The Malik Report

Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen posted a subscriber-only article discussing five storylines worth watching over the course of the Red Wings’ upcoming training camp and exhibition season, and I actually think that Allen’s last topic is the most intriguing to discuss on a Friday night in August:

Searching for New Czarnik: The Red Wings liked Austin Czarnik because he could shuttle between Detroit and Grand Rapids and do what was needed in either place . They trusted him because he was a two-way player with NHL experience.

However, he will play in Switzerland this season. Who replaces him as the first forward call-up? The preseason will help [GM Steve] Yzerman sort that out. The logical choice is center Sheldon Dries. He scored 11 goals for the Vancouver Canucks in 2022-23. Like Czarnik, Dries is considered a pro’s pro.

But let’s not forget Elmer Soderblom is still trying to earn his way back to Detroit. The 6-foot-8 forward tallied 13 goals in 68 games last season in Grand Rapids. The Red Wings could use his size, even though he’s not true physical player.

The other question is whether the Red Wings are intrigued enough with [Marco] Kasper to fast-track him. If they have a long-term injury at center, you can’t rule that out.

Continued (paywall); the Red Wings may also lean on Nate Danielson, Carter Mazur and William Lagesson as first call-ups if the team runs into an injury bug, which seems an inevitable eventuality.

We’ve been following the media’s coverage of Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde’s appearance at the team’s “Summer Hockey in the D” event, and the coach’s comments regarding his team’s offseason additions, the state of the team’s defense and goaltending, and the need to re-sign Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider before training camp begins in a month.

This evening, DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills ties a bow on the coverage with a from-the-team article discussing Lalonde’s remarks, including the following comments:

“I think we did a good job addressing some holes,” Lalonde said. “It feels like guys may be slotted going into the year a little bit. I think we did a good job addressing some offense, which is very important. It’s just exciting. All I’ve known since coming here is progression.”

Lalonde said expectations have been raised after Detroit just missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season.

“This is all part of the process,” Lalonde said. “Expectations have changed because we flirted with getting there — 91 points. We just want a little bit more from everyone. It’s going to be all about a good start.”

For the Red Wings to take another step forward this season, Lalonde said every player must be committed to improving their defensive game.

“We made strides last year,” Lalonde said. “A lot of that was because we were able to find some goals, but obviously I think the numbers speak for themselves. We were a top-10 team in goals scored but bottom-10 in goals against, so we’d love to improve that goals against.”

Detroit added to its blue-line depth this offseason by signing Erik Gustafsson to a two-year free-agent contract and William Lagesson to a one-year free-agent contract on July 1. And prospect Albert Johansson, who inked a one-year, two-way deal on June 19, is expected to compete for a Red Wings roster spot during Training Camp next month.

“I think we were very fortunate last year in staying healthy on the back end, but we’ll need that depth,” Lalonde said. “All eight (defensemen) are very capable. I’m very excited about Simon (Edvinsson). His play towards the end of the year last year was exciting.”

Continued; here’s hoping that we can now move on to the next thing.

Of brief Red Wings-related note on a Friday afternoon:

1. Daily Faceoff’s Mike Gould posted a list of “under-the-radar” prospects who may play for each of the Atlantic Division teams this upcoming season, and Gould makes a safe bet for the Red Wings in Carter Mazur:

Detroit Red Wings: Carter Mazur, LW

The Red Wings surprised some onlookers by taking overage forward Carter Mazur in the third round of the 2021 NHL Draft, but the Jackson, Michigan-born winger has done nearly everything possible to prove them right in the years since. Mazur enjoyed two highly productive seasons at the University of Denver immediately after being drafted and subsequently finished second on the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins in scoring as a first-year pro.

The 22-year-old Mazur is a tenacious forward who relentlessly attacks opponents on the forecheck, wins most of his puck battles, and puts up points at a pretty impressive rate. Although he likely won’t play on the Red Wings’ top two lines once he makes the jump into the NHL, Mazur is a pretty safe bet to become one heck of a bottom-six forward if and when he does make it into Detroit’s lineup. He plays a style that should easily translate to the next level and it’s easy to imagine him popping off for a 20-goal season or two.

