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!

Red Wings-Utah HC quickie game preview

Updated at 10:20 AM: The 30-25-and-6 Detroit Red Wings hope to snap a 3-game losing streak as they host the 27-25-and-9 Utah Hockey Club this evening at Little Caesars Arena (7 PM EST on FanDuel SportsNet Detroit/Utah16/97.1 FM).

Utah has been off since Sunday, when they dropped a 3-1 decision to the New Jersey Devils, which snapped a 3-game winning streak. Utah has won 4 of their past 6 games and 6 of their past 9.

Utah’s been busy re-signing players over the past couple of days–from Olli Maatta to Karel Vejmelka to Alex Kerfoot and Ian Cole–and while neither team’s website has posted a game preview as of yet, I wanted to get Field Level Media’s preview out there, as well as tonight’s game notes. I’ll update this post as necessary later this morning:

The Utah Hockey Club has been playing solid defense recently. They have allowed only six goals in the last four games. Utah had a three-game winning streak snapped by New Jersey on Saturday.

The Devils scored twice in the third period to collect a 3-1 victory. Mikhail Sergachev scored Utah’s only goal.

“Obviously, they’re a great team,” Sergachev said. “They’re pretty fast, too. So it was like two fast teams out there. They just scored more than we did.”

Clayton Keller had his six-game points streak snapped in that contest. Keller had recorded four goals and eight assists during the streak.

Olli Maatta will see his former teammates for the first time since Detroit traded him early in the season for a third-round draft pick. The veteran defenseman signed a three-year extension with Utah on Monday.

“It means a lot to me,” he said. “It shows they have confidence and trust in you. At the same time, it does put pressure on you to perform and I think that’s a good thing. I think it’s a privilege to be in this situation. Now you’ve got to perform.”

Here are tonight’s game notes, in PDF form. It looks like tonight’s referees and linesmen are very “green”:

Continue reading Red Wings-Utah HC quickie game preview

Skating uphill

With the Red Wings mired in a 3-game slump, Detroit no longer sits in a Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference standings.

Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff notes that the Wings’ competitors aren’t exactly playing like world-beaters, either, with one exception:

The Red Wings are 2-4-1 over the last seven games. They’ve lost three in a row. And yet, it wasn’t until Tuesday’s 2-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes that the club was finally slipping out of one of the coveted playoff slots.

As they ready to play the Utah Hockey Club on Thursday at Little Caesars Arena, the Red Wings are now situated 10th overall in the East. Still, they are a scant point out of the playoffs.

It was the New York Rangers who moved past Detroit into a the eighth seed in the East on Tuesday. And they did so without even playing. Detroit’s loss dropped the club behind the Rangers via a tiebreaker. Both had 66 points at the time. It marked the first time since Feb. 1 that the Wings weren’t occupying a postseason position.

Wednesday, both the Rangers and Ottawa Senators were in action. Taking a 4-3 overtime verdict over the Chicago Blackhawks, Ottawa jumped past both Detroit and the Rangers into eighth spot with 67 points. New York squandered a 2-1 lead and lost 3-2 in OT to the Washington Capitals. The Rangers fell into ninth with 67 points, percentage points behind the Senators.

Over the past 10 games, Ottawa is 4-5-1. The Rangers are 6-3-1, which actually makes them the hottest team in this race.

Detroit is 5-4-1, as are the Columbus Blue Jackets. Recent winners of back-to-back games over the Wings, Columbus is seventh in the East with 68 points.

At 65 points, the Montreal Canadiens have won five in a row. Even at that, the Habs are only 6-4 through the past 10 games.

As such, and as you might expect, The Athletic asked Dom Luszczyszyn to offer “Three Reasons Why the Red Wings Are Unlikely to Make the Playoffs,” which is pretty easy for Luszczyszyn, whose beloved standings-predicting model like the Red Wings very much.

We’ll go with the obvious reason why the Wings’ road to the playoffs is a skate uphill, and leave reading about the rest to you:

Continue reading Skating uphill

HSJ in the morning: As the Wings’ management gathers for trade deadline discussions, the team’s players are betting upon themselves

The Free Press’s Helene St. James reports that the Red Wings’ management team has assembled ahead of Friday’s trade deadline at 3 PM EST, and as such, the team is bracing for the possibility of making acquisitions–or not making any additions:

Nicklas Lidstrom took the elevator up to the press box Tuesday and made his way to the management suite, eager to catch the Detroit Red Wings live as a crucial week nears the end point.

Lidstrom is one of a handful of advisors who have joined general manager Steve Yzerman in meetings this week to discuss what changes to make, if any, ahead of Friday’s 3 p.m. trade deadline. The Wings expect to have Michael Rasmussen available Thursday when they host the Utah Hockey Club, helping the depth down the middle. But the Wings could still use some help at center, in addition to addressing the lack of depth on defense.

