Three things: Two jabs and a bit of hope

Of Red Wings-related note this evening:

1. It takes a while for the Hockey News’s articles to pop up on the internet radar, so this lovely gem from the THN’s Matt Larkin, discussing “Stanley Cup windows” for Atlantic Division teams, splattered itself across the screen a day late:

WINDOW CLOSED: Montreal Canadiens, Detroit Red Wings, Ottawa Senators

Here’s a depressing stat: the Red Wings, perceived as a bottom-dwelling rebuilder right now, have the highest salary cap number in the league. That’s how badly they’ve buried themselves with expensive veteran contracts, from Frans Nielsen’s to Darren Helm’s to Justin Abdelkader’s. Dylan Larkin and Anthony Mantha have developed into impact forwards, and Filip Zadina was an absolute steal at sixth overall in the draft, but the Wings’ veterans might continue to keep them a bit too competitive, robbing them of the lottery-ball count necessary to secure a franchise-altering superstar pick like Jack Hughes next summer. If Henrik Zetterberg’s bad back keeps him out all year, it might be a blessing. At this point, losses help the Wings more than wins. They are years away from competing in the Atlantic. Don’t forget who’s at the top of this division. Kucherov, Stamkos, Hedman, Tavares, Matthews, Marner, Marchand, Bergeron, Pastrnak and company will bully the bottom teams black and blue.

The way the Red Wings will pry open their Stanley Cup window might take years of drafting and developing players and more years of drafting and developing players, but at this point, staring at a still-living body of players (competitive or not) and poking at them for a giggle’s sake is getting old.

I suppose that’s the Wings’ lot for the next couple of seasons, and one earns one’s way out of the franchise-as-a-punchline category, but as a partisan, the zingers still sting from time to time.

2. Speaking of which, the state of the Red Wings’ defense is not exactly elite, but I think THN’s Sam McCaig’s ranking of Mike Green’s status among the league’s #1 defensemen is a wee low (if only by a couple of spots)…

29. Mike Green, Detroit Red Wings: In reality, you want him on the second pairing and running the power play.

3. And in cheerier news, the London Free Press’s Ryan Pyette reports that Wings draft pick Alec Regula was named the London Knights’ Rookie of the Year at the team’s end-of-the-2017-18-season awards ceremony. Regula may not be a #1 defenseman in the making, but he’s “part of the solution.”

Catch-up post: On Kronwall, Athanasiou, mobile ticketing, Drew Miller, Witkowski taking flight and some plugs

Of Red Wings-related note over the course of the past few days (sorry, between a stomach bug and somebody hitting the “hibernate” button, I rather badly needed a couple of days off):

A. MLive:

  1. Ansar Khan wondered aloud whether the Red Wings will sit Niklas Kronwall for back-to-back games and reduce Kronwall’s role in general as the 37-year-old prepares for what might be his final season;
  2. And Khan suggested that Andreas Athanasiou either has to improve his game-by-game intensity, or he might be traded.

B. The Athletic:

  1. The good news is that prospect guru Corey Pronman ranks the Wings 7th in organizational rankings…The bad news is that he’s counting down, not up, so the Wings are ranked as the 24th-best in terms of their prospect pipeline. As you might imagine, I disagree a little bit with Pronman, though I cannot deny that the Red Wings have a litany of grinding forwards and second-or-third-pair defensemen in an organization that endured a rough transition from Jim Nill’s regime to that of Tyler Wright…

C. DetroitRedWings.com:

  1. Like it or not, “Mobile ticketing” is the way that you’ll be entering the Little Caesars Arena this upcoming season, so the Wings posted a tutorial about the process:

2. In the “editorial content” department, Arthur J. Regner penned a scouting report/”By the Numbers” look at defenseman Gustav Lindstrom and his 2017-18 season;

3. Luke Witkowski flew with the Thunderbirds on Friday, taking a back-seat flight in an F-16D Falcon as a VIP ahead of the Thunder Over Michigan airshow at Willow Run Airport this weekend;

