The Malik Report

FYI regarding the Red Wings’ preseason slate of 8 games:

Details for our preseason game in Chicago. pic.twitter.com/P6lGHIVL6f

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) August 3, 2022

Early August is time to give a shout-out to underappreciated folks, and here’s a press release that does just that, from the Grand Rapids Griffins:

GRIFFINS TICKET DEPARTMENT COLLECTS TRIO OF AWARDS

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – At the recent league meetings in Allentown, Pa., the American Hockey League named the Grand Rapids Griffins the Ticket Sales Department of the Year for 2021-22. In addition, Griffins group events manager Bre’onna Raymo was named the Top Group Sales Executive, while senior account executive Michael Kiel garnered Rookie of the Year accolades in the Western Conference.

The Griffins finished third in the AHL last season with an average attendance of 7,029 and ended the campaign with 267,095 total fans. Kiel concluded the year with the highest group sales revenue by a rookie in the Western Conference while Raymo paced all AHL group sales executives in revenue.

The ticket department previously won the ticket sales department of the year honor in 2010-11 and 2013-14, the latter being achieved under active vice president of ticket sales and digital marketing Matt Batchelder. Raymo returned to the podium after finishing in second place during the 2018-19 season, the last time the AHL gave out department awards.

Grand Rapids will open the 2022-23 season against the San Diego Gulls on Friday, Oct. 14 at 7 p.m. with Opening Night presented by Huntington Bank.

Fans can secure their full-season, select-season or group ticket packages by calling (616) 774-4585 ext. 2 or visit griffinshockey.com for more information. Single-game tickets for the Griffins’ 2022-23 season will go on sale to the public later this summer through griffinshockey.com/tickets. Be sure to sign up to receive the Griffins Nation newsletters to be the first to know when tickets go on sale.

I never quite know what to do with these Tweets. Red Wings prospect Dmitri Buchelnikov scored a goal at the Sochi Open in Russia today…

🚨 #LGRW Dmitri Buchelnikov
🍎 Matvei Michkov #SochiHockeyOpen pic.twitter.com/N8HWpLiWIj— Hockey News Hub (@HockeyNewsHub) August 3, 2022

And Red Wings prospects on Twitter posted it…

Buchelnikov playing for the Russian U25 team in a pre-season tournament in Sochi. #LGRW https://t.co/uIcFKTmxWz— Red Wings Prospects (@DRWProspects) August 3, 2022

But it’s a preseason tournament, so it’s just a first glimpse of a Wings prospect. Take with salt.

ESPN’s Kristen Shilton posted a list of 6 players who she believes were the best “under-the-radar signings” of the free agency period this summer, and the Red Wings earn a nod for inking David Perron to a 2-year deal:

David Perron, F, Detroit Red Wings

The deal: Two years, $9.5 million

Detroit made a flurry of moves early in free agency. Adding Perron was among their best.

The 34-year-old turned back the clock again last season for the St. Louis Blues, scoring 27 goals and 57 points in 67 regular-season games, then tallied nine goals and 13 points in 12 playoff tilts. It was big-time stuff from a veteran who’s been quite good since joining the Blues for their 2018-19 campaign.

That St. Louis couldn’t find the salary-cap space to hold on to Perron was a disappointment — but not to the Red Wings, who have reeled in a difference-maker on a tidy contract.

Perron is going to produce on the ice in a middle-six role that boosts Detroit’s stable of young, talented forwards. That group started hot last season and ran out of gas; Perron is a firecracker to keep that spark alight. He’s an excellent two-way winger who excels along the perimeter, drives play and will be a valuable asset in raising the bar on Detroit’s power play (which was 26th overall last season). Perron could be just what struggling sniper Jakub Vrana needs in a linemate, bringing veteran presence with enough speed to keep up.

While Andrew Copp‘s signing might have garnered more attention in Detroit — and Copp deserves it — Perron coming on board will have just as immediate an impact. He and Copp could even see playing time together. Detroit’s youth caught up to them last season. Perron has experience that could push the Red Wings to greater heights. And Detroit gets that without a longer-term pact that may have aged poorly. It’s good for everyone.

Continued (paywall); the Red Wings bought themselves depth and depth scoring over the course of the draft (via the Husso trade) and free agency, and Perron provides good depth scoring, as well as a fair amount of snarl. He’s going to be a fan favorite.

The Athletic’s Dom Luszczyszyn posted a list ranking the NHL’s 32 teams based on their “contract efficiency” this morning. He ranks the Red Wings 20th overall based upon win probability and his “Game Score Value Added” model, with the Ben Chiarot signing earning a “D-” and the team earning a “C+”:

20. Detroit Red Wings

Last season: 15th

Everyone seems to love the Yzerplan and the Red Wings rebuild and the team has done some strong work towards getting to the next step. The David Perron signing this summer was extremely savvy and Dominik Kubalik is a decent bet at his price point too. The Jakub Vrana trade from two seasons prior was strong too and those three mark up Detroit’s best contracts. 

But for the most part, there aren’t a lot of great deals on the books and the team hamstrung themselves a bit with two signings in particular this summer: Andrew Copp and Ben Chiarot. Copp is a nifty utility player, but the price tag and term are a bit much for what he offers. Chiarot is the bigger issue as he’s being paid to be a solid number three on the depth chart and is probably better suited to a third pair role. This model (and any other) isn’t very fond of what he brings to the table so Detroit gets a big ding for that, maybe bigger than it actually should. Still, those two deals represent Detroit’s longest cap commitments which aren’t ideal.

