Red Wings Grades 2020-21 (Really only 21, I guess)

[Gniwder]

Then he should think a little bit out of the box.
That rookie from Dallas stars was not a good skater, but he improved his skating and is doing great.
Svechnikov has the talent and the size, he was also very competitive.

He doesn't have enough skills to compensate for his lack of speed. He only looks good because 3/4 of the team is offensively inept. Better players can be had in free agency or low end trades, like Erne for example. Svech is an easily replaceable plug, which is why he cleared waivers twice. He'll clear again next season if he's re-signed.

The kid skates like he smokes 2 packs a day, just re-watch any game. He can't do more than 10 strides without coasting. I prefer high energy guys like Fabbri, his feet are always moving.

 

[MBH]

He doesn't have enough skills to compensate for his lack of speed. He only looks good because 3/4 of the team is offensively inept. Better players can be had in free agency or low end trades, like Erne for example. Svech is an easily replaceable plug, which is why he cleared waivers twice. He'll clear again next season if he's re-signed.

The kid skates like he smokes 2 packs a day, just re-watch any game. He can't do more than 10 strides without coasting. I prefer high energy guys like Fabbri, his feet are always moving.

An easily replaceable plug who is a better producer than Zadina.
Zadina is several years younger and will improve.
But this is why people are giving Zadina low grades.

 

[MBH]

Difference is, Bowey was a train wreck in his own end, and played like he had a grenade blade with the puck in our zone. Cholo looked markedly improved in his own end from the previous 2 seasons, while offensively every one minus 1 or 2, had terrible years. Part of it is lack of talent, and part of it is style we are forced to play to stay in games with this sucky team.

The other difference is Bowey made goals happen at the offensive side of the ice.

 

[MBH]

What do we lose playing cholowski next year? Is anyone expecting this team to be good? Sign one LD, best you can, to play top4 and likely pair with Seider. If we sign a second LD find a way to cut Dekesyer loose.

.

Nothing.
Let him play.
And if he improves, great. Now he's legit NHL defensemen with 180 games under his belt as we give Johansson and/or McIsaac a chance as a rookie.

Now, if McIsaac and/or Johansson step in and blow the doors off and push Cholo out, so be it.

I really think we need a veteran RD more than a veteran LD.

I want a guy who can play 18 minutes a night, but maybe takes a 23-minute a night role if/when Hronek/Seider hit a tough patch.

 

[SergeiYzerman]

I'd give Zadina a B-, yeah his production wasn't up to where we imagined it would be, but just about every other aspect of his game was about 2-3 years ahead of where a lot of younger guys are. Some of this is the fact that Zadina is apparently VERY impressionable and easy to coach, so he's bought into the Blashill low-event stuff in full force. His zone entries were the best on the team until Vrana got there, and even then you could argue they were just as crafty. Zadina's puck hunting was on full display this year, and he would make 1 or 2 plays in every game where I'd be amazed that he either generated a giveaway or did some crazy shit to retain possession.

On the powerplay, yeah he was getting minutes, but having Hronek as the PP QB is a mistake if you're going to have Zadina as the primary shooter (I'd argue it's a mistake in general, he's not a good PP QB really at all, Hronek if anything should be playing on the left half wall), and Hronek would look him off at least 3-5 times in every PP. Why in God's name he was out there with Zadina I will never understand. Cholowski or really any left-handed shot would have been ideal.

As far as areas where Zadina needs improvement, he really needs to learn how to corral bad passes and do something with them if he's going to be molded into that Zetterberg-Lite trajectory that he seems to be headed. One of the biggest reasons his finish was off this year was due to him waiting for the perfect opportunity and the perfect pass, and when it wasn't in his wheelhouse he would just wiff on it or not really get much out of it. To contrast that with Vrana, he is able to generate scoring chances out of seemingly nothing. The puck doesn't need to be in the perfect place, and neither does his body. I would love to see Zadina take this step next year, because he's pretty much doing everything else right, and if he improves in this area quite a bit and stays out of his own head, we could be looking at a massive breakout from him next year.

 

[Gniwder]

An easily replaceable plug who is a better producer than Zadina.
Zadina is several years younger and will improve.
But this is why people are giving Zadina low grades.