…

It’s on Yzerman, Lidstrom, assistant general managers Kris Draper and Shawn Horcoff, plus pro scouts including Kirk Maltby, to parse whether there’s a bigger move that makes sense, that can be made at a reasonable cost to the rebuild.

Continue reading HSJ in the morning: As the Wings’ management gathers for trade deadline discussions, the team’s players are betting upon themselves

Tweet of note: WXYZ’s Galli tells the story of Hutson, a Make-a-Wish kid whose dream came true

From WXYZ’s Brad Galli:

Reviewing the Red Wings’ moves over the past 2 days

I’ve been gone for a day-and-a-half, and the Red Wings have been relatively busy transaction-wise. Let’s see if I’ve got them all down:

  1. The Red Wings sent Sheldon Dries down to Grand Rapids as Michael Rasmussen is ready to return from his “upper-body” (head) injury;
  2. Detroit ate a quarter of Yanni Gourde’s salary to help Tampa Bay facilitate a trade with Seattle, earning a 4th round draft pick for the Wings’ trouble (with defensive prospect Kyle Aucoin heading to Tampa Bay as well);
  3. The Red Wings also waived Christian Fischer, who may or may not be sent to the Griffins if he clears waivers;
  4. The team recalled Carter Mazur from the Grand Rapids Griffins today–which is important, because, once the trade deadline hits, teams can only make 4 non-roster-emergency recalls;
  5. And finally, the Wings extended Grand Rapids Griffins forward Austin Watson on a one-year, two-way contract.

At this point, it looks like the Red Wings are taking care of the internal business that’s necessary to tidy up the team’s “P’s and Q’s” before the trade deadline.

Detroit could still make several additions, with the center position and the blueline as areas of focus. It’s also entirely possible that the Wings may not make any moves, given that the players most readily available for trades are older and/or are “rental players.”

My gut feeling is that the Wings won’t be making any trades unless the team can add some long-term solutions in exchange for draft picks, players or prospects, though I could very well be wrong here.

Press release: Red Wings recall Carter Mazur from Grand Rapids

From the Detroit Red Wings:

RED WINGS RECALL CARTER MAZUR FROM GRAND RAPIDS

  … 2021 Third-Round Pick Has Recorded 15 Points in 20 Games with Griffins in 2024-25 …

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today recalled forward Carter Mazur from the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins.

Mazur, 22, has recorded 15 points (8-7-15) and eight penalty minutes in 20 games with the Griffins during the 2024-25 season. The 6-foot, 189-pound forward has tallied 11 points (7-4-11) in his last 11 contests dating back to Feb. 8. Mazur spent the entire 2023-24 campaign with the Griffins and ranked among the team leaders with 17 goals (2nd), 20 assists (8th), 37 points (2nd), 48 penalty minutes (T7th), six power play goals (T1st), 11 power play points (3rd), three game-winning goals (T4th), one overtime goal (T1st) and 122 shots (4th) in 60 regular-season games. He also registered eight points (3-5-8), a plus-six rating and 18 penalty minutes in nine Calder Cup Playoff games, helping the Griffins reach the Central Division Finals. Mazur made his professional debut with the Griffins in 2022-23, logging six points (3-3-6) in six games to conclude the regular season. Selected by the Red Wings in the third round (70th overall) of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, Mazur has totaled 58 points (28-30-58) and 56 penalty minutes in 86 AHL games with the Griffins.

Continue reading Press release: Red Wings recall Carter Mazur from Grand Rapids

Sometimes mental illnesses make me physically sick

My apologies for not covering the Red Wings’ loss to Carolina on Tuesday night. I’ve been physically ill since my anxiety attack last Thursday, and I was too ill to work the game.

I’m having a very difficult time right now, but I’m doing everything I can to be healthier for the trade deadline on Friday.

Right now, all I can do is deal with the physical pain I’m feeling, and I promise that I’ll be back as soon as I can sit up and type.

Video: Albert Johansson, Alex DeBrincat and coach Todd McLellan speak with the media after the Red Wings’ morning skate

Red Wings defenseman Albert Johansson, forward Alex DeBrincat and coach Todd McLellan spoke with the Wings’ media corps after Detroit’s morning skate ahead of tonight’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes (7 PM EST on FanDuel SportsNet Detroit/FanDuel SportsNet South/97.1 FM):

Red Wings-Hurricanes post-morning skate Tweets: Lyon starts vs. Carolina; lineup remains unchanged

The Detroit Red Wings held an optional morning skate ahead of tonight’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes this evening (7 PM EST start on FanDuel SportsNet Detroit/FanDuel SportsNet South/97.1 FM).

After the Wings’ skate, Red Wings coach Todd McLellan addressed the media: