The Malik Report

The Free Press’s Helene St. James posts a “prospect report” this morning, discussing 20-year-old defenseman Axel Sandin Pellikka. ASP played this past season with Skelleftea AIK of the SHL, so he’s likely to play for the Grand Rapids Griffins this upcoming season…

But I know that many Wings fans are hoping that the 5’11,” 185-pound defenseman skips a couple of developmental steps, and ends up on Detroit’s blueline this fall:

Anyway, here’s St. James’ missive:

Sandin Pellikka is a smart, offensively gifted defenseman who shoots right – remember, when the Wings drafted him at No. 17 in 2023, it was with the pick they received from the Vancouver Canucks for Filip Hronek, another right-shot offensively gifted defenseman. Sandin Pellikka had such a good first full season for Skellefteå’s SHL squad (18 points in 39 games) he received the Salming Trophy, awarded to the best Swedish-born defenseman playing in Sweden. He had 29 points in 46 games in 2024-25, and then joined the Griffins for the last two regular-season games and the three-game playoff run.

Red Wings assistant director of player development Dan Cleary weighed in:

Continue reading HSJ in the morning: on Axel Sandin Pellikka’s development

Updated at 6:24 AM: This is one of those middle-of-the-night Swedish snippets that you only find in mid-July.

Red Wings prospect defenseman Anton Johansson spoke with Falu Kuriren’s Oskar Magnusson, and the article’s regrettably behind a paywall…

But there’s at least a headline and a “lede” which explains why Johansson turned down Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman and the team’s invitation to continue playing for the Grand Rapids Griffins after an 11-game stint in North America this past season.

According to Magnusson, Anton and his family decided that he should remain with Leksands IF of the SHL for one more year because his 26-year-old brother Simon, who played 2 seasons with the AHL’s Iowa Wild, felt that he went over a year too early (and, as a result, Simon headed back to Europe to play for Ilves Tampere of the Finnish Liiga).

Otherwise, the article says that the 6’4,” 196-pound defenseman’s put on 3 kilograms of weight without becoming “immobile on the ice,” and that’s it before the paywall hits. But given how incredibly skinny Anton is, being a healthy 6’4″ and another 6.6 pounds, or about 203 lbs total, is a good playing weight…

And as much as the Red Wings wanted the right-shooting, big-hitting stay-at-home defenseman to play for the Griffins this upcoming season, he’ll be earning major minutes for the rebuilding Leksands IF. The team from under a lot of pressure to turn things around both in terms of the team’s game and financially, all the while under the watchful eye of Thomas “Tjomme” Johansson, who is both the GM and is Anton’s father.

It’s a slow night, however. Other than being able to tell you that somebody updated the Red Wings’ “Make-a-Wish” page at 2:20 AM, that’s all I’ve got. I’m not going to chase stories for the sake of chasing dust. This is the season of bullshit stories and stupid, made-up rumors.

UPDATE: Hockeynews.se’s editorial department adds a little more to the mix, stating that Johansson “has a lot to learn”:

Continue reading A peek behind the Swedish paywall (regarding Anton Johansson’s decision to remain in Sweden)

The family of Alex Delvecchio posted an obituary after #10 passed away on July 1st, in both the Free Press and Detroit News, and the last part thereof is pertinent:

A private service has been held. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in his memory to the Michigan Humane Society, a cause that mattered deeply to him. Arrangements in care of Modetz Funeral Home Silverbell Chapel, Orion, Michigan. Online tributes may be shared at www.modetzfuneralhomes.com.

Pro Hockey Rumors’ Josh Erickson examined PuckPedia’s database of NHL players in order to compile a list of each and every team’s NHL players who have no-move, no-trade and modified no-trade clauses, and the Red Wings, as it turns out, are quite average in that department.

First, a reminder from Erickson:

Trade protection comes in three forms: no-movement clauses (NMCs), no-trade clauses (NTCs), and modified no-trade clauses (M-NTCs). No-movement clauses are blanket protection save for buyouts, so the player is also protected against a waiver placement and subsequent AHL assignment unless they approve it.

No-trade clauses limit a team from trading a player to any other club without their approval, but if they’re trying to send a player somewhere where he won’t approve a deal, the team can still waive the player and have the team in question claim them.

Modified no-trade clauses do not prevent all trades. Players can submit a trade list with a preset number of teams, which is either in the form of a no-trade list or an approved trade list. The former is far more common. If a player has an approved trade list, the number of teams they can be traded to is asterisked. If there is no asterisk, the number of teams they can block a trade to is shown next to their name in parentheses.

So here are the Red Wings players with some sort of no-trade protection:

Detroit Red Wings

NMCs: none

NTCs: Patrick Kane, Dylan Larkin

M-NTCs: Ben Chiarot (10), J.T. Compher (10), Andrew Copp (10), Alex DeBrincat (16), John Gibson (10), Justin Holl (10)

Continued; as we all know by now, the Wings were probably too generous with Chiarot, Compher, Copp and Holl’s modified no-trade clauses, but overall, having eight players with some sort of no-trade protection is average for an NHL roster.

The Red Wings drafted Champlin Park, Minnesota’s Brent Solomon 109th overall in this past June’s NHL Draft in Los Angeles, and Solomon spoke with CCX Media’s Jay Wilcox for a short interview. He discusses being drafted by Detroit, attending the Wings’ Summer Development Camp.

Going forward, Solomon will play for a year or two at the USHL level with the Sioux Falls Stampede before heading to the University of Wisconsin.