I didn't give Zadina a grade, and I will say he's a disappointment so far. Everyone's been making excuses for his lack of production, and Vrana goes and scores with a worse bunch of players.

 

[RedWingzz]

Hronek. B. 2-24-26
Led the team in scoring after a slow start. Never did get on track on the powerplay. Both goals were empty netters. Team worst -18.
Larkin. C-. 9-14-23.
Second straight regression for Larkin. Lost Bertuzzi to injuries. The Blashill removed Mantha from his line. Spent two weeks with Mattias Brome on his line. Still hustled. But even in that department, he wasn't his usual self. His faceoffs dropped below 50 percent. His icetime dropped. The losing, the players getting traded... he just seems worn down.
Mantha. D. 11-10-21
Looked like ass too often. Wings were counting on him and he faltered. Yes, Blashill sucks. No, Blashill doesn't have a clue about managing skilled players. But Mantha threw in the towel and played labotimized hockey.
Erne. A+. 11-9-20
Nobody expected Erne to score at a 20-goal clip. He also played well on the boards and was a good energy line guy. Just can't be stupid about his next contract.
Zadina. C-. 6-13-19.
You see what Vrana did in Detroit. That's the kind of player Detroit fans wanted in Zadina. Zadina will never be that good, offensively. I don't want to hear about Zadina's 200-foot game. 6 goals in 49 games is really disappointing, considering he played top 6 and had lots of powerplay minutes.
Fabbri. B+. 10-8-18
10 goals in 30 games is a ton for the Red Wings. 18 points in 30 games is solid. Fabbri was also a +3, tied for the lead.
Namestnikov. C. 8-9-17.
Not very productive but was a versatile player who filled lots of roles decently.
Filppula. C+. 6-9-15.
Came on at the end. Was benched earlier. Looked lost for about 20 games. But seemed focused and more effective returning to the lineup.
Glendening. A-. 6-9-15.
Solid production from Glendening. 61 percent on faceoffs. Played lots of tough minutes.
Sam Gagner. C-. 7-8-15.
Still shows nice flashes of skill from time to time. Hard to believe he was used on the PK.
Bobby Ryan. C. 7-7-14.
Great start. Miserably low finish.
Was racking up the minuses at a super high rate.
Dekeyser. C. 7-8-12.
Had a nice offensive finish. Improved as the season went on. He looked like he was finished as an NHLer through 20-30 games. Still isn't what he once was. Wouldn't get a regular shift on a lot of defenses.
Rasmussen. C-. 3-9-12.
Rasmussen spent most of the year at center. Production actually was worse than his rookie year, two years ago. His goal scoring completely disappeared. Showing almost nothing in a net-front role. He was playing a tougher role at center, so, some slack should be given, but still.
Vrana. A. 8-3-11.
Vrana has been the typical sniper winger who isn't too concerned with defense. Will be interesting to see how the Wings deal with his contract and how he performs in the future.
Djoos.D. 2-9-11
Djoos helped the offense at times, but was mostly a liability in his own end.
Stecher. C. 3-8-11,
Defensive game kept getting worse as the season went on.
Staal.B+. 3-7-10.
Because of his age/speed, at times, he just can't physically keep up. But this guy battled hard on the walls and in front of the goal. Looked a little like Brad Stuart did at the end of his career.
Svechnikov. C. 3-5-8
Decent production for 21 games - grading on the Red Wings curve. Not sure he changed any minds, though.
50/50 at best that he returns.
Helm. C. 3-5-8
Hustled. Contributed to the Wings most cohesive line (Helm-Glendening-Erne). PK'd. Offense kept getting worse.
Nemeth. C. 2-6-8
Was perhaps the most underrated player last year. Game slipped this year. Was still fairly solid after a terrible start.
Bertuzzi. INC. 5-2-7
Powerplay started OK with him out there. He finished tied for the lead in powerplay goals despite playing 7 games.
Nielsen. C-. 1-5-6
Nielsen wasn't as bad as the complaints about him.
Just riding out this contract. Wouldn't be stunned if he retired.
Merrill. C-. 0-5-5
Contributed very little offensively. Was erratic in the Dzone.
Smith, D, 1-4-5
Givani just didn't do anything to impress this year. Inconsistent physical effort. No production or skill shown.
Panik, C, 1-3-4
Panik showed some grit and compete in the ozone. But his defensive zone decision making was strange at times.
Lindstrom, C, 0-3-3.
Looked a lot like last year. Non-descript, except when he was getting pasted into the boards.
Biega, D, 0-3-3
Cholowski, C, 1-2-3
Offensively, we just haven't seen Cholowski ever show what he flashed at the start of his NHL career. Defensively, he has improved a bit. Hard to judge young defensemen in this system, with these centers, with these defensive partners.
Brome, F, 1-1-2
Bernier, A. 9-11-1 .914 2.99
Improved on last year despite fading a bit down the stretch.
Greiss, B-. 8-15-8. 2.70 .912
Just could win games early. In part, due to goal support. In part due to very "unclutch" goaltending. But he found his center and was much better in the second half.
Blashill. D-.
Another losing season from the Loser-In-Chief.
Better compared to last year's disaster. Still worse than when we were two years ago when it looked like the Wings were turning a corner.

