The Malik Report

Per the ECHL:

Billy Christopoulos of the Toledo Walleye is the Warrior Hockey ECHL Goaltender of the Week for Dec. 13-19. It is the third time in his career that he has received the weekly honor.
 
Christopoulos went 3-0-0 with a 1.32 goals-against average and a save percentage of .959 in three appearances last week as the Walleye swept a three-game southern road trip.
 
The 27-year-old stopped 32 shots in a 2-1 win at South Carolina on Friday and in a 3-2 victory at Greenville on Saturday before making 30 saves in a 2-1 overtime win at Greenville on Sunday.
 
A native of Raleigh, North Carolina, Christopoulos is 10-2-1 in 13 appearances this season with a 2.62 goals-against average and a save percentage of .914.
 
Christopoulos, who was named to the ECHL All-Rookie Team in 2019-20, has appeared in 61 career ECHL games with Toledo, Indy and South Carolina posting an overall record of 45-10-5 with three shutouts, a 2.36 goals-against average and a save percentage of .924.
 
Prior to turning pro, Christopoulos saw action in 93 career games at the Air Force Academy where he went 42-35-11 with eight shutouts, a 2.29 goals-against average and a save percentage of .913.
 

The Athletic’s Max Bultman filed a second mailbag column this morning, accompanying yesterday’s feature, and he addresses the Red Wings’ lack of depth at the center position today:

Where are we going to find our future No. 1 center or No. 2 center if Larkin stays at No. 1? — Jack

That’s the million-dollar question, Jack. Or, more accurately, the $8 million per year (or more!) question. Larkin is certainly playing like a number one center this season. There’s also no doubt the Red Wings need another player of that caliber to be a true contender.

So, where does that player come from?

Long term, it almost certainly has to come from the draft. True top-line caliber centers almost never hit free agency, and when they do, the cost is so high that you’d better be ready to win immediately once you sign them. To acquire one in a trade, you likely have to give up either a massive draft haul, a top center prospect, or a top-pair defenseman. To me, the Red Wings aren’t in position to go either of those routes this offseason.

That leaves the draft. If things keep up the way they have, the Red Wings won’t have a shot at getting Shane Wright, Logan Cooley or Matthew Savoie — the three pivots I’d be most eager to land in the 2022 draft. That means they may need to unearth a gem a little deeper down the board, much like they did in drafting Larkin No. 15 in 2014, or Tampa Bay did getting Brayden Point in the third round that same year.

That’s much easier said than done — Larkin and Point both likely go top-five in a re-draft — and getting that lucky can’t be the expectation for Detroit. They could easily strike out.

Continued; if the Wings go the draft route, it may take several years to address their deficiencies at the center position, necessitating an “import” via trade or free agency, but that’s part of the rebuilding process.

The Free Press’s Helene St. James posted an early-morning column discussing Grand Rapids Griffins coach Ben Simon’s NHL debut as a substitute for Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill last Saturday, during which time Simon helped the Red Wings win 5-2 over the New Jersey Devils:

It was a hectic day during a tumultuous time. The Wings played Thursday at Carolina, against a Hurricanes team that was short two skaters because of the virus. On Friday, Blashill was among Wings personnel who tested positive, leading Yzerman to summon Simon, Krygier, plus three players from Grand Rapids. Preparing for the Devils was a handful, especially when Zadina received a positive result shortly before game time.

Blashill was a part of pre-game planning via phone and Zoom.

“I talked to Jeff Blashill about line matchups, stuff like that, and you’ve got everything and you’re trying to take a breath, and then Z comes in and he was no longer able to go,” Simon said.

That led to defenseman Jordan Oesterle being moved to forward.

“It was a little bit of flying by the seats of our pants,” Simon said. “But things happen during a game that you have to adjust to, and you just kind of roll with the punches. Jeff had his game plan and we tried our best to implement what he was looking for, and at the end of the day, a lot of the success that night was because of the preparation that went on behind the scenes by Jeff and his staff, even though they weren’t able to be there.”

Yzerman’s advice was “don’t mess it up,” Simon said, and to enjoy the experience: “He was great. We’re missing a lot of players, a lot of coaches, go out there, have fun, and do this to the best of your ability.”

Continued (paywall)

MLive’s Ansar Khan filed a notebook article regarding Grand Rapids Griffins coach Ben Simon’s NHL debut, made on Saturday as he coached the Red Wings in Jeff Blashill’s absence:

When Steve Yzerman summoned Grand Rapids Griffins coach Ben Simon to Detroit to fill in for Jeff Blashill for a game, he gave him a bit of advice.

“Go out there, have fun and do this to the best of your ability,” Simon said the Red Wings general manager told him.

That’s what Simon did while calling the shots behind the bench in a 5-2 victory over the New Jersey Devils at Little Caesars Arena.

Whether or not Simon, 43, realizes his dream to coach in the NHL one day, he will always remember this experience.

“At the end of the day, not a lot of guys can say they stepped behind an NHL bench,” Simon said Monday during a media Zoom call. “For me, whether that was one game or turns into a thousand games over the course of my life, it was a great experience, and to do it for Detroit was pretty cool.”

Continued

FYI:

Sources tell @DailyFaceoff: #NHL, #NHLPA have agreed to suspend all operations for Dec. 22-25 and will re-open team facilities on Dec. 26 no earlier than 2pm local time. No practice, no testing during those days.

