Dylan Larkin will miss his first game as a Detroit Red Wing as the team returns from the Christmas break Saturday to face the Nashville Predators at Bridgestone Arena. Larkin is out with an undisclosed upper body injury, suffered when taken into the boards by New Jersey Devils defenseman John Moore during Detroit’s final game prior to the holiday break.
Larkin’s absence means that forward Tomas Nosek will make his NHL debut.
“I’m a big fan of Tomas Nosek,… said Detroit coach Jeff Blashill, who coached Nosek last season with AHL Grand Rapids. “He does a lot of things right. He’s a very smart player both offensively and defensively.
“He’s a real good penalty killer. One of the reasons we brought him up is his ability to kill penalties.…
Defenseman Jonathan Ericsson (shoulder) will miss his third straight game. Petr Mrazek gets the start in goal.
World Junior Larkin described last season’s world junior tournament as his hockey coming-out party and this time around, six Red Wings prospects are in action as the tourney got underway Saturday in Helsinki, Finland.
Detroit GM Ken Holland indicated that number is the most the Wings have ever had in the event.
“We’re very happy,… Holland said. “It’s the best junior-age tournament in the world.
“We’ve got some kids there that were taken later in the draft, so that’s nice. The more kids you can have over there, the more kids that have a chance.…
Forward Axel Holmstrom (196th overall, 2014 NHL entry draft), already signed to an entry-level deal with the Wings, picked up a pair of assists in Sweden’s 8-3 win over Switzerland.
“Holmstrom had a great (Swedish League) playoff last year,… Holland said. Holmstrom, no relation to former Wing Tomas Holmstrom, topped all scorers with 18 points in leading Skelleftea to the Swedish League title. It was a record for a junior-aged player, shattering the 14 points collected by Henrik and Daniel Sedin with MoDo in 1999-2000.
“I’m told he’s having a good season this year,… Holland said of Holmstrom, who played in last year’s world junior as well and was named Sweden’s junior player of the year. “He’s got great hockey sense, good hands. He would be what I call a greasy player, goes to the hard areas.
“We like him a lot.…
Christoffer Ehn (106th, 2014) was held off the scoresheet for Sweden, while Swiss goalie Joren van Pottelberghe (110th, 2015) allowed the final two Swedish goals.
“Ehn is more of a bottom six penalty killer, safe checker,… Holland said. “We talked with him in Traverse City in the summer (during the club’s prospects camp) about trying to produce a little offense.…
Forward Evgeny Svechnikov (19th, 2015) was also held scoreless in Russia’s 2-1 win over the Czech Republic.
“Svechnikov is having a good year in the Quebec junior league,… Holland said. “He’s 200 pounds, he’s got skill, and he competes hard. I think he’s a good down low player in the offensive zone.
“Probably the one area (he needs to improve) to play in the National Hockey League, (is) get a little quicker, the first couple of steps.
“I’m anxious to hear how he plays in this tournament. It’s another step up from playing in the league’s they’re in.…
Two undersized, highly-skilled defenseman round out the Detroit sextet – Canada’s Joe Hicketts (2014 undrafted free agent signing) and Finland’s Vili Saarijarvi (73rd, 2015).
Saarijarvi didn’t figure in the scoring during Finland’s 6-0 win over Belarus, but he definitely figures in Detroit’s plans.
“Saarijarvi is having a good year in Flint (OHL),… Holland said. “He’s got hockey sense, he’s got hands. By NHL standards he’s probably a little undersized but many teams have undersized defenseman that have hockey sense and hands and can run a power play.
“That’s something that Saarjarvi does in junior and did last year in Finland in the U-17 tournament.…
Hicketts played for Canada’s gold-medal team last season and will serve as an alternate captain this time around.
“Hicketts is a good player in junior hockey,… Holland said. “Again, he’s an undersized defenseman. He’ll finish out his junior year, and then go to the American Hockey League.
“That’s the biggest test, to go from junior, college or Europe to the American League. But he has hands, has hockey sense, he’s competitive. I think he defends pretty well for a young defenseman that’s good offensively.…
Holland anticipated that both Svechnikov and Hicketts will play in the AHL with Grand Rapids next season. Saarijarvi has another year of junior eligibility, while Ehn and Van Pottelberghe will likely stay in Europe. A decision as to whether Holmstrom comes to North America for next season or plays one more campaign in Sweden will be determined at the end of the season.
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