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Video: Andrew Copp and coach McLellan speak with the media after Wednesday’s Red Wings practice

The Red Wings practiced this morning after dropping a 6-3 loss to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday night, with the team preparing for a 4-games-in-6-nights road trip. After practice, coach Todd McLellan told the Wings’ media corps that Alex Lyon will join the team on its road trip through Florida, Tampa Bay, Dallas and Philadelphia, and that Tyler Motte might join the team at some point during the trip.

After today’s practice, Red Wings forward Andrew Copp and coach Todd McLellan spoke with the media:

A bit of speculation as to the ‘sustainability’ of the Red Wings’ improvement

Take this for what you will, per Daily Faceoff’s Hunter Crowther:

On Wednesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk discuss the Red Wings recent success and if they can sustain it long enough to clinch a playoff spot.

Tyler Yaremchuk: The Red Wings have gotten themselves back in the playoff mix. This turnaround, and them under Todd McLellan, do you think this is legit?

Frank Seravalli: Legit to an extent. Do I think the Red Wings are a contender? No. Do I think they can make the playoffs? Yes. They were right there last year, just a point back. The Morning Cuppa Hockey guys had Ken Daniels on this week to talk about their last season and this season, and how it’s unfolding. It’s kind of painful to remember how close Detroit was to making the playoffs.

I see no reason why they can’t be that team this year, the one that breaks through and grabs that eighth seed, or potentially catch up whomever is in seventh. But they’re still a flawed team, and that’s what we keep coming back to. That defense needs to improve significantly. The structure they’re going to play under McLellan, as a consistency thing, that part can be worked out and will certainly help support a team that is as tough on the backend as any other.

Post-practice Tweets: Lyon to travel with team, Motte may join Wings later on road trip

The Red Wings held a practice at Little Caesars Arena’s BELFOR Training Center this morning, preparing for a 4-games-in-6-nights road trip from heck:

After practice, Red Wings coach Todd McLellan and Wings players spoke with the media:

Continue reading Post-practice Tweets: Lyon to travel with team, Motte may join Wings later on road trip

Press release: Grand Rapids Griffins’ ‘Great Skate’ takes place this weekend

From the Grand Rapids Griffins:

THE GREAT SKATE WINTERFEST RETURNS FOR ITS 20TH EDITION THIS WEEKEND

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The 20th annual Great Skate Winterfest presented by the Daniel and Pamella DeVos Foundation and Meijer will take place over 24 hours this weekend at the Rosa Parks Circle Ice Rink in downtown Grand Rapids, with Grand Rapids Griffins players and coaches skating with fans for one hour each around the clock.

This beloved fundraiser for the Griffins Youth Foundation runs from Saturday, Jan. 18 at 10 p.m. through Sunday, Jan. 19 at 10 p.m. Admission to the Great Skate Winterfest is free, although donations are encouraged and the City’s nominal skating fees apply ($6 adults, $3 kids).

Highlights of the event include around-the-clock ice skating; horse-drawn carriage rides by Classic Carriage (1-4 p.m./$5 per person for a 10-minute ride); caricatures by David Wodarek (1-3 p.m./minimum $5 donation); a warming tent with beverages and snacks to purchase; and the opportunity to bid on more than 150 items in our amazing week-long online auction, which will conclude on Jan. 22 at noon. The auction consists of national and regional sports teams’ memorabilia; brewery and restaurant certificates; tickets to sports, concerts and cultural events; hotel and resort stays; outdoor recreation and adventure activities; family-friendly attractions; and much more.

By visiting griffinshockey.com/greatskate, fans can make a donation to the Griffins Youth Foundation in the name of their favorite Griffins or Griffins Youth Foundation player, coach or staff member, or sign up as a fundraiser to collect donations for their own participation in the Great Skate.

The Great Skate will commence at 10 p.m. Saturday, after the Griffins’ home game against the Cleveland Monsters has wrapped up a few blocks away at Van Andel Arena. Griff and Finn, the team’s mascots, will take the event’s opening shift per tradition, and every Griffins player and coach will follow for an hour each until 10 p.m. on Sunday. The lineup of Griffins skaters can be found at griffinshockey.com/greatskate.

The Great Skate Winterfest is presented by the Griffins, the Daniel and Pamella DeVos Foundation, and Meijer, with support from Acrisure, Centennial Securities, Connoisseur Design, FASTSigns, Howies Hockey, McDonald’s, Morning Belle, Perani’s Hockey World, Smallegan Real Estate, and University of Michigan Health-West.

Established in 1995, the Griffins Youth Foundation promotes academic excellence, community involvement and healthy lifestyles among the youth of West Michigan, enhancing their lives through hockey and ice-related sports. The foundation provides opportunities for nearly 500 deserving boys and girls – many of whom are underprivileged, underserved, at-risk or have special needs – to participate in the great sport of hockey at no cost. Programs currently include co-ed hockey for first through 12th graders, a girls-only high school division, a learn-to-skate program, and the Grand Rapids Sled Wings sled hockey team for children and teens with physical disabilities. For more information, visit  griffinskids.org.

Axel Sandin Pellika speaks with DetroitRedWings.com

DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills had a conversation with Red Wings prospect Axel Sandin Pellikka recently, asking ASP about the World Junior Championship and his season with Skelleftea AIK of the SHL:

Now back with Skellefteå AIK in the Swedish Hockey League, Sandin-Pellikka is determined to elevate his defensive game. As for his offensive game, he said he feels like he “wants to have the puck a little more this season and make plays all the time.”

In 27 contests with Skellfteå AIK this season, Sandin-Pellikka has notched 22 points (eight goals, 14 assists), the most points among any U-26 blueliner in the SHL.

