In Red Wings Land

Young Red Wings get another chance to make impression as preseason begins | Detroit News

Rasmussen’s crowded path

It was interesting listening to coach Jeff Blashill on Sunday talk about 2017 first-round pick Michael Rasmussen.

The Wings have decided that long-term, Rasmussen’s best position is center, where he spent most of his time in junior. The Wings envision a big, 6-foot-6, shut-down center who can also provide offense around the net.

But with that switch, Rasmussen’s chances to opening the season in Detroit are slim.

The Red Wings hype train for Filip Zadina, Joe Veleno and Moritz Seider is packed full and chugging along the tracks, but it’s been a relatively quiet summer in regards to Rasmussen. He seems to be the forgotten young player and that might not necessarily be a bad thing. It should give him a chance to develop outside of the spotlight.

The 20-year-old didn’t seem to be NHL-ready last season, but it was still good for him to get his feet wet instead of playing another year of junior hockey. It will be beneficial for Rasmussen to get some time to develop in the AHL playing big minutes at the center position. If he excels and impresses down there, then he’ll earn a call-up and we’ll get to see what he can do in Detroit.

Red Wings believe gritty Adam Erne has top-nine potential | MLive

“I think he’s got good puck skills, he’s got a good shot, he’s worked extremely hard on his skating,” Yzerman said during training camp at Centre I.C.E. “He’s a powerful, strong guy, difficult to play against because he’s thick and he’s hard and he’s got pretty good hockey sense.

“He’s 24 years of age, fits in with our group of young players coming up.”

I don’t mind Steve Yzerman trading away a mid-round pick and taking a gamble on a kid he previously drafted with the Lightning. The Red Wings have had so many draft picks the last two years and currently have five in the first three rounds of next year’s NHL Draft. It’s worth it to take a chance on Adam Erne instead of saving a 4th rounder to use on a kid that might not help the team for another three-to-five years, if at all.

Around the League

NHLPA sticking with CBA, ensuring labor peace | ESPN

The NHLPA announced that it will not exercise its option to reopen the collective bargaining agreement following the 2019-20 season. The NHL previously decided not to trigger its opt-out clause, meaning the current CBA will remain intact through the 2021-22 season.

This is great news. I can’t imagine I was the only one that was dreading the idea of another work stoppage.