Woodward Sports’ Foster: If Barry Sanders can be immortalized in Bronze, how about Yzerman, Lidstrom or Fedorov?

With the Detroit Lions revealing a Barry Sanders tribute statue on September 16th at Ford Field, the Woodward Sports Network’s Terry Foster suggests that Detroit’s other major sports teams ought to consider honoring their modern-era players, starting with the Detroit Red Wings:

Now maybe this will give the Pistons and Red Wings a kick in the pants. How come there is no Steve Yzerman statue at Little Caesars Arena? How come there is no Nick Lidstrom? Or Sergei Fedorov? On the Pistons side an Isiah Thomas statue, was rumored to happen, but I’ve been told that has been put on hold mostly because the Pistons do not own the arena and are simply a tenant.

Yzerman should be next in line, but is so humble he probably is holding up his own statue ceremony. He should be next in line. He was the captain for many years, helping the Wings to four Stanley Cup titles, and he is trying to bring more as he rebuilds the Wings from the ground up as General Manager.

Continued; I don’t disagree at all. If Barry Sanders can be immortalized, it’s time to give Yzerman, Lidstrom and yes, Sergei Fedorov their place in history before the gentlemen hit 60.

Monroe: New Walleye signing Bradon Kruse looking excited about playing for Walleye

Per the Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe:

Among the reasons former Bowling Green State University forward Brandon Kruse wanted to return to northwest Ohio was the chance to play at the Huntington Center.

Kruse, a highly-skilled winger who averaged nearly a point per game in a four-year career at BG, signed with the Toledo Walleye last month. The native of Saline, Mich., played against the Walleye while with the Newfoundland Growlers last December.

“For me, it was pretty cool. I was excited. So many friends and family were there,” Kruse said. “As an opposing team, it’s a little intimidating. But at the same time, I can say it’s really easy to get up for games there. You live for those moments and those crowds. It’s pretty easy to play in those environments, because you’re just so jacked up.”

Kruse had two assists for the Growlers in a 6-4 loss to the Walleye on Dec. 27. It was a sizable turnout of 8,072 fans for a rare Tuesday night game.

“It’s definitely a great atmosphere, and I can’t wait to play there all season,” Kruse said.

Continued

Toledo Walleye release 2023-2024 promotional schedule; single-game tix on sale

Per the Toledo Walleye comes a promo for the team’s 2023-2024 season promotional schedule, as well as the announcement that single-game tickets are on sale today:

THN’s Stockton discusses Bob Probert’s complicated legacy

The Hockey News’s Sam Stockton posted an essay regarding former Red Wings and Blackhawks enforcer Bob Probert’s legacy as a “tragic hero” who paid the hard way for being the NHL’s premier enforcer, perhaps of all time:

Perhaps the most succinct description of Probert’s game comes from one of his contemporaries, enforcer Chris Kotsopoulus: “He was like a battleship cruising the ice ready to take on all comers. Plenty of guys were just simply scared sh–less of him.”

But for Probert, hockey never seemed to exist in a vacuum. Booze, drugs, and addiction were close at hand away from the rink, and on the ice, it’s not that his work wasn’t appreciated, but its cost didn’t become clear until it was too late.

A tragic hero if ever there were one, Probert battled addiction and legal trouble throughout his NHL career. There were car and motorcycle accidents, DUIs, an arrest for cocaine possession at the Windsor-Detroit border, and several stays at rehab.

Then, as is so often and so cruelly the case, Probert paid the greatest price for the enforcer’s lifestyle once he’d entered a new era of his life—as a family man. At the age of 45, the father of four died of a heart attack suffered while boating on Lake St. Clair between Michigan and Ontario.

Posthumous examinations of his brain at Boston University revealed that he had suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (better known as CTE), a by-product of his years as a professional bare-knuckle brawler.

The tragedy of Bob Probert makes irrefutably clear the connections between the role of the enforcer, hockey culture, substance abuse, and head trauma. Once the toughest man in the NHL, Probert’s life ended well before his time because of the physical abuse he could absorb and mete out on a hockey rink.

Continued; in a way, I remain in awe of what Probert accomplished as a combination power forward and power enforcer on the ice, but I’m incredibly grateful that the hockey culture is changing and moving away from accepting the kind of shit he had to deal with off the ice.

A bit of WJSS praise for Trey Augustine

FloHockey’s Chris Peters attended the World Junior Summer Showcase in Plymouth, Michigan last week, and he posted a set of evaluations of each and every one of Team USA’s defensemen and goaltenders who participated in the week-long event, including Red Wings prospect Trey Augustine:

Trey Augustine, Michigan State (DET): The presumptive starter for Team USA at the tournament after getting starts at last year’s WJC, Augustine did little to dissuade anyone from that status. He’s a contained, smart goaltender who doesn’t waste a lot of movement in the net and reads plays exceptionally well. None of the goalies in camp had spectacular numbers and Augustine never played a full 60-minute game as USA’s brass wanted more looks at other goalies. In three appearances, Augustine gave up five goals while making 34 saves in about 90 minutes of ice time.

Continued

Tweet of note: Mickey Redmond appears on Bally Sports Detroit’s Tigers broadcast

Red Wings color commentator Mickey Redmond spoke with Bally Sports Detroit’s Johnny Kane during today’s Detroit Tigers broadcast, discussing the Red Wings’ offseason moves:

DHN’s Allen ranks Larkin as the 6th-best Atlantic Division center

Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen ranks Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin as the 6th-best center in the Atlantic Division:

6. Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings

Now 27, Larkin is coming off his best NHL production of 79 points. He netted his third season of scoring 30 or more goals. He isn’t the premium scorer that some fans want him to be, but he can be a difference maker with his skating and skill. He’s a leader and he cares deeply about trying to get this team into the playoffs.

At this point of the Red Wings’ rebuild, Larkin plays a major role in whether they succeed or fail on a nightly basis.

Continued

Coach Lalonde discusses the Wings’ offseason moves with DetroitRedWings.com’s Mills

Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde helped kids in Detroit learn how to play street hockey on Tuesday as part of the Red Wings’ “Street Hockey in the D: Summer Series.”

Coach Lalonde spoke with DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills regarding both the importance of grassroots programs like the Wings’ “Learn, Play Score” program, as well as the state of the franchise as it appears after Steve Yzerman’s summertime moves:

“I love the offseason,” Lalonde said. “I just wanna be relevant as a team and there’s no doubt in my mind that we are. Where we take that is gonna be on us.”

One of the biggest signings Detroit made in free agency was a five-year deal for forward J.T. Compher on July 1.

“He’s diverse and can play on the wing,” Lalonde said about Compher. “I know in the free-agent process, that’s what we were sold on him. We’re just excited that he wanted to be here.”

Lalonde also said defenseman Justin Holl, who inked a three-year deal with Detroit on July 1, will help bolster the team’s back-end depth.

“I like Justin a lot,” Lalonde said. “We land these kids in free agency and then as coach, you go watch them. I really like, with Justin, he defends and is a first-pass guy.”

Then on July 9, Detroit made a splash for more offense by acquiring forward Alex DeBrincat via trade with the Ottawa Senators. Almost immediately after the trade, the Farmington Hills, Mich., native signed a four-year contract extension with the Red Wings.

“I felt there were a lot of hockey games we had a really good team game, the guys did exactly what we asked and we played really well, but we just couldn’t finish,” Lalonde said. “Some of those games in which we had a good team game we ended up not getting points. We need goals, and that’s something obviously (DeBrincat) can do.”

Continued; WDIV posted a video from the event as well: