Gearing up and ready to go. No matter how it all goes down this year, it's still exciting to watch the new kids in the lineup regardless of who makes it to the big dance. Yzerman is back, and, that's a heck of a start for many, many Detroit Red Wings fans. It's the time of the season for Hockey........ A preseason Live Blog!

via the YouTube channel of Sportsnet, Sportsnet counts down the greatest players of all time from the shortest to tallest.  

from Ted Kulfan of the Detroit News, “Obviously high,” said Veleno of his confidence level. “I had a pretty good tournament but I have to reset myself here. I know it’s a different level. This is like the real stuff.” The Wings’ coaching staff and player development staff worked with Veleno the entire summer and last season to improve the velocity and accuracy on his shot. “That was one thing I wasn’t doing as much in junior a couple years ago,” Veleno said. “Once I got drafted here, they kept telling me to shoot the puck. I worked on my shot during the summer and got stronger.” Another item coach Jeff Blashill wanted to stress was Veleno concentrating on becoming a complete two-way center, effective on the defensive side as much as becoming a threat offensively. “It hard to be a pure point guy, and you look at his point (totals) in juniors, they were good but they weren’t astronomical,” Blashill said. “To think you come here and all of a sudden go astronomical in points would be misleading. “So become a great two-way center.” more

from Paul Gazzola of EdmontonOilers.com, On Wednesday, Oilers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Ken Holland, as well as Head Coach Dave Tippett, updated the status of Captain Connor McDavid, who suffered a torn PCL in the final game of the 2018-19 season and has been recovering since. "First off, the doctors are making the final decision," started Holland, speaking before a crowd of reporters outside the Oilers Dressing Room. McDavid said he would like to suit up for a pre-season match before the '19-20 regular campaign begins but is keeping that decision up to the medical staff. "Secondly, we're going to err on the side of caution but obviously if the doctors sign off and Connor wants to play, then we'll play him in the pre-season," Holland continued. continued

via TSN's YouTube page, Canucks forward Brock Boeser was emotional as he spoke about his fathers ongoing fight with cancer and why it meant so much to him to have an extra week with him.  

via the YouTube page of NewWings Arena and thanks to BarDown.com for the pointer, A lot more than just panels taken off now. Huge sections missing.  

After this morning's skate and I will add more videos if available.   "I'm excited, it's a great opportunity playing in the United Center playing against some very good NHL guys." Moritz Seider ahead of his preseason debut tonight in Chicago. pic.twitter.com/s1Ub27soFf — Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) September 18, 2019

via Ansar Khan tweets, RedWings morning skate before tonight’s preseason game at @NHLBlackhawks (8:30, NHL Network joined in progress). Lines: Helm-Nielsen-Mantha Smith-Filppula-Zadina Erne-Veleno-Kuffner Loggins-MacLeod-Kestner That 4th line might be filling in for  a line that played last night. defense pairs: Ericsson-Green Daley-Seider DeKeyser-Saarijarvi Lashoff-Lindstrom

from Ansar Khan of Mlive, Some highlights of the Detroit Red Wings’ 5-3 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks Tuesday in their preseason opener at Little Caesars Arena: Rasmussen’s net presence on power play Michael Rasmussen snapped a 3-3 tie by scoring from the net front on the power play with 4:37 remaining in the third period. “I think he put some weight on, gained some strength this summer,” Luke Glendening said. “I think he’s a little more confident. He looks good. “To score goals in this league, that’s where you got be (net front). If he can be great there, that’s good for us.” Said Rasmussen: “I think I’m stronger on the puck and I’m just stronger with my skating.” Rasmussen looks forward to playing center, his natural position, this season after playing almost exclusively at wing in 62 games as a rookie with the Red Wings. He is competing for a roster spot because he can be assigned to the AHL Grand Rapids Griffins this season. “Just way more skating (at center),” Rasmussen said. “I need to get my body up and down the ice a little bit different than wing. Just getting up and down and you got to play as the third D-man pretty much in the zone.” continued for more players... Below, watch the game highlights and post-game talk.

Dustin Byfuglien, currently on personal leave from WPG, is believed to be using the time to ponder his NHL future. I’m not saying Byfuglien is retiring; I’m not saying he’s coming back to play. Only that he’s contemplating his options and there’s no timetable for a decision. — Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) September 18, 2019 Check out McKenzie's recent tweets for more on this.

from Ansar Khan of Mlive, Michael Rasmussen scored a power-play goal with 4:37 remaining in the third period Tuesday to lift the Detroit Red Wings past the Chicago Blackhawks 5-3 in their preseason opener at Little Caesars Arena. Rasmussen, the 6-6, 221-pound forward the Red Wings selected ninth overall in the 2017 draft, is competing for a roster spot after appearing in 62 games with the Red Wings last season as a rookie. He wasn’t able to play in the AHL in 2018-19 (except for a brief conditioning stint) because he still had junior eligibility. continued and a few hoghlights below...

I think we're going to continue to work together on a timely basis, whatever that means, to see what we can accomplish together in terms of securing long-term labor peace beyond the three years. -Gary Bettman.  Dan Rosen of NHL.com has more.

Feel free to comment on the game or anything Wings related. The game against Chicago starts just after 7:30pm and is on FSD+. Probably no recap of the game until tomorrow morning but who knows, I just may be motivated later tonight.

via Sportsnet's YouTube page, Patrik Laine Isn't Happy With His Place on the Jets | Instant Analysis 0:35 - Patrik Laine's comments via Iltalehti 0:56 - Reaction to Laine's comments 2:03 - Should Laine be upset with how the team uses him? 4:02 - How does this affect Laine's contract negotiations? With Winnipeg Jets RFA Patrik Laine yet to sign, the forward spoke out about his place on the team to Finnish media. Jets Insider Sean Reynolds spoke from Winnipeg to Danielle Michaud about the forward's comments. Watch the video below...

You'll impress your friends and family knowing all the rule changes.   An in-depth look at @NHL rule changes in place for the 2019-20 season. pic.twitter.com/BQFtOGJ9eZ — NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) September 17, 2019

from Steven Ellis of The Hockey News, Replacing your No. 1 goaltender is never easy. It’s even more difficult when said No. 1 netminder is Sergei Bobrovsky, the best the Columbus Blue Jackets have ever had.... For now, Joonas Korpisalo, one of the five European netminders the Blue Jackets have under contract, is slated to lead the team in net, but he’s on a one-year, show-me deal and consistency has been an issue in his career. Is he the long-term solution? His career path says no, though he’s never had a better opportunity. But if Korpisalo isn’t the answer, who is? Columbus may need look no further than Elvis Merzlikins and Veini Vehvilainen, who helped the Blue Jackets to a third-place finish at the Traverse City Prospect Tournament. Vehvilainen, 22, won both starts, while Merzlikins, 25, went 1-1-0, giving his team a fighting chance in both contests despite a rather unspectacular .889 save percentage. Before either can unseat Korpisalo, though, there are adjustments to be made. The first? The smaller North American ice. Merzlikins had just a handful of practice runs prior to Columbus’ playoff run in the spring to adapt, while Vehvilainen’s lone experience on an NHL-sized rink came at the 2015 World Junior Championship in Montreal, an event at which he struggled. read on

Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs, chairman of the Board of Governors, on the players choosing not to opt out of the CBA: “I think it was a wise decision. I think all of us will profit from it.” — Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) September 17, 2019

More videos will be added below if available. First up is Calvin Pickard and below is Michael Rasmussen.   Calvin Pickard set for preseason action. #CHIvsDET #LGRW pic.twitter.com/MMXIhWz2pk — Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) September 17, 2019

Fox Sports Detroit Plus will have coverage, puck drop is just after 7:30pm. If you want to discuss the game, there will be an open post for it on A2Y close to game time. It's preseason and you can tell just by looking at the Blackhawks (below) roster tonight. I am sure the spotlight will be on the youngsters tonight and the Wings play in Chicago tomorrow night.   #RedWings lines at the skate: Svechnikov-Rasmussen-Hirose Ehn-Glendening-de la Rose Ford-Turgeon-Terry Elson-Pearson-Puempel Defense pairs: Nemeth-Hronek Cholowski-Bowey Hicketts-McIlrath Howard (starting) Pickard — Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) September 17, 2019

