The Malik Report

Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman discussed his team in a speech made to the West Michigan Sports Commission on Wednesday, and he’s gotten a bit of flak for suggesting that making the playoffs this season is not his first priority for the Red Wings. 97.1 the Ticket’s Will Burchfield isn’t among that field, suggesting that Yzerman’s remarks were in fact pretty darn measured and wise:

Indeed, it’s been four years since the Red Wings, Tigers, Pistons or Lions made the playoffs, the longest drought among U.S. cities represented in each of the big four North American sports. It’s been seven years since Detroit won a playoff game — the Red Wings, in 2016 — and 10 years since it won a playoff series — the Tigers, in 2013. Yzerman is well aware. But no, he doesn’t feel “any extra pressure” to end this drought, because merely making the playoffs isn’t his goal. That would be selling this town — Hockeytown, anyway — short.

“We would love to make the playoffs (this season),” Yzerman said. “But is it playoffs-or-bust? Internally, no.”

The Lions may well take care of the playoff drought themselves. Favorites in the NFC North, they’re poised to break through this year under Dan Campbell and Brad Holmes. Yzerman says the optimism around them is “well-deserved.” But if the Lions live down to their own standard, the Red Wings are Detroit’s next best shot at a playoff team. After another active offseason, headlined by the acquisition of Alex DeBrincat, this is by far the deepest and most talented roster of Yzerman’s five-year tenure as GM.

If that leads the Wings back to the playoffs, great. Their seven-year drought is the second-longest in the NHL and tied for the longest in franchise history. If it doesn’t, well, fine. Asked if making the playoffs is something that “has to happen” this season, Yzerman said, “I wouldn’t put it in those terms.”

“Our goal isn’t just to make the playoffs. Our goal is to build a championship team, a team that can compete for a championship,” he said. “So the moves we’re making along the way aren’t necessarily designed toward, ‘Oh my god, we gotta make the playoffs this year, or playoffs-or-bust.’

“No, again, we’re trying to build a nucleus of a young team that’s going to be together for a long time that can compete in the playoffs for the Stanley Cup, and we’re sticking with that path.”

Continued; I’m not going to lie as a Red Wings partisan; I want the team to make the playoffs as soon as possible.

That being said, I understand that Yzerman’s long-term approach is likely to pay off in the long run. I just don’t like to admit the fact that the Red Wings are still in the middle of their real Yzerman rebuild, not trending toward a completed end thereof.

DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills looked back at Jake Walman’s first full season with the Red Wings on Thursday afternoon, noting that Walman expects to continue to improve as he continues forward, presumably paired with one Moritz Seider:

 Then the Detroit Red Wings acquired Walman at the 2022 trade deadline, marking a new opportunity for the 27-year-old blueliner to prove himself. After playing 19 games with Detroit in 2021-22, Walman emerged as a top-pair defenseman last season and set career-highs in goals (nine), assists (nine), points (18) and games played (63).

“I did a lot of things that I put my mind to,” Walman said in his end-of-season media session. “The people that have been riding with me, family and close friends, they’ve known that I had it in me. I just needed a chance to show it.”

Walman was rewarded for his breakout campaign with a three-year contract extension on Feb. 28.

 “All the stuff I’ve been through and the adversity I had to get through to get here, I think I was ready for the challenge,” the 6-foot-2, 215-pound blueliner said. “For me, I’m just gonna keep running and going with it.”

Continued; I hope that Walman is correct regarding his ascendant play.

ESPN’s Sean Allen gives Alex DeBrincat a nod as a “mid-tier” fantasy hockey pick for poolies to snag, suggesting that DeBrincat’s return to his hometown Red Wings should probably pay off with a rebound season:

Alex DeBrincat, W, Detroit Red Wings: Ranking 32nd and 18th in the two seasons prior to last season’s 73rd place for fantasy points, DeBrincat screams right player, wrong fit when it came to his time with the Senators. Now with Detroit, there are even some suggestions of late that Patrick Kane is going to engineer a reunion. Either way, DeBrincat is a top finisher who should benefit from the change of scenery.

Continued; it’s just a bit of a snippet here, but I figured it was worth mentioning.

