The Malik Report

The Red Wings’ staff attended the Larkin Hockey School in Waterford today…

.@LarkinHockey School! #LGRW pic.twitter.com/K7c4c6KO6z— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) June 24, 2019

Evgeny Svechnikov joins in on the action! @LarkinHockey pic.twitter.com/83s9a3OS6j— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) June 24, 2019

And DetroitRedWings.com’s Arthur J. Regner spoke with Larkin regarding the school and offseason news:

Dylan Larkin joins us on Episode 115 of The Red and White Authority to talk @LarkinHockey School, Steve Yzerman, the #NHLDraft and more!

Listen/Rate/Subscribe: https://t.co/0RvP0pNUS4 pic.twitter.com/NqipG128PC— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) June 24, 2019

Hockeybuzz’s Bob Duff noted that Red Wings GM is presently “working the phones” to determine whether unrestricted free agents-to-be might bolster the Red Wings’ roster:

Monday was the first day that teams could officially communicate with unrestricted free agents, and Yzerman intended to let his fingers do the walking.

“I’ll make a lot of phone calls, yeah,” Yzerman said.

“I’m going to make some calls and see. There’s players we’re interested in. You get a feel if they have any interest in coming to Detroit and what the parameters of what they’re looking for.

“We have spots on the roster available. I would look, before a trade, at free agency to fill those roster spots. I also want to have some opportunity for our younger players to fill those spots, but we will look at free agency. But I’m not going to sign a free agent just to sign a free agent.

“The player has to fit what we’re trying to do – the contract, the term of the contract and the value of the contract have to fit.”

Duff’s notebook continues…

The Detroit Red Wings posted the schedule and roster for the team’s summer development camp on Monday afternoon, and here’s a slightly belated version thereof:

Red Wings release 2019 Development Camp roster

Twenty-seven recent draft picks on roster, including 10 from 2019 Entry Draft

Fan opportunities also announced for five-day camp at BELFOR Training Center

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today announced the roster for their 2019 Development Camp, which will be held at the BELFOR Training Center inside Little Caesars Arena from Tuesday, June 25 to Saturday, June 29. The camp roster currently consists of 24 forwards, 15 defensemen and eight goaltenders.

Ten of the 11 players the Red Wings selected at the 2019 NHL Entry Draft on June 21 and 22 in Vancouver, British Columbia, will be in attendance for Development Camp: forwards Albin Grewe, Robert Mastrosimone, Ethan Phillips and Elmer Soderblom; defensemen Gustav Berglund, Albert Johansson, Cooper Moore, Moritz Seider and Antti Tuomisto; and goaltender Carter Gylander. All 10 of the team’s selections from the 2018 NHL Entry Draft are slated to attend, along with five players from the 2017 Entry Draft class, one from 2016 and two from 2015. Additionally, three signed free agents who all saw time with the Red Wings during the 2018-19 season – forwards Taro Hirose and Ryan Kuffner and goaltender Kaden Fulcher – are slated to attend, in addition to 17 free agent prospects from the major junior, collegiate and European ranks.

Continue reading Belated: Red Wings release development camp schedule and roster

Despite difficulties regarding the arena site’s redevelopment, the City of Detroit is demolishing Joe Louis Arena this summer, and WWJ Newsradio 950 posted a video and article which chronicle the exterior demolition of the facility:

It’s a long and gradual goodbye as the gradual teardown of Joe Louis Arena continues in Detroit.

Video shot by WWJ Newsradio 950’s Charlie Langton on Monday shows progress made since last week when a deconstrtuction crew began removing the stadium’s exterior metal panels piece by piece. That process alone — which will leave the roof, the roof trusses and steel columns exposed, along with the lower bowl of the arena — is expected to take a couple of months.

Meanwhile, another crew continues to work on demolishing the building’s interior from the inside out.

The demolition, which will run the city $10 million, is set to be completed by the end of the year or early 2020.

The Detroit Red Wings will be holding a summer development camp tomorrow through Saturday at Little Caesars Arena, and the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan discusses the parameters thereof:

The Red Wings open development camp Tuesday at Little Caesars Arena, providing an education on NHL life to recent draft picks.

The majority of picks from last weekend’s draft will attend, as well as 2018 first-round picks Filip Zadina and Joe Veleno, signed free-agent prospects and undrafted free agent invitees from college, junior or European leagues.

“We get to know the kids a little bit and try to set them up and educate them if they need it,” general manager Steve Yzerman said. “They all have varying experience as far as training and eating properly, so they are at different stages from different countries and backgrounds. We want to educate them on what they need to be doing on and off the ice this summer.

“For the ones we do get to bring back in September (junior league players), make sure they have a real good summer, and for the ones we don’t get back that are in college or have to play in Europe, make sure they understand what they need to do — the lifestyle and dedication, the work ethic, the training to get to the NHL.

“It’s a good week. Our camp will be more about education, instruction and development than conditioning.”

Kulfan continues…

From the Grand Rapids Griffins:

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Detroit Red Wings on Monday announced that Josh Chapman has been hired as the Grand Rapids Griffins’ new athletic trainer.

