Jeremy Laura: Wings sign prospect Andrew Gibson to ELC, heading to Grand Rapids

If all goes well, he develops into the next Ben Chiarot. We're wasting 2nd round picks on guys with such low ceilings. A few picks after Gibson we selected Brady Cleveland - another bottom pair dman who just finished his season at U of Wisconsin with a grand total of 0 goals and 0 assists.

So this whole myth of if we can find 2 or 3 players per draft then we're way ahead of our peers. Well not if the role is 4th line forward or bottom pair d-man. You can find those guys in free agency every single year. Why draft your own Chiarot or Holl or Fischer when you can find them for free every summer. Use your picks to swing for higher ceiling skill, even if the odds of becoming an NHL player are worse.

Reminds me of when we drafted Raamussen. Almost a slam dunk this guy has a 10+ year NHL career. But the ceiling is so low. Take a risk on Suzuki, Necas, Chytl...they might end up a bust but the ceiling is high. So frustrating. Nothing has changed strategically under Yzerman.

I guess Y had unbelievable luck in the later rounds in TB. just threw darts at the board before every selection.
I am believing he had a better #2 man in TB feeding him better info. #2 man here is Drapes, who drafted his own son and Vebeek's..........

I guess Y had unbelievable luck in the later rounds in TB. just threw darts at the board before every selection.
I am believing he had a better #2 man in TB feeding him better info. #2 man here is Drapes, who drafted his own son and Vebeek's..........
- HenryHockey

Tampa's philosophy was to emphasis high ceiling skill. In the first draft that Yzerman was actually in charge he took Namestnikov, Kucherov, Nesterov. 3 Russians. Questions about size. Lots of skill.

The next year he took Vasilevsky at #19. First goalie selected. Coincidentally that was a Red Wings pick.

Drouin was a mistake, but again, small, skilled, super high ceiling.

He got Brayden Point in round 3. Small. But high ceiling. Cirelli was another 3rd rounder.

Lots of misses along the way, but Tampa clearly made skill a priority. We often pick more of a sure thing, with a lower ceiling.

Personally I would fire Draper and revamp the entire scouting department and philosophy.

I guess Y had unbelievable luck in the later rounds in TB. just threw darts at the board before every selection.
I am believing he had a better #2 man in TB feeding him better info. #2 man here is Drapes, who drafted his own son and Vebeek's..........
- HenryHockey

Draper also pushed for Raymond and Bert. I’m curious to see how Gibson looks. I wish ASP was coming over but what seems more and more like he’s a year away.

If all goes well, he develops into the next Ben Chiarot. We're wasting 2nd round picks on guys with such low ceilings. A few picks after Gibson we selected Brady Cleveland - another bottom pair dman who just finished his season at U of Wisconsin with a grand total of 0 goals and 0 assists.

So this whole myth of if we can find 2 or 3 players per draft then we're way ahead of our peers. Well not if the role is 4th line forward or bottom pair d-man. You can find those guys in free agency every single year. Why draft your own Chiarot or Holl or Fischer when you can find them for free every summer. Use your picks to swing for higher ceiling skill, even if the odds of becoming an NHL player are worse.

Reminds me of when we drafted Raamussen. Almost a slam dunk this guy has a 10+ year NHL career. But the ceiling is so low. Take a risk on Suzuki, Necas, Chytl...they might end up a bust but the ceiling is high. So frustrating. Nothing has changed strategically under Yzerman.
- HockeyBuzzed

And then y’all will be here whining about all the misses Yzerman has made.
Wah wah wah wah wah wah wah wah wah.

Get a life dude

And then y’all will be here whining about all the misses Yzerman has made.
Wah wah wah wah wah wah wah wah wah.

Get a life dude
- optimus-reim

I would rather swing and miss on an impact player than play it safe by picking bottom 6 forwards and bottom pair d-men.

ASP looks to be staying in Eurpoe for another year, but it's probably a good thing given the time he missed. I'd really like to see him in GR next year, though. Some expectation management, but curious to see how he plays next season, and how he looks in camp this fall. GR looks strong, which means there's a good chance some of that will transfer to the NHL in another year or so.....hopefully. Watching the GRG recaps is exciting....finally starting to click and gell as a team is great to see!!

Jim Nill in Dallas has done an exceptional job. Wish he was still in the Detroit organization. His scouting acumen along with Hakan Andersson in Europe helped the Wings win 4 Stanley Cups. He hired Todd Nelson who was an excellent coach in Grand Rapids, who for some reason did not want to coach in Detroit. He should have been the replacement when Blashill was finally let go. Probably didn't want to work under Ken Holland... which you can't blame him.