2. And while the majority of the Kleine Zeitung’s Martin Quendler’s interview with Marco Kasper is behind a paywall, there’s a full paragraph’s worth of German-language discussion of Kasper’s workouts with KAC Klagenfurt this August:

Continue reading Two things: On Carter Mazur’s likelihood of playing for the Wings this year, and a bit about Marco Kasper’s summertime training

The Hockey News’s Connor Eargood discusses a good question today, wondering aloud where and whether rookie defenseman Albert Johansson fits into Detroit’s lineup this upcoming season:

When Johansson does get into NHL games, Detroit will probably try to put him next to a more experienced player. That’s what Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde did with Edvinsson last season, placing him alongside Petry during a 14-game call-up to end the season. It’s a way to give young players stability while they square up to the NHL. Either a veteran like Petry, or even a top pairing defenseman like Moritz Seider could provide that support for Johansson during his adjustment period.

Out of all the players available, the most likely course of action seems to be playing Johansson alongside Petry or Maatta on the third pairing. Those proven defenders have the experience to support him, while sheltered bottom pairing minutes allow Johansson to acclimate at a comfortable pace.

Of course, this is the situation before the season — before preseason, even. Johansson could come out swinging and prove he’s an NHL defenseman when he gets a chance this fall. It’s an idyllic expectation, but it’s entirely on the table. He could also come out flat, which would leave the Red Wings with tougher questions to answer than just his role.

Because of Johansson’s contract status, Detroit is in a bind to play him while also playing to win. Figuring out how exactly it should do that is a crucial question this season.

Continued; Johansson’s an unknown quantity until he gets some games under his belt, and he’s probably going to have to wait for a spot in the lineup to open up via injuries or trades…But when he does get into the lineup, he’ll have to steal somebody’s job to earn regular playing time.

It’s the fate of just about every player who runs out of waiver-exempt status and becomes an NHL rookie by default.

We’ve talked about big defenseman Brady Cleveland’s decision to leave his home-state University of Wisconsin Badgers to transfer to Colorado College for this upcoming season; today, the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan discusses Cleveland’s decision-making process:

“The way things went at Wisconsin, I looked at it that I needed to go somewhere where I could play a lot of minutes,” Cleveland said last month during the Wings’ development camp. “A lot of minutes is going to lead to better development for myself as a player. I’m excited to play a bigger role on the team. Everything happens for a reason. It’s not always going to be a smooth journey, and I understood that. I’m going to take the lessons I’ve learned so far, move forward with them and try to be a better hockey player.”

Cleveland, 19, was limited to 17 games on the veteran-dominated Badgers, which was part of the frustration. Still, Cleveland appreciated the experience at Wisconsin and felt he progressed as a player.

“I got a lot stronger,” Cleveland said. “Just conditioning on the ice, the practices are tough at Wisconsin and that helped me. We had a really good team (at Wisconsin) and just going against those guys every day made me a better player, even if I wasn’t playing in every single game. I appreciate that.

“Off the ice, I learned a lot about myself and how much I am willing to overcome. Learning to play the game, for the love of the game and digging deep to find that, I found that.”

Continued (with a profile of Austin Baker); sometimes things don’t work out for players attempting to crack an NCAA Division I team’s lineup, and in Cleveland’s case, he had the transfer portal to utilize to earn a better chance at becoming a regular lineup player.

MLive’s Ansar Khan answered two subscriber-only questions in a summertime mailbag feature, and both questions involved trade scenarios:

Q: Columbus looking to unload Patick Laine. Could be a good reclamation project. Any possibility? – Chris

A: Doubtful. The Blue Jackets probably will need to retain 50 percent of his salary or close to it to move him (two years remaining at an $8.7 million AAV). If the Red Wings were to somehow make a huge move it would probably be for a center rather than a right wing like Laine.

Laine is only 26 but hasn’t been the same since his second season in 2017-18, when he produced career highs with 44 goals and 70 points. He hasn’t played more than 56 games in any of the past four seasons due to injuries and last season a stint in the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program.

The Red Wings would be better off keeping any tradeable assets for a higher upside return.

