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Seidel: Chelios says Team USA’s no underdog at 2018 Olympics

The Free Press’s Jeff Seidel spoke with Team USA assistant coach and Red Wings ambassador Chris Chelios regarding his Olympic charges, and Chelios suggests that the American Olympic hockey team will be underestimated at its opponents’ peril:

“I think we have a great group of guys,” he said. “We just need to win that game that counts and keep going. I wish there were more spots. The hardest part is telling a guy they are one play short of making it. Or one injury from making it. That’s the nature of the beast, the downside of all sports. There’s not enough seats.”

How will this group of unproven players do?

Chelios has no doubt.

“I always go into tournaments, I go into every playoff, I go into every game thinking we could win,” he said. “That’s my mentality and that has to be the mentality of this team, if we are going to have any success. The U.S., 20 years ago, realistically was an underdog. Now, everybody is going to be in the same boat. All of the NHL players are not going to be there. This is something where no one knows what to expect. You can predict stuff. You can call favorites, but that’s why there are upsets. I wouldn’t say we are an underdog. I’d say we are flying under the radar, us and Canada especially because of the advantage the Europeans have. A lot of them are over there playing and a lot of teams are playing together. I think anything is possible.”

Continued

Red Wings-Capitals wrap-up: sometimes product overrules “process”

The Red Wings took a 5-4 OT decision from the Washington Capitals on Sunday, but Detroit blew a 3-1 3rd period lead en route to said victory, and that was of great concern–at least to Wings fans. The Red Wings themselves worried a little less about “process” than “product,” and Tomas Tatar’s OT winner afforded the Wings that luxury:

 

Our friends from Washington were frustrated with their 2nd period collapse, as they told WashingtonCapitals.com’s Mike Vogel:

Continue reading Red Wings-Capitals wrap-up: sometimes product overrules “process”

Red Wings-Capitals quick take: Oy vey, OT win, but another 3rd period collapse

The Detroit Red Wings attempted to take out an Eastern Conference powerhouse in the Washington Capitals on Sunday afternoon.

The Red Wings blew a 4-1 third period lead but ended up winning 5-4 in OT thanks to Tomas Tatar’s second goal of the game. The Wings were great for 40 minutes, terrible in the 3rd period, and clutch in OT. It was still a frustrating game to watch.

Continue reading Red Wings-Capitals quick take: Oy vey, OT win, but another 3rd period collapse

Keith Gave’s Russian Five book to precede premier of film

From author and former Wings scribe Keith Gave:

THN’s Clinton talks about the Red Wings’ possible deadline moves

The Hockey News’s Jared Clinton penned an article in which he discusses 5 teams which may be the “biggest sellers at the deadline,” and Clinton spotlights the Red Wings as one of those possible sellers:

Like the Sabres, the Red Wings stand to be one of the deadline’s biggest winners by possessing one of the big-name trade assets. In fact, Detroit has the most sought after defenseman on the market in Mike Green. The going rate for Green isn’t as obvious as the rate for Kane, but if the price paid by the Capitals for Kevin Shattenkirk at last season’s deadline is any indication, it’s not going to be cheap to bring the veteran defender aboard. Washington had to send a first-round pick (later traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in the Brayden Schenn trade), conditional second-round pick, Brad Malone and Zach Sanford to the St. Louis Blues to bring Shattenkirk in. It wouldn’t be altogether shocking to see a similar package come Detroit’s way for Green.

The Red Wings could also consider moving out a few other players, however. The two likely to bring back the biggest return are Tomas Tatar and Gustav Nyquist. Relatively established scorers in Detroit, both could draw interest from teams looking to add to their top six and acquire some additional scoring punch. All things being equal, Tatar would probably be the better acquisition of the two as he has historically put up better goal-scoring numbers — he has 87 goals and 169 points over the past three-plus seasons to Nyquist’s 71 goals and 169 points over the same span — but the former is having the better season in 2017-18 and has a contract that is much more palatable. Whereas Nyquist is on the books for this season and next at $4.75 million per year, Tatar’s contract runs through to the end of 2020-21 at $5.3 million per season.

Finally, the Red Wings may explore options for goaltender Petr Mrzaek. He is earning $4 million and will become an RFA with arbitration rights after this season. It appears he’s not long for Detroit, and the deadline could be the perfect opportunity to move him out and maximize the return.