Jim Nill in Dallas has done an exceptional job. Wish he was still in the Detroit organization. His scouting acumen along with Hakan Andersson in Europe helped the Wings win 4 Stanley Cups. He hired Todd Nelson who was an excellent coach in Grand Rapids, who for some reason did not want to coach in Detroit. He should have been the replacement when Blashill was finally let go. Probably didn't want to work under Ken Holland... which you can't blame him.
- Vladdie_Kon1

Didn't Nill take several scouting staff with him when we went to Dallas? I thought he took several folks with him.....Nelson would've been a good choice vs Lalonde, he knew the systems, knew the organization, etc... Still think there's need to tighten the coaching staff's effort and either re-organize it, or get them improving their wares. I'm more in the camp of some changes needing to be made. It's been 5 years since The Captain took the GM seat, should see some fruits of the labours (Berggren, Johansson, Mazur, etc...) taking root.

It's going to be interesting, there are some changes needed for sure, curious to see what moves are made....

Didn't Nill take several scouting staff with him when we went to Dallas? I thought he took several folks with him.....Nelson would've been a good choice vs Lalonde, he knew the systems, knew the organization, etc... Still think there's need to tighten the coaching staff's effort and either re-organize it, or get them improving their wares. I'm more in the camp of some changes needing to be made. It's been 5 years since The Captain took the GM seat, should see some fruits of the labours (Berggren, Johansson, Mazur, etc...) taking root.

It's going to be interesting, there are some changes needed for sure, curious to see what moves are made....
- mcmastermike1968

Yes... he did take three of his top scouts with him to Dallas. Which I think caused a big void in Detroit's scouting system. Nill has drafted some excellent players in Dallas. There were several teams that wanted to hire Nill for a couple years from what I heard before he finally decided to go to Dallas.

Yes... he did take three of his top scouts with him to Dallas. Which I think caused a big void in Detroit's scouting system. Nill has drafted some excellent players in Dallas. There were several teams that wanted to hire Nill for a couple years from what I heard before he finally decided to go to Dallas.
- Vladdie_Kon1

I'm not in the "burn it all down" camp, but HB and some others have valid points about scouting woes. Don't think we should see every 2d rounder make it, of course, but I do feel we could do better... That being said, was listening to Friedman a while back talking about Buffalo and their issues (tons of 1st rounders and still struggle to contend). He said something along the lines of 'most 2d rounders take 3-5 years to show what their capable of' (not a direct quote, thus the apostrophe). The Captain's been on board for 5 years, so we're on the back end of what is posited to be the window, and there have been some hits. BUT, there've been lots of picks so only seeing 3 2d rounders pushing for a slot (or being claimed via waivers....) is of concern.

I'm not in the "burn it all down" camp, but HB and some others have valid points about scouting woes. Don't think we should see every 2d rounder make it, of course, but I do feel we could do better... That being said, was listening to Friedman a while back talking about Buffalo and their issues (tons of 1st rounders and still struggle to contend). He said something along the lines of 'most 2d rounders take 3-5 years to show what their capable of' (not a direct quote, thus the apostrophe). The Captain's been on board for 5 years, so we're on the back end of what is posited to be the window, and there have been some hits. BUT, there've been lots of picks so only seeing 3 2d rounders pushing for a slot (or being claimed via waivers....) is of concern.
- mcmastermike1968

Well... I can tell you there is some serious talent in Grand Rapids... despite what anyone says. I actually go the games and watch them play fairly frequently. This is the best Grffins team in over a decade in terms of talent. I see several very good players who will be bonafide NHLer's: Berggren, Edvinsson, Mazur, Kasper, Johanssen and most likely Cossa as well. I haven't seen Sandin-Pellika play.. but I heard he's doing very well.

The "burn it down" nonsense is very short-sighted. Nobody on this site has a crystal ball and automatically knows who will be "elite" level talent. The prospects who have the potential to be elite level talent IMO are Danielson and Edvinsson. Danielson is their best prospect at Center since Larkin. And I think he could actually be better than Larkin. I think he's good enough to skip the AHL and go right to Detroit. We'll see how it all plays out. Hoping the Griffins can get a sweep the first round. They're up 1-0 in their current playoff series against Rockford.

the drafting has to be better or this team will never be a contendor.
yzerman cant Justin Holl his way out of this mess.

I think talking of firing Yzerman is way too soon. I haven't liked every move by any means, and some of the picks really do feel too safe. I think Nill/Dallas are the best at the moment, and they're more the exception rather than the rule on what you can expect beyond round 1 or 2.

Have a look at 2019 and 2020 drafts, hardly any hits after round 2 and then none to speak of at all really in 21 and more recent:

https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/nhl2019e.html

https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/nhl2020e.html

Well... I can tell you there is some serious talent in Grand Rapids... despite what anyone says. I actually go the games and watch them play fairly frequently. This is the best Grffins team in over a decade in terms of talent. I see several very good players who will be bonafide NHLer's: Berggren, Edvinsson, Mazur, Kasper, Johanssen and most likely Cossa as well. I haven't seen Sandin-Pellika play.. but I heard he's doing very well.

