Blashill scouts the Leafs

Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill spoke with the Toronto Sun’s Terry Koshan regarding Thursday’s opponent, the Toronto Maple Leafs:

Update: MLive’s Ansar Khan posted a pair of videos from Blashill and Niklas Kronwall post-practice:

 

Sportsnet’s Boylen praises Cholowski among ‘9 NHL rookie standouts’

Sportsnet’s Rory Boylen praises Red Wings defenseman Dennis Cholowski in an article discussing 9 NHL rookie standouts:

Dennis Cholowski, DET: With an average of 22:10 per game, Cholowski leads all rookies in average ice time. The 20th-overall pick from 2016 racked up a point per game in the pre-season and an injury to Mike Green opened up a spot for some youngster to take advantage — and Cholowski hasn’t missed.

He never made any Canadian WJC squads in junior even after moving from the NCAA to the WHL last season and becoming a major contributor. A great skater with a nose for offence, the 6-foot Cholowski is the kind of defenceman who thrives in today’s NHL and he leads all Detroit defencemen in power-play ice time. When Mike Green eventually returns some of that will be shaved off, but if Cholowski keeps up this level of play, he’ll be hard to turn away from.

Boylen continues, and I’ve been impressed with Libor Sulak, Filip Hronek, Christoffer Ehn, Joe Hicketts and Michael Rasmussen as well, but I’m biased!

 

Post-practice media availabilities: Cholowski out 1-2 games with upper-body injury; Kronwall to return

The Detroit Red Wings practiced at the BELFOR Training Center ahead of tomorrow’s game vs. Toronto, and they did so without defenseman Dennis Cholowski, who is “day-to-day” with an “undisclosed injury.”

After a practice in which Justin Abdelkader graduated to the top line, and Niklas Kronwall skated with Nick Jensen, the Red Wings spoke with the media, per the Free Press’s Helene St. James…

Continue reading Post-practice media availabilities: Cholowski out 1-2 games with upper-body injury; Kronwall to return

Toledo Walleye make trade to bolster their blueline

From the Toledo Walleye:

WALLEYE ADD A DEFENSEMAN IN TRADE WITH WICHITA
(Toledo, OH) – The Walleye have acquired defenseman Sam Thibault from the Wichita Thunder in exchange for forward Hayden Hodgson.

Thibault joins Toledo after appearing in 43 games last year with the Thunder, collecting nine assists, 29 penalty minutes and a plus 10. The 22-year-old also got into a pair of games with the Bakersfield Condors of the AHL without a point. He also skated in four playoff contests last season for the Thunder with a pair of assists.

Prior to last season, Thibault spent the three previous years in the QMJHL with Baie-Comeau Drakkar. In the 2016-17 season, the Ste. Martine, PQ native posted 21 points (6G, 15A) with 81 penalty minutes while skating as a plus ten. That season he was team captain. The 6’1”, 201 pound defenseman had 134 penalty minutes in the 2015-16 season. In total, Thibault skated in 207 games with 10 goals, 40 assists, 50 points and 284 penalty minutes in his QMJHL career.

 

The Athletic on Michael Rasmussen and Juuso Valimaki

From The Athletic’s Scott Cruickshank:

Thrown together as billet-mates three years ago, the lively blueliner [and Calgary Flames prospect Juuso Valimaki] and the mammoth centreman [Michael Rasmussen] became the closest of pals. Now, even as their hockey fortunes have carried them to opposite sides of continent, they keep daily tabs on each other’s progress, offering bursts of encouragement.

When Valimaki made his debut last week at Vancouver, Rasmussen reached out with good luck messages.

“He texted me before the game and told me he’s really proud of me,” Valimaki said. “He said we’ve come a long way from the first year together. Now we’re both here (in the NHL), what we’ve talked about for a long time.”

The day of the Red Wings’ season-opener, Valimaki returned the favour, sending a batch of pep texts in Rasmussen’s direction.

In other words, despite two time zones and 3,000 kilometres separating them, despite new addresses – Valimaki is stationed in the Flames’ dressing room between goalies Mike Smith and David Rittich, while Rasmussen perches between Frans Nielsen and Anthony Mantha at Red Wings headquarters – they remain close.

Rasmussen is fully abreast of Valimaki’s accomplishment of barging his way onto Calgary’s blueline as a newcomer.

“Yeah, it was unreal,” he told The Athletic‘s Max Bultman in Detroit. “He had a lot of competition. It’s pretty cool to see him there. It was a tough situation for him. He really battled hard, played really good hockey.