C- for Zadina eh?

Bultman (the Athletic) gave him a B. While I personally think a B is a bit generous, Zadina didn't have a C- season.

 

[lilidk]

He doesn't have enough skills to compensate for his lack of speed. He only looks good because 3/4 of the team is offensively inept. Better players can be had in free agency or low end trades, like Erne for example. Svech is an easily replaceable plug, which is why he cleared waivers twice. He'll clear again next season if he's re-signed.

The kid skates like he smokes 2 packs a day, just re-watch any game. He can't do more than 10 strides without coasting. I prefer high energy guys like Fabbri, his feet are always moving.

Svechnikov has great personality, for not much pay he brings a lot in the locker room, play physical game , not without skills also. His skating could improve a little bit, I'd keep him

 

[lilidk]

I didn't give Zadina a grade, and I will say he's a disappointment so far. Everyone's been making excuses for his lack of production, and Vrana goes and scores with a worse bunch of players.

Next year will be Zadina year, he needs to get stronger

 

[MBH]

C- for Zadina eh?

Bultman (the Athletic) gave him a B. While I personally think a B is a bit generous, Zadina didn't have a C- season.

Bultman is a puff.
What do you give him?

 

[MBH]

Next year will be Zadina year, he needs to get stronger

He needs to get some explosiveness in his stride and work on his shot.
He seems pretty strong on his skates. He's outmuscling guys in puck battles at times.

 

[DetroitRed]

"A for effort" List:

1. Hronek
   
2. Erne
3. Fabbri
4. Glendening
5. Dekeyser
6. Bernier
7. Vrana
8. Bertuzzi
9. A few others might get a B for effort, but I'm not going to spend time on that

Exceeded My Expectations (but possibly C range or lower on league scale):

1. Svechnikov
2. Bobby Ryan
3. all of the "A for effort" guys here, too.

Had an Above Average NHL Season (grade above C on a league scale):

1. Larkin
2. remove Erne and Dekeyser but add the rest of the "A for effort list"

 

[Shaman464]

"A for effort" List:

1. Hronek
   
2. Erne
3. Fabbri
4. Glendening
5. Dekeyser
6. Bernier
7. Vrana
8. Bertuzzi
9. A few others might get a B for effort, but I'm not going to spend time on that

Exceeded My Expectations (but possibly C range or lower):

1. Svechnikov
2. Bobby Ryan
3. all of the "A for effort" guys here, too.

Had an Above Average NHL Season List (grade above C on a league scale):

1. Larkin
2. remove Erne and Dekeyser but add the rest of the "A for effort list"

Larkin didn't have an above average NHL season. For PPG of centers that played at least 30 games this season his ppg has in tied for 71st in the league. That would make him a third line center on average.

 

[DetroitRed]

Larkin didn't have an above average NHL season. For PPG of centers that played at least 30 games this season his ppg has in tied for 71st in the league. That would make him a third line center on average.

