Roughly Translated: GT.se profiles Lucas Raymond (and his mom)

Red Wings prospect Lucas Raymond was profiled by GT.se’s Adam Johansson ahead of the World Junior Championship. What follows is roughly translated from Swedish:

“It could be embarrassing when friends came over”

Lucas Raymond had all the conditions to succeed, but it was he himself who chose to become a hockey player.

With joy, before the “must.”

That’s how Swedish ice hockey’s biggest forward crown jewel was formed.

“There have never been any ‘musts’ in our family,” says his mother, “Cia.”

In a long report before the World Junior Championshp, SportExpressen now tells the story of the Junior Crowns’ big star, Lucas Raymond, 18.

“His pacifier blanket was a stick”

It is Cecilia “Cia” Wosse Raymond who describes her son–and she does so with excessive love.

“He’s just such a damn good person. Stubborn, too. That’s what makes him who he is. I’m very proud of him. Especially when I know what work he’s put in, from a young age to today. There’s never been any whining. He just chews onward. It’s mighty impressive. And we’ve never had to bother him. He has known what he wants to do from the first moment.”

Continue reading Roughly Translated: GT.se profiles Lucas Raymond (and his mom)

Bultman talks WJC expectations for the Wings’ seven participants

The Red Wings’ seven participants at the World Junior Championship will be playing under the watchful gaze of both the team’s scouting staff and hockey-starved fan base starting on Christmas Day. Ahead of the WJC, The Athletic’s Max Bultman has outlined the expectations facing each and every one of Lucas Raymond, Theodor Niederbach, Elmer Soderblom, Albert Johansson, Gustav Berglund (all playing for Sweden), Eemil Viro (Finland) and Jan Bednar (Czech Republic).

Let’s examine what Bultman has to say about Niederbach, who’s probably going to center Raymond and Alexander Holtz on Sweden’s #1 line:

Theodor Niederbach, C (second round, 2020 draft): Niederbach’s blistering start to the season (he has 35 points in 19 J20 games) thrust him into the public eye quickly after Detroit picked him 51st overall. Now, that attention may be going up a notch if Niederbach indeed ends up between Raymond and Holtz on Sweden’s top line.

Niederbach told The Hockey News he wants to step up and take on [Karl] Henriksson’s defensive zone responsibilities, allowing the two dynamic wingers to do their thing. Obviously, the Red Wings will be elated if he can — Detroit has emphasized defensive responsibility with young centers such as Dylan Larkin and Joe Veleno in recent years. But certainly playing with two linemates that offensively gifted will be a prime opportunity for Niederbach to show off his hockey sense and playmaking ability, too.

Red Wings director of player development Shawn Horcoff praised Niederbach’s creativity, vision and sense earlier this fall, so the 18-year-old may very well make the most of that chance. But it’ll also be his first time playing in the tournament, so it’s important to temper the expectations. Detroit should be looking for Niederbach’s skill and instincts to pop between the two high-end wingers, but some mistakes are likely to come, too.

Continued (paywall)

Eyes on ‘Big Ras’

I’m starting to wonder (aloud) whether the Red Wings’ “Taxi Squad” will consist of the team’s AHL-bound prospects for the first month of the NHL season, and I’m wondering whether the development of players like Evgeny Svechnikov, Dennis Cholowski and Michael Rasmussen will be best-served by practicing instead of playing hockey, at least over the longer term.

That being said, of the Red Wings’ European-loaned prospects, Rasmussen, who played in the rarely-covered ICE Hockey League in Austria, had a better half-season with the Graz99ers than his game-to-game stats may have indicated. Is Rasmussen ready to take the next step and squeeze his way on to a deep Wings roster?

I’m not sure of the answer to that question, but NHL.com’s Mike G. Morreale named Rasmussen as a “prospect to watch” this week, and I’m intrigued to see whether the big forward can reverse course after an inconsistent and injury-shortened 2019-2020 AHL season:

Michael Rasmussen (Detroit Red Wings), F, Graz99ers: The 21-year-old (6-6, 229), chosen No. 9 in the 2017 NHL Draft, has scored 16 points (five goals, 11 assists) in 18 games on loan in the ICE Hockey League, the top professional men’s league in Austria. Rasmussen scored 22 points (seven goals, 15 assists) in 35 games with Grand Rapids (AHL) last season.

Continued; we’ll talk more about the “Taxi Squad” in the as-yet-unnamed podcast that’s going to be airing this week (hopefully!).

Team Russia WJC coach Igor Larionov engages in a Q and A with NHL.com

Former Red Wings forward and player agent Igor Larionov has taken on a new role, coaching Russia’s World Junior Championship team. Ahead of the WJC (which begins on Christmas day), Larionov engaged in a Q and A session with NHL.com’s Mike G. Morreale, and his answers were very…professor-like:

What is your coaching philosophy and how might it differ from Valeri Bragin?

