from Max Bultman of The Athletic,
Welcome to NHL99, The Athletic’s countdown of the best 100 players in modern NHL history. We’re ranking 100 players but calling it 99 because we all know who’s No. 1 — it’s the 99 spots behind No. 99 we have to figure out. Every Monday through Saturday until February we’ll unveil new members of the list.
On the day Henrik Zetterberg called it a career, the venerable captain of the Detroit Red Wings stood in the corner of an ice rink in Traverse City, Mich., wearing a pale yellow hat and his trademark beard. He was asked, just minutes after the news of his back injury-induced retirement had been announced, what he was most proud of looking back.
His first reaction was a half-whispered, “Wow.”
Zetterberg let out a sigh before saying he wasn’t sure, but then he began his answer: “I think I didn’t see myself last(ing) this long, probably.”
The Red Wings captain had been a seventh-round pick in 1999, hearing 209 names called before his own. In the end, only two of them — his Swedish countrymen Daniel and Henrik Sedin — managed to play more than the 1,082 regular-season NHL games Zetterberg did.
And as good as he was in all of them, his playoff career made him an era-defining player for one of the league’s most iconic franchises. In 137 postseason games, Zetterberg amassed 120 points, driven by his all-world processor of a brain.
continued ($$$)
from Ansar Khan of Mlive,
Hotel life is getting tedious for Elmer Soderblom, who would love to get his own apartment in the area.
He just needs to play well enough to maintain a spot in the Detroit Red Wings lineup, giving the organization no reason to send him down to Grand Rapids.
I got to earn a spot here, bring something to the team and just play my game and pay attention to the small details as well, Soderblom said....
Soderblom impressed in the rookie tournament, training camp and preseason with his combination of size and skills. He has good hands and can make plays in tight spaces.
He will play tonight on what must be the biggest line in the league, with 6-6 center Michael Rasmussen and 6-3 wing Oskar Sundqvist.
Its a really heavy line, Soderblom said. Were playing good in practices. Two really good players, hopefully we can be tough to play against.
Coach Derek Lalonde said he likes the lines size, communication and work ethic.
Theres times that I think that line can possess the puck and kind of win the field position battle, if you will, and have some extended zone time, Lalonde said. Theyve shown that in practice. Theyre very hard to play against.
read on
I recall talking to Kyle Quincey a couple of weeks after he came back, "Hotel Life" for him and other temp Wings was the Motor City Casino, and he was like I gotta get out of there, find myself wandering down to the tables way too much.
Shiiiiit I know better than to stay at one of those!
from Tony Ferrari of The Hockey News
From top prospects arriving a bit early to undrafted players working their way to the big leagues, NHL teams have plenty of surprises on their opening night rosters.
ELMER SODERBLOM, RW, DETROIT RED WINGS
This is one of the bigger shocks among the rookies to make the team. Soderblom is a massive 6-foot-8 winger who has hands that dazzle and a quick release from in tight. He's responsible for some highlight reel goals from recent world juniors, such as a couple of between-the-legs goals and an impressive two seasons in the SHL, playing against some of the better competition outside of the NHL.
Soderblom isnt the best skater, but he's improved leaps and bounds since being drafted in the sixth round in 2019. The hulking Swede projects safely as a bottom-six player who uses his body effectively and wins puck battles while being a dominant presence in front of the net. His impressive training camp and 21-goal season in the SHL last year led some to believe he could play a bit higher up the lineup.
New Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde must figure out what he wants to do with him, because if he isn't seeing steady NHL minutes on a third line, he could wind up being better off in the AHL.
more players
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