Only griffin to be scratched in both first two games.
I won't be too critical this early in the year, but at some point I hope to see less of the AHL journeymen and more of the Wings' prospects out on the blueline. We are reaching up or out territory as an organization and we need to see what we have in Almqvist, Fournier and Nicastro.
I won't be too critical this early in the year, but at some point I hope to see less of the AHL journeymen and more of the Wings' prospects out on the blueline. We are reaching up or out territory as an organization and we need to see what we have in Almqvist, Fournier and Nicastro.
Problem is is that the AHL team has to be competitive and throwing out all those guys without the steady vets to show them the ropes would be a nightmare. The Janik/Paetch's etc are needed there to help mentor those young guys. Fournier is what, 23 and hasnt secured a spot on the griffs blue line? I think the organization has probably seen enough.
Almqvist and Nicastro will get their looks for different reasons. Nicastro is HUGE out there, watching the game you can see it. He has everything to be a perfect number 6, physical shot blocker, and Almqvist has some saavy that you dont see all that often. I'm iffy on his size though.
Problem is is that the AHL team has to be competitive and throwing out all those guys without the steady vets to show them the ropes would be a nightmare. The Janik/Paetch's etc are needed there to help mentor those young guys. Fournier is what, 23 and hasnt secured a spot on the griffs blue line? I think the organization has probably seen enough.
Almqvist and Nicastro will get their looks for different reasons. Nicastro is HUGE out there, watching the game you can see it. He has everything to be a perfect number 6, physical shot blocker, and Almqvist has some saavy that you dont see all that often. I'm iffy on his size though.
Fournier just turned 21 in September, but I understand your point. The Griffins are pretty nice compared to a lot of other AHL teams in terms of letting the Red Wings dictate some of what they do. At the end of the day they are still a business and need to win after three years out of the playoffs.
I just am a little unimpressed by who they brought in thus far. AHL vets are important and getting to the playoffs is important for development of our younger guys. When both the parent club and AHL club crashed out of the playoffs last year that was a lot of lost time for our guys to be in systems and playing games and practices. The Griffins need to make the playoffs this year and they have the roster to do it should they get the right goaltending. Still stunned MacDonald didn't go down on waivers, he has almost no shot at an NHL gig and per his contract would have been paid a full NHL salary to be in Grand Rapids this year. Really a head scratching decision by him and his camp.
Problem is is that the AHL team has to be competitive and throwing out all those guys without the steady vets to show them the ropes would be a nightmare. The Janik/Paetch's etc are needed there to help mentor those young guys. Fournier is what, 23 and hasnt secured a spot on the griffs blue line? I think the organization has probably seen enough.
Almqvist and Nicastro will get their looks for different reasons. Nicastro is HUGE out there, watching the game you can see it. He has everything to be a perfect number 6, physical shot blocker, and Almqvist has some saavy that you dont see all that often. I'm iffy on his size though.
What you say is correct and journeymen may not have been the best word to use. I guess Billins is the one who has me confused. He certainly isn't without some skill, but he isn't really a prospect either. That being said, if he is earning PP time and out playing two of Almqvist, Nicastro and Fournier, perhaps there is more to his game than I thought.
What you say is correct and journeymen may not have been the best word to use. I guess Billins is the one who has me confused. He certainly isn't without some skill, but he isn't really a prospect either. That being said, if he is earning PP time and out playing two of Almqvist, Nicastro and Fournier, perhaps there is more to his game than I thought.
I agree on the Billins part, I just thought you were referring to most of the guys like Paetcsh who I think is the perfect guy to have down there on that blue line.
The griffins actually do use prospects in all the major roles of the game really, the PK is usually Callahan, Aubry, Parkes, Ferraro, Nicastro (surprised no Sheahan yet). The PP is Tatar, Nyquist, Ferraro, Smith etc.
