The Malik Report

The Athletic’s Max Bultman spoke with Red Wings defenseman Trevor Daley regarding his attempts to remain professional on a team that probably won’t make the playoffs:

He had been asked about this grueling February schedule, and the difference between going through it in past seasons — as part of a Stanley Cup contender in Pittsburgh — compared to his current situation: playing for a team that may need a minor miracle to compete beyond the regular season.

“When you’re fighting through it, you know that you need wins. You’ve gotta bring your game every night,” the 34-year-old Daley told The Athletic. “When you have a lot of points and you’re just trying to get through (to) the playoffs, your mindset’s still you need points, you want to increase. (But) you’re playing a little bit more relaxed. That helps your game out, too, when you know you’re winning every night.

“This way’s a little bit more of a grind — just ‘cause it’s the grind of the season, and every night you’re scratching and clawing for two points.”

Daley offered this take on his outlook as he signed with the Red Wings last July:

“I never thought that we’d be in this situation,” Daley said. “I couldn’t think that far. But I knew it was going to be a battle.”

Bultman continues (paywall)…

Kudos to Jan Mursak. The former Griffins forward and Red Wings prospect scored 2 goals against Team USA on Wednesday morning, propelling Slovenia to a 3-2 OT win over the Americans. The Detroit News’s Gregg Krupa took note of Mursak’s accomplishment:

“I’m happy I was able to score today and help the team,” Mursak said after the game, according to the International Ice Hockey Federation. “But I think the whole team showed a really good performance today.”

He played 232 games with the Grand Rapids Griffins from 2008-13, and 46 with the Wings from 2010-13, before beginning to play in Russia for Moscow of the KHL

For the United States, the loss represented a huge stumble out of the gate in the first quadrennial Olympic tournament played without NHL players since 1994.

Tony Granato, a former assistant coach of the Red Wings, who is how head coach at Wisconsin, and Chris Chelios, who is currently an assistant coach in Detroit, are two of the United States coaches.

“I thought we played two great periods,” Granato said, according to USA Hockey. “We were on our heels in the third at times and they took advantage. Give them credit. All-in-all, I liked the way we played. We’ve got a terrific group and we’ll be ready to play Slovakia.”

Krupa continues, and Mursak isn’t tearing up the KHL, so he’s not exactly NHL-ready…

Updated 3x at 12:49 PM: The Red Wings hit the ice at Little Caesars Arena just after 11 AM, skating ahead of both their Fathers’ Trip and a set of difficult games on the road against Tampa Bay (the Wings have a 10-game losing streak going against the Lightning) and Nashville:

Practice day. Tampa tomorrow. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/Dy85Ht7nj3

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) February 14, 2018

As usual, #RedWings Zetterberg is not practicing today. Expect it to be the customary maintenance day. Everyone else is skating.

— Dana Wakiji (@Dwakiji) February 14, 2018

Continue reading Tweets from practice: Wings prepare for Fathers-and-mentors trip without Zetterberg; Howard likely to start Thursday

The Red Wings discussed their desire to “force management’s hand” after last night’s win over the Ducks. One of the most outspoken players is one of the most likely to be dealt. MLive’s Ansar Khan took note of Jimmy Howard’s post-game remarks:

“As long as we keep working hard, doing things the right way and getting results, maybe we can force management’s hand because, honestly, we do have a great group of guys in here and we all really enjoy going out there and competing for ourselves,” Jimmy Howard said. “So, we kind of want to flip the switch here.”

Howard was the star of the game, making 32 saves. He’s also a potential trade piece. The team would like to move one of its goaltenders, Howard or Petr Mrazek. It won’t be easy, since few, if any, playoff-contending clubs are in the market for a goalie.

Howard, the Red Wings’ top pick in 2003, truly doesn’t want to leave.

“You’ve got to block it out as best possible,” Howard said. “You have to be professional, and when you go out there and play you’ve got to play the right way. You can’t let it distract you. You just got to keep pushing forward. At the end of the day, whatever happens, happens.”

Khan continues…

The Detroit Red Wings out-worked the Anaheim Ducks on Tuesday night, taking away an important two points from the Ducks via a 3-1 victory in which the Wings were out-shot 33-16 and out-shot-attempted 66-43.

Jimmy Howard was superb, stopping 32 shots, and the Wings’ defense blocked 20 shots as Detroit bent but did not break under the weight of the Ducks’ attempted 3rd period comeback.

The game’s aesthetic value was null and void–this was a bit of an ugly Duckling of a game–but the Red Wings were particularly defiant in tone after the game, suggesting…well, we’ll get to that.

We start with a survey of the Ducks’ takes on the game, and for our friends from Anaheim, Tuesday’s loss stung. AnaheimDucks.com’s Kyle Shohara took note of the Ducks’ disappointment:

Continue reading Red Wings-Ducks wrap-up: Wings hope to delay deadline deals by winning games

In the ECHL, the Toledo Walleye lost their mojo away from home, dropping a 3-1 decision to the Brampton Beast. Tyler Barnes scored the Walleye’s goal and Matej Machovsky stopped 23 of 25 shots for Toledo. The Walleye’s website posted a recap:

Continue reading Prospect round-up: Walleye lose in Brampton; Rasmussen 1+1

The Detroit Red Wings attempted to start a two-game winning streak at the expense of the Anaheim Ducks’ playoff hopes.

