The Malik Report

Of Red Wings-related note late this evening:

1. The Detroit News’s Gregg Krupa spoke with Red Wings GM Ken Holland and director of player evaluation Jiri Fischer regarding the next generation of Red Wings defensemen. Holland envisions the Grand Rapids Griffins’ blueline forming the bedrock of the Wings’ future defense:

“We’re going to have Brian Lashoff as a captain and (Dylan) Mclrath as a veteran,” Holland said. “And then we are looking between (Libor) Sulak, (Joe) Hicketts, (Vili) Saarijarvi, (Filip) Hronek and (Dennis) Cholowski. I’m planning on one of those guys is going to be in Detroit, and the rest of those guys will be playing regularly in Grand Rapids. We are creating opportunity.”

As for the development, Jiri Fischer, the director of player evaluation, the Red Wings’ approach is evaluated continuously.

“I think things are analyzed daily, and we’re aware of what we are trying to do,” said Fischer, who directed player development until Shawn Horcoff succeeded him before last season.

“It’s hard to find elite defensemen. So, hopefully, in this development camp, here, we’ve got a few guys coming. We’re hoping our guys will develop quickly and have a great internal competition in camp, as soon as fall comes.”

Krupa continues, noting that college prospects like Kasper Kotkansalo (for one) hope to add their names to the mix…

2. And the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan spoke with Michael Rasmussen regarding big Ras’ belief that he’ll make the Wings’ roster this upcoming season:

Continue reading Two Things: Krupa speaks with KH regarding the defense; Kulfan on Michael Rasmussen

Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill appeared on WBBL’s Huge Show this afternoon, speaking with Bill Simonson for over 14 minutes regarding the Wings’ summer development camp, the draft, the hiring of West Michigan native Dan Bylsma and more:

The third day of the Red Wings’ summer development camp is almost inevitably a day in which fatigue sets in, but the Wings’ prospects were plucky and ready-to-go on Thursday morning.

Griffins coach Ben Simon, Wings director of player development Shawn Horcoff and the slightly-dinged assistant director Daniel Cleary, sporting a couple of stitches above his right eyebrow (where he took a puck at the end of Wednesday’s sessions) built upon the first and second day’s worth of drills in front of both a packed house–fan turnout at the chilly BELFOR Training Center has been very good–and a packed family suite, currently occupied by members of the Red Wings’ coaching and front office staffs.

Continue reading Impressions from the third day of the Red Wings’ summer development camp ’18

Red Wings forward Dylan Larkin’s older brother Colin was signed by the Edmonton Oilers last spring, and the 24-year-old told the Edmonton Sun’s Robert Tychkowski that he’s pleased with the team he chose to join as an NCAA free agent:

“I had a lot of success at the college level and there were some teams (interested),” said the 24-year-old centre. “But the prestige of the Oilers organization and the opportunity to join the young talent here was a no-brainer for me.

“There is a chance to play with young players. There are a lot of high draft picks and a lot of elite talent in this organization. The arena and the facilities are state of the art. Honestly, I felt like I was selling myself to the Oilers more than anything, just getting a chance to sign with them was a dream come true.”

Larkin didn’t generate the same buzz that [Drake] Caggiula did when he picked Edmonton after leading North Dakota to an NCAA title, but if pedigree counts for anything he could be a sleeper.

His brother Dylan Larkin is carving out a niche with the Detroit Red Wings, coming off a 63-point season three years after being selected 15th overall.

He also has a couple of cousins, Adam and Ryan, making their way up the hockey ranks (Adam played in the ECHL last year and Ryan was a goalie at Miami-Ohio) that he can lean on as well.

Continued

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan provides a Red Wings free agency update this evening, confirming that the Wings are likely to sign Jonathan Bernier as Jimmy Howard’s back-up…

Bernier, 29, helped lead the Avalanche into the playoffs after Semyon Varlamov was injured and missed the remainder of the season. Bernier was 19-13-3 with a 2.85 goals-against average and .913 save percentage.

It was expected the Avalanche would keep Bernier, but they acquired Washington’s Philipp Grubauer, leaving Bernier free to explore the market.

And Kulfan also confirms the MLive’s Ansar Khan and The Athletic’s Craig Custance and Pierre LeBrun’s suggestion that Detroit may be bringing back some old friends at forward:

They’re rumored to be extremely interested in bringing back either of two forwards — Valtteri Filppula or Thomas Vanek.

Filppula, 34, appears to be the preferred choice. He had 11 goals and 22 assists in 81 games with Philadelphia, and his versatility would be beneficial, as the Wings continue to have doubts regarding Henrik Zetterberg’s aching back.

The Wings also hope to re-sign defenseman Mike Green, a prospective UFA, to a 2-year contract.