This is crazy: Last night, Leafs tickets for the pre-season game tonight in St. John's were going for $600 a piece. Today, not a ticket to be found on StubHub. — steve simmons (@simmonssteve) September 17, 2019

from Sean Leahy of NBC Sports, When NHL players descended on Chicago earlier this month for the annual Player Media Tour NBC Sports bestowed upon them the power of league commissioner for a day. Putting themselves in Gary Bettman’s shoes, we asked the players what changes they would make to the game on or off the ice. Escrow was an obvious choice, but we wanted the players to get a little more creative than that. Changing overtime and the offside review were popular answers, but there were also some interesting ideas to come out of the exercise, like what Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews had to say. Here’s what the players told us when we asked them, “You’re NHL Commissioner for the day. What change, on or off the ice, would you make and why?” John Klingberg, Dallas Stars: “Get rid of the escrow. That’s an easy one. And get rid of the offside [review].” P.K. Subban, New Jersey Devils: “I’d like to see less penalties. I’m a little bit biased, I like the older school game. When I sit back and watch the old NHL and watching guys like Pavel Bure and [Sergei] Fedorov still put up the numbers that they did with guys draped all over them, sometimes in the league we forget what those guys had to go through to earn the numbers and the seasons that they put together.... continue for more responses from the players...

from Terry Jones of the Edmonto Sun, Despite having one of the most interesting training camps of their 41-year history going on here this year, the Edmonton Oilers drew maybe 8,500 actual fans in the stands, people in the pews and bums in the buckets to watch essentially the Manitoba Moose play the Bakersfield Condors at Rogers Place Monday. Similar gatherings attended the split squad games between the Canucks and Flames in Calgary and Vancouver. Which makes you wonder. Is it time for Edmonton, Calgary, Los Angeles, Anaheim and San Jose, who moved their AHL farm teams to California, to move their training camps and pre-season games there, too? Stay away until for opening day like the major league baseball teams heading north from spring training. It’s been talked about for a while. read on

BOSTON - Boston Bruins General Manager Don Sweeney announced today, September 17, that the team has signed defenseman Brandon Carlo to a two-year contract with an annual NHL cap hit of $2.85 million. Carlo, 22, skated in 72 games with the Bruins in 2018-19, tallying two goals and eight assists for 10 points with a plus-22 rating (T-2nd on team) while averaging 20:55 time on ice per game (4th on team). The 6-foot-5, 212-pound defenseman also appeared in all 24 playoff games, posting two goals and two assists for four points with a plus-10 rating (2nd on team) while averaging 21:31 time on ice per game (3rd on team). Since his rookie season in 2016-17, Carlo ranks fourth on the team in both plus/minus (plus-41) and time on ice per game (20:20). The Colorado Springs, Colorado native was originally selected by the Bruins in the second round (37th overall) of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.

from Ansar Khan of Mlive, Several former first-round picks will be vying for roster spots -- forwards Evgeny Svechnikov, who missed all of 2018-19 due to a knee injury, Michael Rasmussen, Filip Zadina and Joe Veleno and defensemen Dennis Cholowski and Moritz Seider. Undrafted free agents in the mix include wingers Taro Hirose and Ryan Kuffner and defenseman Oliwer Kaski. “It just gives us a real good chance to watch a whole bunch of guys in action,” Blashill said. “The challenge in the exhibition season is the varying rosters. Sometimes you are seeing guys that are real NHL players and sometimes you’re seeing guys that’ll probably play in the American League. You try to balance that. “You’d think that when we go to (Pittsburgh) we’ll probably see a really good roster (on Sept. 25), so you try to put a similar roster together. When you go to the New York Islanders (Sept. 23) I’d like to get a hold of (coach) Barry Trotz and have a conversation, just so we know if we can try to match up rosters the best we can. We got a whole bunch of competition for jobs. I think that’s shown in how competitive each practice was. This gives us a chance to see those guys play.” more