Well sorry, I didn't mean above average in every category. But honestly, I just assumed he was generally a little better than average over all.

A kinda disappointing season for him either way and I did not see it coming with him gaining the captaincy.

...And you never want your captain to have a season that you can describe as disappointing, but here we are.

 

[RedWingzz]

Bultman is a puff.
What do you give him?

I dunno..I mean he really did work hard this year and showed improvements in his overall game. Obviously, the goals weren't there..

I think I'd say a C+ is fair. I completely understand your frustrations though in wanting more offensively. He still has time to find another gear, which I think he will. He obviously needs to be a much more consistent scorer. Goal scorers don't snipe one game, and then not score again for 7 or 8 games, which Zadina seemed to do a lot this year. He never really got on a hot streak offensively at all.

If you look at his shooting percentage, it's not gonna stay that low for his career, so it's only a matter of tim before he starts to produce more.

 

[MBH]

I dunno..I mean he really did work hard this year and showed improvements in his over all game. Obviously, the goals weren't there..

I think I'd say a C+ is fair. I completely understand your frustrations though in wanting more offensively. He still has time to find another gear, which I think he will. He obviously needs to be a much more consistent scorer. Goal scorers don't snipe one game, and then not score again for 7 or 8 games, which Zadina seemed to do a lot this year. He never really got on a hot streak offensively at all.

If you look at his shooting percentage, it's not gonna stay that low for his career, so it's only a matter of tim before he starts to produce more.

This dude's shot could stay that low in his career because his shot isn't that great.
The one-timer everyone talked about was absolutely useless.
I see Zadina as more of a solid, creative forward than a goal scorer once he develops.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

Well sorry, I didn't mean above average in every category. But honestly, I just assumed he was generally a little better than average over all.

A kinda disappointing season for him either way and I did not see it coming with him gaining the captaincy.

...And you never want your captain to have a season that you can describe as disappointing, but here we are.

I try not to bag too hard on Larkin but this was probably his worst overall season, in my opinion. Worse than the sophomore slump season.

Captain or not, another season like this one and I'm pushing him out the door.

 

[RedWingzz]

This dude's shot could stay that low in his career because his shot isn't that great.
The one-timer everyone talked about was absolutely useless.
I see Zadina as more of a solid, creative forward than a goal scorer once he develops.

Nah, no way his career shooting percent will be anywhere near the 6.2% efficiency he scored at this year. 6% is low for anybody, goal scorer or not. I also disagree with "his shot isn't that great". He's had some nice snipes in his career where he looks like he has that lethal release that was advertised on draft day. Now it's about continuing to grow, continuing to be more consistent, and making sure you are shooting at the right time. So many times this year he had a lane to the net, only to try some "fancy" Nikita Kucherov East-West pass that didn't work. He needs to learn to fire the puck on net in dangerous scenarios.

I'll somewhat agree on his one-T, definitely frustrating this year. His one-T is way too predictable. He needs to be more deceptive in his decision making, because as you mentioned, that one-T didn't really work at all this year.

Darren Helm (works his ass off, but obviously has never been a sniper) has a career shooting % of 7.8%. No way Zadina ends up with a career shooting percentage as low as Helm.

 

[jaster]

Zadina's shot doesn't need work, he's got a great shot. The problem is that it's not consistently good. That's what he needs to work on, and that will come a lot easier than not having a good shot at all and trying to develop one.

 

[ArGarBarGar]

I didn't give Zadina a grade, and I will say he's a disappointment so far. Everyone's been making excuses for his lack of production, and Vrana goes and scores with a worse bunch of players.

A player in his prime years with over three times the in-game experience and experience on a cup-winning team is scoring better. Is that really a knock on Zadina?

 

[DetroitRed]

I try not to bag too hard on Larkin but this was probably his worst overall season, in my opinion. Worse than the sophomore slump season.

Captain or not, another season like this one and I'm pushing him out the door.

We were spoiled with "lifer" captains in Zetterberg, Lidstrom and Yzerman. It's not always the case that a team can give it to one guy and not worry about it again until he retires. Sometimes, you have to let a few guys have a shot at it until you find the right one.

