Updated with Blashill’s remarks at 12:47 PM: The Red Wings practiced ahead of tomorrow’s home game vs. the Columbus Blue Jackets (7:30 PM EDT on Bally Sports Detroit/Bally Sports Ohio/97.1 FM), kicking off a stretch of 4 games to be played over the course of 6 nights;

The Wings’ beat writers reported that captain Dylan Larkin returned to practicing regularly with the team, but Marc Staal was absent from practice.

After practice, the Red Wings’ captain, Dylan Larkin, and coach Jeff Blashill spoke with the media:

Larkin says he feels his one-game suspension was warranted— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) October 18, 2021

Dylan Larkin to the media today about the hit from Joseph- “It was an unfortunate play. It wasn’t called. Thats Hockey, thats what we deal with. I don’t want to have a sob story and I can’t act like that. The one game suspension was warranted.” #LGRW @DetroitRedWings— Daniella Bruce (@daniellabruce_) October 18, 2021

Larkin adds he is ready to get back out there tomorrow night. Great news. #LGRW @DetroitRedWings— Daniella Bruce (@daniellabruce_) October 18, 2021

Continue reading Post-practice Tweets: Larkin takes responsibility for suspension; Staal being evaluated →

The Detroit Red Wings split a pair of high-scoring games over the course of the past week, going 1-0-and-1, and the Hockey News’s Jason Chen, a fantasy hockey writer, notes that the Wings face a significant test this upcoming week as they prepare to play 4 games over the course of 6 nights:

Detroit Red Wings: It was an impressive performance against the Lightning but it didn’t detract that they’re still a very leaky defensive team, allowing at least 40 shots in their first two games, though Moritz Seider really looks like the real deal. He’s worth picking up if he’s going to keep playing 20-plus minutes a night in a top-four role, depending on the size of your league, and note the Red Wings seem to prefer playing two defense on their power play with Seider alongside Filip Hronek, with Seider actually leading in PP TOI 3:41 vs. 2:55. Nick Leddy was a distant No. 3 option (1:55) even though the Red Wings showed a lot of him on their power play during the preseason.

The Wings are one of four teams playing four games this week, the last two of which are back-to-backs on the road, but it’s also against the struggling Habs and Blackhawks, who are 0-5-1 collectively after Week 1. Dylan Larkin has also served his suspension and will be back in his usual No. 1 role and the Red Wings offense can be feast or famine, but at least Filip Zadina, Tyler Bertuzzi and Lucas Raymond all off to good starts. Keep an eye on them since their minutes may increase as the season progresses.

Continued; this week will be a big test for the Wings in terms of real-world hockey, and a good opportunity for fantasy hockey poolies to get their favorite players some time in their leagues…

This comes from the Red Wings: ESPN’s John Buccigross Tweeted out this 2-minute interview with Tyler Bertuzzi from the NHL show, “The Point”:

Tyler Bertuzzi on The Point… pic.twitter.com/bPGOb0mtyR— Bucci Mane (@Buccigross) October 17, 2021

Updated at 11:44 AM: The Red Wings hit the ice for practice at Little Caesars Arena just before 11 AM on Monday, and there was good (initial) news ahead of a stretch in which the Wings play 4 games in 6 nights this week:

Dylan Larkin on the ice as #RedWings prepare for start of practice. pic.twitter.com/wucc0RysTz— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) October 18, 2021

Dylan Larkin skating at Red Wings practice this morning— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) October 18, 2021

Dylan Larkin back at Red Wings practice. Was unable to practice Friday after hit from behind by TBL Mathieu Joseph. pic.twitter.com/bDkvj7TrIN— Helene St. James (@HeleneStJames) October 18, 2021

Red Wings forward lines

Bertuzzi-Larkin-Raymond
Fabbri-Suter-Zadina
Namestnikov-Rasmussen-Erne
Smith-Stephens/Rowney-Gagner— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) October 18, 2021

#RedWings practices lines/D pairs:
Bertuzzi-Larkin-Raymond
Fabbri-Suter-Zadina
Namestnikov-Rasmussen-Erne
Smith-Stephens-Gagner (Rowney)
DeKeyser-Hronek
Leddy-Seider
Oesterle-Lindstrom
Stecher
Staal is not practicing.— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) October 18, 2021

Red Wings host CBJ Tuesday. pic.twitter.com/vEad16yw8y— Helene St. James (@HeleneStJames) October 18, 2021

Have not seen Marc Staal out there today yet— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) October 18, 2021

Also: If you’re interested in going to a “viewing party” on Wednesday the 27th, when the Wings play in Washington against the Capitals:

Continue reading Tweets from Monday’s Red Wings practice: We’ve got a Larkin sighting; Staal not practicing →

FYI:

We are excited to announce the Jamie Daniels Foundation’s Celebrity Roast of Brett Hull presented by @DeltaDentalMI! It’s sure to be a night of laughs & entertainment while also raising funds for those struggling with Substance Use Disorder.

Learn more: https://t.co/P972w2YglK pic.twitter.com/K3YFXviAUg— Jamie Daniels Foundation (@JDanielsFund) October 18, 2021

Per the Jamie Daniels Foundation’s website:

Tune in Monday, November 22 at 8p.m.!