Continued (paywall); at this point, Laine’s commitment to playing is a little questionable, frankly, and while I hope that he’s going to rebound after getting the help he needed from the NHLPA’s Player Assistance Program, I wouldn’t touch him with a ten-foot pole.

A couple minutes of fun coaching:

Per the Detroit Red Wings:

SINGLE-GAME TICKETS FOR 2024-25 DETROIT RED WINGS SEASON GO ON SALE MONDAY, AUGUST 12 AT 10 A.M.

• Home Opener presented by Coca-Cola Zero Sugar set for Thursday, Oct. 10 vs. Penguins
• Red Wings home for 22 weekend games at Little Caesars Arena
• Thanksgiving Eve game vs. Flames; New Year’s Eve game vs. Penguins
• Fans can move to top of 2025-26 Winged Wheel Nation waitlist by purchasing 10-game plan for upcoming 2024-25 season

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today announced single-game tickets for the highly anticipated 2024-25 season at Little Caesars Arena will go on sale Monday, August 12 at 10 a.m. at DetroitRedWings.com/Tickets. 

“The home opener at Little Caesars Arena is just two months away, and much like our fans, we’re excited about the return of Red Wings hockey,” said Ryan Gustafson, President and CEO, Ilitch Sports + Entertainment. “Single-game tickets will be in high demand, so we encourage our fans to secure their seats. The energy at the arena last season was at an all-time high, and we know the Hockeytown faithful will continue to create a tremendous home-ice advantage for our players.”

Little Caesars Arena will host 22 weekend games, including five on Friday nights, 10 games on Saturdays and seven contests on Sundays.

The Red Wings will host nine games against Original Six rivals, including two games each against the Rangers (Thursday, Oct. 17 and Saturday, Nov. 9), Bruins (Saturday, Nov. 23 and Saturday, March 29), Maple Leafs (Saturday, Dec. 14 and Friday, Dec. 27) and Canadiens (Friday, Dec. 20 and Thursday, Jan. 23). The Blackhawks will visit Little Caesars Arena on Friday, Jan. 10.

Continue reading Press release: Red Wings’ single-game tickets go on sale Monday, August 12th at 10 AM EDT

This Tweet from the Red Wings offers a difficult question to Red Wings fans:

⁉️ pic.twitter.com/WdDmdAF40m

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) August 9, 2024

I’ve got three handfuls of players that I admired throughout the 90’s. At the very least.

Via Red Wings Prospects on Twitter, the SHL’s website suggests that fans of Sweden’s best hockey league pay attention to 10 “Junior-aged” players, including Michael Brandsegg-Nygard and Axel Sandin Pellikka of Skelleftea AIK:

Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, forward, Skelleftea: The Norwegian great talent Michael Brandsegg-Nygard took a huge step in the Allsvenksan with Mora last year. The right-handed shooter had a tentative start, but grew gradually, finishing the regular season with 12 points in 18 games (and 18 points in 41 games total), and he posted 10 points in 12 playoff games. The forward joined the Norwegian World Championship team, and was then selected by the Detroit Red Wings as early as the number 15 in the NHL Draft (and no Norwegian player has been selected that highly before). Skelleftea’s expectations are that the 18-year-old, who turns 19 in October, are high. He’s a really sharp goal-scorer.

Axel Sandin Pellikka, defenseman, Skelleftea: One of last year’s big sensations in the SHL, Axel Sandin Pellikka impressed greatly with his defensive game, not only offensively, where he sometimes excelled on the power play. The 19-year-old thundered in 10 goals and was thus only a goal away from touching the goal record for a junior-aged defender in the SHL (11 goals in 1 season, posted by Tomas Jonsson in 1978-1979 and Nils Lundkvist in 2019-2020). He already is a high-class SHL’er and he will play a prominent role for Skelleftea.

Continued (in Swedish); it’s nice to see balanced praise for two of the Red Wings’ top prospects as key parts of Skelleftea’s build toward repeating as SHL champions this upcoming season.

I’m much less worried about the statistics that MBN or ASP post and much more interested in seeing both players play well and play consistently well for Skelleftea.