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Riley Sheahan discusses his podcast with The Hockey News, NBC Sports

Former Red Wings forward Riley Sheahan is an unrestricted free agent at present, but he’s spent part of his summer producing a podcast focused on mental health, partnering with TorchPro‘s stable of athletes.

Sheahan discussed his podcast with both The Hockey News’s Ryan Kennedy today and NBC Sports’ Sean Leahy recently. Here’s part of his conversation with Kennedy….

The off-season is a perfect time for players to rest, recover and train. For center Riley Sheahan, it was also an opportunity to get out of his comfort zone and try something different: a podcast on mental health.

Sheahan, a free agent who spent last season with the Buffalo Sabres, holds the cause near to his heart. Back in 2012 when he was still a prospect for the Detroit Red Wings, Sheahan was arrested for drunk driving, an offense made all the more notable by the fact he was wearing a Halloween costume at the time. For some outsiders it was humorous, but it was very serious for the youngster, who thought he might have frittered away an NHL career before it even started.

In the aftermath of the incident, a psychologist diagnosed Sheahan with depression and the Red Wings made sure he got the space and time needed to reset.

“It was huge, it was such a relief,” Sheahan said. “That really allowed me to focus on hockey and play a little more free. I solidified my role on the Red Wings and from there, built some momentum. When you have people in your corner you can be at ease. It definitely opens up your thinking patterns and allows you to be stress-free.”

But battling depression and anxiety has been a constant for Sheahan, which is why he wanted to start his ‘Speak Your Mind’ podcast on TorchPro, the website co-founded by Dallas veteran Joe Pavelski.

“I wanted to work my mind in a different way and do something uncomfortable,” Sheahan said. “I had gotten into a routine of being a hockey player where I’d wake up every morning, train, skate and come home and I thought I had a lot of time on my hands. And adding my voice to the group of athletes speaking out about this is fun for me.”

Kennedy and Sheahan continue, and here’s part of his Q and A with Leahy:

Q. The alcohol issues in Detroit that led to your arrest, did that incident make you realize you needed some help.

SHEAHAN: “Yeah, I definitely think that was a little bit of a wakeup call. I don’t think that issue was a one-off thing for me. It was just a matter of time that I got caught doing something really stupid. Even then, it still is a process to figure it out. I was fortunate enough as I grew older I started to really understand and I started to build a little bit of a fear and anxiety towards drinking, which was good for me to start to figure out how to cope with those stresses. That was an eye-opening experience that allowed me to start learning more about myself and try to figure some things out.”

Q. That happened during your rookie year. A lot of young players may not think to go get help. How did the organization assist you during that period?

SHEAHAN: “They were supportive in me getting help and whatever I needed to do to figure it out. That was meaningful to me and it was a relief to me. Being at that age, if you need help and you need to go get it, obviously you’ve got to do it and I don’t think anyone will judge you for it. Just at that age being cognizant of some of the feelings, if you’re going to go out and have a good time, that’s awesome. I think there’s a lot of camaraderie, things you can build [going out]. But I think if you’re drinking to the point where you’re starting to have these crazy thoughts and you’re blacking out, maybe you’ve got to learn from it and don’t be shy to start to dig and do some self-thinking and maybe some of those issues can be brought to the surface and you can learn from them.”

Leahy and Sheahan also continue; it’s good to hear that the Red Wings were supportive of Sheahan during his time of need. Whoever signs the 29-year-old center will gain a solid citizen on and off the ice, and I wish him well going forward.

Detroit Hockey Now’s Duff: Calder ‘Ned?’

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As Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff notes, Red Wings goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic is still eligible for the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s best rookie despite playing in 23 games this past season:

The 25-year-old goaltender played 23 games for the Hurricanes last season. Under the Calder Trophy eligibility rules, there are three ways by which a player relinquishes their rookie status.

To be eligible for the Calder Memorial Trophy, a player cannot have played more than 25 games in any single preceding season nor in six or more games in each of any two preceding seasons in any major professional league. Beginning in 1990-91, a player must not have attained his 26th birthday by Sept. 15 of the season in which he is eligible.

Let’s check off the list. He only played 23 games last season. In 2019-20, Nedeljkovic appeared in four games for the Hurricanes. He saw action in two other one-game stints prior to that, in 2018-19 and 2016-17.

He won’t celebrate his 26th birthday until January 7.

Yes sir, Nedeljkovic is still Calder-eligible. But wait – will the shortened 56-game NHL season caused by the COVID-19 pandemic make any impact on rookie status? Based on an 82-game season, Nedeljkovic’s 23 games would translate to 34 games during a typcial NHL campaign.

According to the NHL, that doesn’t matter. Totals are not being prorated because of the shortened season, just as they weren’t in 1994-95 or 2012-13, two NHL seasons that were shortened to 48 games due to owner lockouts of the players.