Both teams played rope-a-dope defensive hockey, but the Red Wings ended up out-grinding, out-working and out-goaltending the Ducks, winning 2-1 thanks in no small part to 32 stops from Jimmy Howard and another 20 blocked shots by a Wings defense that was peppered by the desperate Ducks.

Ultimately, Dylan Larkin’s goal on a Bieksa giveaway and Nielsen’s slapper from the slot were enough offense for the Wings to deal with a late Ducks goal (Henrique scored with only 3:54 remaining), and the Wings were excellent late, “killing off” the Ducks’ push to tie the game late in the 3rd.

Continue reading Red Wings-Ducks quick take: Wings goose the desperate Ducks

Toledo Walleye forward Dylan Sadowy was reassigned to the Grand Rapids Griffins today, and while it’s unknown whether Sadowy’s promotion involves a Griffins injury, there’s no doubt that he’s earned his call-up.

The Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe profiled Sadowy today, discussing the forward’s redemptive season in ECHL:

You always want to get back up to that next level,” he said. “You hope to get that call. You always want to play at the highest level you can. I hope to get into some games and perform.”

It was Sadowy’s performance of late that led to his promotion. Sadowy extended his point streak to four straight games on Sunday.

The native of Woodbridge, Ont. has bounced between Toledo and Grand Rapids in his first two seasons. So far this year he has tallied 21 points with six goals and 15 assists in 30 games with the ECHL Western Conference-leading Walleye.

Sadowy has accumulated nine points in his last 10 games with four goals and five assists.

“I’ve been getting my confidence back here,” Sadowy said. “The guys here help you get through [tough stretches]. I’m getting into a groove.”

Monroe continues…

Of disparate Red Wings-related note this evening:

1. In the “big picture,” Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman mentioned the Red Wings 2 times in his “31 Thoughts” column:

13. All of the Detroit defence focus is on Mike Green, but, quietly, the Red Wings are trying to give Xavier Ouellet a fresh start somewhere else.

That would be very kind to X, who’s been a good soldier despite no ice time…

And, regarding college free agents-to-be, should they not sign with their NHL teams:

29. Just some names to keep an eye on, with NHL team followed by school: Brian Pinho (Washington/Providence), Ryan Donato (Boston/Harvard), Anthony Angello (Pittsburgh/Cornell), Louis Belpedio (Minnesota/Miami), David Pope (Detroit/Nebraska-Omaha), CJ Suess (Winnipeg/Minnesota St.), Jake Evans (Montreal/Notre Dame), Brandon Hickey (Arizona/Boston University — traded to the Coyotes in the Mike Smith deal), Nolan Vesey (Toronto/Maine) and Nolan Stevens (St. Louis/Northeastern). The latter Nolan, John Stevens’s son, scored a beauty in the Beanpot final.

Pope told The Athletic’s Craig Custance that he will be signing with the Red Wings…

2. “Closer to home,” CBS Detroit’s Will Burtchfield spoke with the Red Wings’ players regarding the lack of NHL participation in the Olympics:

Continue reading Evening news: Red Wings ‘thoughts,’ Wings on the Olympics, Ducks on LCA and Mantha the shooter

The Red Wings discussed both their inability to hold 3rd period leads and their penalty-killing unit’s struggles in conversations with the Wings’ beat writers, and the team used similar language to describe both issues.

DetroitRedWings.com’s Dana Wakiji spoke with Justin Abdelkader and Trevor Daley about the holding-the-lead issue…

After blowing three-goal leads three times in two games against the New York Islanders and Washington Capitals, the Wings know they have to do a better job of maintaining leads.

“No lead is safe, for sure, in this league,” Justin Abdelkader said. “We played two really good teams, two teams that are dangerous offensively, probably two of the more dangerous teams offensively. It’s obviously two different situations, one was a five-minute power play, the other one, they did get the power play at the end, which definitely helped them score but they were on top of us in the third period.

“Obviously we talk about it and talk about it, but you just got to continue to play and can’t worry about what the score is, whether it’s in the third period or the second period, you got to continue to play your game and keep the foot on the gas because once you let up or kind of back away a little bit, that’s when a team can really get going, kind of like Washington did, especially in their building.”

Daley agreed that the Wings can’t sit back at all.

“It’s more to just let’s try to keep doing what got us the lead,” Daley said. “The last two, they look bad. One’s a five-minute penalty kill. That rarely happens. That’s unfortunate. The very next night, it happens again. Two totally different situations, obviously. But at the end of it, when you do get the lead you gotta maintain the reason why you got the lead and keep going.”

And coach Jeff Blashill suggested similar means by which to rectify the team’s penalty-killing issues, as the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan noted:

Continue reading Whether it’s holding the lead or killing penalties, Wings believe that confidence is key