Author: George Malik

It’s officially official now:

OFFICIAL: Ryan Martin has been named Assistant General Manager of #NYR and General Manager of @WolfPackAHL. pic.twitter.com/ExshXBjBfx

— New York Rangers (@NYRangers) August 25, 2021

Per the New York Rangers’ website:

New York Rangers President and General Manager Chris Drury announced today that the team has named Ryan Martin New York Rangers Assistant General Manager and General Manager of the Rangers’ American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack.

Martin joins the Rangers organization after spending the past 16 seasons with the Detroit Red Wings organization (2005-06 – 2020-21), including the last 11 seasons as the team’s Assistant General Manager (2010-11 – 2020-21). In addition, he served eight full seasons as the General Manager of the Red Wings’ AHL affiliate, the Grand Rapids Griffins (2013-14 – 2020-21). Martin also served as the team’s Director of Hockey Administration for five seasons (2005-06 – 2019-10).

The second episode of “The Winged Wheel” for the 2021-2022 season will air this Friday on the Red Wings’ YouTube channel:

Two-time Stanley Cup winner and new Red Wing Mitchell Stephens will hold a boat parade in his hometown of Peterborough, Ontario tomorrow (Wednesday, August 25th), but the NHL’s new protocols regarding the coronavirus mean that fans won’t be able to get their picture taken with the Cup, or Stephens.

The Peterborough Examiner’s staff explain:

A number of COVID-19 protocols are in place to make Peterborough native Mitchell Stephens’ Stanley Cup boat parade a safe event.

The community is invited to come and catch a glimpse of the Stanley Cup on Wednesday for a physically distanced congratulations to Stephens who won a second straight Cup with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Due to COVID-19 safety protocols, unlike past Stanley Cup events, members of the public will not be permitted to be close to the player or the Cup, and no photo opportunities will be available, according to a city press release.

A boat tour will begin at 5:30 p.m. at the Peterborough Lift Lock, moving south on the Trent-Severn Canal to Little Lake arriving at Del Crary Park at about 6:30 p.m.

A short ceremony will recognize Stephens’s accomplishments with remarks by Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith, Peterborough County Warden J. Murray Jones, Coun. Andrew Beamer and Coun. Lesley Parnell.

Attendees will be asked to provide their names and contact information for COVID-19 contact tracing purposes. Standard COVID-19 safety protocols will be in place, including wearing masks, maintaining two metres distancing from people who are not in the same household or a care provider.

Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen compares Moritz Seider to Nicklas Lidstrom, Niklas Kronwall, Vladimir Konstantinov, Reed Larson and Willie Huber in an article discussing the ages and levels of experience with which fabled Red Wings rookie defenders took to the ice at the NHL level:

The buzz surrounding defenseman Moritz Seider’s upcoming first season with the Red Wings may be the greatest fan response to a drafted defenseman the team has ever known.

The Red Wings haven’t truly had a top prospect defenseman since social media raised the ante on hype. Fans were not as excited, and definitely not as knowledgeable, about Nicklas Lidstrom when he showed up in Detroit as a rookie in 1991-92. Niklas Kronwall’s fan response came after fans saw him play some games.

Seider will be 20 years and six months old when the NHL season opens. He posted seven goals and 28 points last season in the Swedish League. He also played confidently against NHLers at the World Championships. But it’s still challenging to predict what his production will be. Could he score 10 goals? How about 40 points? Will he lead the Red Wings in hits? Is he ready for the power play?

As a basis for comparison, here is a look at the rookie output for some of Detroit’s top defensemen:

Continued

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan filed a lengthy article discussing the questions facing the Red Wings heading into training camp, and question #1 is the biggest issue:

►Health of Dylan Larkin, Tyler Bertuzzi, Robby Fabbri and Danny DeKeyser: Larkin (neck), Bertuzzi (back surgery) and Fabbri (concussion) all missed the end of last season. Without them, the lack of offense was magnified.

The Wings need those three forwards to be healthy, and it’ll be interesting to see if all will be ready once camp begins. 

Fabbri said recently he is fully healthy, and has been skating. Larkin and Bertuzzi, said Blashill, are skating and on schedule. But Blashill wouldn’t commit to saying both will be ready to practice at the start of camp.

DeKeyser is on this list for a different reason. He missed playing time early last season returning from back surgery. As the season progressed, DeKeyser appeared to gain strength and mobility, and looked closer to his usual self.

