The Detroit Red Wings could have as many as seven new players in the lineup Thursday when they open the season.
The acquisitions of forwards Bobby Ryan, Vladislav Namestnikov and Mathias Brome, defensemen Marc Staal, Troy Stecher and Jon Merrill, and goaltender Thomas Greiss provide the Red Wings with more NHL-quality players than they had during a disastrous 2019-20 season when they were buried in the league’s basement.
They replaced Justin Abdelkader, Brendan Perlini, Christoffer Ehn, Jonathan Ericsson, Trevor Daley, Madison Bowey and Jimmy Howard, none of whom will start this season on an NHL roster.
Ultimately, the Red Wings’ future depends on a young veteran core of Dylan Larkin, Anthony Mantha, Tyler Bertuzzi and Filip Hronek, top prospects including Filip Zadina, Joe Veleno, Moritz Seider and Lucas Raymond, and whoever they select in the next couple of drafts.
The newcomers will provide a short-term lift, maybe not enough to elevate the Red Wings out of the Central Division cellar, but enough to improve them in all areas.
Here is a look at how the new faces for 2021 can help the Red Wings:
Bobby Ryan
He provides scoring potential and a much-needed right-handed shot among the top-six forwards. He has been skating on the second line, with Robby Fabbri and Filip Zadina, and handling net-front duties on the top power-play unit. He has, however, been “unfit to play” the past two days, jeopardizing his chances to start the season.
Ryan, 33, is not the offensive force he was earlier in his career. He appeared in only 24 games last season with Ottawa (five goals, three assists), missing more than two months after entering the NHL/NHLPA substance assistance program. He is motivated to show he still can make an impact.
“I worked differently this summer than I ever have and now I’m kind of seeing the rewards of it,” Ryan said at the start of camp. “Getting my body ready for what’s going to be a pretty good sprint here for a hockey season.”
Vladislav Namestnikov
He will be sort of the team’s jack-of-all-trades, with the ability to play any forward position, the power play and the penalty kill. He began camp at left wing on the third line with Valtteri Filppula and Sam Gagner but has been moved to a line centered by Luke Glendening, with Mathias Brome at the other wing.
“He is versatile, that’s one of the best attributes for him, he does a lot of good things,” coach Jeff Blashill said. “He said to me one of the things he takes pride in after being in the league a number of years is how well he plays defensively, his penalty kill. He’s a guy who’s mature in his game. He can move up and down the lineup and hopefully make each line better.”
Namestnikov grew up in Detroit a Red Wings fan because of uncle Slava Kozlov, part of Detroit’s famed Russian Five, one of many former players whose photo hangs in the dressing room.
“I sit directly across from it,” Namestnikov said. “When I look up, I see him, so it’s very exciting for me, for my family that I’m playing for the Red Wings.
“Every time I show up to the rink it’s like, ‘Oh my God, a dream come true!’ "
Mathias Brome
He started camp practicing with the second group, consisting mainly of players projected to play for the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins. When Darren Helm was deemed “unfit to play,” Brome replaced him on the fourth line with Glendening and Adam Erne and has made a strong push for a roster spot.
The Red Wings have not had much luck in recent years with undrafted European free agents. But Brome is older (26) and more polished than most. He has the skills to help offensively and prides himself on being a two-way player.
“I think his impact on the game and impact in practice has been positive,” Blashill said. “He works real hard. He’s a little quicker than I realized. He seems to be smart. He’s been good on the penalty kill, good on the power play and he’s been good five-on-five.”
Marc Staal
After 13 years with the New York Rangers, this big, stay-at-home defenseman (6-4, 209) was shocked to be traded to Detroit in a salary dump (the Red Wings acquired a second-round pick by agreeing to assume the final year of his contract). But he has warmed to the idea of helping resurrect this team, even if only until the trade deadline.
“Being physical, stopping plays in my own end, being good in front of the net, defending well so our forwards can get the puck back and make plays, that’s where my focus is at,” Staal said.
Staal began camp paired with Patrik Nemeth but has skated with Troy Stecher the past few practices.
“He’s a big, strong man,” Blashill said. “He’s hard in front of the net, he’s hard in the corners, which helps create stalls, so you can get out of your end. He’s understood what he is and plays within himself really well.”
Troy Stecher
Stecher was the additional right-handed shooting defenseman general manager Steve Yzerman was seeking. He is not big (5-10, 186), but is mobile, someone who can skate the puck out of his zone.
“They’ve done a great job of sending up video and clips to watch on their systems and the way they want us to play and their expectations for us.” Stecher said. “I think the first couple days you were thinking a little bit more instead of reading and reacting, but as it’s progressed, I’ve been a little bit more comfortable.
“I’m trying to lead by example. My work ethic is something I’ve prided myself on throughout my career and I’m going to be no different here. With that, hopefully I can earn the respect of my teammates and build a relationship.”
Said Blashill: “Stech is a high-compete guy. He’s probably one of those guys who was told he wasn’t going to make it because of his size. He willed himself to the NHL and he’s willed himself to be a really good player.
“I spoke with Travis Green, his former coach in Vancouver, and Travis had real good things to say about him, was disappointed to lose him. You want those high-compete guys, those guys that when the puck is dropped, they’re going to go out and win their battles over the course of 60 minutes.”
Jon Merrill
The 6-3, 195-pound defenseman is a seven-year NHL veteran who played at Michigan. Mainly a defensive defenseman who can kill penalties, he has seen some power-play time in camp.
“I think Jon is pretty good at everything. He’s not necessarily one of those guys where one attribute stands out,” Blashill said. “Pass the puck out of your own end, shut people down, play on the penalty kill, maybe play on the power play, he’s got potential to do a lot of different things.”
Merrill is thrilled to join the team he grew up idolizing.
“Really special for me to just walk into the locker room and see all the photos on the walls,” Merrill said. “It’s definitely surreal, got to pinch myself sometimes seeing the great names all over. It’s something I don’t take lightly, it’s something I’m honored to be a part of.”
He said of his favorite Red Wing: “Nicklas Lidstrom, for obvious reasons. I’d love to have just a tenth of his skills and smarts.”
Thomas Greiss
Greiss will team with Jonathan Bernier to improve Detroit’s goaltending. He spent the past five season with the Islanders and has a career record of 137-90-38, with a 2.63 goals-against average and .915 save percentage.
Bernier played well from mid-December to the end of the season, likely giving him the edge for the No. 1 job. But it figures to be an ongoing competition with possibly a 50-50 split of the workload. They are going to need two goalies for this compressed schedule.
“It’s going to be a crazy year with so many games in so little time,” Greiss said. “He’s a great partner, he played awesome last year, helped them every night. I’m looking forward to playing with him.”
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The Link LonkJanuary 10, 2021 at 02:22AM
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How Red Wings’ newcomers can help team improve in 2021 - MLive.com
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