The Red Wings have been a different team the past two weeks. They won their season-high fifth consecutive game Sunday, beating a strong Boston Bruins club 6-3 at Little Caesars Arena.
Anthony Mantha registered his first NHL hat trick and added a pair of assists for a career-best five points. Tyler Bertuzzi contributed three assists. Dylan Larkin added a goal and an assist.
They have formed a dominant top line during this stretch, which bodes well for the future.
The Red Wings (31-38-10) are 7-1 in their past eight.
“I thought when we were going through that tough stretch, the lack of morale, the lack of confidence, all the sudden it starts to eat away at you, and I didn’t like us. I didn’t like us in practice, I didn’t like us in games,” Blashill, who will receive a two-year contract extension in the coming days, said. “In the last bit, I’ve really liked us. I like the way we’re approaching things, I like the way we’re practicing, and certainly winning is a huge part of that. It gives you confidence. Our young guys, every step they take to prove to themselves they can be elite players in this league is a real positive for the Detroit Red Wings.”
Since the game was on NBCSN, this won't be your normal post-game coverage.
Below, watch Mantha's 3 goal night in one video, Hirose with the two Wings who provided the assists on his first NHL goal and a shortened version of the 6-3 win by Detroit.
Very good first period from the Wings, up 2-0 after one.
Second period a different story, Boston matched the 2 by Detroit plus 1. Boston up 3-2 after two.
Detroit scored 2 goals eight seconds apart early in the third to take a 4-3 lead and added another with just eight minutes left, then added an empty netter.
Wings win 6-3.
Big game for Anthony Mantha, 3g, 2a.
Goals, (Ken Kal with the call on few), some highlights and stats below.
Three more left folks.
Host Penguins on Tuesday, in Pittsburgh Thursday and Buffalo visits on Saturday.
Then we turn our attention to April 9th (8:00pm ET) for the NHL Draft Lottery.
That's right. Including tonight's tilt, the Wings have only four games left to play this season. It's been a rough ride for the Red Wings faithful, but, we're hanging tough and always looking forward.
Like most nights, the 19 will make it a good time to be had by all.
30-goals for Andreas Athanasiou, #RedWings draft prospects and tonight's matchup with the Bruins. All this & more on today's episode of The Forecheck with @KenKalDRW & Daniella Bruce. #LGRWhttps://t.co/VgOIWMDb4N
PITTSBURGH & CHICAGO – March 31, 2019 – Together with the National Hockey League (NHL) and the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA), Kraft Heinz is excited to announce Calumet Colosseum in Calumet, Michigan as the winner of Kraft Hockeyville™ USA 2019. Calumet Colosseum will have the opportunity to host an NHL Pre-Season Game, will be awarded $150,000 in rink upgrades and will receive $10,000 worth of new equipment from the NHLPA Goals & Dreams fund.
The Detroit Red Wings will be seeking their fifth consecutive victory tonight when they face the Boston Bruins at Little Caesars Arena (7:30, NBC Sports Network exclusive).
A Red Wings victory and a regulation loss by the Sabres against Columbus tonight would tie Detroit with Buffalo for 27th overall.
The final week of the regular season will determine the odds for the April 9 NHL Draft Lottery. The Red Wings (30-38-10, 70 points) are two points behind the Sabres and three points back of the New York Rangers.
Detroit could finish as high as 26th, resulting in a 7.5 percent chance of winning the lottery. At No. 27, the odds are 8.5 percent, followed by 9.5 percent (28th), 11.5 percent (29th), 13.5 percent (30th) and 18.5 percent (31st).
If the Red Wings gain at least one more point this season, they will not finish last overall.
Madison Bowey up first, below is Matt Puempel and Jake Cheilos.
added 1:00pm, Blashill below too.
added 3:12pm, projected lineup is below.
"I think for myself, this is a great fit, probably one of the best things that could have happened to me in my career so far.. I'm definitely loving it here in Detroit." pic.twitter.com/CMf8QgUk8K
DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today recalled goaltender Kaden Fulcher from the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins under emergency conditions.
Fulcher, 20, has appeared in 28 games for the ECHL’s Toledo Walleye in 2018-19, posting a 15-7-6 record, 3.00 goals-against average, 0.899 save percentage and one shutout to help the Walleye clinch a berth in the postseason, currently sitting fourth in the Eastern Conference with a 37-21-6-3 record. He recently posted the first shutout of his professional career by making 27 saves on March 3 against the Indy Fuel. The first-year pro was originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Red Wings on Oct. 3, 2017, earning a contract after attending the Red Wings’ 2017 development camp and training camp as a free agent invitee.
The 6-foot-3, 187-pound netminder turned professional in 2018-19 after a decorated end to his major-junior career, which he spent with the Sarnia Sting and Hamilton Bulldogs from 2015-18. In 2017-18, Fulcher helped Hamilton win the J. Ross Robertson Cup as champions of the Ontario Hockey League following a 32-17-6 regular-season record alongside a 2.86 goals-against average and 0.899 save percentage and a 16-5 postseason record with a 2.70 goals-against average and 0.905 save percentage. He was also named the Most Outstanding Goaltender at the Canadian Hockey League Memorial Cup following a 2.27 goals-against average and 0.918 save percentage in four games at the tournament. In all, the Brigden, Ontario, native posted a 57-44-13 record, 3.19 goals-against average, 0.893 save percentage and five shutouts in 115 career OHL games.
As the Detroit Red Wings head into the final week of their season, there’s one item that tops their to-do list: announce an extension for coach Jeff Blashill.
The deal is for two years, according to a person with knowledge of the situation. The length signals to Blashill the organization wants to see the Wings make the playoffs during that span. An announcement is likely to come Tuesday, when the Wings host Pittsburgh Penguins at Little Caesars Arena.