Update: Here’s more from Hockeybuzz’s Bob Duff:

An NHL source told Mlive.com that defenseman Mike Green was close to signing a two-year contract with the Detroit Red Wings to stay with the team and was likely to do so before Sunday’s July 1 kickoff to the NHL’s free-agent frenzy.

The Wings tabled a two-year pact worth a reported $5 million a season to Green at the conclusion of the 2017-18 NHL season, but Green opted to wait until this week’s chance to speak to other teams leading up to the free-agent signing window opening. It would appear that he has decided there isn’t anything out there that trumps the Detroit offer.

Green made it abundantly clear during the season that he would prefer to remain a Red Wing.

“I love it in Detroit,” Green said. “It’s a great organization. I hope I stay.”

Of brief Red Wings-related note this afternoon:

1. The Free Press’s Helene St. James did confirm on Twitter that the Red Wings are going to sign Filip Zadina to an entry-level deal in July, which makes sense given that he may make the team in October…

Focus right now is on free agency, but Red Wings plan on signing Filip Zadina to entry-level contract in July.

— Helene St. James (@HeleneStJames) June 28, 2018

2. And Fox Sports Detroit’s Trevor Thompson conducted a sit-down interview with fellow likely Wings forward Michael Rasmussen:

 

MLive’s Ansar Khan reports that the Red Wings may end up bringing in Jonathan Bernier as their back-up goaltender, and he confirms that the Wings have been “kicking the tires” on Valtteri Filppula:

The Red Wings have had productive talks with defenseman Mike Green and are expected to sign him to a two-year contract, perhaps before Sunday, a source indicated.

Jonathan Bernier has emerged as the leading candidate to fill their back-up goaltending position, likely on a three-year deal. There is interest in Carter Hutton, but it appears he’s leaning toward the Buffalo Sabres. Robin Lehner no longer is a possibility.

The Red Wings also will add a forward, quite possibly a familiar face in Valtteri Filppula, 34, on a two-year deal. He would provide some insurance at center in case Henrik Zetterberg’s troublesome back forces him out and can also play on the wing. And despite their hopes that No. 1 draft pick Filip Zadina will make the team, the Red Wings still are pursuing Thomas Vanek on a one-year deal.

Khan continues, concluding with the following:

The Red Wings had offered Green $10 million on a two-year deal – he was making $6 million a season. He’s expected to return, unless another team indicates it will give him three years.

The Red Wings’ summer development camp has been a whirlwind of activity thus far, but the media got a little lucky in that Team Howe (see: Zadina and Rasmussen’s team) had a long day of fitness testing, and so their post-practice video session didn’t go on as planned. As a result, the locker room was opened up, and:

I got two great interviews with University of Maine defenseman and Maine captain Chase Pearson, with both players discussing their past collegiate seasons, addressing what they need to improve as they continue their journey toward professional athletes, and in Pearson’s case, we talked about his status as the co-captain of the team. The gents addressed the fact that they’re investing in themselves as NCAA players who pay their own way as well. Both gents gave great interviews:

Continue reading Audio from the afternoon of the 3rd day of the Wings’ summer development camp ’18: Patrick Holway, Chase Pearson, Malte Setkov and Filip Zadina

FYI from Twitter:

#RedWings had productive talks this week with UFA D-man Mike Green and believe they can sign him to a two-year deal.

— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) June 28, 2018

Hearing that Montreal is among the teams which has kicked the tires on 24-year-old UFA blue-liner Xavier Ouellet. He was bought out by Detroit earlier this week

— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) June 28, 2018

 

The Free Press’s Helene St. James posted an article and a video this afternoon, first discussing Dennis Cholowski’s bid for a roster spot this upcoming season…

“You can see just from a year and a half, he’s matured physically,” Griffins head coach Ben Simon said. “He looks bigger. He’s got a little bit more of a presence to him. He practices like a pro. He’s got very good practice habits and hopefully that correlates to game situations. He’s put a lot of pressure on himself to make the Wings out of camp. If that doesn’t happen, we are excited to have him.

“He’s a tremendously smart, intelligent hockey player and his skating ability is one of his biggest attributes as well. Once he gets the puck, he makes good decisions with it, he can get up ice and contribute offensively. For Dennis, it is going to be the defensive side of things and closing quickly, using his size and closing quickly, and if he can do that against bigger, stronger opponents at the pro level as opposed to juniors, then he’s going to see a little bit quicker progression.”

Cholowski, 20, has the skill set to boost the Wings: he skates beautifully, makes a good first pass, can run a power play. When he practices, he is moving his feet and making passes and working on details. He takes it as “a big compliment, ” he said, when he hears himself praised as practicing like a pro, confident those habits will translate into games.

St. James continues, and she posted a video of defenseman and 2018 draft pick Seth Barton’s comments to the media today:

Update: St. James spoke with Filip Zadina, too: