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HSJ: Mantha, Athanasiou discuss need for improvement

The Free Press’s Helene St. James spoke with Anthony Mantha and Andreas Athanasiou ahead of tonight’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets, addressing their captain and coach’s criticism from last night’s  post-game media availability:

Friday morning saw Anthony Mantha admit just how bad he’d been the night before, when, after a 4-0 loss to Vegas, captain Henrik Zetterberg said there was too much poke-and-hope in some teammates, that they need to learn to play the right way. Zetterberg didn’t name names but the criticism fit Mantha and Andreas Athanasiou in particular, and Mantha owned it immediately.

“Oh for sure,” he said after an optional skate at Nationwide Arena Friday. “It wasn’t a good game for me. I made two big mistakes and it’s in the back of our net. I need to be sharper.”

Mantha has shouldered public criticism before, including last November when coach Jeff Blashill said that he “has got to be way better. Way better. It’s not OK to just be a passenger when you are given the opportunity to be an impact player.”

The latest was earned after he lost the puck to Vegas’ William Karlsson leading to a shorthanded goal, and then let Cody Eakins free-wheel in Detroit’s zone leading to a 3-0 deficit.

Athanasiou, who was on for the first and fourth goals, acknowledged a need to heed Zetterberg’s criticism.

“He’s talking to us as a group,” Athanasiou said. “Any time you have someone like that speaking out, it’s a little bit of a message to make sure you’re ready for the next one. If there’s one play where you can bear down a little more, it’s going to make a huge difference.”

St. James continues, and she posted a video of Mantha, Athanasiou and coach Blashill’s remarks:

 

Update: The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan spoke with Mantha as well:

Anthony Mantha and Andreas Athanasiou, two young players who have felt the wrath of coach Jeff Blashill before – and after Thursday’s game, too – admitted Friday the Zetterberg was correct in his criticism.

“It wasn’t a good game for me,” Mantha said. “I made two big mistakes and it’s in the back of our net. I need to be sharper.”

…

“I need to keep learning,’ Mantha said. “No one is perfect. As a young guy there is so much to learn. You have to bring your ‘A’ game every night.”

Mantha said he and Athanasiou and Dylan Larkin have talked about their desire to “be better.”

“We want to be good,” Mantha said.

…

Athanasiou, who lost the puck on Vegas’ fourth and final goal, acknowledged Zetterberg’s message struck home.

“Any time you have someone like that speaking out, it’s a bit of a message to make sure you’re ready for the next one,” Athanasiou said. “If there’s one play where you can bear down a bit more, it’s going to make a huge difference.”

Afternoon news: Game Day Preview videos and NHL.com’s Wings-Jax game set-up

Of Red Wings-related note this afternoon:

1. Here’s the Red Wings’ Game Day Preview video:

2. Here’s the Blue Jackets’ “Rink Report”:

3. And here’s NHL.com’s Craig Merz’s game preview…

Continue reading Afternoon news: Game Day Preview videos and NHL.com’s Wings-Jax game set-up

Red Wings post video of team Making a young man’s Wish come true

The Red Wings posted a Twitter video of their day making a Make a Wish child named Camron’s wishes come true:

 

Red Wings-Blue Jackets morning skate Tweets and articles: Coreau starts as Wings tangle with Columbus

The Red Wings don’t usually hold a morning skate when playing back-to-back games, but after last night’s 4-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, the Wings found themselves on the ice in Columbus this morning, per the Free Press’s Helene St. James…

And the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan:

The Wings face the Blue Jackets this evening (7:00 PM EST on FSD Plus/FS Ohio/Sportsnet/TVA Sports/97.1 FM).

ColumbusBlueJackets.com’s Brian Hedger penned a fine game preview this morning…

Continue reading Red Wings-Blue Jackets morning skate Tweets and articles: Coreau starts as Wings tangle with Columbus

Three Things: A Wings-Blue Jackets set-up; on poke-and-hope hockey and Tomas Tatar’s first game against the Wings

Of Red Wings-related note this morning:

  1. ColumbusBlueJackets.com’s Brian Hedger penned a fine Wings-Blue Jackets set-up ahead of tonight’s game between the teams (7:00 PM EST on FSD Plus/FS Ohio/Sportsnet/TVA Sports/97.1 FM):

Their 5-4 overtime victory Thursday against the Colorado Avalanche, a come-from-behind win, moved Columbus to 75 points and within one point of the New Jersey Devils (76 points) for the first wild card in the Eastern Conference. The Blue Jackets, who hold the East’s second wild-card spot, are also within four points of the Philadelphia Flyers (79 points) for third place in the Metropolitan Division.

“We’ve got to stop looking at who’s behind us and start looking at who’s in front of us, trying to catch them,” said defenseman Zach Werenski, who had a goal and assists against Colorado. “We’re playing some good hockey right now and we’re not that far off the teams in front of us, so hopefully we can catch one.”

It will help if the offense keeps scoring the way it has the past three games.

The Blue Jackets have scored four-or-more goals in each one, which is the first time all season they’ve scored that many in three consecutive games. After struggling to score goals most of the season, Columbus is starting to find the back of the net more at a great time of the year.

