Today marks the halfway point of training camp for the Red Wings. This morning will feature more on-ice practices split into three groups before tomorrow’s Red & White Game and a final day of practice on Monday before camp breaks.
As noted throughout my Traverse City preview article last week, training camp is a love/hate passion of mine. Working these camps was an incredibly fun, but incredibly busy time of year – having to keep track of multiple groups throughout the day, with multiple media sessions, all on top of making last-minute preparations for the upcoming season from a distance.
What it left me, though, is an ability to “speak press conference” – or at the very least, be extremely wrong with an unwarranted level of confidence. I’m not in Traverse City, but I still enjoy watching the occasional presser or reading the media quotes that come out from them. I thought for today’s open thread, I’d assemble a summary of what’s stood out and highlight newsy items for readers out there who aren’t yet seeking out these morsels.
So take these – and all preseason observations everywhere – with a grain of salt, but this is what I’m interested in following for the next three days and hearing from all of you on what seems interesting and what doesn’t.
September Line Blender
I’ve always thought it interesting to read into the lines on day one of training camp – coaches have all summer to jot down napkin lines, so it seems like a reasonable assumption that they’d go with the lines they’re most interested in on the first day. Day two saw a message sent that even if that is true, they’re going to try a heckuva lot of other looks along the way.
Per Max Bultman, here were the most NHL-relevant lines on Day 1…
DeBrincat – Larkin – Raymond
Rasmussen – Copp – Perron
Fabbri – Compher – Sprong
Kostin – Veleno – Fischer
Berggren – Kasper – Danielson
Soderblom – Czarnik – Hanas
Walman – Seider
Maatta – Holl
Edvinsson – Petry
Gostisbehere – Johansson
And then into Day 2:
DeBrincat – Larkin – Perron
Fabbri – Compher – Raymond
Rasmussen – Copp – Fischer
Berggren – Veleno – Sprong
Kostin – Danielson – Czarnik
Soderblom – Kasper – Luff
Walman – Seider
Maatta – Petry
Gostisbehere – Holl
Edvinsson – Rafferty
There’s almost no consistency there. You can see some forward pairings that they (maybe) like, with DeBrincat/Larkin, Fabbri/Compher and Rasmussen/Copp, but there are no other common linemates throughout the top-six lines. The only defensive pair in tact is Walman/Seider, which is no surprise.
This qualifies as a positive thing for me. It’s a deep lineup, and it looks like everyone is going to get a chance up and down the depth chart. Perform and get rewarded, slump and someone’s nipping at your heels. More on the lines below.
Whose Second Line Is It Anyway?
This likely isn’t something that’s going to be clear this month, and maybe it won’t at all throughout 2023-24. But Red Wings fans are longing for a solid second-line center, and I was interested to see who started camp in that slot. Naturally, it was Copp on the first day and Compher yesterday (functionally, at least – they usually split the teams up evenly, so I’m calling the “second line center” the top center in the group that Larkin is not in).
The composition of those lines is more interesting to me. Rasmussen and Copp each played their best hockey paired with each other, so it’s no surprise that’s what we’ve seen through two days. With Perron on that wing, that’s a suitable scoring line, and with Fischer, it has the ingredients of a checking, shutdown line. Good versatility to have.
Edvinsson’s Ready, Probably
Mike M. touched on this yesterday, but it feels a little under the radar that Edvinsson was on the ice for the first day of camp, coming in at the very shortest end of the four-to-six-month recovery that came with his surgery announcement. From all reports, he’s taking full contact – though “practice contact” and “game contact” aren’t necessarily the same. I’ll be looking for more reports on how he looks, as a healthy, game-ready Edvinsson certainly makes things interesting for a crowded blueline that already has a surplus of NHL defensemen.
Big Three or Spread the Wealth?
Back to the lines, it was exciting to see DeBrincat with Larkin and Raymond on Day 1, as that has the makings for the most potent offensive line the Red Wings have had in some time. Raymond was swapped for Perron on Day 2. This was a topic that the media asked Derek Lalonde about quite a bit, and he wouldn’t commit to anything, even DeBrincat sticking with Larkin. I think we’ll see both versions throughout the season (even after everyone develops a preference for whether they should be together or apart).
Everyone groans at the “best shape of his life” kind of training camp commentary, but there has seemed to be a lot of praise for Raymond in particular. Notably, he put on eight pounds. Whether that means more power in his skating, more power in his shot, or just an easier time making space for himself, it’s all good news. The prospect of a breakout Raymond campaign could be the story of the season for the Red Wings.