While the Wings are headed for a third straight draft lottery, the organization likes how hard Blashill has the team playing, and how they’ve maintained a culture of competitiveness as the team has embraced a youth movement.
Over the last four days, some conversation on Twitter regarding Andreas Athanasiou.
Your thoughts?
The guy is Franzen with less size & more speed. He’ll command a contract larger than Larkin’s after ‘19-20. Sorry, not worth the $6.3M he’ll get from an arbitrator as an RFA. Oh, and he’s already shown that he’ll holdout. He’s a 55-point player, there’s 100 others just like him.
Injuries have wreaked havoc with the Detroit Red Wings’ lineup, resulting in a series of recalls from the Grand Rapids Griffins the past few weeks.
They have had several players make their NHL and/or team debut. They have mixed and matched lines and defense pairings.
They have had multiple excuses to tank.
But the Red Wings are showing resolve as the season winds down. It has damaged their draft lottery odds, but it might just bode well for the future.
The Red Wings’ 4-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils Friday at Little Caesars Arena was their fourth in a row, equaling their season-long winning streak. They are 6-1 in their past seven and rank 28th among 31 teams.
Those who play the game aren’t concerned about where the team will be drafting.
There are some fans that think in the grand scheme of things it would be better to lose or tank the remainder of this season for the sake of the Draft. There are so many things that factor into building a winner. Getting the number one pick may help, but, it isn't the only answer. Just ask Edmonton.
Call me old fashioned, but, I want my team to win. Every fan does. I cannot root for the Wings to fail. I'm not built that way. Watching these last round of games has been fun, exciting, and it's a good feeling to come away with a hard fought win. Watching the new players that have just signed on, along with the young vets has made the end of this season bearable, watchable, and interesting.
You can see the difference in attitude, confidence, and desire. That's something that should carryover into next season. Going out on high instead of low.
The Detroit Red Wings are rising, many would argue at the wrong time.
But, as former Philadelphia Eagles coach Herm Edwards once famously said, “You play to win the game!”
And the Red Wings are doing just that, having gone 5-1 in their past six and riding a three-game winning streak heading into tonight’s game against the New Jersey Devils at Little Caesars Arena (7:30, Fox Sports Detroit Plus).
The Red Wings (29-38-10, 68 points), following Thursday’s 5-4 overtime victory at Buffalo, moved one point ahead of the Devils, into 28th overall. Detroit, with five games remaining, is three points behind the New York Rangers and four points back of the Sabres.
General manager Ken Holland told the Free Press on Friday the Wings don’t expect Svechnikov to play this season. The benefit of him missing what would have been his third season of pro hockey is he’ll be waiver exempt next season.
That means the Wings can send him to Grand Rapids without waivers. Maybe he has a strong summer and comes in ready to compete for a job in Detroit, but the Wings don’t know what they have in Svechnikov, who they selected at 19th overall in 2015.
He had an impressive rookie pro season in 2016-17 with the Griffins, scoring 20 goals among 51 points in 74 games, and adding 12 points during the Griffins run to the 2017 Calder Cup championship.
But the following season, Svechnikov struggled, producing seven goals among 23 points in 57 games with the Griffins, and producing two goals and two assists in 14 games with the Wings.
from an article by Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times on the GM hunt for the Seattle NHL franchise,
Current Red Wings GM Ken Holland brought three Stanley Cup titles and two decades of consecutive playoff appearances to so-called “Hockeytown’’ and still has a year left on his contract. So, the question now is what will happen once the regular season ends. Detroit isn’t heading to the playoffs, so the Red Wings could let everybody know in a couple of weeks whether Holland will be allowed to continue on his deal.
Firing a man who brought so much to professional hockey in Detroit isn’t as simple as some make it sound, even if the Red Wings are rebuilding and hampered somewhat on the salary cap front by past Holland moves. Loyalty still matters to a degree in pro sports, and others will be watching the Red Wings closely to see how they conduct their business with a highly respected executive.
If Holland is allowed to finish his deal, then what of Yzerman? He makes his home in suburban Detroit and has expressed a desire to remain there with his immediate family.
It’s possible the Red Wings could take him on as a front office adviser — much like he’s now employed by the Lightning after stepping down as GM last September — so that he can inherit Holland’s mantle once the contract runs out.
But it’s also possible Yzerman might not want to wait that long. And if that’s the case, then a man who would leapfrog McCrimmon as the top GM candidate for a majority of the league’s teams would suddenly be available.
DETROIT – The Detroit Red Wings today recalled right wing Martin Frk and defenseman Jake Chelios from the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins under emergency conditions.
Dylan Larkin didn’t like hearing he wasn’t considered a goal scorer, including from his employer.
His response was to become the Detroit Red Wings’ first 30-goal scorer in a decade.
In a season where “not much has felt great” because the losses have added up to another playoffs miss, Larkin didn’t hide how much it meant to reach the milestone he hit after scoring twice in Thursday’s 5-4 overtime victory at KeyBank center against the Buffalo Sabres....
Proving people were wrong about him sparked Larkin.
“Through contract negotiating and end of last couple years, people said I wasn’t a goal scorer,” Larkin said. “I tried to focus on it this summer. I set a goal before every season to try and get to 30, I think every player does and should. It is bittersweet because of the situation we’re in now, but it does feel pretty good that hard work pays off. To prove to people that I could be a goal scorer in this league.
Welcome to Abel to Yzerman, a Red Wing blog since 1977. No other site on the internet has better-researched, fact-laden and better prepared discussions than A2Y. Re-phrase: we do little research, find facts and stats highly overrated and claim little to no preparation. There are 19 readers of A2Y. No more, no less. All of them, except maybe one, are juvenile in nature. Reminding them of that in the comment section will only encourage them to prove that.