This morning Steve Yzerman met with the media following the signings of Jonatan Berggren and Lucas Raymond yesterday, he addressed many questions even after the Detroit Red Wings finished up their prospect tournament in Traverse City.
The first question he was asked was about extending Lucas Raymond and the fact he’ll be with Detroit until after his age-30 season. Yzerman responded by saying that he saw Raymond take a jump from year two to year three and he took his game to a new level, he expects significant growth this season and for years to come as his prime years are coming.
He was then asked about what he was looking to see from Carter Mazur and Marco Kasper at camp. He said they have both shown they are committed and driven, he went on to mention that Mazur worked hard physically to get strong and that they were both smart hockey players. Some other prospects he was asked about were Albert Johannson and Nate Danielson. Johannsson is fighting to make the roster out of camp and Yzerman mentioned that he was an under-the-radar player in the AHL, he has good puck skill and good sense. It is up to him if he is in the NHL or the AHL and if he wants to push and earn a spot, there is real competition for the job, but Yzerman is optimistic he can make it. As for Danielson, he said he is in really good shape, a solid two-way center as well as a smart hockey player who skates well and is also good defensively with a great shot. He expects him to produce offense and will figure out where is going to play if he does make the Red Wings, he’s just letting it all play out, but they do want to get him minutes even if that is in the AHL.
The big thing all Red Wings fans are waiting for after the Berggren and Raymond signings is Moritz Seider and his extension, well Yzerman said talks are ongoing and he’s hopeful they can get a deal done sooner than later but they aren’t terribly far apart, the Red Wings currently have $8.75 million in salary cap left.
Another question was about this season being judged a success and what he’s looking for, the one word he kept saying was progress, he wanted to see progress from the team as a whole, progress in all areas he’s talked about before, and progress from younger players individually. He added making the playoffs would be a positive step forward for this Detroit team. Another question later on that was asked was what this team has to do well this season to which Yzerman said he has to be better defensively, and special teams also have to be better, he said they were improved last season but have to be solid in those areas. They can get by not having the best power play team but those aspects of the game they need to be better, also mentioned having to replace the scoring loss of Robby Fabbri, Daniel Sprong, and David Perron which he expects Berggren and Vladimir Tarasenko as well as a full season of Patrick Kane to do just that.
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A big question asked a few times was carrying three goalies this season, which Yzerman said he would see how things go, they did it last year, it’s not an ideal situation but mentioned Ville Husso’s health in the underlying condition he will see how he is in the preseason and go from there. Yzerman expects the lineup to be 12 forwards, eight defensemen, and three goalies and could see lineups again of 11 forwards and seven defensemen, but with everyone healthy, they have a lot of different options they can mix with. He later mentioned that it was good to have a goalie room and have goalies that you can trust especially if there is an injury at some point in the season, especially with having games jammed together throughout the season. As long as you have two goalies that you can trust then you are in good shape.
Someone asked him about his expectations for Jonatan Bergreen and the fact he was signed to only a one-year deal. Yzerman said they couldn’t do two with the other things they had to work out, but that Berggren is a good hockey player in all aspects of the game, offense and defense. He said Berggren had an up-and-down year last season but worked hard every time he went back to Grand Rapids. He looks like he worked hard in the summer, and he’s confident he’ll be a positive influence on this Red Wings team.
The final thing was injuries at camp, he mentioned Ondrej Becher was dealing with a sprained ankle that he suffered prior to joining Detroit. Shai Buium also suffered an injury on Saturday in the Prospects Tournament as he blocked a shot, but he is day-to-day, otherwise everyone else is healthy.
This is an exciting season in Detroit as they look to make the playoff for the first time since 2015-16, this team with the talent can get it done the question is can the young guns take steps forward and wreak havoc on the league and get the job done that this rebuild could officially be close to over.