Tuesday’s 2 remaining games will be played – pending test results.— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) December 21, 2021

Hearing NHL/NHLPA will agree to pause season Wednesday through Christmas Day. Players will return to team facilities on 26th — one day earlier than usual — so that testing can be resumed.— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) December 21, 2021

Changes in the NHL calendar. Off days are now December 22-23-24 and 25. Players will now report on the 26 for testing and practice. Players can’t be on the ice before 2pm local time.— Renaud Lavoie (@renlavoietva) December 21, 2021

Update:

According to memo sent to teams/players, schedule resumes Monday, Dec. 27. Also: “Upon return from the holiday break to team facilities, no individual in the team’s travelling party shall enter (other than for testing purposes) until they have a negative test result.”— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) December 21, 2021

I tried to give everybody a couple days off from the fundraising posts, but I am still in need of assistance in attempting to make the blog’s household expenses this month, as well as attempting to purchase that necessary cell phone.

If you’re willing to help, this is a shitty time of year to ask, but as the NPR of blogs, this is how we get things done.

If you’re willing to lend a hand, you can use PayPal at https://paypal.me/TheMalikReport, Venmo at https://venmo.com/george-malik-2, Giftly by using my email, rtxg@yahoo.com, at https://www.giftly.com. And you can contact me via email if you want to send me a paper check.

Pro Hockey Talk’s Adam Gretz went the short route with this week’s set of power rankings, and he’s spot on in issuing the following sentence regarding the Red Wings’ present and future:

19. Detroit Red Wings (LW: 19). Whether they make the playoffs this season or not is not really important. What is important is they have a real core of young stars to build around for the next decade and beyond.

Continued; amen to that.

The Hockey News’s Adam Proteau posted a lengthy article today, “taking stock” of the Atlantic Division’s 8 teams, including the Detroit Red Wings:

4. Detroit Red Wings. Games Played: 31. Record: 15-13-3.

What went right: The Red Wings surprised many observers by racing out to a solid-enough 7-5-2 record to start the season. People have been waiting for them to go through adversity, and they’ve emerged from it with relatively few scars. Captain Dylan Larkin’s already-considerable game has improved. Blueliners Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond have shown they’ll be core members for a very long time. And GM Steve Yzerman has more than $11 million in cap space, which should allow him to accelerate the rebuild in Motown.

What is cause for concern: Detroit’s record since Nov. 9 is a pedestrian 8-8-1. Alex Nedeljkovic has posted good numbers in net (.917 SP, 9-7-3 record, 2.78 G.A.A.), but backup Thomas Greiss (6-6-0 record, .893 SP, 3.52 G.A.A.) has not. The Wings’ special teams are lousy. Offense does not come easily for them. Boston is three points behind them for fourth in the Atlantic, but the Bruins have five games in hand on them.

Rest-of-season outlook: The playoffs always were going to be a challenge for this squad, and that’s likely to continue. This isn’t to say they can’t outlast the Bruins and the top teams in the Atlantic, but Yzerman’s rebuild isn’t close to being done. More tweaks, and who knows, maybe bigger moves, are ahead for Detroit this year.

Continued; I think that the Red Wings will be active at the trade deadline, but whether they add or subtract will depend on where they sit in the standings at said time.

Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen examines the Red Wings’ key performers, as well as those who need to step up for Detroit:

Right wing Filip Zadina: He started out playing on the second line. But he has been dropped to a bottom six role because he has one goal in his past 12 games. Zadina was drafted as a scorer, but he hasn’t yet proven he can do it at the NHL level. He has 19 goals in his first 116 NHL games. He’s one of the Red Wings in COVID-19 protocol.

The Red Wings haven’t given up on him. They think he is putting too much emphasis on scoring and not enough on being an effective player. He is -10 over his past seven games.

Defenseman Nick Leddy: On balance, the Red Wings are happy with Nick Leddy’s contributions this season.  But he’s -6 in his last four games and has one point in the past 10 games. He has played less than his usual 20+ minutes in the past two game.

Left wing  Givani Smith: He’s playing under nine minutes per game and has four. He’s had a few good games, but it’s fair to say the Red Wings have been looking for him to have more impact.

Grand Rapids Griffins coach Ben Simon spoke with the media today, and the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan posted an article noting Simon’s remarks regarding his NHL debut on Saturday as the Red Wings’ interim coach:

“There’s a lot going on, a lot of moving pieces,” Simon said Monday during a Zoom call with media. “A little anxiety, panic, excitement. I knew going up it wouldn’t be a very long, and knowing how prepared the people in Detroit are, they’re great people, it was going to be a great experience, regardless.”

Saturday proved to be a memorable experience for Simon, as he coached the Wings to a 5-2 victory.

The Wings were minus six players to protocol, and Blashill and Tanguay were unavailable, but with Dylan Larkin scoring three goals, Tyler Bertuzzi two goals, and goaltender Thomas Greiss making 32 saves, the Wings found a way to win.

And for Simon, it was an evening he will not soon forget.

“It’s a little different because you’re not expecting it,” Simon said of the call up to the NHL, under whatever circumstances, for a coach. “That’s not your goal here. Your goal is to make it to the highest level, but as a coach, you’re really worried about your group and how you’re improving your group on a daily basis.

“When you get the call it’s not expected. But again, it was what it was, you get a little excited and it’s kind of cool. Not a lot of guys can say they’ve sat behind an NHL bench and whether it’s one game for me, or it turns into thousands of games over the course of my life, it was a great experience and to do it for Detroit was pretty cool.”

Continued