Using prospects in pretty much all the big time situations is actually a big part of why GR hasnt done much playoff wise for a while. If you look at the 09 team you see a lot of career, good AHlers with experience. Now its mostly prospects.
Wings need to stay clear of Dane Fox. Rupert will go to Toronto.
Wouldnt mind Bell depending on where his head is at and Forsberg was rated as a third rounder or so in his draft year but hasnt had any teams interested it seems. I wonder what the story is there
Wings need to stay clear of Dane Fox. Rupert will go to Toronto.
Wouldnt mind Bell depending on where his head is at and Forsberg was rated as a third rounder or so in his draft year but hasnt had any teams interested it seems. I wonder what the story is there
Yeah Bell is the only one that completely jumps out at me there. Although it should be pointed out eliteprospects is very slow on updating these guys profiles in this case. Lipon is listed at 6'0 181 lbs. He is leading the WHL in scoring so I guess there are a lot of things to like. But the guy in third right now is Macek someone we didn't deem worthy of a contract. It isn't like the Wings have a ton of those to go around right now. A couple of these guys will get those NHL deals that count towards the total limit for sure.
27 Tomas Tatar - 29 Landon Ferraro - 13 Gustav Nyquist
21 Trevor Parkes - 19 Riley Sheahan - 28 Tomas Jurco
10 Jeff Hoggan (C) - 22 Louis-Marc Aubry - 9 Francis Pare
23 Triston Grant - 12 Brent Raedeke - 15 Mitch Callahan
4 Nathan Paetsch (A) - 7 Brendan Smith
5 Adam Almquist - 32 Brian Lashoff (A)
14 Chad Billins - 44 Brennan Evans
1 Jordan Pearce
30 Tom McCollum
I thought Parkes-Sheahan-Jurco was probably your best line, but not many good chances overall. Parkes took advantage of a fallen defenseman to feed Jurco in front for a tap-in. Ferraro tipped a Paetsch point shot in the slot for his goal. Grant's goal was flukey, bounced off someone and in, and his fight with Tarnasky was definitely a loss. I also thought Smith looked solid and that Pearce struggled with his side-to-side movement, as was evident on the three PPGs. Cheers.
Very uneven effort at times. The Griffins really fell apart after Almqvist turnover changed the game. Grant lost his fight but was stepping up to help Callahan as that was the other guys original target, so that helps explain the rough hit and then exchange for those who didn't watch the game.
Jurco and Ferraro were our best forwards. Tatar and Nyquist looked dangerous at times but they need to start driving the net a little more. They are on the outside too often for my liking right now.
Pearce had a rough outing, really only had one big save and as pointed out in this thread struggled getting side to side. He was nowhere near the same level of play as the opener. Also a little surprised he got the nod with McCollum playing somewhat of a homecoming game of sorts.
They will need to pick up their play. Because something worth noting that we don't talk about a lot is that Toledo has two highly thought of goalies. The Hawks have Kent Simpson a second round pick and also first year pro. So that is going to be an even time share. So it isn't like Mrazek is going to get every start down there like some of us hoped. If he is in an every other start position down there and that is how they are going to run it, it doesn't make sense not to demote Pearce into that situation especially if the goalies in Grand Rapids run on a similar system.
Very uneven effort at times. The Griffins really fell apart after Almqvist turnover changed the game. Grant lost his fight but was stepping up to help Callahan as that was the other guys original target, so that helps explain the rough hit and then exchange for those who didn't watch the game.
Jurco and Ferraro were our best forwards. Tatar and Nyquist looked dangerous at times but they need to start driving the net a little more. They are on the outside too often for my liking right now.
Pearce had a rough outing, really only had one big save and as pointed out in this thread struggled getting side to side. He was nowhere near the same level of play as the opener. Also a little surprised he got the nod with McCollum playing somewhat of a homecoming game of sorts.
