The Malik Report

The Detroit News’s MacKenzie Thompson has posted a profile of USA Hockey’s director of player personnel for the National Team Development Program, Rod Braceful. Braceful is a Detroit native, and his godmother, Judy Richardson, is the reason why he became a hockey player, coach, and now, an important executive for the U.S.’s developmental hockey pipeline:

Rod Braceful’s first on-ice hockey experience was at Jack Adams Arena in Detroit after his godmother secretly stepped in and signed him up for learn-to-play lessons at four years old.

Barbara Yancy-Braceful, Braceful’s mother and longtime school educator, didn’t think that he was serious about wanting to play hockey, so she didn’t sign him up.

In true fairy godmother nature, Judy Richardson stepped in, signed him up, and requested that his mother just let him try it out. Now, more than 30 years later, Braceful has made USA Hockey history.

Last month, the 35-year-old Braceful became the first African-American to be named the director of player personnel for USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program, which has produced more than 200 players in the National Hockey League during the organization’s 27 years based in Ann Arbor and now Plymouth.

“If you’re good to the game, it’s good to you,” said Braceful, who left his job as an amateur and pro scout with the Chicago Blackhawks to take the prestigious USA Hockey position. “I’m just fortunate that the game has still been giving back to me all these years.”

Continued (paywall); if you can read the story, it’s worth your time.

FloHockey’s Chris Peters weighed in this evening with articles discussing the best performers from Team USA‘s two squads at the World Junior Summer Showcase, as well as Teams Sweden and Finland, and he offers the following takes on two promising Red Wings Swedes:

Anton Johansson, D (Detroit Red Wings): Johansson likely wrote his name in ink on Sweden’s [World Junior Championship] roster with his performance. He has the right mix of size and skill to be a threat at both ends of the ice. His puck skills and footwork have vastly improved, which makes him a more credible offensive threat. He had three points in the event over the three games he played and was noticeable every single time out.

Axel Sandin-Pellikka, D (Detroit Red Wings): Highly skilled and mobile, Sandin-Pellikka had one quiet game of the three he played in, but his last two were fairly solid. He’s strong despite his lack of size and his offensive instincts are high-end. He played a good two-way game and scored one of the better goals of the event, cutting through defenders before snapping a quick shot off. As a returning player, he’ll likely be in a big role at the tournament.

Continued; as I noted in tonight’s impressions from Friday at the World Junior Summer Showcase, Johansson sat out Friday’s 5-4 loss to USA Blue, but he’s a prime example of how far a player can come in a developmental year;

As far as Sandin Pellikka is concerned, he’s working on putting his game together while playing against men on a full-time basis this year with Skelleftea AIK, and his skill set is truly elite. It’s a matter of finding a toolbox for all those fine wrenches and hammers and saws.

Per Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff, Red Wings prospect Dmitri Buchelnikov dazzled at the “Sochi Open,” playing for Russia’s Under-23 team:

The Sochi tournament in the premier event of the KHL preseason and it’s also becoming the personal playground of Detroit Red Wings draft pick Dmitri Buchelnikov.

Last year, he won the voting as the top forward participating in the tournmaent. This year, it was also Buchelnikov’s unique skill set that was earning him another prize.

Friday, they held the shootout competition at the event. Similar to the NHL All-Star Game shootout competition, the value is as much in the delivery and creativity as it is in the outcome.

In the former sense, Buchelnikov won going away. The player chosen 52nd overall by the Red Wings in the 2022 NHL entry draft put on a clinic of unique shootout moves.

Continued; here’s the clip from Hockey News Hub:

They held a fun little skills competition shootout after the game in Sochi with players from both teams.

Russia U23 #LGRW Dmitri Buchelnikov put on a show – winning the event. 👊

Here's all his attempts. 😮 pic.twitter.com/xUnQMLRD7I

— Hockey News Hub (@HockeyNewsHub) August 3, 2023

The World Junior Summer Showcase concluded on Friday with a pair of games played at USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, MI:

Sweden lost a bit of a heartbreaker to USA Blue, dropping a 4-1 lead and losing 5-4 with only 1.8 seconds left in the 1 PM game;

And Finland delivered a heartbreaker to USA White as well, rallying from a 3-2 deficit to win 4-3 in an incredibly physical 4 PM game that sent the fans home unsatisfied.

That’s it for this event; the Swedes and Finns will fly back to their respective countries, with Sweden having been here since July 20th, and Team USA’s players will disperse to their college and major junior teams.

Sweden’s going home tomorrow night, and they’ve been in the U.S. since July 20th, so it’s been two weeks and a day for them already. They’ll go right into the season of “ice premieres” (i.e. first on-ice practices for SHL and J20 teams), friendly exhibition games and

This evening’s assessments of the Red Wings’ prospects participating in the WJSS build upon my impressions from last Thursday, Friday and Saturday, as well as Monday and Wednesday’s games…

But it’s always important to remind you that I’m watching players at a competitive exhibition hockey tournament in early August, and that these young gentlemen are still at early points in their respective journeys toward professional hockey.