4. Drew Miller is more or less retired after a season playing in the Swedish League, so he spoke with DetroitRedWings.com’s Dana Wakiji from the Wings’ fantasy hockey camp, also speaking with Arthur J. Regner on the latest “Red and White Authority” podcast:

5. Dana Wakiji also filed an article about the Wings’ fantasy hockey camp;

6. And the Wings posted a video of the Danny Cleary hockey school stopping in Bloomfield Hills, MI:

 

D. Otherwise…

1. On Twitter…


2. Out west in Victoria, British Columbia, Joe Hicketts spoke with CHEK’s Kevin Charach as he skated with the WHL’s Victoria Royals;

3. According to the Adirondack Daily Enterprise, Jeff Blashill spent part of this week taking part in the USA Hockey Coaches’ Symposium in Lake Placid, NY;

4. And in the gratuitous plug department, my friend Courtney is among the second group of Grand Rapids Griffins alternate jersey design submissions, and UniWatch is asking fans to vote upon said jersey designs.

Update: Also:

1. Joe Kocur spoke with Arthur J. Regner for a “Red and White Authority” podcast:

2. The Toledo Blade reports that the Toledo Walleye unveiled a 10th anniversary logo;

3. And Toledo Walleye forward Shane Berschbach engaged in a Q and A with ECHL.com.

Sunday’s ‘Stars and Stripes Showdown’ will honor Jim Johnasson’s legacy

The “Stars and Stripes Showdown” will take place at USA Hockey Arena on Sunday afternoon, with the Dylan Larkin-organized event paying tribute to USA Hockey executive director Jim Johansson, who passed away last January.

The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan penned an article about the game’s nexus…

Larkin spearheaded Sunday’s Stars & Stripes Showdown at Plymouth’s USA Hockey Arena, a charity game — and great opportunity for a no-hitting, fast-skating workout with drop-in team skates beginning soon — honoring Johannson’s impact on USA Hockey, and benefiting the Jim Johannson Legacy Fund of the USA Hockey Foundation and the Ellie Johannson College Fund.

During this endeavor — nearly every NHL team is represented, a sign of the league-wide support — Larkin found out how much work Johannson would typically put in while attempting to assemble national teams.

Larkin was at this spring’s world championships talking with Johannson’s brother, John, and USA Hockey executive director Pat Kelleher, and finalized the game with Kelleher and Scott Monaghan, senior director/operations.

“We were talking about how great of an idea it would be,” Larkin said. “We had a lot of steam behind the idea, everyone was rallying around JJ at the (tournament), and I saw that and thought it would be a great idea.

“It’s going to be special. A lot of superstars are coming into town. It’s going to be a star-studded lineup so it’s pretty cool they are all coming in to honor him and raise money for a great cause.”

Johnny Gaudreau (Calgary), Patrick Kane (Chicago), Auston Matthews (Toronto), Zach Parise and Ryan Suter (both Minnesota) are just some of the players committed to the game.

Red Wings players include Danny DeKeyser, Luke Glendening and Jimmy Howard, joining Larkin. Numerous local pros such as Kyle Connor (Winnipeg), Alex DeBrincat (Chicago), Cam Fowler (Anaheim), Connor Hellebuyck (Winnipeg), Jacob Trouba (Winnipeg) and Zach Werenski (Columbus) also are playing.

Jeff Blashill, Tony Granato (former Wings assistant/current Wisconsin head coach), John Hynes (New Jersey) and David Quinn (New York Rangers) will serve as coaches.

As did The Athletic’s Craig Custance:

“I didn’t think it was going to be this big,” Larkin told The Athletic during a phone conversation this week. “No way I thought it was going to be this big.”

But it is. It’s a testament to Larkin’s tenacity and dedication. But mostly, it’s a testament to just how much Johannson meant to these guys.

This is one of the last weekends before the grind really starts churning for NHL players. It’s one of the last weekends they can hang out with family. It’s one of the last weekends before they can avoid the spotlight and media glare that comes with being an NHL player.

And they’re giving it up. Giving it to the Johannson family. All the proceeds from the game will go to the Jim Johannson Legacy Fund of the USA Hockey Foundation and to the college fund for his 2-year-old daughter, Ellie.

