Author: George Malik

The Detroit Free Press’s Bill Dow posted a subscriber-only article which discusses the fact that it’s been 50 years since Mickey Redmond, who’s now 73 years old, was traded from Montreal to Detroit:

It’s hard to believe that a half century has passed since one of the Detroit Red Wings‘ beloved figures arrived in the Motor City.

Mired at the bottom of the Eastern Division at the beginning of what became known as the “Dead Wings Era,” the Red Wings rocked the hockey world on Jan. 13, 1971. Newly anointed general manager Ned Harkness dealt high-scoring left winger Frank Mahovlich to Montreal for promising right winger Mickey Redmond and centers Billy Collins and Guy Charron.

With the trade, Harkness split up one of the most potent lines in NHL history: Hall of Famers Mahovlich, Gordie Howe and Alex Delvecchio. Mahovlich, scored 87 goals the previous two seasons.

Redmond was informed of the trade by Montreal coach Al MacNeil at an airport bookstore.

“I was disappointed and upset with the deal at the time, but all things happen for a reason,” said Redmond, preparing for his 35th consecutive season as a TV color commentator for the Red Wings. “The deal worked out for Montreal because they won the cup with Frank, but here I am fifty years later with the Wings on a ride that has been incredibly great. And as a player, the trade helped me spread my wings, no pun intended.”

Continued (paywall)

In a subscriber-only article, MLive’s Ansar Khan asks 10 pertinent questions regarding the Red Wings and their 2020-2021 season expectations, including the following:

Which players are poised for the biggest breakthrough?

Two come to mind – Anthony Mantha and Filip Zadina. Mantha is coming into his prime at age 26 and has demonstrated his sniping ability for several years. Problem is, he has missed a lot of games with injuries, some of them the result of fights or altercations the club prefers he avoids. A healthy Mantha will be a consistent scoring threat. Zadina showed progress last season in Detroit before suffering a fractured ankle. Following a good stint in the Czech Republic in the fall, he has looked more confident in camp while pursuing pucks and creating space to unleash his wicked shot.

…

How much better will the defense be?

The unit is much different and figures to be significantly better. Gone from the start of last season are Mike Green, Jonathan Ericsson, Trevor Daley and Madison Bowey. The Red Wings added Marc Staal, Troy Stecher and Jon Merrill and welcome back a healthy Danny DeKeyser, limited to eight games last season due to back surgery. They join Filip Hronek and Patrik Nemeth. Stecher skates the puck well; he and DeKeyser will improve the unit’s ability to get the puck out of the zone. Staal and Merrill provide some size and should be an upgrade from what the team had.

Continued (paywall)

According to the Lincoln Journal-Star, Red Wings prospect and 2020 draft pick Cross Hanas has chosen to leave the WHL’s Portland Winterhawks to join the USHL’s Lincoln Stars:

https://www.lincolnstars.com/news_article/show/1140390The Lincoln Stars made several major roster moves Tuesday.

Lincoln announced the additions of four major-junior players from the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League, along with two other players. 

The Stars picked up major-juniors Jack O’Brien, Clay Hanus, James Stefan and Cross Hanas from the Winterhawks, and added two other players, Charles-Alexis Legault and Michael Mastrodomenico. Lincoln also traded Winter Wallace to the Youngstown Phantoms for a Phase II fifth-round pick in the 2021 draft.

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan filed three subscriber-only articles as part of his NHL preview. First, Kulfan discusses the condensed schedule that the Red Wings will be playing…

In this newly contrived 2020-21 version of the division and schedule, the Wings will only play teams in this division — eight times each. And they’ll see baseball-style, two-game series to limit travel. No doubt, this will be different, with a bit of animosity thrown into the mix.

“It’s going to be physical games, you’re playing teams eight games this season (in the new schedule format), you can’t be on your heels, you have to put pressure on them,” forward Anthony Mantha said. “That’s the mentality I have to go with. It’s hard to tell at this point. We’re playing so many games in such a tight schedule, maybe the physicality will wear off a little bit. But there will be new rivalries created over this season, for sure.”

The two-game series format is definitely something that is intriguing. The format is popular in college hockey, and can certainly increase emotions.

Defenseman Troy Stecher, who played collegiately at North Dakota, feels the Wings can take advantage of the back-to-back series.

“Every weekend in college, you played a team on Friday and Saturday at your home venue or their home venue,” Stecher said. “We can kind of bring that style into our locker room, where if you lose one game, it’s not the end of the world. You just got to find a way to rebound the next game. You never want to get swept in a series.”

Kulfan offers a breakdown of every team and division, the Red Wings’ Central Division-playing status included…

HockeyNews.se’s Henrik Sjoberg spoke with Red Wings forward Mathias Brome just before the Red Wings announced their NHL roster–with Brome on said roster–on Tuesday afternoon, and here’s what Brome had to say, roughly translated from Swedish:

Brome’s hunt for an NHL spot: “I can leave the rink every day with my head held high”

Soon, NHL teams will nail down their teams for the premiere, tomorrow night, Swedish time.

