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!

Morning news: On concrete improvements and the possibility of sustaining a playoff run

Of Red Wings-related note this morning:

  1. Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff questions whether five changes in the Red Wings’ play of late are the result of the “new coach bump” or the result of coach McLellan making meaningful changes to the systems which the Red Wings play…

Penalty Kill

Under previous coach Derek Lalonde the Red Wings were on pace to make NHL penalty killing history, and not the good kind. At one point, Detroit was displaying the lowest penalty kill percentage since the league began tracking the stat.

During this four-game win streak, the Red Wings penalty kill is crushing it. They’ve killed 80% of all infactions (8-for-10).

“Coming in as a new staff, (assistant coach) Trent (Yawney) and I, joining the group that was here, the focus went on penalty killing,” McLellan said. “Certainly the penalty kill’s been a total revamp.”

Fewer Goals Against

McLellan describes NHL games as a race to three. His theory is that the first team to put three goals on the scoreboard generally wins the game.

That’s been the case in each of the five games since he took over as coach of the Red Wings. In three of their four wins, they’ve only allowed two goals against.

During the four-game win streak, Detroit’s goals-against per game is 2.5.

Duff continues…

2. And the Free Press’s Helene St. James wonders aloud whether coach McLellan’s Wings can mount an eventual playoff run:

Continue reading Morning news: On concrete improvements and the possibility of sustaining a playoff run

Prospect round-up: Gylander, Walleye shut out Fort Wayne; Finnie 1A in Kamloops loss

In the Finnish Liiga, Jesse Kiiskinen’s HPK Hameenlinna lost 5-3 to Lukko without #88 on the roster. He’s taking part in the World Junior Championship presently;

In the DEL, Kevin Bicker’s Frankfurt Lowen won 5-1 over the Adler Mannheim, but Bicker remains out with an injury;

In the SHL, Michael Brandsegg-Nygard finished at -2 with 2 shots in 19:19 played as Skelleftea AIK lost 3-0 to Farjestads BK;

Noah Dower Nilsson finished at +1 in 10:26 played as Frolunda HC won 3-1 over Leksands IF. Anton Johansson did not play for Leksand;

In the Swedish J20 league, Charlie Forslund didn’t register a point in Mora IK’s 3-1 win over Linkopings HC;

In the ECHL, Carter Gylander posted a 26-save shutout as the Toledo Walleye won 3-0 over Fort Wayne;

In the OHL, Landon Miller was the back-up in the Soo Greyhounds’ 5-0 loss to Saginaw;

Continue reading Prospect round-up: Gylander, Walleye shut out Fort Wayne; Finnie 1A in Kamloops loss

At the World Junior Championship: Kiiskinen scores as Finns beat Sweden; Augustine strong in goal as USA defeats Czechia

At the World Junior Championship in Ottawa:

Jesse Kiiskinen scored a goal on 1 shot in 12:59 of playing time as Finland took a 4-3 overtime decision over Sweden. Axel Sandin Pellikka finished even with 4 shots in 29:52 of ice time for Sweden.

Sandin Pellikka had this to say to Expressen’s Tim Dahlbacka and Johan Eriksson:

“It sucks. I think we played our hearts out there, so it sucks, especially when you feel that you deserve the final place,” says Sweden’s team captain Axel Sandin-Pellikka.

“We had the feeling all along that ‘we had them.’ The third period is the best period I’ve ever seen a team play, they had three shots and we had 20. It sucks,” the captain said.

In the other semifinal, Trey Augustine stopped 26 of 27 shots as Team USA won 4-1 over Czechia. Max Plante was scratched finished even in 11:10 played for the Americans.

Team USA and Team Finland will play for the Gold Medal on Sunday at 7:30 PM EST, on the NHL Network and TSN; Team Sweden and Czechia will battle for Bronze on Sunday at 3:30 PM on the NHL Network and TSN.

