One more reminder about “Hockey, Hops and Hope”

In case you haven’t seen the press releases, the Grand Rapids Griffins are holding their annual “Hockey, Hops and Hope” event this evening:

 

Prospect round-up: JvP’s HC Davos wraps up regular season

One Red Wings prospect took part in a game on Monday:

In the Swiss NLA,  Joren van Pottelberghe served as the back-up in HC Davos’ regular-season finale, a 5-0 loss to HC Lugano.

HC Davos will be playing EHC Biel in the NLA playoffs, starting on Saturday.

Joren had a so-so regular season, posting a 3.01 goals-against average and .905 save percentage in 24 games played. He’s only 20, however, so he’ll most likely get more opportunity to play going forward.

 

Red Wings-Bruins set-up: Wings hope to snap losing streak vs. Bruins

The Detroit Red Wings will attempt to snap a 3-game losing streak while battling a team that’s had the Wings’ number since Detroit moved to the Eastern Conference.

Tonight, the Wings battle the Boston Bruins at the TD Garden (7:00 PM EST on NBCSN/Sportsnet/TVA Sports/NESN/97.1 FM), and the Bruins have won 7 straight games over the Wings in Boston; the 40-15-and-8 Bruins also sit some 26 points ahead of the Wings in the Eastern Conference standings.

While the Red Wings have lost their past 3 games and 6 of their past 8, the Bruins have won 3 straight and 5 of their past 7, with their most recent win coming in the form of a 2-1 OT victory over the Canadiens this past Saturday.

The Wings may be catching the Bruins at the right time, however: they’ll play without Charlie McAvoy (lower-body injury), Patrice Bergeron (broken foot) and Tuukka Rask (lower-body injury).

McAvoy was injured on Saturday, and there is great concern about the young defenseman’s injury, as the Boston Herald’s Rich Thompson noted:

Continue reading Red Wings-Bruins set-up: Wings hope to snap losing streak vs. Bruins

Articles (and Tweets) from an optional practice: Wings gear up for Bruins while looking for goals

Updated 2x at 3:56 PM: The Red Wings held an optional practice ahead of tomorrow’s match-up with the slightly banged-up Boston Bruins (see: no Charlie McAvoy, Patrice Bergeron or Tuukka Rask).

Articles from said practice were quite late-breaking, so I’m going to squeeze a couple of Krupa Tweets into this entry:

Continue reading Articles (and Tweets) from an optional practice: Wings gear up for Bruins while looking for goals

Meanwhile, in the ECHL…

Per the Toledo Blade’s Mark Monroe:

 

The Athletic’s Scott on the Tomas Tatar trade

The Athletic’s Topher Scott discusses the Tomas Tatar trade to Vegas, suggesting that the Red Wings “won” the deal (via significant video analysis):

The Red Wings lost a player with a lot of ability in their trade of Tatar. He played on their top two lines and he played on their power play. But … he didn’t play like that all the time.

In too many games, I wanted more. I could see the high-end ability he could bring to the team. I just didn’t see it as much as I would have liked. As any Red Wings fan would tell you having listened to Mike Babcock and Jeff Blashill over the past decade, CONSISTENCY is the attribute coaches crave the most.

Continued (paywall)…

Tweets from practice: It’s an ‘optional’ sort of day as Wings prepare for banged-up Bruins

The Red Wings flew from Minneapolis to Boston after last night’s 4-1 loss to the Minnesota Wild, and as the Boston Bruins juggle injuries to Charlie McAvoy (out Tuesday) and Tuukka Rask (probably out Tuesday)…

The Wings held an optional practice, per DetroitRedWings.com’s Dana Wakiji:

The Red Wings also said, “Hello”…

In more ways than one…

As did the Detroit News’s Gregg Krupa…

Continue reading Tweets from practice: It’s an ‘optional’ sort of day as Wings prepare for banged-up Bruins

Griffins profile veteran defenseman Brian Lashoff

From Griffinshockey.com’s Mark Newman:

His teammates joke that he’s been playing in Grand Rapids for 20 years. And while his tenure with the Griffins hasn’t quite reached even half that amount of time, he indeed has been playing in the Red Wings organization for the better part of a decade.

