to. It’s kind of like the balance we’ve all faced. You can shut down and not do anything and not spread it, or you can try to work within the parameters. I think that’s what we’re trying to do in trying to get the games in. Certainly, I want to coach, and the players want to play.”

Larkin was blunt about playing a sport where the players breathe heavily as they exert themselves and they sweat, spit, bleed and, again, engage in extreme physical exertion in close proximity:

“We have a sport where we’re sitting on the bench next to each other,” Larkin said. “We can’t put masks on and take them off before we go out (on the ice), things happen too fast. It’s tough in our sport to stop the spread but we try to do our best in the locker room. We’re lucky we have a big space at LCA. We can really spread out during meetings and when we’re eating, so you just got to be really smart and try to stay as safe as possible.”

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NHL.com’s Patrick Williams posted a list of NHL prospects who are impressing in the AHL, and Red Wings prospect and center Jonatan Berggren made Williams’ list:

Jonatan Berggren, Grand Rapids (Detroit Red Wings): Possessing ample pro experience from playing in Europe, Berggren (5-foot-11, 195 pounds) has displayed plenty of maturity in his game.

Selected by the Red Wings in the second round (No. 33) of the 2018 NHL Draft, the 21-year-old was given time to develop for three seasons with Skelleftea of the Swedish Hockey League, one of the top leagues in the world. He also played for third-place Sweden at the 2020 World Junior Championship.

The Red Wings then brought him to North America this season and have let him evolve with Grand Rapids, where he has scored 16 points (seven goals, nine assists) in 22 games. Berggren is taking a development path that several Detroit forwards have already traveled, including forwards Tyler Bertuzzi, Michael Rasmussen, Joe Veleno and Filip Zadina.

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Update: Why didn’t the Wings call Berggren up? The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan has the answer:

Blashill said the Wings will recall players from Grand Rapids to replace Fabbri and Rasmussen. Jonatan Berggren will not move up.

The 2018 second-round draft pick has seven goals and nine assists for 16 points, third best in the American Hockey League.

“The last thing you want to do with a young player if he is starting to gain confidence in the American League and just starting to do those things is to bring him up and have him struggle,” Blashill said.

From Dan Milstein on Twitter:

Jimmy Howard joins Gold Star Hockey as Director of Player Development. #WeAreGoldStar! pic.twitter.com/ENqSh9gd06

— Dan Milstein-Hockey (@HockeyAgent1) December 15, 2021

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

In the Finnish Liiga, Eemil Viro was absent from TPS Turku’s 3-1 loss to KooKoo as he’s going to Canada with the Finnish World Junior Championship team;

In the Swedish Allsvenskan, Filip Larsson stopped 18 of 22 shots in HV71 Jonkoping’s 4-3 shootout loss to Mora IK, who remain without Albin Grewe (concussion);

In HockeyEttan, Jesper Eliasson stopped 26 of 29 shots in Vasby IK’s 3-2 loss to Mariestad BoIS;

In the scheduling department, we know when Frolunda HC (Simon Edvinsson, Theodor Niederbach and Elmer Soderblom) and Rogle BK (William Wallinder) will tangle in the Champions League’s semifinal games:

RÄTTELSE! Här är datumen för semifinalerna i CHL. Borta 4/1 och hemma i Frölundaborg 11/1. Biljetterna släpps på lördag 18/12 klockan 10.00. pic.twitter.com/rL2e70T8Pj

— Frölunda HC (@frolunda_hc) December 15, 2021

The games consist of a two-game playoff in which the team who scores the most goals wins. Kinda lame.

And of Red Wings-related prospect note in North America on Wednesday:

In the QMJHL, Oscar Plandowski finished at +2 with 2 shots in the Charlottetown Islanders’ 8-2 win over Halifax;

In the WHL, Sebastian Cossa’s Edmonton Oil Kings won 5-2 over Calgary;

And Alex Cotton scored 2 goals, finishing at -2 with 5 shots in the Vancouver Giants’ 7-3 loss to Prince George.

The Detroit Red Wings lost Robby Fabbri and Michael Rasmussen to COVID protocols, so the Wings have recalled Kyle Criscuolo and Taro Hirose from Grand Rapids:

DETROIT — The Detroit Red Wings today recalled center Kyle Criscuolo and left wing Taro Hirose from the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins.

Criscuolo, 29, has played parts of four seasons with the Griffins over two separate stints with the club, rejoining the organization in 2020-21 after signing with Grand Rapids to begin his professional career in 2015-16. Criscuolo logged his 10th career NHL game in Detroit’s 4-3 shootout win over Seattle on Dec. 1, marking his Red Wings debut after previously appearing in nine NHL games with Buffalo during the 2017-18 campaign. In 265 AHL games between the Griffins, Rochester Americans, Lehigh Valley Phantoms and San Diego Gulls, he has totaled 155 points (66-89-155), a plus-29 rating and 96 penalty minutes. As a first-year pro in 2016-17, Criscuolo helped the Griffins capture a Calder Cup championship, contributing 41 points (17-24-41) in 76 regular-season games and adding nine points (5-4-9) in 19 postseason contests. This season, the 5-foot-9, 175-pound forward leads the Griffins lead in points-per-game, racking up 17 points (9-8-17) in 15 games.