They will need to pick up their play. Because something worth noting that we don't talk about a lot is that Toledo has two highly thought of goalies. The Hawks have Kent Simpson a second round pick and also first year pro. So that is going to be an even time share. So it isn't like Mrazek is going to get every start down there like some of us hoped. If he is in an every other start position down there and that is how they are going to run it, it doesn't make sense not to demote Pearce into that situation especially if the goalies in Grand Rapids run on a similar system.
I was at the game tonight. One guy who really impressed me was Aubry, I was really impressed with his stick and defensive play. The guy had a ton of steals, and he is great in the neutral zone.
Disagree with Ferraro being one of the best forwards tonight. I thought Nyquist carried his line with his skating and puck control, and Tatar and Ferraro were pretty much non-factors at even strength. Outside of that deflection and a couple short-handed rushes I don't really think Ferraro did much.
Outside of that bad turnover I thought Almqvist played pretty good. He was awesome in the offensive zone finding the open man and accurate passes, but he looked a bit vulnerable in the neutral zone and his own end.
I thought Parkes-Aubry-Jurco was the best line, they were great on the forecheck, and controlled play most the time they were out there. Sheahan didn't get that much icetime early, but late in the game he was flying around pretty good back-checking and ragging the puck. He looks like he has the best combination of size and skating on the team.
I thought Aubry had a really good game. I was at the game tonight, and I was really impressed with his stick and defensive play. The guy had a ton of steals, and he is great in the neutral zone.
Disagree with Ferraro being one of the best forwards tonight. I thought Nyquist carried his line with his skating and puck control, and Tatar and Ferraro were pretty much non-factors at even strength. Outside of that deflection and a couple short-handed rushes I don't really think Ferraro did much.
Outside of that bad turnover I thought Almqvist played pretty good. He was awesome in the offensive zone finding the open man and accurate passes, but he looked a bit vulnerable in the neutral zone and his own end.
I thought Parkes-Aubry-Jurco was the best line, they were great on the forecheck, and controlled play most the time they were out there. Sheahan didn't get that much icetime early, but late in the game he was flying around pretty good back-checking and ragging the puck.
Not going to disagree with a whole bunch of what was said. I just think Ferraro is active he does a good job at getting into danger zones and pushing the D back. The centers on this team need to drive the net more, well really the whole team needs better net drive to be honest.
Sheahan made a lot of very simple plays that were tougher than they looked. He is very good at breaking pressure and he back-checks like a monster. Both he and Aubry are so hard on the other team when they are out there. They do a great job of using their size and skating to turnover pucks.
Not going to disagree with a whole bunch of what was said. I just think Ferraro is active he does a good job at getting into danger zones and pushing the D back. The centers on this team need to drive the net more, well really the whole team needs better net drive to be honest.
Yeah, I was a bit disappointed to be honest. I was expecting more from Tatar and Ferraro. But maybe I just had unrealistic expectations. Nyquist looked like the best skater on the ice to me, I did not realize he was that fast,
Ferraro seemed like he won a good amount of his draws which was good to see, esepcially for a guy who has switched around and played wing and center.
These were your lines tonight:I thought Parkes-Sheahan-Jurco was probably your best line, but not many good chances overall. Parkes took advantage of a fallen defenseman to feed Jurco in front for a tap-in. Ferraro tipped a Paetsch point shot in the slot for his goal. Grant's goal was flukey, bounced off someone and in, and his fight with Tarnasky was definitely a loss. I also thought Smith looked solid and that Pearce struggled with his side-to-side movement, as was evident on the three PPGs. Cheers.
Totally agree, Pearce's lateral quickness looked terrible. Would really like to see Mrazek called up to see what he can do.
Smith looks bored out there to me. Looks like he's skating at like 75%.
Totally agree, Pearce's lateral quickness looked terrible. Would really like to see Mrazek called up to see what he can do.
Smith looks bored out there to me. Looks like he's skating at like 75%.