Chapman joins the Griffins after spending the previous three seasons as the head athletic trainer for the ECHL’s Orlando Solar Bears, managing all medical and training operations for the club. He replaces John Bernal, who served as the Griffins’ athletic trainer for eight seasons (2011-19) before recently accepting a position as a work strategies and sports medicine coordinator for West Michigan with NovaCare.

Continue reading Grand Rapids Griffins name Josh Chapman team’s athletic trainer

Of Twitter-related Red Wings note this afternoon:

1. The Free Press’s Helene St. James addressed the possible return of Niklas Kronwall:

If Kronwall returns, he’s not bumping a young player. As I’ve written, Wings can’t count on Daley/Ericsson to be available all season, plus there’s uncertainty about Green (virus). Kronwall led the team with 79 games played last season. https://t.co/bA059gsaJ9— Helene St. James (@HeleneStJames) June 24, 2019

They expect him to, but this isn’t a standard timeline like recovering from knee surgery. There’s some uncertainty. https://t.co/oYOg9Jvi0e— Helene St. James (@HeleneStJames) June 24, 2019

2. And DetroitRedWings.com’s Dana Wakiji is in attendance at the Larkin Hockey School in Waterford, MI today:

Continue reading Tweets of note: HSJ on Kronwall and going back to (hockey) school

Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman appeared on this morning’s Jamie and Stoney Show on 97.1 the Ticket (audio will be coming along shortly), and Yzerman discussed the team’s decision to draft defenseman Moritz Seider 6th overall:

Most projections had the 6’4 defenseman from Germany going somewhere in the middle of the first round. But Steve Yzerman and the Red Wings had him ranked higher, and they knew Seider would be off the board if they waited until their second pick. So in his first major decision as Detroit’s general manager, Yzerman trusted his instincts. 

“I don’t pay attention to the mock drafts at all. We can’t. We have to do our jobs and hopefully do them well and kind of tune out the noise, so to speak,” Yzerman told the Jamie and Stoney Show on 97.1 The Ticket. “But we had him right at six on our draft list. I wasn’t sure where he was going to go. I know there was a lot of interest in him from a lot of teams.

“I actually looked at the options of trading back and trying to get an extra pick and keeping my fingers crossed that he would be there, or we had a plan B in the event that he wasn’t. Trading back didn’t prove to be an option, so we were comfortable selecting him at that spot. I know he was surprised. But we felt he was going to go if not to us, potentially Buffalo who was picking right after us, and by probably the 12th or 13th pick he would be gone.”

Continued

The annual Bob Probert Ride took place on Sunday in Windsor, Ontario, and the Blackburn News’s Adelle Loiselle reports that the charitable endeavor surpassed a significant financial marker:

A popular event that helps cardiac patients in Windsor-Essex get the treatment they need close to home has raised more than $1-million.

The Bob Probert Ride has brought more than 1,300 motorcycle enthusiasts from across Canada and the U.S. together every year for almost a decade. The ninth-annual event hit the milestone this year.

“From our contribution to the angioplasty suite, to exercise equipment at the cardiac wellness gym, and now towards the establishment of a satellite cardiac wellness program in Tecumseh, we are making a huge difference right here in our community,” said Dani Probert, the widow of former NHL player Bob Probert.

The expansion to Tecumseh will allow patients to take part in a six-month program close to their home.

Of Red Wings-related note this morning:

1. MLive’s Ansar Khan posted an article discussing the Red Wings’ 2019 draft class. Before Khan breaks down the Wings’ 11 picks, he takes note of the Red Wings’ GM’s version of Ken Holland’s “You Can’t Rush the Kids” mantra:

“The danger is we all want our draft picks playing as soon as possible; it helps justify the picks a little bit,” Yzerman told media at the draft. “Ultimately, you really have to make sure you’re doing what’s right for these kids, that they’re playing at a level that they can be competitive and improve and excel at. 

“There is stress. Very few 18-year-olds play in the NHL today. Now that they’re in the fold, we’ll try to set them up as best as we can, educate them and provide them with resources to develop and then we’ll see. If it’s one year, two years, three years … some of these kids will be five years. It doesn’t mean they’re not going to be good players. But it’s going to take five years for some of them.”

Khan continues, and it’s a relief to read Yzerman stating that the Wings will take player development on a case-by-case basis.

2. The Free Press’s Helene St. James also posted a Monday morning article offering “takeaways” from the draft. HSJ also quotes Yzerman as his draft-day comments pertained to this week’s development camp at Little Caesars Arena, which begins on Tuesday:

The newest crop of picks start their immersion into the organization at this week’s development camp. There’ll be daily on-ice activities culminating with a scrimmage Saturday. The value from the Wings’ point of view is more about what happens off the ice. 

“You get to know the kids a little bit, and educate them if they need it,” Yzerman said. “And then try to set them up.”

This entails educating the prospects on what they need to do in the kitchen and in the gym to put themselves in the best position to further their careers. “Make sure they understand what they need to do — the lifestyle, the education, the training, to get to the NHL,” Yzerman said. “It’s more education and development than conditioning.”

St. James also continues…