Author: George Malik

The Detroit Red Wings will be hosting the 0-and-2 Columbus Blue Jackets for a 2-games-in-2-nights stretch beginning Monday at 12 PM EST (on NBCSN and FSD locally).

The Red Wings are aware of both the strangeness with which their body clocks will meet a noon start, as they told the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan…

“It’s definitely different,” forward Robby Fabbri said. “It takes me back to junior (hockey) days when you play in the afternoons. It’s like any other game, you get used to it and get adjusted to the time. You go through the same routine — just earlier in the day.”

A big consideration for an abnormal game-start switch, such as Monday’s game, is the pre-game meal — and what and when to eat.

Hockey players, generally, will have a meal high in carbohydrates and protein some 2-3 hours before a game. But pasta and salmon may not go down easily at 8 or 9 a.m.

“There’s obviously things game-wise that are different, (but) I would say in terms of body clock, this (noon) is the time we practice every day, and they’ve been doing it for months, so I don’t think it’s a huge adjustment,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “Both teams are in the same boat. They (Blue Jackets) have a little more travel involved (coming in from Nashville). Basically the meal you have, and the timing are a little bit different.”

And they’re wary of an 0-and-2 opponent, as Blashill told Kulfan and DetroitRedWings.com’s Brett McWethy:

After Sunday’s practice, Robby Fabbri spoke with the Red Wings’ media corps for over 9-and-a-half minutes…

And coach Jeff Blashill spoke with the media for 7 minutes and 45 seconds:

And, if you missed it…

Blashill says Djoos comes out of quarantine tomorrow. Obviously he’ll then need to get up to speed from there, and the Red Wings will need to get a look at him before figuring out what’s next for him— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) January 17, 2021

Of prospect-related note in Europe:

In the Swedish Allsvenskan, Malte Setkov finished at +1 with 2 shots in 18:43 played as AIK Stockholm lost 5-3 to Mora;

Gustav Berglund didn’t play in Vasteras IK’s 3-2 OT loss to Bjorkloven;

In the ICE Hockey League, Jesper Eliasson stopped 27 of 30 shots as the Red Bulls Salzburg lost 3-2 in overtime to VSV;

And in the Slovakian 2 League, Donovan Sebrango had an assist, finishing at +1 in HC Autoracz Levice’s 9-3 loss to Zilina.

Updated 2x at 1:47 PM: The Red Wings took to the ice at noon today at Little Caesars Arena, hoping to build upon Saturday night’s win over the Carolina Hurricanes.

A two-games-in-two-days series against the Columbus Blue Jackets looms ahead on Monday and Tuesday:

Red Wings practice, host Columbus at noon Monday fresh off victory over Carolina. pic.twitter.com/9e31VsPs1p— Helene St. James (@HeleneStJames) January 17, 2021

A little practice before tomorrow’s matinee. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/EliazK7Re9— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) January 17, 2021

The Red Wings also waived Alex Biega at 12 PM EST to make room for Christian Djoos on the roster…

While we waited for the Wings’ beat writers to take part in Zoom calls, Field Level Media posted a Wings-Blue Jackets preview (Monday’s game takes place at 12 PM EST due to the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, and it will air on NBCSN):

Per Sportsnet’s Chris Johnston, the Red Wings have waived Alex Biega for the purposes of placing him on the Taxi Squad. This is not surprising after the Wings acquired Christian Djoos off the waiver wire:

Brett Ritchie (CGY) is also on waivers after signing a contract. Alex Biega (DET) and Joel Kellman (SJ), too.— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) January 17, 2021

#RedWings Biega on waivers. If he clears tomorrow at noon, he can be assigned to @griffinshockey or the taxi squad. https://t.co/NdBev1cpxy— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) January 17, 2021

I could see him going to Grand Rapids once the AHL season begins, but I don’t think that the Wings will screw him over (AHL’ers are not being paid right now).