A native of Southampton, N.J., Criscuolo spent four seasons at Harvard University from 2012-16 and logged 113 points (53-60-113), a plus-42 rating and 46 penalty minutes in 124 collegiate games, serving as captain of the Crimson as a junior and senior. Harvard won an ECAC conference championship in 2015, and Criscuolo was a back-to-back ECAC Student-Athlete of the Year, All-Ivy League Second Team and All-ECAC Second Team member. Prior to his time at Harvard, Criscuolo spent the 2011-12 season in the USHL with the Sioux City Musketeers, notching 44 points (21-23-44) in 59 games.

Hirose, 25, has split his professional career between the Red Wings and Griffins. He has appeared in 42 NHL games since debuting in 2018-19, totaling 16 points (3-13-16) and eight penalty minutes, while adding 74 points (14-60-74) and 18 penalty minutes in 86 games with Grand Rapids over the last three seasons. In 2021-22, Hirose has logged 22 games for the Griffins, ranking among team leaders with four goals (T5th), 15 assists (1st and T7th in the AHL), 19 points (1st) and 40 shots (3rd). He was originally signed as an undrafted free agent after spending three years at Michigan State University and logged seven points (1-6-7) in 10 games during his first NHL stint in 2018-19.

A native of Calgary, Alberta, Hirose appeared in 106 games at Michigan State from 2016-19, totaling 116 points (33-83-116) and 39 penalty minutes. As a junior in 2018-19, Hirose led the nation in points (50), points-per-game (1.47), assists (35), multi-point games (15) and three-point games (9) en route to being named the Big Ten Player of the Year. Prior to his collegiate career, Hirose played two seasons (2014-16) with the Salmon Arm Silverbacks of the British Columbia Hockey League where he totaled 121 points (33-88-121) in 116 games. During the 2015-16 campaign with the Silverbacks, he ranked 13th in the BCHL in points (71) and fourth in assists (56), both of which led the team. Hirose also led the Silverbacks in scoring (18-32-50) in his first season with the club (2014-15), while being named the team’s Rookie of the Year.

The Red Wings practiced on Wednesday without Robby Fabbri and Michael Rasmussen (COVID Protocol) as well as Tyler Bertuzzi (maintenance day), ahead of tomorrow’s game vs. the Carolina Hurricanes, and after practice, Dylan Larkin spoke about the Olympic decision facing NHL players, while coach Blashill addressed the Wings’ need to call up players.

Okay, so the Red Wings practiced on Wednesday minus Tyler Bertuzzi (maintenance), as well as Robby Fabbri and Michael Rasmussen (COVID protocols) ahead of Thursday’s game vs. the Carolina Hurricanes, which is still scheduled to take place as of now.

The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun reported that the Canes may go with 16 skaters and 2 goalies due to salary cap constraints; they still possess a 19-7-and-1 record, and their most recent loss (in Vancouver) snapped a 4-game winning streak.

The shorthanded “Jerks” will be looking to stick it to Nedeljkovic and the 14-12-and-3 Wings on Thursday, so the Red Wings better be at their best as they head to Raleigh tomorrow night.

After Wednesday’s practice, Dylan Larkin spoke with the media, and he addressed more than the state of the Wings…

Larkin, on the Olympics: “I think it’s … There’s a lot going on right now. We’re dealing with COVID here. We had calls and talks, and you guys read the reports on what it could be like in China, and that’s unfortunate, but it is what it is.”— Nick Cotsonika (@cotsonika) December 15, 2021

Larkin, on the Olympics (continued): “It would be very unfortunate to get stuck in quarantine for that long, and you know, [there’s] a serious unknown of when you come home. So I think it’s unfortunate for all athletes.”— Nick Cotsonika (@cotsonika) December 15, 2021

(Players who test positive for COVID in China may be stuck there for 3-5 weeks)

And coach Jeff Blashill addressed the Wings’ COVID situation:

Coach Blashill says they will call up players today, with the absence of a few guys on the team. When asked if it would be Jonatan Berggren, he said no. He doesn’t want to throw off Berggren’s confidence when he’s playing so well in the AHL. #LGRW— Carley Johnston (@carleykjohnston) December 15, 2021

Good news here:

Maintenance day for Bertuzzi but expected to be available tomorrow— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) December 15, 2021

Per the Toledo Walleye:

JUST ANNOUNCED: Darren McCarty, Joey Kocur, and more will compete for the @DetroitRedWings during the #Winterfest2021 Alumni Game. ??

?️: https://t.co/AOu31vz1gL pic.twitter.com/Jx8r0LRXSk— Toledo Walleye (@ToledoWalleye) December 15, 2021

FYI:

The @Rogers #HometownHockey tour is making its way over to Gander, NL and we’re bringing you a special guest!

NHL alumni, Daniel Cleary will be joining us all weekend for autograph signings! ?

FREE tickets are available now: https://t.co/txmfDXzCFO pic.twitter.com/zd7moPGOcJ— Rogers Hometown Hockey (@hometownhockey_) December 15, 2021

The Hockey News’s Jason Chen posted a set of power rankings today, and he mentions the Red Wings’ goaltender in his rankings:

20. Detroit Red Wings (14-12-3, -17. CF%: 30th, xGF%: 23rd. Last Week: 20)

Admittedly, the Wings faced three tough teams during their losing streak – Preds, Blues, Avs – and Alex Nedeljkovic has been quite good this season even though there were doubts about his ability to be a starting goalie (ahem, Carolina).

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