According to FloHockey’s Chris Peters, Augustine set a USA Hockey record on Saturday:

Continue reading At the World Junior Championship: Kiiskinen scores as Finns beat Sweden; Augustine strong in goal as USA defeats Czechia

Griffins recap: Grand Rapids struggles to find goals vs. Milwaukee Admirals

The Grand Rapids Griffins suffered a setback on Saturday night, losing a 2-1 decision to the Milwaukee Admirals. The Griffins’ website posted a recap:

MILWAUKEE — A hectic first period saw the Grand Rapids Griffins fall into an early deficit, as they suffered a 2-1 loss against the Milwaukee Admirals on Saturday at the Panther Arena. 

The Griffins’ lone tally was a short-handed goal from Dominik Shine, good for his 10th goal of the year and his fifth point in the last six outings (5-1—6). The short-handed score was Grand Rapids’ fifth of the season and its second against the Admirals in five meetings. Sebastian Cossa saved 18 shots in his first appearance since Dec. 17 when the Griffins faced Texas. Despite the loss, Cossa sustained a .918 save percentage and a 2.30 goals-against average.  

Continue reading Griffins recap: Grand Rapids struggles to find goals vs. Milwaukee Admirals

Red Wings-Jets wrap-up: Wings out-duel Winnipeg thanks to hard work (and a little luck)

The Detroit Red Wings took a 4-2 victory from the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday night, winning their 4th consecutive game under coach Todd McLellan.

The Red Wings received goals from Dylan Larkin, Lucas Raymond, Alex DeBrincat and an empty-netter from Larkin as the team never relinquished its first-period, power-play lead, Raymond also had 2 assists, and Moritz Seider had 3 assists for the Wings, who were back-stopped to victory by Alex Lyon (23 saves).

Detroit will head home to entertain the Senators on Tuesday and the Blackhawks on Friday, so the Wings earn Sunday off as a “travel day”…

For the Jets, who lost defenseman Colin Miller to an injury and Josh Morrissey for a period of time due to a cut upper lip, losing their 3rd game in a row (0-2-and-1) and second to a team below the playoff cut line was worrisome, as they told the Winnipeg Sun’s Paul Friesen:

Continue reading Red Wings-Jets wrap-up: Wings out-duel Winnipeg thanks to hard work (and a little luck)

Red Wings-Jets quick take: Larkin 2G, Seider 3A in gutsy Red Wings win in Winnipeg

The Detroit Red Wings took on the NHL-best 27-11-and-2 Winnipeg Jets on Saturday, attempting to add to Winnipeg’s 0-1-and-1 streak while pushing the McLellan winning streak to 4 games.

On Saturday night, one could argue that the Red Wings rode their 1st period effort to a 4-2 victory over the Winnipeg Jets, but the game is not that simple, and the Red Wings were better than that.

Dylan Larkin opened the scoring only 6:25 into the game with a power play goal, and Lucas Raymond scored a PP marker 4:33 into the 2nd to make it 2-0, but the Jets scored only a minute-and-change later to make it 2-1 on a Josh Morrissey goal, and things were tight after that.

Alex DeBrincat made it 3-1 at 7:14 of the 3rd, but the Jets hung in there and stuck around, with Ehlers scoring the 3-2 marker at 16:45 of the 3rd…

But with 28.4 seconds left, after some masterful defensive work, Dylan Larkin score the empty-net gamer from Seider, who had 3 assists on the night.

Alex Lyon stopped 21 of 23 shots, got help from 4 goalposts, and was generally very good, and the Wings had a superb stem-to-stern effort from the entire roster.

Continue reading Red Wings-Jets quick take: Larkin 2G, Seider 3A in gutsy Red Wings win in Winnipeg

Red Wings wary of the test Winnipeg Jets provide

DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills posted an early-evening preview of tonight’s game between the Red Wings and Winnipeg Jets (7 PM EST start on FanDuel SportsNet Detroit/Sportsnet West/97.1 FM). The Red Wings hope to earn some revenge for a 6-0 home loss to Winnipeg on October 30th:

“We’re playing a lot better. Three in a row now, would be a huge win if we get one tonight and keep it going,” Andrew Copp said. “We’re feeling good about the direction we’re heading and some of the changes that were made. It’s up to us to find a way to keep some momentum going for January here.”

