The Malik Report

Per the Red Wings comes this bit of PR enjoyment for your perusal. It’s also a bit of free advertising, but that’s okay:

SINGLE-GAME TICKETS FOR 2023-24 DETROIT RED WINGS SEASON GO ON SALE THIS FRIDAY AT 10 A.M.

• Home Opener set for Saturday, Oct. 14 vs. Tampa Bay Lightning, with limited tickets available
• New-look Red Wings to host 18 weekend games at Little Caesars Arena
• New Jersey Devils to visit Detroit for annual Thanksgiving Eve game; Red Wings will host Boston Bruins on afternoon of New Year’s Eve
• Three separate 10-game plans currently on-sale and tailored to fans’ availability
• Tickets, fan travel packages available for NHL Global Series in Sweden

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today announced that single-game tickets for the highly anticipated 2023-24 season at Little Caesars Arena will go on sale this Friday, August 4 at 10 a.m. at DetroitRedWings.com/tickets.

The upcoming campaign will be full of excitement for Red Wings fans, with a new-look roster that features the additions of Alex DeBrincat, J.T. Compher, Daniel Sprong, Shayne Gostisbehere and more. Friday’s launch of single-game tickets will be the first chance for fans to reserve seats for Opening Night at Little Caesars Arena, on Saturday, Oct. 14 against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Continue reading Press release: Red Wings single-game tickets go sale on Friday

NHL.com’s Adam Kimelman discusses the competition for the top goaltending spot on the United States’ World Junior Championship team, which includes Red Wings prospect Trey Augustine, former Red Wings development camper Andrew Oke, Canadiens prospect Jacob Fowler, Florida Panthers prospect Tyler Muszelik and Kings prospect Andrew Slukynsky:

United States coach David Carle has learned one thing about his team’s goaltending for the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship.

“We feel like we have really good depth at the position and some really good competition,” Carle said during the 2023 World Junior Summer Showcase. “I think you’re seeing guys elevate and play well certainly.”

…

“You just kind of see a different perspective now,” said Augustine, who was 4-1 with a 2.85 goals-against average and .891 save percentage in six games to help the U.S. finish third at the 2023 WJC. “You know what the process is like and what it takes to get there. And then obviously, it’s trying to be a leader in the room and kind of help the guys along.”

Oke, who played one period in relief of Augustine in an 11-1 win against Germany in the quarterfinals, sees another chance to play in the World Juniors as motivation to show what NHL teams missed when he went unselected at the 2023 NHL Draft.

“Obviously it didn’t go the way you wanted it to but that’s just how it goes sometimes,” he said. “I’ve been battling here, and especially with the Memorial Cup (played for host Saginaw of the Ontario Hockey League) and trying to make this team, I think it would work out pretty good for me hopefully.”

Carle said it was too soon to say if any of the goalies has separated himself from the pack. Muszelik, who was the final goalie cut from the training camp for the 2023 WJC, said he feels like it’s been an even playing field between the two returnees and the three other goalies.

“We all have the same goal and that’s to be on the team and win a gold medal,” he said. “It’s nice to have competition. I think they’re all highly skilled, good goalies. So it’s fun to be a part of it.”

Continued; it won’t be easy for Augustine to rise above his competition, because they’re all good goaltenders, but he is the incumbent starter.

Daily Faceoff’s Matt Larkin posted a massive list of his top 300 fantasy hockey players, and several Red Wings players made his list. Here they are, in numerical order:

Continue reading 9 Red Wings make Daily Faceoff’s Larkin’s top 300 fantasy hockey player list

Red Wings prospect and 23-year-old defenseman Jared McIsaac spoke with the Truro Daily News’s Lyle Carter regarding being re-signed by the Red Wings recently:

“The summer has been great, it is so nice to get home and to see family, my young cousins and everyone,” McIsaac said. “Julia and I are spending the summer in Dartmouth; we get up to Truro every second weekend.”

Julia Scammell, McIsaac’s girlfriend, is an outstanding athlete. Scammell played hockey for four years at the University of New Hampshire, on a full scholarship. She also starred for the Nova Scotia Canada Games hockey team.

McIsaac, noticeably pleased to have been resigned by Detroit, was asked about his outlook for the 2023-24 hockey season.