Continued

University of Michigan hires former Wings skill coach Brandon Naurato as assistant coach

From the University of Michigan‘s Kristy McNeil:

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — University of Michigan ice hockey head coach Mel Pearson announced Monday (Aug. 16) the hiring of former Wolverine Brandon Naurato as an assistant coach.

“I’m extremely excited to welcome Brandon, his wife Sarah along with their children back to the University of Michigan,” Pearson said. “Brandon will bring a cutting-edge skill development component that is critical to today’s student-athletes as they pursue on ice excellence. He is a ‘think outside the box’ type coach whose goals are to help each individual reach his potential. His past experience working with the Detroit Red Wings and NHL players will greatly benefit our student-athletes. I can’t wait to get to work with Brandon and Billy Muckalt as we embark on what should be another exciting season of Michigan Hockey.”

“It is an honor to have earned the opportunity to come back to Michigan and work with Mel, Billy, and the rest of the hockey staff. The life lessons and relationships that were built during my years in Ann Arbor as a player have helped shape who I am as a person today, and I can’t wait to get started. I am grateful to Coach Pearson and Warde Manuel for the new position and opportunity have a positive impact on all of our student-athletes as players and more importantly, people.”

A native of Livonia, Mich., Naurato spent the last three seasons with the Red Wings, serving as a player development consultant. In his role, he worked with both the Red Wings and Grand Rapids Griffins coaching staffs to implement individual skill development into the team identity. Year-long individualized plans for each player, team tactics and the identification of current trends through analytics and video analysis were focus areas for Naurato during the season.

Continue reading University of Michigan hires former Wings skill coach Brandon Naurato as assistant coach →

The Athletic’s Wheeler ranks his top 50 prospects (non-goaltenders), and four Wings crack the list

The Athletic’s Scott Wheeler posted a list of his top 50 NHL prospects (non-goaltenders) this morning, and you’ve heard of four of them: Lucas Raymond is ranked 9th, Moritz Seider is ranked 11th, Simon Edvinsson is ranked 22nd, and Jonatan Berggren makes the list at #48. Wheeler hints heavily that Sebastian Cossa will make his list of the top 10 goaltending prospects as well.

Here’s what Wheeler has to say about Raymond and Seider (sorry, but his text is too broad to share everything):

9. Lucas Raymond, RW, 19 (Detroit Red Wings — 4th overall, 2020)

I debated having Raymond as high as No. 7 and as low as No. 10, which speaks to both his persisting talent level and some of the reservations I still have about how it will come together for him at the NHL level. Raymond’s always going to be able to craftily run a power play from the flank or the point. He’s always going to be able to feed pucks into space for his linemates, control play under pressure and dictate with his clever on-puck skill. He’s always going to work hard when he doesn’t have it to apply pressure, come up with steals on the backcheck and intercept passes. His wrist shot has improved, adding a bit of oomph to make it more threatening than it once was. His straight-line speed has picked up half a step and is complemented by the impressive edge work he has always possessed. But I’m still waiting for him to find another gear in that acceleration so that he can get to the middle of the ice with a little more pace. And even with his improved shot, he’s never going to be a marksman scorer. And while I’m very confident in his ability to become an impactful top-six creator who picks up some freebies on the power play, I’m still not convinced he’s going to be the true game-changing star this next version of the Red Wings will sorely need.

Continue reading The Athletic’s Wheeler ranks his top 50 prospects (non-goaltenders), and four Wings crack the list →

Detroit Hockey Now’s Duff posts a list of 5 stand-out ‘one season Wings’

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Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff posted a list of the 5 greatest one-season Red Wings this afternoon, and I’m a little sentimental, so I’m going to share Duff’s take on a particular defenseman with a hard-to-pronounce name:

Fredrik Olausson (2001-02): Of all the acquisitions made by Detroit to assemble the epic 2001-02 Stanley Cup championship roster, Oluasson’s addition seldom registers. After all, he wasn’t a Hall of Famer like Dominik Hasek, Brett Hull or Luc Robitaille.

He was however, the ideal partner to pair with Nicklas Listrom in Detroit’s top defensive tandem. The 14-season NHL veteran spent the 2000-01 campaign with SC Bern in Switzerland. Olausson signed a free-agent deal with Detroit in May of 2001.

His play that season earned Olausson, 34, a spot on the Swedish Olympic team. He scored two goals during Detroit’s 2002 playoff run. One of them was an overtime winner in Game 3 of the Western Conference final against the Colorado Avalanche.

Following the season, Olausson signed with the Anaheim Ducks.

Continued; Olausson eventually needed a liver transplant after his playing days are over, but he is happy and healthy in Sweden at 54 years of age.

Friedman: Red Wings settle with Adam Erne, 2 years, $4.2 million total

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman delivers good news this Sunday morning:

Adam Erne and DET settle at 2x$2.1M AAV— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) August 15, 2021

I guess we’re all weighing in on the Erne deal per @FriedgeHNIC, and I have no problem with it.

$2.1 million is more or less market value for a player who is essentially the modern-day piano-puller.

Yzerman’s been a little generous this summer, but that’s fine with me.— George Malik (@georgemalik) August 15, 2021

Update: It’s official:

UPDATE: The Detroit #RedWings today agreed to terms with left wing Adam Erne on a two-year contract. pic.twitter.com/QY0LOzanZj— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) August 15, 2021

Update #2: WDIV’s David Bartkowiak Jr. weighs in:

Erne, 26, has signed on for a reported $2.1 million a season. He had filed for salary arbitration but then settled with the Red Wings on the two-year deal. It’s a low-risk signing for Steve Yzerman, yet again, and this might be one of his best.

To call someone a “heart-and-soul” player is a bit of a cliche, sure, but Erne has that kind of style about him. One moment he’s back-checking hard through the neutral zone, the next he’s finishing around the net in a beautiful play for a goal, showing off his hands and reminding us that he did in fact score 41 goals in his final season with the Quebec Remparts. He scored 11 goals in 45 games played for the offensively-challenged Red Wings this past season, enough to lead the group. He earned himself more ice time in Jeff Blashill’s lineup as the season unfolded.

This is the kind of depth player NHL teams need, and Yzerman knows it better than most. They need players who can fit into several roles when called upon. Erne can be placed on the 1st or 4th-line and be effective in either a scoring or shutdown role, or both. He could be described as a “complete” forward in this league of 200-foot players.

My first observation of Adam Erne, quite frankly, is that the man has a very large head. Abnormally large.

He also plays hockey fairly well :P— George Malik (@georgemalik) August 15, 2021

Update #3: Here’s the Erne presser from the Wings:

Continue reading Friedman: Red Wings settle with Adam Erne, 2 years, $4.2 million total →

Red Wings ink Sebastian Cossa to entry-level contract

Sorry, this dropped at 8:36 PM:

RED WINGS SIGN GOALTENDER SEBASTIAN COSSA TO ENTRY-LEVEL CONTRACT

… First-Round Pick Posted 17-1-1 Record and Led WHL in Goals-Against Average and Save Percentage in 2020-21 …

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today signed goaltender Sebastian Cossa to a three-year entry-level contract.

Cossa, 18, was drafted by the Red Wings in last month’s 2021 NHL Entry Draft, as Detroit packaged a trio of draft picks (23rd, 48th and 138th overall) to acquire the 15th overall pick from the Dallas Stars to select the netminder. Cossa posted a dominant Western Hockey League season with the Edmonton Oil Kings in 2020-21, leading the league in both goals-against average (1.57) and save percentage (0.941), while tying for the league lead in shutouts (4) and ranking second in wins (17) among his 17-1-1 record. Cossa’s season ranks among the best in WHL history, posting the third-lowest goals-against average and third-best save percentage in the history of the league. As a WHL rookie in 2019-20, Cossa posted a 21-6-3 record, 2.23 goals-against average, 0.921 save percentage and four shutouts.

The 6-foot-6, 210-pound goaltender was the NHL Central Scouting Bureau’s top North American goaltender for the draft, and he was the first goaltender off the board. Born in Hamilton, Ontario, and raised in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Cossa was one of five goaltenders who recently participated in Hockey Canada’s development camp ahead of the 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship. Prior to joining the Oil Kings, Cossa played the previous three seasons (2016-19) with the Fort Saskatchewan Rangers in the Alberta minor hockey ranks, notably winning a league championship, top goaltender and most-valuable player honors in 2016-17.

NHL.com’s Stubbs discusses the Ted Lindsay Foundation’s continuing mission against autism

NHL.com’s Dave Stubbs spoke with Ted Lindsay’s daughter, Lynn LaPugh, and here husband Lew regarding the continuation of the Ted Lindsay Foundation‘s annual charity golf tournament after Lindsay’s passing in 2019:

On Sept. 13, an estimated 200 golfers and guests will gather in Detroit for the foundation’s 21st Annual Celebrity Golf Outing, the crown jewel in fundraising efforts.

Lindsay was deeply moved in 2001 by the story of a friend whose young son had been diagnosed with autism. He created the Ted Lindsay Foundation to help raise awareness and a little money; 20 years later, it has collected more than $5.5 million, with operating expenses consuming only a dime or so of every dollar raised.

“There are many medical terms and I’m not smart enough to understand them, so I’ll just keep working at it,” Lindsay joked in 2016. “The one thing I know how to do is raise money.”

…

The foundation’s inaugural golf tournament in 2001, co-founded by Lindsay’s close friend Ed Heike, was modest, raising about $50,000. The goal this year is $200,000, mostly through sponsorships, not an easy target given the restrictions because of the pandemic.

“The golfers had had enough of COVID cabin fever last year, so they were happy to be outside,” LaPaugh said, recalling the 2020 outdoor luncheon and post-golf banquet. “Right now, we’re scheduled to go indoors (at Detroit Golf Club) but we’ll have a Plan A and Plan B depending on health protocols. Either way, we’ll make it happen.”

Continued; you can learn more about the Ted Lindsay Foundation’s mission here.