With several months off to rest and rehab, a healthier DeKeyser makes the Wings’ lineup stronger.

Continued (paywall)

DetroitRedWings.com’s Matthew Falkenberry penned an article discussing Vladislav Namestnikov’s role on the team during both the 2020-2021 season and going forward into the 21-22 campaign:

Namestnikov’s ability to move around the lineup, as both a winger and a center, was a bonus for the Red Wings as injuries to different players throughout the season forced Detroit’s coaching staff to make adjustments on the fly.

“I grew up playing center my whole career. As I got into the league, I was a centerman and I kind of moved to the wing,” Namestnikov said. “But as I’ve said before, I’m more than happy to play in any position the coach sees me in, and I’ll try my best in any situation.”

The forward finished the season tied for fourth on the team in goals (eight), assists (nine) and he played in 53 of 56 games, which was second-most among Red Wings forwards.

As one of the few forwards on the roster older than 28 years of age — Sam Gagner (32) is the only forward older than Namestnikov — his experience will be valued for a team moving forward in its rebuild with an emphasis on young players growing into their skillset.

“There’s different ways to contribute in a game,” Namestnikov said in March. “Defense is a very important part of the game, and if (the puck) is not going in, you can focus more on the ‘D’ side. That’s how I’ve went about it over my career.”

Continued

Via Sunaya Sapurji on Twitter:

The Windsor Spitfires have introduced Marc Savard as their new Head Coach.

Jerrod Smith is Associate Coach and adds Director of Player Personnel to duties.

Andy Delmore also added as Asst. Coach to @SpitsHockey #OHL pic.twitter.com/X0IV0GL0MD— Manny Paiva (@paivatheway) August 24, 2021

Delmore had been an assistant coach under Dan Watson in Toledo.

Update: From the Toledo Walleye on Twitter:

? BREAKING: Andy Delmore has been named assistant coach for @SpitsHockey. ?

With @dellylama5, the Walleye went 178-74-23 in the regular season and 29-21 in the playoffs, and had the best power play unit in the ECHL in 2017-18 (25.1%).

Thank you for everything, Delly. ? pic.twitter.com/A039Pvx45P— Toledo Walleye (@ToledoWalleye) August 24, 2021

“Toledo is a great minor league sports city with an incredible fanbase. Working with Joe, Neil, Dan, our players, and everyone in the organization was something I looked forward to everyday.

I thank them for this opportunity and I wish Toledo nothing but the best.” –@dellylama5 https://t.co/EilDNcWaED— Toledo Walleye (@ToledoWalleye) August 24, 2021

DetroitRedWings.com’s Arthur J. Regner speaks with Danny DeKeyser on this morning’s “Red and White Authority” podcast:

?️ #RedWings defenseman, Danny DeKeyser discusses his road back from back surgery, the Red Wings offseason moves, and his expectations for this season. ?️

Listen/subscribe:
Apple → https://t.co/d5QBtwScsa
SoundCloud → https://t.co/NrqZK918qw pic.twitter.com/ySZCAbiyxQ— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) August 24, 2021

MLive’s Ansar Khan profiles Red Wings 2021 draft pick Liam Dower Nilsson this morning, discussing the 134th overall pick’s self-confidence:

“I see myself as a steal, yes,” Dower Nilsson said. “Because I knew I have that in me and I know that I’m going to make the NHL in four or five years, three years maybe. I know it someday. I think the most important skill you got to have is to be motivated and be patient and be aware of what it takes to get there. I think I got those things.”

Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman called Dower Nilsson (6-0, 172) a “high character, good, solid, two-way, responsible centerman.”

Director of amateur scouting Kris Draper said Andersson, the Red Wings’ longtime European scout, was “pounding the table” for Dower Nilsson. He served as captain for Sweden at this year’s Under-18 World Championships in Dallas, where Detroit’s brass did more vetting.

“As we were interviewing a lot of Swedish prospects, we always (ask), ‘Of the prospects on your team and at the U-18, who would you want to take to the NHL to be a teammate?’ ” Draper said. “The majority of the players on that team said Liam Dower Nilsson. That stuck out to us. He has good hockey sense, a lot of character, a lot of compete and just seems like another player who loves the game. With that and Hakan (being) a big fan of his, spent the last couple years watching him, it just made sense.”

Continued

Per La Regione in Switzerland, former Red Wings forward Valtteri Filppula has signed with HC Geneve-Servette of the Swiss National League.