It’s not just players and fans coming for the event. Dignitaries from international hockey federations all over the world have committed to going. The coaching staff features Jeff Blashill, Tony Granato, John Hynes and David Quinn. John Johannson will be sitting with David Brooks, Herb Brooks’ brother. It’s quite the event, especially considering it was put together in just a couple of months.

It says a lot about the impact one person can have.

“Jimmy would be so incredibly proud of this,” his brother [John] said. “He’d be embarrassed. He’d be totally embarrassed by it. But his answer would be, ‘OK, our program. It’s working.’”

The Joe Kocur Foundation’s charity softball games take place today

The Joe Kocur Foundation’s charity softball games will be taking place today at Duck Lake Pines Park in Highland, MI starting at 12 PM today. Tickets are $15 at the gate, and WXYZ’s Brad Galli has a little more about the games:

 

LCA’s center ice logo goes ‘Hockeytown’-less

According to MLive, the Detroit Free Press, Detroit News, WDIV and DetroitHockey.net’s Clark Rasmussen, the Red Wings have at least chosen to paint center ice at Little Caesars Arena with a plain Red Wings logo instead of the team’s “Hockeytown” moniker, and the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan received a prepared statement from the team regarding the logo on Friday afternoon:

At center ice, we will debut a fresh, new look: the Winged Wheel, one of the most iconic logos in professional sports, will be prominently featured. Also, in the coming days, several new initiatives that celebrate the fans and passion of Hockeytown are scheduled to be announced.

The Wings have tended to employ a “Hockeytown”-less center ice logo for their annual fantasy camp, which took place this past week at LCA, for the last couple of seasons, so I wouldn’t exactly have suggested that fans freak out if the logo was different…

But if the Wings are “tuning down” their “Hockeytown” marketing campaign, as Rasmussen suggests, it strikes me as somewhat ironic, because it took 20-or-so years for the city and region to really develop into a place where elite hockey programs are present at every level at which the sport is played.

We’ll see whether this “sticks” to center ice come the regular season.

 

Here’s the Red Wings’ promotional schedule for the 2018-19 season

The Detroit Red Wings have announced their promotional schedule for the 2018-19 season:

RED WINGS ANNOUNCE PROMOTIONS AND GIVEAWAYS FOR 2018-19 SEASON
… Five Bobblehead Giveaways, Community Impact Nights Highlight Exciting Home Schedule at State-of-the-Art Little Caesars Arena …   
DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today announced the promotional schedule and theme nights for the upcoming 2018-19 season. In addition to the unparalleled fan experience and innovations within the state-of-the-art Little Caesars Arena, fans in attendance for Red Wings home games can look forward to exciting one-of-a-kind giveaways and commemorative items for more than 20 of the team’s 41 regular-season home games during the 2018-19 campaign.

Highlighting the list of giveaways are five Bobblehead Nights, starting with Tyler Bertuzzi on Nov. 28 vs. St. Louis (presented by Comerica Bank). The Red Wings will host four additional Bobblehead Nights on Dec. 4 vs. Tampa Bay (presented by Coca-Cola), Jan. 8 vs. Montreal (presented by Saint Joseph Mercy Health System), Feb. 14 vs. Ottawa (presented by Meijer) and Feb. 26 vs. Montreal (presented by Huntington Bank). The players featured on the four additional Bobblehead Nights will be announced at a later date. The first 7,500 fans in attendance at Little Caesars Arena will receive bobbleheads.

Continue reading Here’s the Red Wings’ promotional schedule for the 2018-19 season

Roughly translated: Filip Larsson speaks with Hockeysverige.se about his recovery from injury, NCAA plans

Red Wings prospect and goaltender Filip Larsson engaged in a lengthy interview with Hockeysverige.se’s Uffe Bodin today, discussing last season’s significant groin injury and his college hockey plans.