Continue reading Impressions from Day 9 at the World Junior Summer Showcase

DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills reports that Red Wings goaltender Ville Husso took part in a charitable venture recently in Detroit:

While several of the Detroit Red Wings players and their families departed for the summer after the 2022-23 season ended, Ville Husso and his fiancé, Hayley, decided to plant their roots in metro Detroit year-round.

By staying close to downtown, Husso said he can frequently utilize Little Caesars Arena’s BELFOR Training Center. But working out is not all that Husso has done this offseason, as the 28-year-old goalie is also immersing himself into the community which he now calls home.

On Friday morning, Husso visited the Boys & Girls Clubs of Southeastern Michigan’s (BGCSM) Fauver-Martin Club, in Highland Park, to help unveil a state-of-the-art Esports Lounge as part of the Detroit Red Wings Learn, Play, Score program, specifically the Esports + Hockey extension in partnership with The Children’s Foundation. Husso then played floor hockey in the club’s gymnasium and enjoyed a Little Caesars pizza party with the youth of metro Detroit.

“Playing in the NHL, you can give so much to other people,” Husso told DetroitRedWings.com on Friday. “I really enjoy doing this stuff and seeing how happy little kids are, so helping other people is a nice thing to do. It is a lot of fun.”

Continued

The Buffalo News’s Mike Harrington is examining the Sabres’ Atlantic Division rivals this week, and today, he discusses the “rebuilding” Red Wings, Senators and Candiens. Harrington has this to say about the comparisons and contrasts between Buffalo and Detroit’s respective rebuilds have gone along thus far:

If you’re looking for [Buffalo Sabres GM] Kevyn Adams’ biggest rival in the Atlantic Division, you could easily make the case that it’s Steve Yzerman.

The Sabres are building through drafting and development and have carefully chosen players in the trade and free agent market who were willing to come to Buffalo to be part of the solution in the post-Jack Eichel era. The playoff drought is at an NHL-record 12 years and simply has to end in the spring of 2024.

Yzerman has gone a vastly different route as the GM in Detroit. The Red Wings legend came back from Tampa Bay and has made head-first dives into trades and free agency in an effort to end seven consecutive years out of the postseason, which ties the franchise record. This year’s big additions are Alex DeBrincat (trade from Ottawa) and former Sabres prospect J.T. Compher (free-agent signee from Colorado).

Which method will win? That’s going to play out in the 2023-24 season. If a new team from the Atlantic Division is going to crack the playoff mix, it stands to reason that it will be either the Sabres or the Red Wings. The Sabres finished 11 points ahead of the Wings last season, and outscored them, 26-16, in winning all four meetings.

Here’s what Harrington has to say about the Wings’ summertime roster machinations:

Continue reading Talking Sabres and Red Wings’ rebuilds–and rivalries

MLive’s Ansar Khan discusses the Red Wings’ signing of free agent forward Daniel Sprong this morning:

Sprong, 26, is coming off career highs in games (66), goals (21) and points (46) with Seattle while averaging only 11:25 in ice time.

“I think I became a bit better defensively, played with more physicality and maybe better with my all-around game,” Sprong said. “Offensively, the big thing was getting power-play time, where I could use my strengths and my shot. I’m a shooter, so that’s something I think I can really help the power play with. We had a good team in Seattle. You could play any guy with anybody and we clicked easy. I’m looking forward to a bigger role, show Detroit I can do that this year.”

Sprong figures to be a third-line winger who will play the left flank on the second power-play unit, setting up for one-timers with his strong right-handed shot.

“I think something that stands out about him is his shot and his ability to get his shot off,” Red Wings newly signed goaltender James Reimer said. “It’s the type of release that kind of surprises guys. There’s something unique about the way he plays and plays the game offensively.”

Continued

This evening, the Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan attempts to discern the Red Wings’ opening-night lineup for the 2023-2024 season:

David Perron-Dylan Larkin-DeBrincat: Instantly there will be many Wings fans wanting to put Lucas Raymond alongside Larkin and DeBrincat, but that might not be the best option.

It would offensively, possibly, put the Wings’ three most dangerous offensive players together. And they will likely see time together at some point.

But defensively it could be an issue, not to mention, putting Raymond elsewhere in the lineup will provide the Wings with more scoring depth, which consistently hasn’t been the case in recent seasons.

Eyes will be on Larkin and DeBrincat to see how they’ll mesh. You’d think DeBrincat will have a decent chance returning to his 40-goal pace with Larkin as his playmaker. Perron provides size, an agitating presence, an ability to get to the net, and Perron played well with Larkin last season.

This would be a darn good first line by any standard.

Continued (paywall)

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.