Walleye brawl and its ramifications

As noted last night, the Toledo Walleye got into a brawl with the Kansas City Mavericks, and ABC New York’s Ryan Field posted a clip of the shenanigans (per Brandon Kerr on Twitter):

The Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe reported that the Walleye were mighty peeved about the brawl…

After Crisp scored his third of the game, a fight broke out and fans went absolutely wild. Kansas City forward Garrett Klotz punched Walleye forward A.J. Jenks after play had stopped. Klotz then repeatedly cross-checked Jenks as he lay on the ice.

Walleye coach Dan Watson called the situation “absolutely embarrassing.”

“Their coaching staff should be embarrassed. Their organization should be embarrassed,” Watson said. “Klotz should be suspended for the rest of the year. I think he should be done. It’s unacceptable. Our league is trying to get rid of the image from the 1980s and 1990s. If this is going to continue, it won’t we’ll continue to get a bad rap.”

A scrum ensued, then Machovsky charged out of his net to faceoff with McDonald in a rare fight between goalkeepers.

“I’ve never been part of something like that,” Machovsky said. “It was just crazy. I had to defend my teammates. That’s what I did. It was quick sprint. I was tired when I got there, so it wasn’t a really big fight. I think I held my ground. It’s something you’re not going to [experience] very often in life. So you have to enjoy the moment and get the crowd going.”

And today, per Monroe…

 

Wings-Capitals game-day preview videos

Here’s the Red Wings’ Game Day Preview video ahead of today’s game against the Washington Capitals (3:00 PM EST on FSD/NBCS Washington/Sportsnet 1/TVA Sports/97.1 FM):

Wings coach Jeff Blashill also spoke with the media…

As did Capitals coach Barry Trotz:

 

Prospect round-up: Griffins lose in a shootout; Walleye win a fight-filled affair; Cholowski registers a helper

In the AHL, the Grand Rapids Griffins had a disappointing outing against the Stockton Heat, rallying from a 1-0 deficit on goals from Matthew Ford and Eric Tangradi, but surrendering a game-tying goal with 2:03 remaining en route to a 3-2 shootout loss to the Heat.

The Heat tied the game not long after Evgeni Svechnikov fought Dalton Prout, and Robbie Russo took a tripping penalty in the altercation, so the Griffins got tripped up by a lack of discipline.

Here’s the Griffins website’s recap:

Continue reading Prospect round-up: Griffins lose in a shootout; Walleye win a fight-filled affair; Cholowski registers a helper

The overnight report: Red Wings-Capitals set-up

The Detroit Red Wings face the Washington Capitals today (3:00 PM EST on FSD/NBCS Washington/Sportsnet One/TVA Sports/97.1 FM) with the Wings hoping to rebound from their controversial loss to the New York Islanders.

Our friends from Washington sit 18 points ahead of the Red Wings in the Eastern Conference standings at 32-17-and-5, and the Capitals have won 4 of their past 6 games.

They’re currently on a 2-game winning streak, having most recently defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-2 on Friday evening;

Washington has had its ups and downs of late, but it still sits atop the Metropolitan Division, and Saturday’s storylines focused on the Caps’ decision to sign center Lars Eller to a 5-year, $17.5 million contract extension. As the Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan noted,  the Capitals are stacked down the middle:

Continue reading The overnight report: Red Wings-Capitals set-up

Sportsnet’s Headlines include a Mike Green tidbit

From Sportsnet…

The Nashville Predators are leading the charge in interest for forward Rick Nash and also seem to covet defenceman Mike Green, according to Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos.

Nash has been a hot topic in recent days with trade rumours swirling fiercely around the New York Rangers right winger. He submitted a no-trade list to Rangers general manager Jeff Gorton this week and it seems inevitable he’ll be dealt ahead of the Feb. 26 trade deadline.

The Dallas Stars also have significant interest in Nash, adds Kypreos. The 33-year-old impending free agent owns a $7.8-million cap hit (roughly $2.4 million in remaining actual dollars owed). Entering Saturday, he had 17 goals and 27 points in 55 games.

Green, meanwhile, entered the day with six goals and 28 points in 53 contests for the Detroit Red Wings this season. The 32-year-old will be a UFA at the conclusion of this season.