“My philosophy is to teach hockey the right way. To be professional, pay attention to detail and play good, enthusiastic hockey that requires skill, the mindset and the work ethic needed to be successful. I guess maybe it’s not appropriate to compare to a previous coach and someone who I have a lot of respect for, but at the same time I’ve tried to go back to the roots of Russian-style hockey, when we played at high speed and used quick minds and quick feet. I enjoy the smart team play and playing an offensive style that requires imagination. We will play with skill, play for each other and give maximum effort.”

What are the strengths of the Russia team we’ll see at the World Juniors?

“We don’t have that much experience in returning players from last year, other than goalie Iaroslav Askarov (Nashville Predators), and forwards Vasily Podkolzin (Vancouver Canucks) and Maxim Groshev (Tampa Bay Lightning). Since I couldn’t view players during this difficult time (in a pandemic), with no camps and nothing to see from exhibition games in the traditional Canadian Hockey League Canada Russia Series during the November tour in Canada, it gave us an opportunity to see the boys play in the Kontinental Hockey League level, playing against men. I’m looking for skill, character, speed and a mind that’s ready to sacrifice and play for the team.”

Continued;

Prospect round-up: Eliasson steps in for ‘mop up duty,’ stops 31 shots

Of prospect-related note:

In the ICE Hockey League, Jesper Eliasson played as the “reliever” after teammate Jean Phillipe Lamoreaux gave up 4 goals on 10 shots, coming in and stopping 31 of 34 shots as Red Bulls Salzburg lost 7-0 to Fehervahr AVS 19;

In NCAA Hockey, Seth Barton finished even in the University of Massachusetts-Lowell Riverhawks‘ 2-1 win over UConn;

And at the World Junior Championship, the Swedes got out of quarantine (except for the two team executives who have the coronavirus, who are stuck in their hotel rooms until December 27th) and practiced in Edmonton. No reports from the 4 PM EST practice as of yet.

Toledo Walleye offering fans the chance to be in the ‘audience’ via Fan Cutouts

From the Toledo Walleye and the Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe:

Griffins raise funds, food at ‘Virtual Teddy Bear Toss’

From the Grand Rapids Griffins comes good news:

GRIFFINS’ TEDDY BEAR TOSS & HOLIDAY DRIVE NETS SLEIGHFUL FOR LOCAL CHARITIES

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Grand Rapids Griffins fans exhibited their generosity and holiday spirit during the team’s drive-thru Teddy Bear Toss & Holiday Drive at Griff’s IceHouse at Belknap Park last Tuesday, Dec. 15, donating the following during the two-hour event:

• Nearly 800 stuffed animals for the Billy Bear Hug Foundation, giving comfort to children with critical illnesses in West Michigan and continuing the Griffins’ two-decade Teddy Bear Toss tradition. Event sponsor J&H Family Stores also collected some of these stuffed animals at their locations last week;

• 1,242 pounds of non-perishable food for Feeding America West Michigan, providing 1,035 meals to families facing hunger within our community;

• Cash, coins and online donations totaling $1,398.53 for The Salvation Army, helping rescue Christmas for those who need it most this season.

Those still wishing to make a donation to any or all of these organizations are encouraged to do so by using the links above.

“We were overwhelmed – but not surprised – at the outpouring of support from our fans last week,” said Bob Kaser, Griffins vice president of community relations and broadcasting. “Those couple of hours served as an emphatic reminder that our fans miss hockey and the Griffins organization misses our fans. What a night!”

Multimedia Links:

Griffins recap video
Griffins photo gallery
WOOD TV8 coverage
WZZM 13 coverage 

The final numbers are in from our Teddy Bear Toss & Holiday Drive event!

Nearly 800 stuffed animals collected

1,242 pounds of non-perishable food = 1,035 meals to families

Cash, coins & online donations totaling $1,398.53

Watch a full recap of the event ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/SRP4g9D67t— Grand Rapids Griffins (@griffinshockey) December 21, 2020

Tweet of note: On Lucas Raymond

One more “Tweet of note,” via The Athletic’s Max Bultman, comes this from EP Rinkside’s J.D. Burke:

Tweet of note: McKenzie reports Sweden to practice today

After over a week in quarantine due to positive coronavirus tests, TSN’s Bob McKenzie reports that the Swedish World Junior Championship (which includes Lucas Raymond, Theodor Niederbach, Gustav Berglund, Albert Johansson and Elmer Soderblom) will be emerging from their hotel rooms to skate in Edmonton today:

SWE ?? emerges from quarantine today at the @IIHFHockey World Junior Championship and are scheduled to have a full team practice at 4 p.m. MT in the EDM WJC Bubble.— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) December 21, 2020

Update: FYI:

The IIHF has announced the latest results from the pre-competition COVID-19 testing of all players, staff, and tournament officials in the 2021 IIHF World Junior Championship Bubble.

Read more at https://t.co/LD2SyMsaFb pic.twitter.com/ElnCPCT7S5— IIHF (@IIHFHockey) December 21, 2020