Smith has not played with the same snarl he normally does so far this year. Almost like a don't get hurt down here before the NHL season happens. The good news is I expect the CBA will look more clear in the next couple weeks and his head will be in a better place because of it one way or the other I think will help him focus.
One thing to keep in mind about the AHL kids this year is that the Griffins are basically the same type of team as always - a bunch of kids that need a year or more of playing to get NHL-ready. By contrast, almost all the other AHL teams are stacked with players who are already in the NHL, to go along with rookies who are on par with a Brendan Smith or better like a Justin Schulz. Heck, at least one team has an NHL All-Star on the roster. I mean look how ridiculous the OKC roster is - Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, Justin Schulz, RNH. You've got a stacked Albany team. A stacked Binghamton team. Toronto, Adirondack, and Portland are all looking pretty strong. Just a few names who would undoubtedly be in the NHL right now sans lockout, or are pretty elite prospects.....
Sven Baertschi (Abbotsford)
Brayden Schenn (Adirondack)
Sean Couturier (Adirondack)
Adam Henrique (Albany)
Adam Larsson (Albany)
Jakob Silfvberberg (Binghamton)
Mika Zibanejad (Binghamton)
Jared Cowen (Binghamton)
Robin Lehner (Binghamton)
Nino Niederreiter (Bridgeport)
Dan Ellis (Charlotte)
Zack Kassian (Chicago)
Braden Holtby (Hershey)
Mikael Granlund (Houston)
Slava Voynov (Manchester)
Taylor Hall (Oklahoma City)
Jordan Eberle (Oklahoma City)
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (Oklahoma City)
Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson (Oklahoma City)
Justin Schultz (Oklahoma City)
David Rundblad (Portland)
Oliver Ekman-Larsson (Portland)
Brandon Gormley (Portland)
Nick Leddy (Rockford)
Jacob Markstrom (San Antonio)
Brett Connolly (Syracuse)
Nazem Kadri (Toronto)
Paul Ranger (Toronto)
etc etc
You get the point I'm too tired to give a really detailed list, but those just just a few of the bigger names. We're playing rookies in our top 4 defense pairs in GR against elite NHL caliber talent and in some cases even established stars. Can't expect too much from this team other than keeping themselves from getting run over every night. It'll be an excellent learning experience for the kid to play against this caliber of competition, but it's going to be a long, painful, and likely dismal season too.
They will need to pick up their play. Because something worth noting that we don't talk about a lot is that Toledo has two highly thought of goalies. The Hawks have Kent Simpson a second round pick and also first year pro. So that is going to be an even time share. So it isn't like Mrazek is going to get every start down there like some of us hoped. If he is in an every other start position down there and that is how they are going to run it, it doesn't make sense not to demote Pearce into that situation especially if the goalies in Grand Rapids run on a similar system.
Couldn't agree more. I would really, really like to see how Mrazek does at the AHL level sooner rather than later.
And Captain Bob, thanks for the stats lines. Good stuff.
One thing to keep in mind about the AHL kids this year is that the Griffins are basically the same type of team as always - a bunch of kids that need a year or more of playing to get NHL-ready. By contrast, almost all the other AHL teams are stacked with players who are already in the NHL, to go along with rookies who are on par with a Brendan Smith or better like a Justin Schulz. Heck, at least one team has an NHL All-Star on the roster. I mean look how ridiculous the OKC roster is - Taylor Hall, Jordan Eberle, Justin Schulz, RNH. You've got a stacked Albany team. A stacked Binghamton team. Toronto, Adirondack, and Portland are all looking pretty strong. Just a few names who would undoubtedly be in the NHL right now sans lockout, or are pretty elite prospects.....
You get the point I'm too tired to give a really detailed list, but those just just a few of the bigger names. We're playing rookies in our top 4 defense pairs in GR against elite NHL caliber talent and in some cases even established stars. Can't expect too much from this team other than keeping themselves from getting run over every night. It'll be an excellent learning experience for the kid to play against this caliber of competition, but it's going to be a long, painful, and likely dismal season too.