What follows is roughly translated:

The goaltender’s long way back after the nightmare injury: “The groin moved eleven millimeters”

His dream season ended just too early. In an unfortunate moment, goaltending talent Filip Larsson broke his groin. After a frustrating half-year of rehab, the 20-year-old travels to the United States tomorrow to begin the next chapter of his career at the University of Denver. “You don’t feel the same as before, but it’s it’s fixed,” he told Hockeysverige.se about his injury.

Solna. Hockeysverige.se. Tomorrow the eventure starts. World Junior Championship goaltender Filip Larsson flies to the United States to commence his college career at the renowned University of Denver. Passing across the Atlantic, the former Djurgarden goaltender is not only concerned about starting in a new school and testing a brand new league in the NCAA, but he also carries nervousness about where he stands physically.

Continue reading Roughly translated: Filip Larsson speaks with Hockeysverige.se about his recovery from injury, NCAA plans

Custance discusses three consequences of a possibly Zetterberg-less Wings team

The Athletic’s Craig Custance examines what might happen if Henrik Zetterberg is unable to play this season. Custance addresses Zetterberg’s absence as it would affect the Wings’ captaincy, the team’s salary cap situation, and the loss of Zetterberg’s on-ice presence.

As Custance notes, the Wings’ lack of depth at center would be exposed if Zetterberg is unable to play:

This is where it could get ugly for the Red Wings. The key to winning consistently in the NHL is to have a distinct advantage on the ice over your opponent in different areas of the game. Where a player slots in the lineup is a huge part of that. For example, if you have Phil Kessel as your top-line winger, your team might be pretty good. If you have Phil Kessel as your third-line winger, you’re going to win multiple Stanley Cups. That becomes a legitimate competitive advantage.

Even at this point in his career, Zetterberg can play other top lines and hold his own. That allowed Larkin to grow into the second-line center role last season and Frans Nielsen to slot in at No. 3, which is where he should be at this point in his career. It wasn’t necessarily a competitive advantage but it also wasn’t a huge mismatch against the Red Wings.

Now, remove Zetterberg and move everybody up a spot, and it becomes a real disadvantage down the middle.

Custance continues (paywall)

Khan examines Luke Glendening’s 2018-19 possibilities

MLive’s Ansar Khan discusses Luke Glendening’s 2018-19 season possibilities this morning:

2018-19 outlook: Glendening has always been one of those role players that coaches covet – from Red Berenson at Michigan to Mike Babcock and Jeff Blashill in Detroit. His work ethic on and off the ice sets an example for others to follow.

Once again, expect Glendening to do the gritty things teams need from a grinder – block shots, lead the penalty kill, be abrasive, agitate opponents, be hard to play against. He’s developed into the team’s best faceoff man. He can play center or wing on the fourth line. It took him 52 games to score his first NHL goal; he’s scored 34 since in 310 games, a decent pace for a fourth-liner.

Babcock tried to acquire Glendening leading up to the 2018 trade deadline, but the Maple Leafs former general manager, Lou Lamoriello, wasn’t as interested, and the Red Wings weren’t inclined to part with him for a low draft pick.

Continued

Wakiji discusses Matt Puempel’s potential

DetroitRedWings.com’s Dana Wakiji examines the 2017-18 season stats of a “dark horse” prospect in Grand Rapids Griffins forward Matt Puempel. Pumpel’s a bit older at 25, but he displayed a scorer’s form after being traded to Detroit from the Rangers.

Here’s what Wings assistant GM and Griffins GM Ryan Martin had to say to Wakiji about Puempel:

Quotable: “He’s a guy that we kind of watched from afar. He’s had a couple of stints in the NHL but hasn’t been able to stick as a full-time player so when we made the trade for Ryan Sproul for him, I think it was a win-win. It was a situation where the Rangers needed a depth defenseman and we had too many defense(men) in Grand Rapids and the chance to get a guy like Matt into the organization where he’s not in his entry-level contract, he’s not in the first couple of years pro, he’s sort of what we like to call a middle-tier prospect where he’s 25 years old and maybe a new organization and change of scenery gives him the opportunity to show what he can do and then try to sort of establish himself as a more consistent NHL player.”

Continued