Brian Lashoff has appeared in more regular season games as a Griffin than any player except Travis Richards and in more postseason contests than anyone but Nathan Paetsch. It’s easy to forget that Lashoff, now in his ninth season in Grand Rapids, is still only 27 years old.

The native of Albany, N.Y., signed with Detroit as an undrafted free agent defenseman at the age of 18 and made his pro debut for the Griffins late in the 2008-09 campaign. He tallied five points in six regular season games then added five more points in eight playoff contests, before returning to Kingston of the Ontario Hockey League for his final junior season in 2009-10.

Admittedly, he was not the player that he would eventually become. Now considered one of the most dependable defenseman ever to don a Griffins jersey, the young Lashoff was willing to take risks for the sake of points.

“Coming out of junior hockey, I was a little more of an offensive player, but I had holes in my game,” Lashoff said. “This is a good league that will expose those holes, so I matured a lot by playing with and against good players.”

Continued

 

Via the Walleye comes a report about Matej Machovsky’s recall to the AHL

Via the Toledo Walleye’s Twitter account,  Toledo-based BCSN’s Zachery J. Harig posted a report regarding Matej Machovsky’s recall to Grand Rapids after his friend, Petr Mrazek, was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers:

 

Charitable reminder: Griffins to hold ‘Hockey, Hops and Hope’ event on March 6th

As a charitable reminder, from the Grand Rapids Griffins:

HOCKEY, HOPS AND HOPE RETURNS MARCH 6

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Grand Rapids Griffins and Easterseals Michigan are partnering for the seventh annual Hockey, Hops and Hope (formerly Corks, Pucks and Brews), a wine and craft beer tasting fundraiser to be held on Tuesday, March 6 from 6:30-9 p.m. at The Sharpe Collection Jaguar Land Rover Showroom (1030 28th St SE).

Griffins players and coaches will serve over 100 varieties of wine and craft beer samples to guests at the event, which will feature live music, a strolling dinner and silent and live auctions. Items up for bid include Chicago Cubs VIP packages consisting of four tickets, food and parking for an upcoming game; Griffins packages; a University of Michigan ultimate tailgate package featuring food, parking and four tickets for an upcoming football game; the weekend use of a brand new BMW, Mini, Land Rover or Jaguar; golf packages; vacation packages; casino packages; wine and beer tours; gift cards and more.

“Hockey, Hops and Hope has become a staple of our community outreach,” Griffins vice president of community relations and broadcasting Bob Kaser said. “It’s a unique event and an awful lot of fun for all involved, especially our players and coaches. We take great pride in working closely with our passionate friends at Easterseals, who inspire us in our desire to assist in raising money and awareness for this great cause.”

Flagstar Bank returns as the presenting sponsor of the event. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased for $50 per person (or $80 for two) at eastersealsmichigan.com or by phone at (616) 942-2081. All proceeds from the event will benefit Easterseals Michigan programs and services right here in West Michigan.

“We value our longstanding partnership with the Grand Rapids Griffins,” Easterseals Michigan president and CEO Brent Wirth said. “Their support is tremendously important to the children and families whose lives benefit from the exceptional services they receive here at Easterseals.”

About Easterseals Michigan
For nearly 100 years, Easterseals Michigan has been the indispensable resource helping to define and change the way people live with, and view, disability.  As a leader in addressing the disabilities of the 21st century that affect 1 in 4 individuals and their families, Easterseals Michigan empowers more than 12,000 people annually to live more independent lives.

Whether the challenge is behavioral, physical, social or intellectual, Easterseals Michigan adapts to the unique needs of each person.  With locations in Auburn Hills, Center Line, Royal Oak, Pontiac, Southfield, Waterford, Walled Lake, Flint and Grand Rapids, Easterseals continues to grow and adapt to the needs of local communities.

Through a continuum of services including, but not limited to, early childhood intervention, substance abuse services, occupational therapy, senior services and recreational programs including the Miracle League of Michigan and Miracle Dance, Easterseals Michigan creates life-changing solutions so that people with disabilities can thrive in their own communities.