Of Red Wings-related note this morning:

1. The Free Press’s Helene St. James took note of Dylan Larkin and coach Jeff Blashill’s comments regarding the impact of the Red Wings‘ newer recruits…

“A year ago when we got scored on, it felt like we got scored on 10 times,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “When they tied the game up a year ago, it felt like we were going to lose. Instead, we did a good job of just keeping playing. We come right out and score and that’s a huge response, and we responded again with the game-winning goal. Part of that is fresh faces, part of that is maturity, and part of that is just a long time between seasons.”

Ryan, along with fellow new additions in Vladislav Namestnikov, Troy Stecher, Jon Merrill and Marc Staal provide stability and depth. In Thursday’s opener, new goaltender Thomas Greiss did everything he could to give his teammates a chance to rally.

“I’ve been so impressed,” Larkin said. “I can’t talk enough about their attitudes, their mindset. They’ve all been in big games and they understand that some things are going to go against us, and it’s all right. We’re going to play hard. Troy Stecher playing with the body, Marc Staal blocking shots, Namestnikov blocked a huge shot and had two breakaways. I’ve been very impressed with Mathias Brome and his poise. I’ve just been impressed with all the guys. They love being Red Wings and they’re just hockey players. They want to make plays. They never get discouraged.”

2. And MLive’s Ansar Khan made three observations over the course of a subscriber-only article this morning. Among them:

Of prospect-related note in North America on Saturday:

In the USHL, Chase Bradley had 2 assists, finishing at +2 in the Sioux City Musketeers’ 6-2 win over the Sioux Falls Stampede;

Cross Hanas scored a goal but finished at -3 as his Lincoln Stars lost 7-1 to the Omaha Lancers. Kienan Draper finished even with a shot and 2 minor penalties taken;

Kyle Aucoin finished at +1 with 2 shots as his Tri-City Storm won 5-2 over the Fargo Force;

In NCAA Hockey, Jack Adams did not play in the Providence College Friars’ 3-2 win over Maine;

Patrick Holway finished at -1 with 4 shots in the Merrimack College Warriors’ 2-1 loss to Boston College;

Sam Stange finished even with a blocked shot in the University of Wisconsin Badgers’ 4-0 shutout of the Arizona State University Sun Devils. Ryan O’Reilly did not play for Arizona State.

The Detroit Red Wings earned their first win of the 2020-2021 season on Saturday night, earning a hard-fought (if sloppy) 4-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes.

The Wings split their 2-game series against Carolina, and a 2-game, back-to-back series with the 0-and-2 Columbus Blue Jackets lurks on Monday (at 12 PM) and Tuesday.

In terms of rounding up the recaps that are available, the Hurricanes were particularly disappointed by their loss–and the way it started–as they told CarolinaHurricanes.com’s Michael Smith:

Here’s Bobby Ryan speaking with Fox Sports Detroit’s Larry Murphy and “birthday boy” John Keating after the Wings’ 4-2 win over Carolina on Saturday night:

Here’s a bit of Mickey Redmond, well, being Mickey Redmond…

Here’s a bit of Dylan Larkin’s post-game interview…

Here’s coach Blashill…

The Detroit Red Wings hoped to avenge their 3-0 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes as the teams wrapped up a back-to-back series at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday night.

On top of revenge, the Red Wings wanted to earn a measure of redemption after playing rusty as hell in Thursday’s season-opener–an outing that left Red Wings fans concerned about the team’s trajectory.

The Red Wings answered some questions over the course of a hard-fought, 4-2 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes. The Wings were still messy, still rusty, still shaky at times, but the Red Wings received both some pop-gun offense from Ryan, Larkin (2) and Fabbri and some fine goaltending from Jonathan Bernier (29 saves) en route to their first win of the season.

Now two games in two days loom against the Columbus Blue Jackets, on Monday at 12 PM and Tuesday at 7:30 PM.

I’m trying out some new things this evening, and the “quick take” may not remain in this format, but I’m hoping that shorter and more “to the point” is more useful for you: