TRAVERSE CITY, Michigan — Every year around this time, at Red Wings training camp, there’s a young player with all eyes on them to try and make a surprise run at the NHL roster.
In each of the previous two training camps, that player was Simon Edvinsson. Before that, it was Lucas Raymond. This year, it’s a little bit different.
As the Red Wings open camp, there are three young forwards all looking to make a surprise push to Detroit: Carter Mazur, Marco Kasper and Nate Danielson.
And while Detroit’s roster — as usual — does not currently have an obvious spot up for grabs, the Red Wings are openly hoping that at least one of those players can force them into a tough decision.
“We want a push,” Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde said. “I would like those guys obviously to be respectful to the veterans, but to be fighting for their spot. That’s the reality of growing. We want that push from them. And it’s only two days in, but a lot of positives.”
The first name Lalonde pointed to matched my own observations from the first two days: “I would say Marco’s had two very strong days,” Lalonde said. “Danielson, Carter very similar.”
Kasper caught my eye from Day 1 in practice, looking bigger and more powerful than he did a year ago. My first note of camp was an impressive shot Kasper buried (albeit on a three-on-0 drill), and he kept catching my eye during a battle drill soon after, holding onto a puck against Danielson head-to-head in one rep, drawing even on another, and with the two splitting a pair of reps when the drill expanded to two-on-two (Danielson with Alexandre Doucet, Kasper with Michael Brandsegg-Nygård).
“We were talking in the room yesterday, he doesn’t even look like the same athlete as last year at this time in camp,” Lalonde said. “He built some confidence from his growth in (Grand Rapids) last year, and I think that playoff run was very valuable for him. He’s got some attitude into camp this year, which is certainly a positive.”
Kasper has played on a line so far with Brandsegg-Nygård and Cross Hanas, a starting place that serves as a reminder that he — or any of these three young forwards — would have to really play his way into a serious roster battle. Detroit has rolled the same four NHL lines through two days so far, which is a good indicator of the status quo.
But the big opportunities for all three of these players will come in the preseason, when lineups will change by the day in order to accommodate a jam-packed game schedule, allowing for many different looks.
As Lalonde alluded, Kasper and Mazur come into this camp on the heels of a strong showing in the AHL playoffs, where Mazur had eight points in nine games, and Kasper had seven. Both were among the Griffins’ best players in those games, rising to the challenge of playoff intensity.
Exhibition season won’t carry that same baseline urgency. But for these young forwards, that’s what they’ll need to tap into as they try to take a lineup spot from a more veteran player.
General manager Steve Yzerman has said that “if any of these young kids makes us a better team, and is going to play a regular role — not just a bit-part role — we’ll figure something out.” It’s just that making the Red Wings willing to potentially waive, or trade, an existing player (perhaps a goaltender, with a deep goalie room that currently has three netminders slated for the NHL roster) is easier said than done.
Still, there are not just 18-year-old long-shots anymore.
Mazur is 22, with a full pro season now under his belt. His biggest challenge this summer was going to be adding weight, and sure enough, he showed up to camp looking considerably more filled out — listed at 6-foot, 189 lbs., up 14 from his listed AHL weight last season. That’s significant because for as gritty a game as Mazur plays, he’ll need to be able to hold up physically to play it at the NHL level.
Kasper is younger at 20, but listed at 6-foot, 197 lbs., his body looks more NHL-ready as well. He’s a good skater and puck transporter and can be tenacious on the forecheck. His start to camp has been exactly what you’d want to see from him.
Danielson is the youngest of the bunch, but he’ll turn 20 next week and might just have the highest overall upside of the three. His skating pops off the ice, and he brings a combination of skill and hockey sense at both ends of the ice. He has the least pro experience of the three, but his mature game nonetheless stands out.
“Danielson’s really impressive,” Kane said Thursday. “Skated with him a little bit when I first came into Detroit. A lot of skill. Kind of reminds me a little bit of (Connor) Bedard the way he plays, and the way he stickhandles and shoots. … He looks like he’s got a bright future.”
Kane also noted that he was on the same team as Mazur in a three-on-three tournament and came away impressed, specifically highlighting his release and saying “I think he surprised some goaltenders with his shot.”
Mazur spent one day with Amadeus Lombardi and Jakub Rychlovsky, and one day with Sheldon Dries and Joe Snively. All four of those players are projected to start in Grand Rapids. Meanwhile Danielson has been with two players on professional tryouts, Alex Chiasson and Isaac Ratcliffe. It’s hard to know what, if anything, to make of that, and we may well see different looks in the final two days of camp.
But the real opportunity looks like it will come in the preseason, where all three will be looking to state their case for an NHL role on October 10 — or for an early call-up when injuries inevitably strike.
Back to work ⚙️ pic.twitter.com/d3rLPt0b2v
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) September 20, 2024
Edvinsson expected to start in top four
This one’s not really a surprise, but in case there was any lingering doubt, Lalonde confirmed that he foresees Edvinsson playing in Detroit’s top four to start the season.
The 6-foot-6 Swede has been skating with Jeff Petry so far in camp, after the two played together down the stretch last season. The Red Wings will be looking for consistency from Edvinsson, and certainly they’ll want him to play a “clean game,” as Lalonde put it when it comes to avoiding turnovers. But clearly, they’ve seen enough to pencil him into a significant role.
Edvinsson is another player who has packed on some added weight, now listed at 225 lbs. He was already a big body on the ice, listed last season at 209 lbs., but certainly the Red Wings will take a little extra mass on him to help clear the net and hold off forecheckers.
He also had the best answer of the day Friday, on how he added that extra weight.
“It was just a lot of avocados,” Edvinsson joked.
(Top photo of Marco Kasper: Allison Farrand / Detroit Red Wings)