Playing with plenty of confidence since the calendar year turned to 2025, Detroit is coming off a 5-4 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday. The Red Wings saw their two goal first-period lead erased by the Blue Jackets, and the Eastern Conference clubs battled back and forth before Jonatan Berggren netted the go-ahead tally with 36 seconds remaining in regulation.

“When the spirit is high, you have an opportunity to advance as a team,” Detroit head coach Todd McLellan said. “You can give the players something new to bite off, adjust the forecheck and neutral zone or whatever you want. When the spirit is a little ragged, you spend a lot of time just on that. We have been able to advance. The spirit has been good. Obviously, winning helps but there will be ebbs and flows throughout the year.”

After Saturday’s morning skate, McLellan announced that Jeff Petry, who exited midway through the third period on Saturday, will not play in Winnipeg. As a result, Albert Johansson will take Petry’s place in the lineup.

“He’s been waiting patiently,” McLellan said about Johansson. “He’s worked really hard in practice and he’s going to get his opportunity, so we’re really excited about that.”

Continued

Jets, Red Wings preach mutual respect ahead of second clash of the season

The Winnipeg Free Press’s Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe offer the following post-morning skate article form the Jets’ perspective ahead of tonight’s game between Detroit and Winnipeg (7 PM EST start on FanDuel SportsNet Detroit/Sportsnet West/97.1 FM):

We take you back to Oct. 30 in Detroit, where local product Kyle Connor had a huge night against his hometown club and eclipsed the 500-point mark for his career after recording a goal and two assists. You could tell the Winnipeg Jets winger had some extra giddy-up in his step that night.

So what might fellow Michigan product Connor Hellebuyck have in store tonight as his Jets host the Red Wings for the only time this season? We remind you that Winnipeg’s two-time Vezina Trophy winner needs but one victory to become just the 30th goaltender in NHL history with at least 300 wins and 40 shutouts.

“He’s been awesome for us. We just want to go out and play our game and give it our all,” forward Mark Scheifele said following his team’s optional morning skate.

Hellebuyck could have hit the milestone on Thursday night, but the Jets blew a late third-period lead and ultimately fell 4-3 in overtime to the Anaheim Ducks. That left the team winless in its last two (0-1-1) following a four-game winning streak, although they continue to lead the NHL with 56 points (and sit second in point percentage behind the Vegas Golden Knights).

Although the Jets took that initial meeting by a 6-2 score, don’t expect the Red Wings to roll over in this one. Detroit comes in red hot, relatively speaking, as they’ve rattled off three straight victories including a 5-4 triumph on Thursday in Columbus. Give some credit to new head coach Todd McLellan, who took over from Derek Lalonde just after Christmas.

“Really, their play without the puck is probably the biggest difference,” Jets bench boss Scott Arniel said of what has changed in Motor City. “They still have a real good skill-set, some top-end forwards, some real mobile young defencemen who can go, but you can see it, they’re not giving up odd-man rushes. Obviously, their buy-in without the puck has been big.”

McIntyre and Wiebe report that Alex Lyon will start for the Red Wings, and the Hockey News’s Sam Stockton offers this morning skate report from afar…

Continue reading Jets, Red Wings preach mutual respect ahead of second clash of the season

Video: Andrew Copp and Todd McLellan speak with the media prior to Wings-Jets

Red Wings forward Andrew Copp and coach Todd McLellan spoke with the media prior to the Red Wings-Jets game tonight:

Red Wings-Jets morning skate Tweets and previews: Jets starting Hellebuyck, aiming for home-ice rebound

The 16-18-and-4 Detroit Red Wings will battle the NHL-best 27-11-and-2 Winnipeg Jets this evening (7 PM EST start on FanDuel SportsNet Detroit/Sportsnet West/97.1 FM), and the Jets hit the ice at Canada Life Centre very early for an optional morning skate:

NHL.com summarizes tonight’s game thusly:

Continue reading Red Wings-Jets morning skate Tweets and previews: Jets starting Hellebuyck, aiming for home-ice rebound