In the last training camp games, Mathias Brome has played with two experienced players in Detroit–Valtteri Filppula and Sam Gagner.

“They’re skilled players I can learn a lot from. I feel that I have given everything now and I’ve actually been happy when I leave the rink every day,” says Brome to HockeyNews.se.

Sportsnet’s Ryan Dixon filed a set of power rankings on Tuesday evening, and his summary of the Red Wings’ situation is very accurate:

31. Detroit Red Wings
Every update on how Wings prospects are performing around the world makes it easier to believe in GM Steve Yzerman’s plan. It’s just going to take some time to get there.

Continued

Update: ESPN’s Emily Kaplan’s power rankings came out on Wednesday morning:

31. Detroit Red Wings

Previous ranking: 31
Stanley Cup odds: +20000

The Red Wings allowed 265 goals last season — 27 more than any other team. Detroit should be less leaky thanks to improved goaltending (Thomas Greiss) and several veteran blue-line additions (Marc Staal, Troy Stecher, Jon Merrill).

Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin spoke with 97.1 the Ticket’s Stoney and Jansen with Heather show on Tuesday morning (here’s hoping that the embed works as there’s no MP3 yet)…

And Larkin praised teammate Filip Zadina, as noted by 97.1 the Ticket’s Will Burchfield:

Of prospect-related note on Tuesday:

In the SHL, Moritz Seider took a heavy hit and left a game that Rogle BK ultimately lost 5-2 to Leksands IF. Seider played only 1:41 before leaving the game, and Rogle stated that Seider “felt fine, given the circumstances”;

Albert Johansson finished at -2 with 4 shots in 17:38 played as Farjestads BK lost 3-1 to IK Oskarshamn;

And Albin Grewe had an assist, finishing at +1 with 2 shots in 7:16 played as Djurgardens IF lost 3-2 to Brynas;

Albin Grewe (#46) picks up an assist for Djurgården after some solid work along the boards. pic.twitter.com/7SViKhoN8g

— IcehockeyGifs (@IcehockeyG) January 12, 2021

In Belarus, Kirill Tyutyayev had an assist, finishing at +2 with 1 shot as Yunost Minsk won 7-2 over Mogolev;

In the ICE Hockey League, Jesper Eliasson was the back-up in the Red Bulls Salzburg’s 4-1 loss to the Vienna Capitals;

And in Denmark, Filip Larsson was not on the roster as his Fredrikshavn White Hawks lost 6-2 to Sonderjyske.

From the Grand Rapids Griffins:

DETROIT ASSIGNS 11 TO GRAND RAPIDS

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday assigned 11 players to the Grand Rapids Griffins: forwards Riley Barber, Kyle Criscuolo, Turner Elson, Taro Hirose, Chase Pearson, Evgeny Svechnikov and Dominic Turgeon; defensemen Joe Hicketts, Brian Lashoff and Dylan McIlrath; and goaltender Kaden Fulcher.

Players will soon begin skating informally in Grand Rapids in advance of the start of Griffins training camp later this month, as the team prepares for the beginning of the American Hockey League’s season on Feb. 5. The schedule of games is yet to be announced.

While the Griffins remain hopeful for the potential to host fans at Van Andel Arena at some point, it is anticipated that games will begin without a significant number of attendees. Griffins fans are encouraged to watch the games on AHLTV, tune in on Newsradio WOOD 106.9 FM/1300 AM, and follow the team’s social media channels. Important information for Griffins season ticket members is available at griffinshockey.com.

The Red Wings announced their roster and taxi squad earlier on Tuesday afternoon:

RED WINGS REDUCE ROSTER BY 21 … Detroit to Host Carolina on Thursday to Open 2020-21 Season …

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today assigned forwards Riley Barber, Kyle Criscuolo, Turner Elson, Taro Hirose, Chase Pearson, Evgeny Svechnikov and Dominic Turgeon, defensemen Joe Hicketts, Brian Lashoff and Dylan McIlrath and goaltender Kaden Fulcher to the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins.

The Red Wings also assigned six players to their taxi squad: forwards Michael Rasmussen and Givani Smith, defensemen Dennis Cholowski and Gustav Lindstrom and goaltenders Kevin Boyle and Calvin Pickard.

Additionally, the Red Wings designated forward Darren Helm and defensemen Christian Djoos and Jared McIsaac as non-roster and released goaltender Pat Nagle from his professional tryout.

Detroit’s roster currently stands at 22 players: 13 forwards, seven defensemen and two goaltenders. The Red Wings will open the 2020-21 campaign at Little Caesars Arena on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. when they host the Carolina Hurricanes (FOX Sports Detroit/97.1 The Ticket).