The Jamie Daniels Foundation Celebrity Roast of Brett Hull will be broadcast on Monday, November 22 at 8 p.m. on Bally Sports Detroit as well as available to watch via livestream! Delta Dental will again serve as presenting sponsor of the event – their third consecutive year. Joining for the first time will be premium energy drink maker Cintron, who will be sponsoring the Roast portion of the televised event.

Hosted by Darren Pang, NHL Broadcaster and former Blackhawks goalie, the panel of roasters and featured performance from Steven Page, former lead singer of The Barenaked Ladies, will guarantee an evening of laughs and entertainment. More importantly though, the Celebrity Roast is an opportunity to bring awareness to a broad audience and raise funds to provide solutions for those seeking help with Substance Use Disorder.

Of prospect-related note from Sweden this morning:

1. IceHockeyGifs has Tweeted out a bit of a summary of a behind-the-paywall article from GP.se:

Fredrik Janlind of https://t.co/wAuNs7oE58 writes:

"His performance is reminiscent of Rasmus Dahlin's breakthrough.

With Dahlin it was the offensive upside that was without equal. With Edvinsson it's the entire package.

He has barely any weaknesses."https://t.co/gp6OGBN2ys

— IcehockeyGifs (@IcehockeyG) October 18, 2021

2. Via Winging It in Motown’s Kyle McIlmurray on Twitter, Rakapuckar’s Henrik Lehman reports that Simon Edvinsson is also practicing on Frolunda HC’s first power play unit, and that’s also good news.

Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff cautions Red Wings fans to be patient regarding the team’s strong performances in their first two games:

Fast starts under coach Jeff Blashill are commonplace for the Red Wings. Fantastic finishes are not. In fact, in the majority of seasons under Blashill, the team has broken from the gate effectively.

Last season, the Red Wings were 2-2 after four games. Then came an eight-game losing streak. In 2019-20, the Wings opened 3-1. That was also followed by an eight-game losing streak.

In 2018-19, the Wings got the skid out of the way off the bat. They opened 0-7. A 4-1 launch to the 2017-18 season was immediately followed by a six-game slide.

Blashill’s Red Wings were 5-2 after seven games in 2016-17. Then they lost six in a row. A 3-0 beginning in Blashill’s first season behind the Red Wings bench was followed by four successive losses.

The message here is to keep in mind what Blashill himself likes to talk about. It’s a small sample size. Let’s see where the Red Wings stand after 10 games before making any early assessments about this team.

Continued; the Red Wings play 4 games in 6 nights later this week, hosting Columbus and Calgary before heading to Montreal and Chicago for back-to-backs. Those games should help tell the tale as to what the Wings’ potential really consists of.

This Tweet comes from the Free Press’s Helene St. James: Sergei Fedorov has been named an assistant coach on the 2022 Russian Olympic team:

The coaching staff of the senior national team for the 2022 Olympic Games has been revealed!

Head coach: Alexei Zhamnov
Coaches: Sergei Gonchar, Alexei Kudashov, Sergei Fyodorov
Goalkeeping coach: Evgeny Nabokov#Beijing2022 #RussiaHockey pic.twitter.com/lQVah8C72W

— Russia Hockey (@russiahockey_en) October 18, 2021

The Athletic’s Corey Pronman posted a ranking of Calder Trophy candidates this morning, and three of his top 20 players eligible for this year’s award are Red Wings:

3. Moritz Seider, RHD, Detroit: It’s rare for defensemen who aren’t projected to put up huge point totals to make a dent in the Calder race, but Seider has a very good chance to do that. I think with great skating, size and physicality he’ll play real minutes, make a lot of stops, and has enough transition and puck-moving ability to put up solid offensive numbers as a rookie.

8. Alex Nedeljkovic, G, Detroit: One of the Calder finalists last season seems like a player you have to find a way to get into this type of projection. Nedeljkovic is a very quick and intelligent goalie who had a great season in Carolina before being traded to Detroit. Because of his size there are still some skeptics among NHL scouts about whether he can repeat that or tread water as more of an average starter, but even if he’s that type of player, that would still be very valuable.

10. Lucas Raymond, RW, Detroit: I’m a big Raymond fan but even I was slightly surprised at how good his NHL camp was and the type of opportunity he’s getting initially in Detroit. You see that his tremendous skill and sense have translated immediately in the way he can navigate and see the ice in the offensive zone just like he did at other levels. He’s not the biggest or quickest winger, so I anticipate some bumpy stretches, but I think he’ll help Detroit, especially on its power play.

Continued (paywall); I actually agree with Pronman’s critiques here.

Seider is working on his offensive game, but playing with Nick Leddy should help Seider become more demonstrative with the puck as the season progresses;

Nedeljkovic just isn’t very big by today’s gargantuan-sized goalie standards at only 6′ tall, but as he adjusts to playing in Detroit, he should at least rebound and become a valuable part of the Wings’ goaltending tandem;

And no, Raymond doesn’t have a lot of speed, but he’s such a gifted puck-mover that his lack of top-end speed doesn’t matter–he lets the puck do the work and gets to the right spot on the ice so as to maximize his scoring potential.

Of prospect-related note in North America on Sunday:

In the QMJHL, Jan Bednar stopped 39 of 42 shots, earning second star honors as his Acadie-Bathurst Titan won 4-3 over the Charlottetown Islanders. Oscar Plandowski finished even with 2 shots for Charlottetown;

In the WHL, Sebastian Cossa stopped 16 of 18 shots as the Edmonton Oil Kings lost 2-1 to the Red Deer Rebels.