There are only 14 games left on the Jackets’ regular-season schedule and only four of their remaining opponents are currently holding playoff spots. The Devils, meanwhile, play 10 of their final 14 games against teams in playoff position and the Flyers play seven in their final 14 games.

The next two games for Columbus are against teams that aren’t even close to playoff contention, beginning with the Detroit Red Wings on Friday to conclude the Jackets’ 16th of 17 back-to-backs this season.

Hedger continues at considerable length;

2. On the less-than-cheery side of the news, CBS Detroit’s Will Burtchfield took note of Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg and coach Jeff Blashill’s comments regarding the mistakes made by their young players over the course of last night’s 4-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights:

Continue reading Three Things: A Wings-Blue Jackets set-up; on poke-and-hope hockey and Tomas Tatar’s first game against the Wings

Red Wings-Blue Jackets set-up: Wings face playoff-desperate Blue Jackets on back-to-back for both teams

The Detroit Red Wings face a stiff test in attempting to snap their 5-game losing streak opposite a playoff-desperate Columbus Blue Jackets team (7:00 PM on FSD Plus/FS Ohio/Sportsnet/TVA Sports/97.1 FM).

Columbus sits on the periphery of the playoff pack, in the Eastern Conference’s 2nd Wild Card spot, with the Florida Panthers hot on their trail (with 3 games in hand). The 35-28-and-5 Blue Jackets have won their past 3 games, including a 5-4 OT victory over the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday evening.

As you might know by now, the 26-30-and-11 Red Wings dropped a 4-0 decision to the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday evening, and the Wings were quite vocal about their mistake-prone play after the game; our friends from Columbus had a very different Thursday night, rallying from a 2-0 deficit en route to an inspirational (for them) win.

NHL.com’s Craig Merz tells the Blue Jackets‘ tale…

Continue reading Red Wings-Blue Jackets set-up: Wings face playoff-desperate Blue Jackets on back-to-back for both teams

Red Wings-Golden Knights wrap-up: bad habits bite Wings in embarrassing loss

The Detroit Red Wings struggled through a 4-0 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights on Thursday night, and things won’t get any easier when the Wings play the playoff-desperate Columbus Blue Jackets this evening (7:00 PM EST on FSD Plus/FS Ohio/Sportsnet/TVA Sports/97.1 FM).

For the Red Wings, Thursday night’s game was more than enough of a reason to stop and talk.

As Henrik Zetterberg and coach Jeff Blashill would suggest, the Wings’ younger players displayed the kind of bad defensive habits that the rebuilding Wings are trying to guard against.

I’m going to forego my usual opponent-talks-then-home-team-talks style of recap to get right to the nitty gritty, via the Free Press’s Helene St. James…

Continue reading Red Wings-Golden Knights wrap-up: bad habits bite Wings in embarrassing loss

Free Press posts an excerpt from Keith Gave’s “The Russian Five”

The Detroit Free Press has posted an excerpt from former Free Press scribe Keith Gave’s new book, The Russian Five, and Gave tells the story of his clandestine meeting with Sergei Fedorov Vladimir Konstantinov in Helsinki, Finland:

A month or so after the annual National Hockey League entry draft, in mid-July 1989, a time when most folks involved in the league were enjoying some respite between seasons, my phone rang. Jim Lites was on the line inviting me to lunch. Strange timing, I thought, to hear from the executive vice president of the Detroit Red Wings, then the son-in-law of owners Mike and Marian Ilitch.

I had a good working relationship with Lites, but I usually only heard from him like this after I’d written something he didn’t like. He’d rant, I’d listen, we’d agree to disagree, and it was over.

The next day, we were sitting across from one another at the recently renovated Elwood Bar and Grill, which at the time was across Woodward Avenue from the Fox Theatre.

“Just let me say right up front that if I cross any lines here or make you uncomfortable in any way, I’ll stop and that will be the end of it,” he said.

I raised my eyebrows.

“We’re prepared to pay considerably — serious money,” he said. “We can assure you exclusivity to any stories, book rights, you name it.”

Continued, and here’s a one-minute clip discussing the Russians’ slow but steady trickle onto the Red Wings’ roster:

 

 

Prospect round-up: Sulak posts assist, Gallant has a rough night

In the Finnish Liiga, Libor Sulak had an assist and finished at +3 with 6 shots in 24:38 played during the Lahti Pelicans’ 3-1 win over KooKoo;

Julius Vahatalo finished even with 2 shots and a 16% faceoff record in 9:31 played during Jukurit’s 4-3 OT loss to Tappara;

In the SHL, Christoffer Ehn finished even with 1 shot and a 50% faceoff ranking in 17:34 played during the Frolunda Indians’ 5-3 win over Karlskrona HK;

In the OHL, Jordan Sambrook finished at -1 with 2 shots in the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds’ 3-2 loss to Windsor;

And Cole Fraser finished at -2 and Zach Gallant returned from an injury with a rough outing, going -5 with 3 shots and an 11-for-29 faceoff rating in the Peterborough Petes’ 8-7 loss to Mississauga.