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Mrazek need only look to Howard for inspiration

September 16, 2017, 4:40 PM ET [18 Comments]
Bob Duff
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
If Petr Mrazek is looking for inspiration as he seeks to rebound from an off year, Detroit Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill figures that Mrazek need not look far.

Just glance to the next stall in the dressing room, where goaltending partner Jimmy Howard suits up.

Entering training camp last season, Howard was coming off his poorest campaign as a Wing, having lost his slot as Detroit’s No. 1 goalie to Mrazek.

Last season, after completely revamping his game during the summer months, Howard bounced back strongly and was among the NHL leaders in goals-against average and save percentage when injuries curtailed his campaign. But so impressed were the Wings with his work that prior to the NHL expansion draft, they opted to protect Howard, 33, and leave Mrazek, 25, exposed and available to the Las Vegas Golden Knights, a move that even caught Howard by surprise.

“I got the phone call (on June 18) and I thought it was a phone call saying you’re going to be exposed,” Howard said. “Being protected, it was pretty cool. It meant a lot.”

It also spoke volumes about how far Mrazek, not so long ago viewed as Detroit’s goalie of the future, had fallen in the eyes of the organization, and as it turned out, in the view of the rest of the NHL.

According to an NHL source, prior to the expansion draft, Las Vegas GM George McPhee called the 29 other NHL teams to gauge their interest in acquiring Mrazek, and 29 teams had none.

Mrazek is still in Detroit, and the door remains open to him to regain his status as No. 1 goalie, just as it was a year ago when Howard turned that corner back to the role he’d surrendered to Mrazek.

“He’s a great example of when you face adversity, how do you react?” Blashill said of Howard. “And he faced adversity leading into last year. He had choices to make last summer, and he dug in and fought like hell.

“He did change his game a little bit a summer ago, some technique things and it paid off with a great year. I think that’s a great thing.”

The Wings see no reason why Mrazek can perform a similar turnaround, and he certainly appears on board with doing what it takes to make that happen.

“The season wasn’t the season I wanted to have so I’m happy I’m back,” Mrazek said. “I have lots to give back to Detroit. We all know they gave me a chance to play my first NHL game and gave me a chance to play like 140 games. So I have lots to prove and give them back.”

Mrazek spent his summer back home in the Czech Republic working to refine his game and improve his level of conditioning.

“With my goalie coach in Czech and my strength coach, we talked about it, we had long conversation about what should I do before practice, what should I do after practice, so that’s the thing I think I changed a lot,” Mrazek said. “It was just work off the ice a little bit more and on the ice, make a couple adjustments, a little bit different position. Not to be flying in the net, just stay calm and stop as many pucks as I can.”

Mrazek holds no bitterness over the way things developed through the summer, and wants only to prove that he can still be the goalie the Wings originally believed that he could be.

“It’s a business,” Mrazek said. “The season wasn’t great so that’s what it is. It’s over, we’re not going to look back, just look forward now and I feel ready.

“My dad was always saying if you’re going to jump out once from the train, you will never catch it back. That’s the thing I’m trying to learn and I’m trying to take from him.”

Minimum 55
Already, the Wings may have a candidate for LTIR in their midst. Veteran defenseman Niklas Kronwall was given the first day of training camp off to rest his wonky knee, and he also was absent from the ice for Day 2, albeit for different reasons.

“Kronner had a little bit of back spasm today, so that’s nothing at all I’m concerned about,” Detroit coach Jeff Blashill said, before dropping this bit of news:

“I’m not sure whether or not he’ll hit the ice in Traverse, or we’ll just wait. I don’t think it’s any big deal but we’ll take it day by day.”

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