from Chris Ryan of NJ.com, Let’s start with the obvious caveat: Monday was just a preseason game, played against a Boston Bruins roster that lacked any serious NHL talent. But, man, Jack Hughes delivered a performance to back up the months of hype leading up to his debut. Playing in his first actual game inside an NHL arena against pro competition, Hughes didn’t disappoint. The No. 1 overall pick of the 2019 NHL Draft scored two goals, including the overtime winner to propel the Devils to a 4-3 victory over the Bruins at Prudential Center. His second-period power-play goal from the right circle was the Devils’ first of the night, and after more than 30 minutes of feeling out the game and the pace, Hughes converted a shot that helped him feel right at home on the ice. “I think on that first goal, that’s where I kind of got more comfortable,” Hughes said. “Wanted the puck on my stick more, so that was kind of the turning point.” continued Watch the two goals from Hughes below.

Vancouver, B.C. - Vancouver Canucks General Manager Jim Benning announced today that the club has re-signed forward Brock Boeser to a three-year contract extension worth an average annual value of $5.875 million. "We're very pleased to have Brock re-sign," said Benning. "He's a talented player, a key contributor to our offence and an important part of our team's future. We look forward to having Brock join the team in preparation for the upcoming season." Boeser, 22, finished third in team scoring last season with 56 points (26-30-56) in 69 games. His 26 goals also ranked third on the team, while his three game winning goals ranked second. In 140 career NHL games with Vancouver, Boeser has recorded 116 points (59-57-116) and 38 penalty minutes.

from Ted Kulfan of the Detroit News, ...let’s take a look at the some developments from the past few days here in Traverse City, which remains a fine spot to get hockey underway. Seider-mania Can defenseman Moritz Seider make the jump from playing hockey in Germany to the NHL? It’s not likely to happen immediately. But it might not take nearly as long as maybe originally thought. You see North American 18-year-olds who’ve played against stronger competition than Seider has struggle to simply adjust to the minor pro leagues here, never mind the NHL. It will be intriguing to watch Seider these next two weeks against NHL competition getting ready for this season. Seider’s approach to the game, his demeanor, and size and talent, are beyond most 18-year-olds. That should serve him well in the years ahead. You have to think Seider is best served by playing, at least for a while, in Grand Rapids and getting acclimated to North American pro hockey. more players and topics... added 3:04pm, from Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press,

from Larry Brooks of the New York Post, It is going to be different this year and Henrik Lundqvist knows it. Gone are the seasons in which the Swede starts nine of the first 10 games, 23 of the first 26 and 35 of the first 41 as he did two years ago for Alain Vigneault, or even seven of the first eight, 13 of the first 16 and 25 of the first 32 as he did last year under David Quinn. “I always like to get going with a lot of games early, but we’ve already talked about it, and how the league is trending in an opposite direction from one goalie having such a heavy workload,” Lundqvist told The Post following Monday’s training camp practice. “The way the game is going, how intense it is and how many scoring chances there are, I know how much it takes — and takes out of you — to play a game. “So it is going to be up to me to adapt to whatever schedule or rotation the organization thinks is best. I have to adjust to make it work. I’m going to work on that. If I’m not playing as much as I’m used to, the key will be to work hard in practice. But this isn’t something I’m worried or concerned about. I’m just very excited to be back here and get the season going.” continued

from Michael Traikos of tghe National Post, The last time anyone checked, Sid the (32-year-old) Kid was still looking mighty youthful, having scored 100 points and finishing a personal-best fourth in the Selke Trophy voting this past season. If that’s a sign of ageing or a window closing, then Crosby should start marketing whatever bottled water he drinks. But the window is still closing. Maybe not on Crosby, who would surprise no one if he were to win a third Hart Trophy this season. But it certainly is for the Pittsburgh Penguins, who are nobody’s pick to win the Stanley Cup — much less make the playoffs after getting swept in the first round last year... The tide is changing in the NHL. Dynastic teams, such as the Penguins, Chicago Blackhawks and Los Angles Kings, who account for eight of the past 11 Stanley Cups, are no longer skating around with a bullseye on their backs. They’re not the teams to beat. Rather, they seem beat-up and old, with bloated salaries and cap issues that are acting as anchors. Crosby and others are optimistic that there is plenty of gas in the tank and they can rebound and win again. But it could be that a re-tool or rebuild is more realistic for long-term success. “Obviously, not making the playoffs is never fun,” said Chicago’s Patrick Kane. “But we’re pushing ourselves to be better. I think our team’s going to be better. On paper, it’s going to be better. We feel good about the team. Now it’s just about putting it together.” more