And no, I don’t see Patrick Kane coming to Detroit.

The Hockey News’s Sam Stockton doesn’t believe that there’s a “fit” between Patrick Kane and the Detroit Red Wings. Stockton is concerned about the fact that Kane had hip resurfacing surgery, which is still a very serious procedure, and Stockton believes that Kane bombed as a New York Ranger for a reason:

Even if Kane’s updates on his own status are 100% accurate, and he really does feel better than he did a year ago, there is no assurance that such a feeling translates to him returning to the form he once enjoyed.

Based on Kane’s comments to the AP, it seems reasonable to assume his return to action will come later rather than sooner (i.e. December rather than November).  From there, he will still require some amount of acclimation period to get reacquainted with NHL game pace.

Meanwhile, the Red Wings have numerous better options to put alongside DeBrincat than an aging and injured (or recovering) Kane.  If the goal is to maximize the production of Detroit’s biggest summer acquisition, linemates like Dylan Larkin, Lucas Raymond, Jonatan Berggren, J.T. Compher, or Andrew Copp are more enticing. 

Kane might be able to put up points alongside DeBrincat (or even without him), but that alone doesn’t justify his integration into this team. He’s still a good set-up man and above average finisher, but you have to also consider the other side of the puck.

Continued;  Stockton explains that Kane simply doesn’t play well defensively, and, as such, he can be a liability in his own end.

Now I’m willing to admit that Patrick Kane is a singular talent in terms of his passing and shooting, but at 34, coming off a surgery that only one player has returned from successfully (Nicklas Backstrom of the Washington Capitals), he’d be a risky signing…

And Kane will have the option to slide into the middle of a contender’s line-up anyway. That’s where I see him ending up unless his desire to reunite with DeBrincat is all-encompassing.

Long story long, I don’t see the “fit,” either, and he’s simply going to have better options.

I’ve got to give a thumbs-up regarding the following column from Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen, and I’ll tell you why in a little bit:

All Detroit Red Wings fans should care about the Jake Sanderson eight-year $64.4 contract with the Ottawa Senators is how it will impact future negotiations with Moritz Seider.

The answer: probably not much.

Sanderson was drafted a year later  (2020) than Seider (2019).  The young Ottawa defenseman, son of forrmer NHLer Geoff Sanderson, opted to go for the security. The Senators want to show fans they are committed to winning with new ownership coming aboard. In theory, there’s some risk here for Ottawa because they are giving him eight years after watching him for only 77 games. But it’s not much risk because it is accepted that Sanderson will be an elite No. 1 defenseman.

This could eventually be a bargain for Ottawa if Sanderson matures into one of the top five defensemen in the game. That’s plausible.

The Seider situation is different. With 164 games on his resume, he’s already fully established as an elite D Man. He’s not getting there. Seider is there, and he’s going to keep improving. Unless the Red Wings surprise us and get Seider signed quickly, the Red Wings will see more of Seider’s potential this season. He becomes a restricted free agent next summer.

Sanderson and Seider will both be high impact performers, but Seider offers a physical level and a beastly presence that raises his value.

Continued; at first, I certainly thought, “Crap, the Sanderson contract is going to make Seider more expensive to re-sign,” but Mr. Allen is correct as usual here. Seider’s going to cost the Wings more to re-sign to a long-term contract, and he may or may not end up as the highest-paid player on the Wings’ roster.

FYI from the Grand Rapids Griffins:

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The American Hockey League on Thursday announced that the start time for the Grand Rapids Griffins’ home game against the Toronto Marlies on Saturday, Nov. 11 has been changed from 8 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Of prospect-related note on Thursday:

In the Champions Hockey League, Axel Sandin Pellikka did not play in Skelleftea AIK’s 1-0 loss to the Rouen Dragons;

In the VHL, Dmitri Buchelnikov had a goal and two assists, playing 15:56 in SKA Neva St. Petersburg’s 4-2 win over Ruben;

And MLive’s Ansar Khan filed a “cheat sheet” regarding the Red Wings’ European-playing prospects for this upcoming season. Among the Swedes playing for European teams are the following players:

Continue reading Prospect news: ASP scratched for CHL game; Buchelnikov 1+2 in VHL; Khan posts list of Wings’ European-playing prospects

Here’s an FYI in the alumni department: the Chicago Blackhawks announced late Thursday night that they’ll be retiring Chris Chelios’s #7, and the former Red Wings defenseman found out about the news at a Pearl Jam concert.