Continued (paywall)

Tweets from Red Wings practice: Kronwall skates (and Cholowski does not) as Wings prepare for Toronto

The Detroit Red Wings are preparing for a busy schedule which begins with a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday, and MLive’s Ansar Khan reports that one member of the Wings’ injured defense made an appearance at Wednesday’s practice:

Big update from Khan at 11:30 AM:

The Detroit News’s Gregg Krupa said, “Hello”…

Continue reading Tweets from Red Wings practice: Kronwall skates (and Cholowski does not) as Wings prepare for Toronto

Red Wings to distribute Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond bobblehead to charitable ticket-buyers

From the Red Wings:

Ken Daniels & Mickey Redmond Bobblehead Night set for Dec. 2

To receive talking bobblehead, fans must purchase a special fundraising ticket with a portion of the proceeds benefiting the Jamie Daniels Foundation

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today announced the details for a Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond special-edition talking bobblehead on Sunday, Dec. 2 when the Red Wings take on the Colorado Avalanche at 7:00 p.m. at the award-winning Little Caesars Arena.

Fans can secure the one-of-a-kind bobblehead by purchasing a special fundraising ticket package, which was established to celebrate the life of Ken Daniels’ son, Jamie, who lost his life too early due to an accidental drug overdose. As part of the Red Wings’ “Hockeytown Cares” community impact platform, the team has joined together with the Jamie Daniels Foundation and the Children’s Hospital of Michigan Foundation to honor Jamie Daniels and promote awareness of the opioid epidemic with the limited-edition bobblehead, presented by the Children’s Hospital of Michigan. Proceeds from each group ticket purchased benefits the Jamie Daniels Foundation.

The Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond talking bobblehead will NOT be distributed to fans as they enter Little Caesars Arena. To guarantee a bobblehead, Red Wings fans must purchase tickets as part of the special fundraising offer by clicking HERE. Fans who purchase through the ticket offer will receive a voucher which can be redeemed for the bobblehead during the Dec. 2 game. 

Two ticketing options are available to guarantee a Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond bobblehead. For $56 per ticket, fans will receive an upper-level ticket and a bobblehead. A VIP package is also available for $95 per ticket, featuring a lower-level ticket and a Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond autographed bobblehead.

The Jamie Daniels Foundation was established by FOX Sports Detroit play-by-play broadcaster Ken Daniels and his family in honor of his late son, Jamie, to provide education, resources, guidance and financial support to people battling drug addiction so lives can be saved and healing can be created within families. The Children’s Hospital of Michigan Foundation is dedicated to advancing the health and wellness of children and families. With an area of focus on mental health, the Children’s Hospital of Michigan Foundation is collaborating with the Jamie Daniels Foundation to lead children and families on a path to a happier, healthier future. To donate to the Jamie Daniels Foundation, visit www.jamiedanielsfoundation.org.

For additional information on the Ken Daniels and Mickey Redmond bobblehead, visit www.DetroitRedWings.com/JamieDanielsFoundation.

Free Press’s Seidel meets Joe Murphy

This one is hard to read, but necessary: the Free Press’s Jeff Seidel traveled to Kenora, Ontario to meet former Red Wing Joe Murphy, who is homeless and struggling:

Murphy is good at being homeless, just as he was good at playing hockey. It took a certain amount of practice, but he has mastered it. He has learned how to bounce between different shelters and churches, always finding a way to get a meal and clean set of clothes.

He has learned to be industrious, ripping apart a plastic lid at McDonald’s, forming it into a sharp triangle and turning it into a toothpick. He has learned how ATM machines give off heat in the winter, and how to burrow inside industrial-sized garbage containers.

“Those things are like condos,” he says, with a certain amount of yearning. “I’m not kidding you. But you have to deck it out. You just flatten cardboard boxes on the floor. Put stuff on the walls. Throw down some blankets. Lay down. Put on some candles. Get your stuff going. I was, ‘Moving on up, to the east side.’ I was George Jefferson in this. Man, I had everything. You remember that one? It was everything to me. I’m living the high life and I was. The only thing missing was that white butler. It was unbelievable. I had a great time.”

Murphy prefers living on his own.

He doesn’t like to deal with large groups in the shelters.

“You are right side by side,” he says. “Now, they are snoring and all kinds of stuff going on and some guys sleep walking and I get uncomfortable.”

Continued

Evening news: Five Wings will be Upper Deck ‘Young Guns’; Kulfan on the road trip; Walleye Teddy Bear Toss scheduled for December 1st; Abdelkader, Knuble partner with MI health organizations

Of Red Wings-related note this evening:

1. According to Beckett’s Ryan Cracknell, four five Red Wings will be featured in Upper Deck’s 2018-19 Series One hockey set, with Filip Hronek (#214), Michael Rasmussen (#226), Libor Sulak (#227), Dennis Cholowski (#231) and Christoffer Ehn (#234) making their cardboard debuts as short-printed Young Guns;

2. Among the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan’s off-day Wings reflections:

Continue reading Evening news: Five Wings will be Upper Deck ‘Young Guns’; Kulfan on the road trip; Walleye Teddy Bear Toss scheduled for December 1st; Abdelkader, Knuble partner with MI health organizations