That's a little bit like the situation Yzerman walked into as a kid.

 

[OgeeOgelthorpe]

We were spoiled with "lifer" captains in Zetterberg, Lidstrom and Yzerman. It's not always the case that a team can give it to one guy and not worry about it again until he retires. Sometimes, you have to let a few guys have a shot at it until you find the right one.

That's a little bit like the situation Yzerman walked into as a kid.

Like I said before, Larkin is looking more like our Dale McCourt until we find our next Yzerman.

 

[Gniwder]

A player in his prime years with over three times the in-game experience and experience on a cup-winning team is scoring better. Is that really a knock on Zadina?

First of all, he was 22 in his Cup season, just one year older than Zadina is now.

Of course I expect Vrana to be better based on age and experience, but the whole point was that everyone is blaming Zadina's issues on his teammates. The kids can't shoot when fed a perfect pass, Vrana fed him multiple times. I know he's still figuring out the pro game, but I really expected him to be able to shoot better.

 

[ArGarBarGar]

First of all, he was 22 in his Cup season, just one year older than Zadina is now.

For the record, him being on a cup-winning team does not mean he personally was a major asset throughout (3 goals and 8 points in 23 games isn't awful, but it certainly wasn't anywhere close to Conn Smythe worthy). I brought that season up to indicate he has much more experience in regular season/playoff situations, making the comparison silly in my opinion.

Of course I expect Vrana to be better based on age and experience, but the whole point was that everyone is blaming Zadina's issues on his teammates. The kids can't shoot when fed a perfect pass, Vrana fed him multiple times. I know he's still figuring out the pro game, but I really expected him to be able to shoot better.

I am just saying the fact that a seasoned player in Vrana is scoring at a better rate than a 21 year old Zadina, who has had the pleasure of starting his career without a proper summer training camp, contracting COVID in the middle of this season, and broken up scheduling, is not in and of itself a knock on Zadina.

Also at the same age, Vrana had 13 goals and 27 points in 73 games. Zadina can and should be better next season, and I think he seriously needs to get in the proper groove of an NHL training camp/regular season before I make any major proclamations about how he will project in the next few years. It's been a weird couple of years for the entire league.

No, I do not think Zadina not scoring all that well is solely due to his linemates. But I also think Vrana sending him "multiple" passes over a short span of games is not a direct rebuttal to the idea that the Red Wings are not a team that has a productive offensive system (which is a result from coaching/players). Our leading scorer was Filip Hronek with 26 points for crying out loud.

 

[Gniwder]

For the record, him being on a cup-winning team does not mean he personally was a major asset throughout (3 goals and 8 points in 23 games isn't awful, but it certainly wasn't anywhere close to Conn Smythe worthy). I brought that season up to indicate he has much more experience in regular season/playoff situations, making the comparison silly in my opinion.


I am just saying the fact that a seasoned player in Vrana is scoring at a better rate than a 21 year old Zadina, who has had the pleasure of starting his career without a proper summer training camp, contracting COVID in the middle of this season, and broken up scheduling, is not in and of itself a knock on Zadina.

Also at the same age, Vrana had 13 goals and 27 points in 73 games. Zadina can and should be better next season, and I think he seriously needs to get in the proper groove of an NHL training camp/regular season before I make any major proclamations about how he will project in the next few years. It's been a weird couple of years for the entire league.

No, I do not think Zadina not scoring all that well is solely due to his linemates. But I also think Vrana sending him "multiple" passes over a short span of games is not a direct rebuttal to the idea that the Red Wings are not a team that has a productive offensive system (which is a result from coaching/players). Our leading scorer was Filip Hronek with 26 points for crying out loud.

Fabbri looked good as a center for Ryan. Fabbri also looked good playing wing for Larkin. Zadina hasn't looked good with anyone yet. He can't carry the puck and he can't shoot. His passing game is OK at times, but nothing spectacular.

The transition strategy worked OK mid-season when most of the team was healthy. Blash went back to playing the shell when the forwards got injured. Zadina hasn't produced all season even when others like Erne were clicking.

He's young, and he's got a couple of years to figure it out, but right now he looks more like a winger version of Namestnikov.