Potential Roster Sleepers
As a reminder, we’re deep into an exercise of reading too much into two days of line combinations and press conference quotes, which are virtually mandated by law to be purely positive at this time of year. But I have an eye on three players in particular down the lineup, as candidates for potential preseason “surprises.”
The first actually shouldn’t qualify as surprising, given that he actually did so last season. Elmer Soderblom was the team’s most impressive forward at the NHL Prospect Tournament. As he should have been as a 22-year-old with two SHL seasons, 20 AHL games and 21 NHL games of experience under his belt at times playing against 18-year-old late-round picks last week (not to mention the massive size difference). Depth makes it unlikely he cracks the opening night roster this year unless there are injuries, but I think a lot of people are forgetting how good he looked at this time last year, which he reminded many of by looking like a stronger, more controlled version of that last week. Most important is he has a healthy year, but I’m hoping he gets a shot with NHLers during the preseason.
Next up is Albert Johansson. Judging purely from the occasional unsolicited media quote, it seems like the Red Wings are quietly very high on him. I think he was in line for a callup before injury prematurely ended his season last year. I haven’t heard much about him so far this camp, but it was interesting to see him start camp paired with Gostisbehere. That may have been in part because Ben Chiarot was missing for personal reasons, and he was supposed to be in that group, but Johansson’s deployment going forward should provide some clarity on the depth chart.
The most unlikely to me, but still worth mentioning, is Nate Danielson. I don’t think there’s any chance he “makes” the team, but I wonder if he’ll get any part of a nine-game look before they send him back to junior. This is purely based on his position on the camp lines so far, playing with some (fringe) NHL players instead of the group with the rest of the junior-bound players. It would probably take several injuries for the Red Wings to feel like they “need” Danielson, and it seems a near-lock that he’s better off playing on an improved Brandon team in the WHL, and most likely with a large role for Canada at the World Junior Championship. It’s just a positive sign for a guy some labeled as a “reach” that he’s holding his own with real players.
Battle for the 23rd Spot (PTOs?)
Several of the above-mentioned names factor into this, but the Red Wings probably have an open spot on the roster – if you only count the “roster locks,” it’s 13 forwards, seven defensemen and two goalies. There’s nothing wrong with keeping a 22-man roster, as Grand Rapids is close if they need someone, but they’re generally at 23.
Two other names to consider are the late camp additions on PTOs: Artem Anisimov and Michael Hutchinson. If you’re unfamiliar, Anisimov is a center with size who enjoyed his best years with Columbus and Chicago. He’s now 35 years old and two years removed from NHL action. He spent all of last year with Lehigh Valley, Philadelphia’s AHL team. A probably insignificant note is that he’s skated with some Red Wings before in the summer – not sure if he has a specific connection to this area, but it’s not completely out of the blue.
If Detroit wants to keep a 14th forward who is a natural center (something they lack), he makes more sense than a prospect in the sense that it’s a guy who’s going to be healthy scratched a ton. The Czarniks and Luffs of the world are key to the Griffins’ success, so you wouldn’t want it to be them for too long. However, Lalonde all but doused that in cold water with his comments yesterday, as the only note he offered was that Anisimov was invited once they learned that Carter Mazur was hurt. Still, we’ll see what he has left in the tank.
Hutchinson is a mostly minor-league journeyman goalie. I don’t think there’s any chance he earns a roster spot, but he might be Alex Lyon insurance. Lyon might have an outside chance of unseating Reimer, but is likely ticketed for Grand Rapids. Some wondered if the Red Wings would keep three goalies, as they did for a time last year, but that isn’t ideal for practice reps, Husso’s going to play a ton, and I think you need a veteran in Grand Rapids to pair with Cossa. I think it’s unlikely Lyon will get claimed if waived, but a few injuries around the league could change that, as he proved himself capable with Florida last season. Hutchinson could be his replacement if he is claimed, or if they do fear he won’t clear.
Lyon: Big Vibes Guy
Lastly, this already made the rounds but the Red Wings social media team does a great job of asking the hard-hitting questions that the media is afraid to, and they delivered again with this video. Aside from now questioning the sanity of a couple of players based on their answers, it’s apparent that Lyon would be a fun guy to have around if he does end up sticking.
Happy camp, everyone.
