Development Camp

[Pavels Dog]

Little worried about Rasmussen. He did not stand out today like I was hoping, especially for a player trying to showcase his ability to make the pros next season. Some brutal turn overs, and slow to backcheck.

It's hard with these camps because while it's always nice if a player looks good, it can't be compared to real game situations. Looks like Rasmussen had 1+2, right? So it's not like he had a bad scrimmage. These types of camps often favor the smaller, skill-type players that thrive when players aren't working as hard defensively and the physicality and competitive edge isn't as high. There's also a question of how motivated players are. Some are determined to use this as an opportunity to showcase themselves, while a guy like Rasmussen probably knows very well that his focus should be on summer training and being the best he can be in September.

 

[alko]

Any info about Patrik Rybar?

 

[ChadS]

The scrimmage is on YouTube by the way, links:
1st period
2nd period
3rd period & OT
Shootout

 

[cjm502]

Something I previously noticed about Zadina that has made itself apparent again with his OT and shootout goals is hes great at roofing the puck and picking corners. Often times a player will just fire the puck at net hoping to get a shot through, but it seems like Zadina always knows exactly where he is trying to put the puck and hes good at it.

 

[waltdetroit]

The scrimmage is on YouTube by the way, links:
1st period
2nd period
3rd period & OT
Shootout

Thanks for posting these vids! I only saw the 3rd period on. Plenty of great plays I missed

 

[Henkka]

Something I previously noticed about Zadina that has made itself apparent again with his OT and shootout goals is hes great at roofing the puck and picking corners. Often times a player will just fire the puck at net hoping to get a shot through, but it seems like Zadina always knows exactly where he is trying to put the puck and hes good at it.

Good. That sounds Laine'ish.

 

[Nut Upstrom]

The scrimmage is on YouTube by the way, links:
1st period
2nd period
3rd period & OT
Shootout

Very cool, thanks for posting this.

 

[Henkka]

quick question - any reason why Larsson and Petruzzeli werent there? rehabbing injuries?

At least Larsson had an injury. Don't know about Petro.

 

[izlez]

Admittedly, I haven't watched myself. I'm hoping to get the time to watch those youtube videos soon, but right now the reactions are just so expected.

Rasmussen: Goal and 2 assists.
Reaction: Rather disappointing. Meh at best.

Bergrenn: Totally unnecessary pass between his legs at the blueline that accomplishes nothing.
Reaction: This guy just might turn this team around!!!

 

[lilidk]

Admittedly, I haven't watched myself. I'm hoping to get the time to watch those youtube videos soon, but right now the reactions are just so expected.

Rasmussen: Goal and 2 assists.
Reaction: Rather disappointing. Meh at best.

Bergrenn: Totally unnecessary pass between his legs at the blueline that accomplishes nothing.
Reaction: This guy just might turn this team around!!!

I kinda watch this game ,kind boring game. Commentators were talking about all kind of things instead of just calling players names. I don't think Rasmussen is a center,

 

[Ezekial]

Rasmussen: Goal and 2 assists.
Reaction: Rather disappointing. Meh at best.

Bergrenn: Totally unnecessary pass between his legs at the blueline that accomplishes nothing.
Reaction: This guy just might turn this team around!!!

I get what you're saying but Berggren did a lot more than that pass, he was controlling the play just about every time he was on the ice, showed a lot of skill and vision.
And that "unnecessary pass" deceived the defense into allowing a 2 on 1 and a high danger scoring chance.

BUT at the same time, that "Datsyukian steal" before the pass directly followed him coughing up the puck taking on 3-4 guys at once with skill.

Anyway, I'm excited about both of these guys. Berggren could develop into an extremely good NHL player.

 

[waltdetroit]

At least Larsson had an injury. Don't know about Petro.

During the scrimmage the announcer said Pete had an illness

 

[JoesuffP]

I think Ras is one of those guys that doesn’t really stand out but finishes with good numbers

 

[Unfriendly Ghost]

Thoughts on the scrimmage:

• In general, the goalies were atrocious. Like there's almost no meaningful conclusion you can draw from goals scored or points or anything from this game. Both goalies drafted this year looked pretty bad. It's only one scrimmage, but... yikes.
  
• The Smith/Rasmussen/Zadina line really wasn't very good. Smith was decent enough, and Zadina showed a lot of skill (and not much finish here), but Rasmussen seemed like he wasn't skating very hard. I've seen him before, and he's certainly skated much faster in actual games. Like in general, even though this line had the most starpower, they got outworked and outskated for most of the game. Often by Veleno's line.
  
• I really liked Veleno's game. He's not just fast, he's really fast. But he's also got work ethic to his game, and he pressures the hell out of you on the forecheck. His passing was very good, and kind of understated; it didn't always seem like he had done anything special, but it was always kind of sneaky and perfectly on the tape. What struck me though is that he doesn't do a very good job of getting his shot through. Like with Zadina, if he loses a clear shot, he moves all over the place trying to find a new one. Veleno just stays there, and it gets his shot blocked a lot. I think if he works on that he can score a lot more goals.
  