“It’s a big year, I know that,” McIsaac said. “I go to camp every year trying to make the big team. If I can prove to them (Detroit) that I can play well in the American Hockey League, be a top defenceman, I believe I’ll prove I’m ready for the NHL. I’m living a childhood dream playing hockey for a living. It’s inspiring that I have a lot of family and friends across the province cheering me on.”

McIsaac’s summer schedule includes working out in the gym five days a week. He also trains with Chris Pierce of the Halifax Mooseheads.

“Besides training with Chris, I’m skating twice weekly. A month before training camp I’ll begin skating four times a week. I’ve bulked up a bit since coming home, I’ve been healthy following last season which is great. The off season is helping with that as well.”

Continued; McIsaac’s uncle, Jon McIsaac, is an NHL referee. Who knew?

Per the Toledo Walleye:

(Toledo, OH) – Defenseman Grant Gabriele has agreed to terms with the Toledo Walleye for the 2023-2024 season.

Gabriele, a native of Brighton, Michigan, joins the Walleye after completing his first professional season last year with the Maine Mariners of the ECHL. In 67 games, the defenseman posted 25 points (9G, 16A) with 22 penalty minutes and finished the season with a plus-5 rating. He made his pro debut with a pair of games for Providence at the end of the 2021-2022 season with no points.

The 26-year-old had five years at Ohio State in which he appeared in 124 contests totaling 13 goals with 37 assists for 50 points. Gabriele set career highs in games played (37), goals (5), assists (15), points (20), penalty minutes (12), and plus/minus (+12) during his final year with the Buckeyes in 2021-2022. He was a member of the Ohio State team that won the Big 10 regular season championship in the 2018-2019 campaign.

The Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe has more on the signing:

The Walleye have now signed nine players: defensemen Gabriele, Thomas Farrell, and Jake Willets, and forwards Carson Denomie, Brandon Kruse, Brandon Hawkins, Conlan Keenan, Sam Craggs, and Mitchell Lewandowski.

Five of the nine players that the Walleye have signed are from the state of Michigan.

The Walleye open the 2023-24 season on Oct. 21 at Kalamazoo. The home opener is set for Nov. 3 against Reading.

Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen wrote a column about Red Wings prospect Anton Johansson, who’s played surprisingly strongly at the World Junior Summer Showcase:

Anton Johansson, who turned 19 last month, will return to Leksands for the upcoming season. He already has played 25 games in the Swedish Hockey League, but understands he has work to do before he is ready to come to North America.

“Mostly defensive stuff,” he said. “I think I need to work on that more this season. I think I have the offense, just work on the defense and try to get more complete.”

Johansson’s lure is that he has the potential to be a full service defenseman. Swedish coaches use him in all situations in this tournament. He has size, offensive skill and defensive desire to be a factor in all three zones. Johansson is trying not to get ahead of himself. Niklas Kronwall, an adviser to Steve Yzerman, talks to Johansson at least once a week in Sweden.

“I just want to play my best game, and show coaches I want to make the team for the world juniors.”

Continued; again, we’re not talking about Johansson becoming a top-pair defenseman, but he certainly looks like a player who’s going to become a professional who can contribute as a two-way defender.

The Hockey News’s Sam Stockton penned a list of stand-out performers from the 3rd day of game competition at the World Junior Summer Showcase, and he lists Red Wings prospect Axel Sandin Pellikka among his top three:

“I had a rough, rough first game,” said Sandin Pellikka.  “Losing 10-1 is not the best way to start the season, but I think the whole team bounced back in this game and we showed who we really are.”

That the recovery came against the Fins made the victory even sweeter.  “We always want to beat Finland, and that’s one of our biggest rivalries right now, so it’s always nice to beat them,” he added.

“He had a tough game Monday, more mistakes than normal from what we can expect from him,” said Swedish coach Magnus Havelid.  “Now you can see he’s back again on the track, and I hope he can take another step on Friday.”

Every time I watch Sandin Pellikka—whether at last year’s World Juniors, Red Wings development camp at the beginning of July, or this week in Plymouth—there are more alluring details to his game that catch my eye.

On Wednesday at USA Hockey Arena, I was struck by three things.

