HSJ on retiring Sergei Fedorov’s #91

The Free Press’s Helene St. James broaches a somewhat sensitive subject this afternoon, discussing whether the Red Wings should retire Sergei Fedorov’s #91. The answer is obviously, “Yes!”

He was an electrifying presence, an incredibly strong skater who dominated all over the ice and one of the most skilled Red Wings of all time. Off the ice, however, his Detroit career was tarnished by a contract holdout and his  decision to play for the Anaheim Ducks for less money in Southern California.

The bitterness between the organization and Fedorov — and fans and Fedorov —  appeared to subside in 2015 when he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. And as more time passes, it becomes more likely that his No. 91 will become the eighth number retired by the Red Wings.

“Sergei had a fabulous career in a Red Wings uniform,” general manager Ken Holland told the Free Press. “He had a tremendous impact on this franchise. I would assume as we continue to go forward there will be ongoing conversations about his impact on this franchise.”

Attempts to reach Red Wings owner Christopher Ilitch were unsuccessful.

Scotty Bowman, who coached Fedorov from 1993 to 2002, winning three Stanley Cups, did not hesitate with his answer when asked if Fedorov’s number should be retired by the Wings.

“Sure,” Bowman said. “He’s done it all. Sergei was a spectacular player. He was so good offensively and defensively. Sometimes it takes a little while. Detroit doesn’t retire as many, which makes it more valuable.”

St. James continues…

 

Khan profiles Kasper Kotkansalo

This afternoon MLive’s Ansar Khan profiles defenseman Kasper Kotkansalo, who attended Boston University this past season:

Kotkansalo, who participated in the Red Wings development camp last month at Little Caesars Arena, is working on his skating and agility.

“I think my speed is all right,” Kotkansalo said. “I just think agility-wise, I’m not consuming that much when I’m skating, my edge work. I think I can shake forwards off better if I can skate better.

“We did that PEP (Power Edge Pro) stuff, stuff like that I really need to work on this summer. We’re getting some good keys to do that so hopefully get better at it.”

Kotkansalo also possesses some leadership qualities that appeal to the Red Wings.

“When he went to Switzerland and played for Finland’s under-19 team, he wore the captaincy,” Red Wings director of amateur scouting Tyler Wright said. “He’s a good leader, a good skater, showed a little bit more offense than we saw in the USHL.”

Continued

Four Tweets of note: It’s Cleary-Horcoff Invitational time

Of Twitter-related note this morning:

1. The old Cleary-Horcoff Invitational has grown into quite the shindig, and a reunion of former Red Wings to boot. Daniel Cleary, Todd Bertuzzi, Jimmy Howard, Valtteri Filppula, Todd Bertuzzi, Niklas Kronwall, Henrik Zetterberg and Gustav Nyquist joined Horcoff, Ryan Whitney, Mike Commodore, Nicklas Backstrom, Erik Karlsson and assorted NHL friends for a golf tournament in Scotland:

2. Here’s an FYI regarding a Red Wings player appearance in greater Grand Rapids, per the Holland Sentinel’s Chris Zadorozny:

3. The Larkin Hockey School’s first “class” for 2018 completed its course of instruction in Waterford, MI today:

4. This bit of editorial content comes from the NHL Network, via the Red Wings:

Update: WXYZ’s Brad Galli filed a feature from Dylan Larkin’s hockey camp:

 

Via the Wings: Ken Holland appears on ‘The Power Play’ on NHL Radio

Via the Red Wings, GM Ken Holland appeared on the NHL on Sirius XM Radio’s “The Power Play” program earlier this afternoon:

Slightly belated: Red Wings sign Anthony Mantha to 2-year, $6.6 contract

While I was at the grocery store, per the Red Wings:

RED WINGS AND ANTHONY MANTHA AGREE TO TWO-YEAR CONTRACT
… Former First-Round Pick Led Red Wings with 24 Goals in 2017-18 …

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today agreed to terms with right wing Anthony Mantha on a two-year contract.

Mantha, 23, skated in 80 games with the Red Wings in 2017-18 and produced a team-leading 24 goals, while ranking among Detroit’s leaders with 24 assists (4th), 48 points (3rd), 52 penalty minutes (4th), nine power-play goals (1st), 190 shots (3rd) and a 12.6 shooting percentage (1st). He registered multiple points in a single game on 10 occasions last season, including four three-point games and a career-high four points (2-2-4) on March 6 at Boston. Mantha became part of Red Wings history during the 2017-18 campaign by scoring the first-ever goal at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit’s season-opening 4-2 victory over the Minnesota Wild on Oct. 5, 2017. The 6-foot-5, 225-pound winger has appeared in 150 games with the Red Wings since 2015-16, notching 87 points (43-44-87) and 107 penalty minutes.

The Longueuil, Quebec, native was drafted by the Red Wings in the first round (20th overall) of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. He also appeared in 132 games with the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins from 2014-17, totaling 88 points (44-44-88), a plus-20 rating and 102 penalty minutes in 132 regular-season games and 15 points (6-9-15), a plus-six rating and 24 penalty minutes in 25 postseason games. Prior to turning professional, Mantha enjoyed a historic 2013-14 campaign in which he was named the Canadian Hockey League’s Player of the Year and the most-valuable player of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League after racking up 120 points (57-63-120) in 57 regular-season games and 38 points (24-14-38) in 24 playoff games to help the Val-d’Or Foreurs capture the QMJHL championship. In 189 QMJHL games between 2010-14, Mantha totaled 260 points (129-131-260), a plus-42 rating and 185 penalty minutes. He also led Canada at the 2014 IIHF World Junior Championship with 11 points (5-6-11) in seven games.

Anthony Mantha, Right Wing
Born Sep 16 1994 — Longueuil, PQ
Height 6.05 — Weight 225 — Shoots L
Selected by Detroit Red Wings round 1 #20 overall 2013 NHL Entry Draft

— Regular Season —  —- Playoffs —-
Season   Team                        Lge    GP    G    A  Pts  PIM  GP   G   A Pts PIM
————————————————————————————–
2010-11  Val d’Or Foreurs            QMJHL   2    0    0    0    0  —  —  —  —  —
2011-12  Val d’Or Foreurs            QMJHL  63   22   29   51   39   4   2   2   4   6
2012-13  Val d’Or Foreurs            QMJHL  67   50   39   89   71   9   5   7  12  13
2013-14  Val d’Or Foreurs            QMJHL  57   57   63  120   75  24  24  14  38  52
2014-15  Grand Rapids Griffins       AHL    62   15   18   33   64  16   2   2   4  16
2015-16  Grand Rapids Griffins       AHL    60   21   24   45   32   9   4   7  11   8
2015-16  Detroit Red Wings           NHL    10    2    1    3    2  —  —  —  —  —
2016-17  Grand Rapids Griffins       AHL    10    8    2   10    6  —  —  —  —  —
2016-17  Detroit Red Wings           NHL    60   17   19   36   53  —  —  —  —  —
2017-18  Detroit Red Wings           NHL    80   24   24   48   52  —  —  —  —  —
————————————————————————————–
NHL Totals                        150   43   44   87  107

Update: The Free Press’s Helene St. James confirms…

Continue reading Slightly belated: Red Wings sign Anthony Mantha to 2-year, $6.6 contract

Meet Wings draft pick Seth Barton

DetroitRedWings.com’s Dana Wakiji penned a profile of Red Wings 2018 draft pick Seth Barton, a defenseman who played for the BCHL’s Trail Smoke Eaters this past season:

When you look at defenseman Seth Barton, one thing stands out – he could definitely stand to put on a few pounds. At the Red Wings’ recent development camp, Barton was one of the taller defensemen at 6-foot-3 but he was by far the lightest at just 174 pounds.

The second lightest defenseman was Gustav Lindstrom at 187 pounds. Lindstrom was the Wings’ second-round pick, 38th overall, in the 2017 draft.

But Barton will have time to add weight when he attends the University of Massachusetts Lowell.