The Red Wings rank 20th here, but one massive advantage they have is having Lucas Raymond and Moritz Seider on ELCs. That’s a huge bonus that no other team possesses. If those two counted, they would drive up the surplus value by a decent amount. Seider is already an $8 million calibre defender while Raymond is close to a $6 million forward.

Continued; I’m no fan of the Chiarot deal, but the Red Wings made an expensive investment in actual NHL depth this offseason, and I’m comfortable with the deals that Steve Yzerman made overall.

This is one person’s opinion as to how one values NHL contracts, albeit a very thorough one.

MLive’s Ansar Khan posted a morning article which discusses Red Wings 2021 draft pick Shai Buium, who won the NCAA Division 1 hockey championship with teammates Carter Mazur and Antti Tuomisto as the University of Denver Pioneers took the title:

“It was incredible,” Buium said. “We had a special group, and we did a special thing. Probably one of the best times of my life.”

Buium played in 39 of the Pioneers’ 41 games and ranked third among the team’s defensemen with 18 points, including three goals, and posted a plus-20 rating, all while soaking up knowledge from the upperclassmen.

“Seeing the older guys, they put their hearts into the game,” Buium said. “We have guys on our team that have been there for five years, like Ryan Barrow. Just watching him win is incredible to learn how to mature your game. You just kind of build this respect for the game and you just want to win.”

Buium was joined in Denver by fellow Red Wings prospects Carter Mazur, his close friend and roommate, and Antti Tuomisto. Mazur noted Buium’s steady progress.

“He started figuring out his role and really started to take off towards the end of the year when it really mattered,” Mazur said. “His work ethic in the weight room, his work ethic on the ice, everything kind of came together towards the end of the year. I think his game really sets a team up for success and then you saw at Denver he just knows how to work the blueline, get open anywhere, can use his size, skill together.”

Continued

Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff conducted an enlightening interview with Grand Rapids Griffins assistant coach and former Red Wing Mike Knuble. Knuble spoke bluntly regarding the nature of minor league hockey in his conversation with Duff:

Watching players like Chase Pearson and Turner Elson get a shot in Detroit last season is the reward for the work the Griffins coaching staff puts in every day.

“We’d love to send them up and never see them again,” Knuble said. “Guys come up and back, guys are wondering why they never get called up. You try to make them aware of points and things. This is how you’re gonna get there. The faster you can adjust to that in the American League and display those traits, then you’re gonna have a better chance to get up there.”

Playing in the minor leagues is literally and up an down experience for some players. Others feel like they’re getting the mushroom treatment – stuck off in the dark, having crap dumped on them every day.

Keeping players focused on the task at hand can be the most daunting task facing an AHL coach who is dealing with players at all levels of the pro hockey experience.

“There is kind of a career hierarchy a little bit,” Knuble acknowledges. “There are guys who are at a crossroads in their career, for sure. They have decisions to make about which direction they want to go. Do they want to keep trying in the American League? Do they want to go to Europe?

Duff continues, and it’s a really solid interview…

As noted earlier today, the World Junior Championship is taking place in Edmonton from August 9th to 20th, and the NHL Network is going to cover the event in the U.S., piggybacking on the TSN coverage in Canada.

I’ve been holding off on listing the Red Wings participating in the event until the IIHF posted the rosters for each team with Wings participants, because players could’ve gotten positive COVID tests, pulled out of the tournament due to fatigue from last year’s campaigns (like Marco Kasper of Austria) or suffered injuries during their respective countries’ selection camps (which is what happened to Shai Buium of Team USA).

The IIHF finally posted each and every team’s roster this afternoon, so here’s the breakdown of players participating in the WJC of Red Wings affiliation:

TEAM USA:

Carter Mazur, forward

Red Savage, center

TEAM CANADA

Sebastian Cossa, goaltender

Donovan Sebrango, defenseman

TEAM FINLAND

Eemil Viro, defenseman

TEAM SWEDEN

Simon Edvinsson, defenseman

William Wallinder, defenseman

Theodor Niederbach, center

TEAM CZECHIA

Jan Bednar, goaltender

This is pretty cool, via the Grand Rapids Griffins:

Captains for #WorldJuniors… 🇨🇦

C: Mason McTavish (@HEOhockey)
A: Kent Johnson (@BCHockey_Source)
A: Donovan Sebrango (@OHFHockey)

Hear from Captain Canada! 🗣️👇 pic.twitter.com/OXvrPsNRmj— Hockey Canada (@HockeyCanada) August 2, 2022

The Red Wings are believed to have made a bit of a reach in picking 6,’ 181-pound left wing Dylan James with the 40th overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. It’s a little early to say whether the young winger with Carter Mazur’s scrappy competitiveness will pan out as a second-round pick, but Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen posted a profile of James this afternoon:

United States Hockey Rookie of Year. Picked in the second round by the Detroit Red Wings. Named as a late addition to the Canadian National Junior Team.

Red Line Report Chief Scout Kyle Woodlief said James was the “fastest riser on our list in the season’s second half.”

This Calgary native James will take plenty of momentum into North Dakota next season.

This is what Red Line Report’s assessment of Dylan James’ season: “Came on like gangbusters down the stretch. One of the keys to the Sioux’s shocking run to the championship…Second half offensive production was off the chart.”

Red Line Report is into its third decade of evaluating players and the independent scouting review sees James as a “big-game” performer, similar in style to Ondrej Palat. It’s interesting to note that Yzerman was Tampa Bay’s GM when the team drafted Palat.

Continued; he’s plucky, he’s got a good skill set, but he’s raw as raw can be, so we’ll see what the University of North Dakota can do for his development.