The press release for the event reads like only a Blackhawks press release could:

In front of a sold-out crowd of over 20,000 people at the United Center tonight, Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder surprised his friend, and Chicago Blackhawks legend, Chris Chelios by announcing the team will have his No. 7 retired in an on-ice ceremony on Sunday, February 25 when the Blackhawks host the Detroit Red Wings. Chelios was brought on stage for the surprise moment to kick off the celebration.

Chelios—who was born and raised in Chicago—currently serves as Team Ambassador within the organization and will be the ninth Blackhawks player to have his number retired in franchise history joining: Glenn Hall (#1), Pierre Pilote (#3), Keith Magnusson (#3), Bobby Hull (#9), Denis Savard (#18), Stan Mikita (#21), Tony Esposito (#31) and Marian Hossa (#81). Fans wishing to attend this special event can visit Blackhawks.com/Tickets for tickets to the game.

Continue reading Press release: Blackhawks to retire Chris Chelios’s #7 on January 25th vs. Red Wings

Daily Faceoff’s Steven Ellis posted a list of his 5 best candidates who should rebound from “sophomore slumps,” and Lucas Raymond made Ellis’ list:

Lucas Raymond, RW, 21 (Detroit Red Wings)

2022-23 stats: 74GP/17G/28A/45P

Raymond had the best season of anyone on this list, scoring 17 goals and 45 points in 74 games. But after scoring 23 goals and 57 points in 82 outings as a rookie, expectations were definitely higher. Raymond exceeded expectations as a rookie, going from a middle-six contributor with SHL Frolunda in 2020-21, but his early career play with the Red Wings made him appear like the real deal. He’s only 21, so there’s little reason to be concerned about the fall in production, but breaking the 60-point barrier would go a long way in helping the fanbase’s confidence. It’s worth noting he was Sweden’s best player at the World Championship, and it’s not uncommon to a see a player coming off a difficult season shine at the tournament before bouncing back in a big way the following year.

Continued; I expect Raymond to take a step forward this season, even if he’s playing on the Wings’ second line.

DetroitRedWings.com’s Art Regner has penned a profile of fan favorite Tomas Holmstrom as part of his “How Swede It Is” series of articles this morning:

Tomas Holmstrom never thought much about playing in the NHL.

“I was playing in the league under the Swedish Elite League and in 1992-93, I got the chance to move up to a better team in the Elite League in Sweden,” Holmstrom said. “There was a scout for Washington that saw me play with that team and told me that I was going to be drafted. I thought I was going to be a Washington Capital, but it ended up that the Detroit Red Wings took me in the 10th round (257th overall – 1994 NHL Entry Draft). My goal at that time was to first play in the Swedish Elite League and maybe even break into the Swedish national team before I would get the chance to go to the NHL.

“Until they drafted me, I had no idea that the Red Wings were interested in me. I didn’t know that much about the team except for a few of the players like Steve Yzerman, Dino Ciccarelli and Keith Primeau; who was a tough boy. I knew that they were a good hockey club and one of the Original Six teams. I didn’t know much more than that.”

Unbeknownst to Holmstrom, Detroit’s European scout Hakan Andersson was aware of him and though he liked certain aspects of his game, he wasn’t sure if Holmstrom’s build would hold to the rugged NHL style of play.

“He was actually at a camp when he was 17 years old for the Under-18 team. He may have turned 18, I don’t know,” Andersson said. “He was there at a camp, he was small, but he was tenacious and he kept going to the net and he battled. But he was about 5-foot-10, 165 pounds. Then a couple years later, I stumble across a friend of mine who was a coach up north, had him on his team, and I said, ‘Oh, I know that little shrimp.’ He said, ‘No, no, no, no. This kid is 6-feet, 190 pounds.’ This was two, three years later. So, I said, ‘Oh, that’s interesting.’ So that’s how I stumbled on him.”

Continued