• Berggren was good, but quiet in the latter half of the game. Good speed, very shifty, passes very well.
• The big surprise for me was Setkov. I guess before this scrimmage I didn't really have a take on him as a prospect, but it turns out that he's basically a 6'6 puckmover. He skates way better than you're supposed to skate at 6'6, and he's got an offensive mindset. The red team didn't get a lot from its D other than Setkov, so it felt like he got a lot of icetime, and was pretty impressive the entire time. He's still quite raw, but I get it now. It'll be interesting to see how he develops.
• Cholowski was good and moved the puck quite well, but blended in a little more than you'd want him to. I think part of that is just that he doesn't project as a guy who's going to tear games apart with his offense (that's Hronek). He's just a smart puckmover who's always moving the play forward.
• McIsaac was just quiet.
• This game made me realize that the Wings draft a ton of ridiculously raw players. It's like if you're big, skate well, and are headed to college, Detroit is going to take a late round flyer on you.
• But everybody also seemed to skate well. Even the guys who are said to be a little slow (Kotkansalo, for example) looked pretty good. That's a good sign.
• I don't know where to put this, but Alfons Malmstrom has a beard like he's 35 and it's the middle of the playoffs. At the age of 20

 

[Henkka]

I like these comments, looks like your current prospect group has many different kind of players. It will be a good future mix, when all is not from the same mold.

 

[Rzombo4 prez]

Thoughts on the scrimmage:

• The big surprise for me was Setkov. I guess before this scrimmage I didn't really have a take on him as a prospect, but it turns out that he's basically a 6'6 puckmover. He skates way better than you're supposed to skate at 6'6, and he's got an offensive mindset. The red team didn't get a lot from its D other than Setkov, so it felt like he got a lot of icetime, and was pretty impressive the entire time. He's still quite raw, but I get it now. It'll be interesting to see how he develops

Yeah, Setkov stuck out in a good way to me as well. I was really impressed with the pace at which he moved the puck in traffic. I also liked his assertiveness in the defensive zone. He made a lot of great little smart passes to keep transition and the flow of the play alive. He looked like he didn't need much time with the puck to make a good decision. Good stuff for summer hockey.

 

[HIFE]

The scrimmage was a blast. I'm thankful the Wings put a broadcast together. I guess that's a perk moving on from TC, getting a stream you can actually read the players numbers. So many great little plays and getting to watch the guys I know almost nothing about was awesome.

Veleno looks much bigger than his junior highlights for some reason. His frame and skating are more like a grown man than a teenager. Gogolev had a great game, was very noticeable as was Kievenmaki. Cholowski carrying the puck up ice put a smile on my face. I want to keep track of Holoway- 6'4 and moves really well- carries himself like a real player. He made a nice play catching Veleno on a breakaway.

Zadina, Rasmussen, and Smith stole the show. That's an exciting line. Zadina got loose a few times dancing into a shot. IMO there's no reason he and Ras shouldn't be on the Wings come October. Sure they'll take their licks and have struggles, I just think there's no better time to inject this type of skilled energy (and not for entertainment's sake). Larkin, Mantha, Bertuzzi, AA, Rasmussen, Zadina- it's a lot of young forwards but they can mix on all 4 lines if wanted. In reality Larkin and Mantha are far from being rookies. As someone said earlier they can be spread amongs all the veterans so no worries. Seriously at this point what do the Wings have to lose?

I would let go of Glendening if space was needed. His usefulness is peaking out and I'd rather Rasmussen grind out 10 minutes a night with the hopes he grows steadily like say a Jarnkrok or Nosek (and far surpasses). Limited responsibility but we'd be fast-tracking his progress as he lives night and day with NHL players.

 

[Pavels Dog]

My thoughts:

- Cholowski best player on the ice. Always makes good decisions with the puck, always in the right position. Looked good at both sides of the rink except maybe a kinda weak defensive play on the OT goal. Looks much stronger, pushed people off pucks a few times.
- Rasmussen probably best forward. You could see his puck-protection game being miles ahead most others. Had a handful of great passing plays and just looks pro-ready.
- Berggren really skilled and intriguing, I don't know if he is 1-2 years away or 5 years away, I don't know if he is the next Nyquist or something more, but he is really promising.
- Kivinmaki is the kind of late rounder we haven't drafted enough of. He's a longshot, but it's a good sign when the puck follows a kid around and he didn't look intimidated by going into the corners against players much bigger
- Setkov amazed me. Still pretty raw but wow, what a package of size, skating and upside. Wasn't surprised to see him get the nod with Zadina and Ras to start OT. Sky is the limit for this kid.
- Zadina was a mixed bag to me. Skill is apparent but I question if his overall game is really NHL ready. But I also wouldn't say it's out of the question that he's one of those kids that just 'get it' very quickly and adapt.
- McIsaac, Regula and Kotkansalo all looked solid, would have really liked to see Lindstrom to see how he stacks up against them.