Red Wings Notebook: Training Camp Battles, Berggren and more – Hockey Writers – Detroit Red Wings

Finally, the Detroit Red Wings are about to begin training camp ahead of the 2024-25 season. Coming off a season where they missed the playoffs by one point, the Red Wings haven’t been this high in nearly a decade.

Naturally there are plenty of issues to keep an eye on throughout the camp, but here are a few I’ve looked at.

Another Look at the Red Wings Goalie Situation

While the most prominent issue related to training camp seems to be whether Moritz Seider will fix his contract situation before it starts, there are a few things I’m watching, especially when it comes to roster battles.

I think the most interesting “battle” in training camp is the goal. By my calculations, five goalies will be coming into camp thinking they should play in the NHL this season: Cam Talbot, Alex Lyon, Ville Husso, Jack Campbell and Sebastian Cossa. Good or bad, Cossa is probably set to start his season in the American Hockey League (AHL). Additionally, general manager Steve Yzerman signed Talbot to play in Detroit, so his spot on the roster is guaranteed. That leaves three goalies with varying levels of experience and success in the NHL.

Related: 4 Red Wings Need to Step Up in 2024-25

With Cossa expected to play more games with the Grand Rapids Griffins this season, that means Detroit will likely carry three goals again this season. I just broke the hot story that Husso will be the goalkeeper sent to play with Cossa in Grand Rapids. Even though I say it’s hot for a reason, I think fans and media commentators should take a closer look at that. As I’ve written about in the past, Campbell stands out as the best fit to be Cossa’s champion this season as Campbell’s experience as a former first-round pick could be an asset to the Red Wings’ top goaltender.

All this to say that, what I have driven home, Lyon’s place is very secure and Husso and Campbell will have to fight for the last place. I understand that Yzerman said that he does not want to carry three goalkeepers this season, but he also said that he will adapt if things improve. If you sign two goaltenders in free agency when you already have three under contract, that tells me you’re either planning on taking three goaltenders to the NHL or you’re planning on getting rid of one of the guys you already have. Unless something changes in the next few weeks, I’m inclined to think it’s the former.

A More Offensive Red Wings Lineup?

If you ask around and read what’s out there, there seems to be a “default” arrangement that people expect Detroit to conform to. Basically, it features a top-six offensive lineman and a bottom-six defensive lineman that Jonathan Berggren will somehow fit in with. On defense, experience tends to rule the roost as people aren’t sure what to make of NHL prospect Albert Johansson.

If there is a case, I don’t think it’s as cut and dry as some might think it is. I believe that having three scoring lines is better than having only two, and the best way to defend is to play in the other team’s territory. The Red Wings have a staff that spreads the offense a bit (especially if a forward forces his way into the lineup) and I think head coach Derek Lalonde will at least want to see what this type of system looks like.

A catalyst for more offense could be Andrew Copp, who made a point in his late-season presser that he wasn’t asked to play an offensive role last season, and that contributed to what is considered a disappointing season for him. I think it’s important to point out that JT Compher only produced six more points as a second-line center for the Red Wings last season than Copp did last season – and Copp didn’t have the likes of Alex DeBrincat and Patrick Kane on his wing. . I’m not predicting an offensive explosion for Copp this season, but I am predicting that he will look much better than last season.

Berggren

For Berggren, I fear that the Red Wings will make the same mistake with him as they did with Filip Zadina.

See, some players just aren’t two players. Some are defensive and, for whatever reason, we tend to condone that – perhaps because we tend to think that the first job of any player is not to hurt their team. Some players have an offensive mind, and that is often only forgiven if their offense is at a high level. It’s well known that defense is by no means Patrick Kane’s strong suit, but we forgive you because he’s “show time” and his team often beats opponents whenever he’s on the ice.

Sometimes you have to let players be who they are and develop the parts of their game that got them to this level in the first place. I believe that the main thing that contributed to Zadina not working with the Red Wings is that the organization and the coaching staff, led by former coach Jeff Blashill, wanted him to focus on being a player that is being looked at instead of increasing the offense he is doing. had a great opportunity back in 2018. I fear they are putting themselves in a position to do the same thing as Berggren.

That’s why I keep finding myself going back to the idea of ​​three scoring lines instead of just two. The organization is saying all the right things about giving Berggren a fair shot at becoming an NHL regular this season. To me, the right shot doesn’t equate to spending most of his ice time with Joe Veleno and Tyler Motte, two forwards who combined for 79 goals and 154 points in over 600 NHL games. If the Red Wings are willing to give Berggren a shot, they need to put him in a position to create offense. If they don’t intend to do that, they should go ahead and send him to an organization that sees him for who he is instead of what they want him to be.

The Red Wings project will be released

With the signing of Lucas Raymond’s new deal (eight years at $8.075 million per year), the Red Wings still have about $8.7 million in cap space left to sign Seider. Most expect the two sides to reach an agreement in the coming days, and it probably shouldn’t be surprising if the defense number goes up.

“I don’t think we’re that far apart,” Yzerman said of talks with Seider and his agent.

When all is said and done, the Red Wings will likely find themselves below the salary cap for the first time since the early days of Yzerman’s tenure. While they have a few options they can do to give themselves more breathing room, the days of getting bloated contracts in exchange for draft picks are done. That doesn’t mean Yzerman won’t be able to add to his team if he needs to, but the dollar-ins and dollar-outs of any potential move will have to be considered much closer than he has been in recent years.

More To Come

As training camp begins and ramps up, we’ll start to get a clearer picture of what the decision makers in Detroit are thinking. I expect the organization’s youngest players to get a healthy amount of practice in the preseason, and I expect the coaching staff to play with some surprising lineups. On top of everything else, I also expect this to be one of the most interesting seasons of Red Wings hockey in quite some time as the stories keep popping up week after week.

Hockey season is back, folks.