It’s worth noting that Solomon’s 38-goal, 56-points-in-26-games season with Champlin Park High School came in his junior season–he still has to finish high school!

Red Wings forward Patrick Kane is holding a reception in Chicago on August 8th, a.k.a. 8/8, in which he will regale attendees with stories from his long tenure with the Chicago Blackhawks

Was cool to see @barstoolsports studios and be on @thestretchpod. Fun chat @BarstoolChief @BarstoolBigCat @EddieBarstool @barstoolWSD and great memories in Chicago! Hope to see everyone again on 8/8!https://t.co/h9tjv7J4dm https://t.co/hJIwQQPAQu

— Patrick Kane (@88PKane) July 11, 2025

Kane also held a 45-minute interview with Barstool Chicago to tell tales of his days with the Blackhawks. It’s not particularly interesting to Red Wings fans, but it’s a summertime set of stories which you may find entertaining.

DetroitRedWings.com’s Jonathan Mills posted an article looking back at last week’s Summer Development Camp, emphasizing its importance to Detroit’s prospects, regardless of where they were drafted:

“We all know these kids are young and have to get stronger in different areas, but it’s also great for them,” Assistant Director of Player Development Dan Cleary said of the Red Wings’ annual Development Camp last Thursday. “I’ve noticed their personality has changed after their first [Development Camp]. Then they come back, they’re more comfortable…It’s great for these guys to get to know each other, see what it’s all about, be around LCA, this incredible facility. We have such great people here — trainers, therapists. It’s a good experience for them, but it’s not an evaluation…So many different aspects and people that makes this go smoothly.”

Each attendee arrives at Development Camp with different levels of comfortability and experience but ultimately leaves Detroit with more knowledge than they had at the start of the week.

Take goalie prospect Trey Augustine, for example. This year marked Augustine’s third Development Camp with the Red Wings since being selected No. 41 overall in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, and the 20-year-old feels he has grown as a player since his first.

“Obviously, you get more comfortable being around longer,” Augustine said last Thursday. “First year, it’s a lot more special because you don’t know what to expect. But obviously coming into this year, you kind of know your way around and know everyone. For me, it’s not the start of the season but it’s kind of getting there. This is a hard week of training and it kind of gets you in the mindset for the rest of the summer — that it’s time to really start picking it up, ramping up the skates and workouts.”

Continued

In light of the fact that Red Wings forward Marco Kasper was named the team’s “Rookie of the Year” by the Detroit Sports Media, Detroit Hockey Now’s Kevin Allen spotlights Kasper’s status as a crucial building block for this upcoming season:

With the Red Wings unable to land another high profile scorer to play in the top six, Kasper’s expected growth is even more critical to the team’s hope to end their nine-year playoff drought.  Unless GM Steve Yzerman makes a trade here soon that alters the team’s top six forwards, it looks like Kasper would center Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane again.

Even at 21, Kasper is a full service performer. His 156 hits were second on the Detroit team to defenseman Moritz Seider (212).

“I thought he had a real impact on us all over the ice, really,” Yzerman said. “He’s playing in all situations and I think most importantly is he felt like (or) looked like he was very confident out there. He was just playing. He felt like he belonged. “

Yzerman views Kasper as a dependable all-around player.

“He can really make a difference on his line and on a team,” Yzerman said. “So I think I don’t want to raise the expectation to unrealistic levels or put too much pressure on him alone. But he’s really a driven young man, really competitive kid. Every day he’s out there working to get better. So I think he’s a mentally tough kid, too. So I think regardless of the goals and assists, I think he’s going to be an even better player. Just getting more and more comfortable and he. And he really works at it.”

Continued

Per the Detroit Red Wings:

DETROIT RED WINGS AND DALLAS STARS ANNOUNCE 2025 NHL PROSPECT GAMES SCHEDULE

  … NHL Prospect Action to be Held at Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas from Sept. 13-14 …

DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings, in conjunction with the Dallas Stars, today announced that the 2025 NHL Prospect Games will be held on Saturday, Sept. 13 and Sunday, Sept. 14 at Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas. A complete roster for the two-day event will be announced at a later date.

TICKETS: Tickets for all NHL Prospect Games will require fans to reserve free general admission tickets. Tickets will be available beginning on Sept. 5 at DallasStars.com/ProspectGames.

STREAMING: More information on streaming of the 2025 NHL Prospect Games between Detroit and Dallas will be released at a later date.

Please note that information regarding the Detroit Red Wings 2025 Training Camp in Traverse City and the Red & White Game at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids will be sent at a later date.

Detroit Hockey Now’s Bob Duff wonders aloud whether the Red Wings might find a left winger for Dylan Larkin and Lucas Raymond’s line from within the organization, or via a trade. Here are two of Duff’s candidates:

Elmer Soderblom

In his limited NHL exposure, Soderblom has shown he can put the puck in the net. His big body would certainly help to control pucks down low and might free up Raymond to be even more creative.

Is he ready for such a major role on the club at this juncture? Ultimately, that’s the question in need of an answer.

Jonatan Berggren

Given a brief late-season shot on this unit, Berggren displayed some promise. His offensive instincts are an absolute fit. And Red Wings coach Todd McLellan believes he must play Berggren somewhere in his top nine for him to effectively utilize his skill set.

Berggren’s defensive deficiencies could prove a detriment. Remember, the top unit generally is squaring off against one of the top units from the opposition squad.

Continued