One could easily make an argument that the Griffins roster is actually worse this season. And this just further proves why the goaltending situation stinks so much. On top of playing the role as underdogs most nights you also have a disadvantage in net. Yeah they want to show faith in what they've got, I get that, but unless miracles start to happen Pearce/McCollum will not get it done. You want to have goalies that show NHL promise, not guys trying to hang on in the minors.
MacDonald should've been waived and ready to start the season. Now he'll just sit, and sit and sit. And he'll still have no chance of playing in the NHL anyway once the season starts. Or they could've signed a goalie from Europe for Pete's sake, like many other teams do to strengthen their goalie situation just in case. Dallas who has two very capable guys in Bachman and Campbell behind Lehtonen signed Nihlstorp, a top SEL goalie. Boston with Thomas, Rask and Khudobin signed SEL champion Svedberg. It's like the Wings are afraid to hurt someone's feelings. I really hope the Wings try to sign Eriksson next summer to get some much needed depth in goal beyond the NHL.
One could easily make an argument that the Griffins roster is actually worse this season. And this just further proves why the goaltending situation stinks so much. On top of playing the role as underdogs most nights you also have a disadvantage in net. Yeah they want to show faith in what they've got, I get that, but unless miracles start to happen Pearce/McCollum will not get it done. You want to have goalies that show NHL promise, not guys trying to hang on in the minors.
MacDonald should've been waived and ready to start the season. Now he'll just sit, and sit and sit. And he'll still have no chance of playing in the NHL anyway once the season starts. Or they could've signed a goalie from Europe for Pete's sake, like many other teams do to strengthen their goalie situation just in case. Dallas who has two very capable guys in Bachman and Campbell behind Lehtonen signed Nihlstorp, a top SEL goalie. Boston with Thomas, Rask and Khudobin signed SEL champion Svedberg. It's like the Wings are afraid to hurt someone's feelings. I really hope the Wings try to sign Eriksson next summer to get some much needed depth in goal beyond the NHL.
My Goodness, Joe89 recommends a Swede?
We have Howard/Gustavsson
I fear our depth problem isn't at the AHL level, it's at the NHL level.
If Howie goes down, is Gustavsson capable of backstopping us anywhere?
Most teams would be in trouble if their #1 and #2 goalie goes down. We've still got Joey Mac signed. And then we have McCollum/Mrazek/Pierce.
I don't see how adding another goalie to the mix helps our depth, really. It just clogs the prospect artery at one more position.
One could easily make an argument that the Griffins roster is actually worse this season. And this just further proves why the goaltending situation stinks so much. On top of playing the role as underdogs most nights you also have a disadvantage in net. Yeah they want to show faith in what they've got, I get that, but unless miracles start to happen Pearce/McCollum will not get it done. You want to have goalies that show NHL promise, not guys trying to hang on in the minors.
MacDonald should've been waived and ready to start the season. Now he'll just sit, and sit and sit. And he'll still have no chance of playing in the NHL anyway once the season starts. Or they could've signed a goalie from Europe for Pete's sake, like many other teams do to strengthen their goalie situation just in case. Dallas who has two very capable guys in Bachman and Campbell behind Lehtonen signed Nihlstorp, a top SEL goalie. Boston with Thomas, Rask and Khudobin signed SEL champion Svedberg. It's like the Wings are afraid to hurt someone's feelings. I really hope the Wings try to sign Eriksson next summer to get some much needed depth in goal beyond the NHL.
Very strong points here. Goaltending has always been a weakness for Detroit. I can understand not wanting to use up a bunch of roster spots on goaltenders but if they only want to use a few spots on goalies they really need to be willing to make tough decisions and part ways with guys who are not progressing, ie Pearce and McCollum. As you point out you can sign pretty solid goaltenders who give your team a chance to win more games. It's mind boggling, the approach literally makes no sense.