“I’m trying to get stronger all the time because [the NHL] is going to be a tougher league when I try to make the jump, so just making sure I’m ready on the defensive side,” he said. “I’m not the biggest defenseman, but being smart is important for me. Other than that, I try to work on pretty much everything, even the things I’m good at.”

As of Tuesday, Skellefteå AIK ranked seventh in the SHL with a 14-2-2-15 (W-OTW-OTL-L) overall record.

“We’re doing good things overall and going to get better and better,” Sandin-Pellikka said. “We’ll for sure start climbing in the rankings as soon as possible.”

Detroit’s second first-round selection (No. 17 overall) in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, Sandin-Pellikka added that he’s enjoyed spending time with his new Skellefteå AIK teammate and fellow Red Wings first-round prospect Michael Brandsegg-Nygård, a 19-year-old forward chosen No. 15 overall in 2024.

“He uses his size very well,” Sandin-Pellikka said about Brandsegg-Nygård, who has logged 10 points (five goals, five assists) in 25 SHL games this season. “I know he hits people. He’s a real power forward and has a wicked shot. We’re roommates [on the road], so I’ve been getting to know him a little bit better. It’s hard to understand him sometimes when he speaks Norwegian, but he’s a great guy and we have a lot of fun together. He’s an awesome, strong player. He’s going to do well in the future.”

Continued; it’s almost a relief that the disappointment of not going home with a medal at the World Junior Championship seems to have faded a bit for Sandin Pellikka.

Tweets from Wednesday’s practice: Motte absent as Wings prepare for 4-games-in-6-nights road trip

The Detroit Red Wings hoped to rebound from Tuesday’s 6-3 loss to the San Jose Sharks via a corrective practice, which will hopefully address issues ahead of the team’s 4-games-in-6-nights road trip through Florida, Tampa Bay, Dallas and Philadelphia.

The Hockey News’s Sam Stockton and MLive’s Ansar Khan reported in from the BELFOR Training Center underneath Little Caesars Arena:

Update: Ugh.

Continue reading Tweets from Wednesday’s practice: Motte absent as Wings prepare for 4-games-in-6-nights road trip

Going on the road, the merciless road

Per Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen:

How much did the Detroit Red Wings learn about themselves during their recently-ended seven-game winning streak?

We will probably know the answer to that this weekend when the Red Wings are on a four-game road trip against Florida, Tampa Bay, Dallas and Philadelphia.  Those are four games they could easily lose. Florida, Tampa Bay and Dallas are ahead of them in the standings, and the Red Wings have a long history of losing in Philly. The Red Wings are 2-17-2 in their last 21 games in the City Of Brotherly Love. Detroit is 8-8-2 on the road.

The Red Wings hoped to attack the trip with their winning streak intact, but a poor effort resulted in a 6-3 loss to San Jose Tuesday.

“We over complicated the game in the first period and then just chased the game a little bit,” Seider said. “I think after like 10 minutes, we realized just playing easy, playing simple is a lot more effective than playing east-west hockey. Got some good shots on that. Tough angle shots and make the goalie work and obviously felt a lot better. And then, yeah, rough break in the third, but I think it’s just a bump in the road. We’ll fix that and get ready for a good road trip. 

Continued

A trade might help the Wings skate away from the Eastern Conference’s playoff pack…

Bleacher Report’s Sara Civian attempts to determine whether NHL teams will be “buyers” or “sellers” ahead of the March 7th trade deadline, and she believes that the Red Wings will be “Yzerbuyers“:

It’s pretty tough to predict what’s on GM Steve Yzerman’s agenda, and that’s by design.

The Yzerplan might’ve been late to the party this season, but a coaching change that gave Todd McLellan the reins has drastically improved the vibes and the look of the team, and suddenly Detroit is four points out of a playoff spot.

The problem is essentially half of the East is, too. Their playoff fate is too out of the Red Wings’ hands to make a move that would hurt them in the future for one shot at a playoff run.

If the Sabres are clearing house, a young center like Dylan Cozens could be a good option. But I can only see that sort of situation working here.

Continued; Cozens is a reclamation project, but the Buffalo News’s Mike Harrington wasn’t kidding when he suggested that the Sabres are going to want a Seider or Raymond in return for the Sabres’ struggling power center.

Are the Wings’ playoff hopes ‘hanging by a thread?’

ESPN’s Neil Paine “tiered” 12 bubble playoff teams into several desperation levels this morning, and he has the Red Wings “hanging on by a thread”:

Detroit Red Wings (20-19)

Playoff odds: 21%

Where to begin with the Wings? This team once made the playoffs in 25 straight seasons but hasn’t made it back in eight (going on nine) years — repeatedly teasing its fans with a return in recent seasons. But unlike last season, when Detroit was looking solid for the postseason until the tail end of the schedule, these Red Wings have seen their odds slowly slide throughout the first half, only recently making a modest climb to their current level around 20%. It is mystifying how a team with Lucas Raymond, Alex DeBrincat, Dylan Larkin and Moritz Seider is fighting for its playoff life and trying to keep one of the NHL’s prestige franchises from reaching the doorstep of a decade-long playoff drought, but here we are.

Must improve: Depth. Detroit’s top players — all under age 30 — would be the envy of many NHL teams. But the Red Wings have gotten the 10th-fewest adjusted goals above replacement (GAR) from outside their top five of any roster in the league.

Special panic factor: Impatience! It spoke volumes when a testy Steve Yzerman snapped at a reporter a few weeks ago when asked about his team’s never-ending rebuild. The Red Wings have been at this for a long time, and it’s surprising they haven’t had their breakthrough under the “Yzerplan” yet.

Continued; we know that the Wings need more scoring depth already. Some of the Red Wings’ veterans need to step up, and so do some of the “kids” in Grand Rapids.