The "burn it down" nonsense is very short-sighted. Nobody on this site has a crystal ball and automatically knows who will be "elite" level talent. The prospects who have the potential to be elite level talent IMO are Danielson and Edvinsson. Danielson is their best prospect at Center since Larkin. And I think he could actually be better than Larkin. I think he's good enough to skip the AHL and go right to Detroit. We'll see how it all plays out. Hoping the Griffins can get a sweep the first round. They're up 1-0 in their current playoff series against Rockford.
- Vladdie_Kon1

The shift in GR is monumental. That's a testament to the coaching staff and the players, naturally. They've got something special brewing there. I'd *think* Danielson would have some time in GR, but wouldn't choke if he broke camp with the club. He needs some time to adjust, so I go back to the discussion had many times here; is it better for lots of ice time in GR or little time and tons of heavy play in Detroit? Chicken. Egg. Personally, I'd like to see him work in GR until after the Olympic break, then see where he is. If Berggren stays, he's gonna need to improve his defensive play (the ENTIRE team needs to...), but he shows lots of chops. Mazur's going to be a feisty bugger in the mould of Marchand...LOVE the way he plays. Eddy? He's special. I watched him closely this season; sublime skater, so controlled in high-pressure situations (like how Kane plays with control, ya know?). What are your thoughts on Johansson? I've not seen as much from him, but he looked like he's gonna be a deceptively agile defender....

I think we set ourselves up for a bit of a let-down next season: no one picked us to fight until 3min were left in the season, so now the pressure's on to make the SCPO next year. We have some "indigestable" contracts, no doubt. And drafting's been hit n miss, but despite all of that, this team fought hard. We know the areas of concern. I watched Kasper play the 1 game this season, frazzled at first, but saw some really impressive grit. Again, the tussle that had Kasper, Eddy, Mo involved then following the opposing players (was it OTT? Can't remember...) was a glimpse of a promising future. Burning it down is truly senseless. Just wait til ASP comes over. cannot wait to see him on NA ice...

Thanks for the insights, Vladdie. Always enjoy your observations!

I think talking of firing Yzerman is way too soon. I haven't liked every move by any means, and some of the picks really do feel too safe. I think Nill/Dallas are the best at the moment, and they're more the exception rather than the rule on what you can expect beyond round 1 or 2.

Have a look at 2019 and 2020 drafts, hardly any hits after round 2 and then none to speak of at all really in 21 and more recent:

https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/nhl2019e.html

https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/nhl2020e.html
- tmanv

No GM is 100% correct in his moves. The Captain's no exception. He's been here for 5 years, picks are starting to make themselves known. May have been a bit longer than some wanted, but he had to completely dismantle the big club and re-stock GR. That's not an easy ask for anyone. I do think the coaching staff has some problem areas (G coaching would be big, team defense is right up there...), and we have a few anchor contracts but still....3min left in the season. Several pod caster commented on how Detroit would've given more of a fight than WAS in the SCPO....the word is out, gotta reckon with the Wings. Still have a ways to go, BUT.....

Drafting's not an easy thing to get right. Call it a cop out or whatever, it's not easy. I think there is room to improve, but when you get deeper into the 2d....not many are gonna be studs. Nill & DAL have it down to a science, and that used to be our forte' Draper's son being a pick kinda slapped me as a bit of nepostism... Because we didn't fare well in the lottery, we need to draft well. There's room to grow there. No need for a fire sale, I'd focus on the big club's coaching & systems.....our defense needs some help at the team level. Any talk of firing The Captain's misguided, being nice. This club's made one hell of a turn in 5 years and we're not done re-building systems, players, and culture.

@jeremy/Guys.....

At the beginning of this season, there was a scrap. At the end of the scrap, Mo, Eddy, I *think* Kasper, Raymond, and another Wing were skating away kind of on a line toward the TV camera. It was a GREAT shot. I'd said something about it in the blog post-game about that being the picture of the season and what our future held....

Does ANYONE recall the game, the opponent, and/or know where I can get a picture of it? To me, THAT was an entire preview of this team and was cool as heck to see.....

Thanks!

EDIT: I *think* it was vs Tronno, was Kasper's only NHL game.....

@jeremy/Guys.....

At the beginning of this season, there was a scrap. At the end of the scrap, Mo, Eddy, I *think* Kasper, Raymond, and another Wing were skating away kind of on a line toward the TV camera. It was a GREAT shot. I'd said something about it in the blog post-game about that being the picture of the season and what our future held....

Does ANYONE recall the game, the opponent, and/or know where I can get a picture of it? To me, THAT was an entire preview of this team and was cool as heck to see.....

Thanks!

EDIT: I *think* it was vs Tronno, was Kasper's only NHL game.....
- mcmastermike1968

I remember watching that too, they were loving it on the broadcast

https://x.com/RyanHanaWWP...tatus/1642690399360671744

I remember watching that too, they were loving it on the broadcast

https://x.com/RyanHanaWWP...tatus/1642690399360671744
- tmanv

YES!!!!!

Thank you for that! For me, that's the vision of our future and I love what I see!!!!