Continued

I’ve talked about Red Wings prospect defenseman Anton Johansson several times this week–and not just because he’s posted 2 goals and 1 assist over the course of 3 World Junior Summer Showcase games. The 6’4,” 196-pound defenseman has been something of a revelation as a 19-year-old who provides steady defense and a surprisingly solid offensive toolkit.

As such, The Athletic’s Max Bultman posted a feature article on Johansson this morning:

“He’s been terrific,” [Axel] Sandin Pellikka said. “As soon as he has the puck in the O-zone, he’s a threat, and he’s good (on) the point and having some good point shots. I really like his game.”

His coach, [Hugo] Havelid, was a bit more reserved, as coaches tend to be, already looking forward to what Johansson can gain from playing more in the SHL this coming season. But he acknowledged the big right-shot defender has “a lot of potential, offensively (and) defensively.”

“He’s an interesting player in many different ways,” Havelid said. “I think he’s (had) a good tournament so far. (It will) probably be good for him to come home and play in the SHL, be more steady, that’s for those players, game-by-game, three games a week with tough men’s hockey, that will help him.”

The offensive part of Johansson’s game seems to come rather naturally to him, with good instincts and skating for his size driving the way. But it’s the defensive side where he’ll need to continue to show he can be counted on, both for the sake of his world junior aspirations and on his trajectory as a Red Wings prospect. He showed moments of being able to use his size in a corner to win a battle and spring a zone exit, and Johansson said Wednesday he “(felt) great defensively this week.”

Continued (paywall)

MLive’s Ansar Khan profiles Red Wings free agent signing Alexandre Doucet this morning. The 21-year-old winger had a dominant season in the QMJHL this past year, posting 58 goals and 115 points. The Red Wings believe that the 6,’ 187-pound winger will be more than simply a Major Junior scoring phenomenon:

“He’s a fit kid, he’s strong on his skates,” Red Wings assistant general manager Kris Draper said. “He put up some good numbers on a very good team. We really liked his consistency of how he played. You watch him play and you could see there were some pro tendencies in his game right now, with opportunities to continue to improve.”

Doucet (6-0, 187) continued to flourish after signing. He led the league with 14 playoff goals and tied for first with 31 postseason points, helping Halifax reach the QMJHL finals, where it lost to Quebec.

Doucet, who participated in Red Wings development camp last month at Little Caesars Arena, said of his strengths: “I think I’m smart, I’m good in front of the net. I work hard in my battles, I’m good on both sides of the ice.”

Doucet admittedly did not warrant being drafted during his first two seasons in juniors, producing only 17 goals and 57 points in 98 games. He broke out his final two years, collecting 91 goals and 190 points in 138 games.

“Even my draft year I knew I wasn’t going to get drafted, so it’s more like not being drafted is motivation,” Doucet said. “I had a great year last year as a 20-year-old. A couple of teams saw that and the Red Wings, too.”

Continued; as Draper says later in Khan’s article, the Red Wings will be interested to see what Doucet can bring to the table during the prospect tournament and training camp next month.

As Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff suggests, Red Wings prospect goaltender Trey Augustine is particularly even-keeled, even by goaltender’s standards. It’s evident when talking to the affable young man that he’s trying to “go with the flow,” positionally speaking:

“I just kind of take it one play at a time,” Augustine explained of his netminding style. “You can’t really control what’s going to happen out there. I think that’s a big part of what I’m trying to do. Just focus on the next play, the next opportunity that I have to make a positive impact on the game.”

On those occasions when the outcome of the play doesn’t go his way, don’t be expecting an explosion of emotion from Augustine. He’s not one to splinter his goal stick over the crossbar. He simply hits reset and gets prepared to make the next save.

“Being level headed just kind of helps me stay even keel throughout the whole game,” Augustine said.

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that Augustine isn’t a determined competitor. Behind his calm exterior is a burning desire to excel. He’s driven to stop the puck and it’s that drive which was encouraging the Red Wings to make the USNTDP Under-18 goalie who is heading to the Michigan State Spartans the 41st overall pick of the 2023 NHL entry draft.

“Very competitive goalie,” Detroit GM Steve Yzerman said. “It kind of sounds silly, but he looks really good in the net. He moves well, his positioning is good. He’s a competitive kid.”

Continued;