“I went down on a visit there,” Barton said. “Just very professional in the way they handled things there. Norm Bazin, the head coach, well-respected, and the facilities they have there are outstanding for development. So pretty easy choice.”

Barton was the Wings’ second third-round pick, 81st overall, in last month’s NHL Entry Draft in Dallas.

“It was pretty incredible,” Barton said. “I wasn’t sure if they were at the top of the list going into draft day so it was pretty incredible getting a call from Ken (Holland, Detroit’s general manager). Obviously seeing it on TV, seeing it with my family, that was pretty cool.”

Wakiji continues…

The Grand Rapids Griffins release their 2018-19 season schedule

From the Grand Rapids Griffins:

GRIFFINS ANNOUNCE 2018-19 SCHEDULE

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Grand Rapids Griffins on Wednesday released their schedule for the 2018-19 American Hockey League season. It will mark the franchise’s 23rd campaign overall, 18th as members of the AHL and 17th as the primary affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings.

Led by first-year head coach Ben Simon, the Griffins will start their 76-game schedule on the road for the 11th time in franchise history, as they take on the defending Western Conference champion Texas Stars on Fri., Oct. 5. Grand Rapids wraps up a season-opening two-game road swing with a visit to the San Antonio Rampage on Sat., Oct. 6 before beginning its home slate on Fri., Oct. 12 against the Hershey Bears with Opening Night presented by Huntington Bank.

Highlights of the 2018-19 schedule include:

Continue reading The Grand Rapids Griffins release their 2018-19 season schedule

Kulfan ranks the Red Wings’ top 25 prospects

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan posted a 25-image photo gallery in which he ranks the Red Wings‘ top 25 prospects, and Kulfan prefaces the gallery with the following:

The talent pool was satisfactory before the NHL Entry Draft. The Red Wings had a growing number of prospects who looked as if they could someday make an impact at the NHL level.

But, after what many analysts felt was one of the better hauls of any team in June’s draft, the Red Wings are that much stronger and deeper.

That was apparent at the recent Wings’ development camp. The organization gathered many of their top prospects, including the 11 picks from June’s draft, and excited fans with their skill and potential.

“It’s fun watching skill,” Shawn Horcoff, director of player development, said after a high-flying intra-squad scrimmage to end the camp. “You can tell these guys have a bright future. That was hopefully the start of many more viewings like that.”

Michael Rasmussen (2017, first round), Filip Zadina (2018, first round) and Dennis Cholowski (2016, first round) lead the parade of top prospects.

The photo gallery speaks for itself…

1. Michael Rasmussen, 6-foot-6, 221 pounds, center 2017-18 stats: Tri-City (WHL) — 47 games, 31 goals, 28 assists Acquired: 2017, first round, No. 9 overall Skinny: It would be shocking, at this point, if Rasmussen doesn’t begin the season in the NHL. He impressed, again, at the recent development camp, not only with his skills but with his maturity and desire to live up to other people’s expectations. He isn’t likely to be awed by the NHL.

And continues…

Meet Jonatan Berggren

MLive’s Ansar Khan profiles Red Wings prospect Jonatan Berggren this afternoon:

“I’m a skilled forward who has much speed and likes to make plays, play in the offensive zone,” Berggren, a 5-10, 181-pount left-shooting winger, said during the recent Red Wings development camp at Little Caesars Arena. “I cannot be the biggest or strongest guy on the ice. I must use my speed to advance.”

Berggren, in addition to his speed, “plays with great intensity and has a good feel for the net,” Andersson said.

Red Line Report described Berggren as having “ultra-quick feet,” which he always keeps moving, and said he has slick moves, is dangerous off the rush and has an inside-out move that “makes defenders look silly.”

Despite his size, the stocky Berggren plays in traffic and finishes his checks.

Berggren said he was shocked to hear Detroit call his name with the 33rd pick, the second selection in the second round at American Airlines Center in Dallas. But it was a pleasant surprise.

“It was so amazing,” Berggren said. “Detroit, when I was younger, was one of my favorite clubs.”

Khan continues…