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Marco Kasper and Simon Edvinsson both carry high hopes for the organization. Unfortunately, only Kasper will have a chance to show what his off ice training has done to get him a ticket to Detroit or a ticket to Grand Rapids. Edvinsson will continue to heal and miss some very important pre season competition.

While it seems like camps come and go quickly, they’re a bruise and callous factory. Players come in and the office will be able to tell fairly quickly what the off season held for each player. It seems to be more common that at least one or two teams will bench or even release a player that didn’t maintain or improve on conditioning. The players go threw off ice combine-style testing and their results are compared to the previous year. The test that gets one or two players in trouble are weigh in and cardio. If a player put on 10+ lbs of the “wrong” type, discussions will be had.

If you haven’t sat through a day or two of drilling, it’s actually an education in breaking down the game. Puck battles in the corner, games of “keep away”, stretch passes, 2 on 1 (and 1 on 2), the elements that come together and make the game are all parsed out into different pieces complete with hard shoulder to shoulder battles and even attempts at heavy contact. Players can be seen with a bit of a limp after the first couple days. The preseason games help not only to trim the roster, but to get prepared to be a walking bruise for 82 (potentially 84) games.

Kasper is facing a list of new faces (new to the organization) and will have to perform at a level above for the organization to risk putting someone on waivers. Still, that’s a preferred outcome. With so many teams against the cap, the waiver wire will be jammed with teams hoping they can get players through.

For Edvinsson, he’s going to have to heal up and then jump right in for Grand Rapids. The “brotherhood” of the league is saved for the PA meetings. Players know who is hurt or recovering and will at times do their best to take advantage of the situation. Luckily, at 6’6” and the ability to do core and leg work, Edvinsson should be able to ward off AHL level runs.

This week, players are hitting the ice for the prospect tournament. Head over to Detroit’s website, RedWingsTV or their X (formerly Twitter) account for options to watch. There are jobs to be had for the player hungry enough and talented enough to grab them. The border line players will likely find themselves at the top of the “call up” list, but you can be certain that at least one or two prospects want to force the coaches and staff to make a tough choice.

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