"Goosebumps. It's pretty cool. I mean, it was cool to have around, but when you have an opportunity to see your name on it, it's pretty damn cool." --Alex Pietrangelo of the St. Louis Blues after seeing a picture with his name on the Cup.  More player reaction at the Blues' website.

from Dana Wakiki of DetroitRedWings.com, There are still some things to be determined before the Wings decide who will play Tuesday night at home against the Chicago Blackhawks in the first preseason game. "The challenge for guys like (Joe) Veleno and (Filip) Zadina is they already played four in five nights at the Prospect Tournament," Blashill said. "I've talked to Steve (Yzerman) about this -- is it beneficial for them to have an extra day off? I'm going to look at that as soon as I get back." Although it's a bit of a hike from Detroit, Blashill said coming up to Traverse City every year is always a great experience. "I think I prefer it, our guys prefer it. We like coming up here," Blashill said. "There's multiple reasons. One, you get to come up here, you're kind of away for a little bit. Your guys get to play some golf. It's beautiful up here. It's a little getaway. It's not super long. It's great. Traverse City's a beautiful spot in the world. "Me personally, both my sister and my parents live here. I definitely like coming up here. Just from an aspect of team, it's really worked well. People up here are great. You also get to hit a whole of Western Michigan and Northern Michigan that you don't get to hit on an everyday basis in Metro Detroit." Being away from home, the players and coaches also get to focus on hockey, which led to a successful camp. more plus other topics...

via the Philadelphia Flyers, The Philadelphia Flyers announced they have agreed to terms with restricted free agent forward Travis Konecny on a six-year contract worth an average annual value (AAV) of $5.5 million, according to President of Hockey Operations & General Manager Chuck Fletcher. "We are happy to have Travis under contract for the next six seasons," said Fletcher. "Travis has shown progression in each of his three seasons and is an integral part of our group of young forwards. His speed, skill and tenacity sets him apart in today's NHL."

The NHLPA announced today that the Executive Board has declined to reopen the CBA with the NHL following the 2019-20 season. The current CBA remains in effect through the 2021-22 season. The NHLPA advised the League of its decision earlier today. pic.twitter.com/IdZZT9HXL7 — NHLPA (@NHLPA) September 16, 2019

I will add more videos to this post if they become available.   The 313: Before Red Wings Training camp comes to an end, Brooke Fletcher caught up with Tyler Bertuzzi to talk about the week and what to expect this season. #DRWTC pic.twitter.com/6tIqKty46v — FOX Sports Detroit (@FOXSportsDet) September 16, 2019

from Bob McKenzie of TSN, The 2020 NHL Draft campaign opens with naming rights belonging to Alexis Lafreniere. Whether it remains the Alexis Lafreniere Draft, well, that’s another question. First, though, let’s start with the indisputable: The Rimouski Oceanic left winger is the unanimous No. 1 on TSN’s 2020 NHL Draft Pre-Season Top 20 Rankings. Ten out of 10 NHL scouts surveyed by TSN put Lafreniere first on their lists entering the 2019-20 season. “Elite competitive instincts and all the attributes – size, skill, skating, hockey sense, goal scoring, playmaking, you name it – you look for in a No. 1 NHL winger, he has all of them,” one NHL scout said. Yes, but we have heard the same thing in past years only to see a unanimous pre-season No. 1 lose the title by the time the draft rolls around, which is scheduled for June 26-27 in Montreal. Three years ago, Nolan Patrick entered 2016-17 as the unanimous pre-season No. 1, but by season’s end he was surpassed by Switzerland’s Nico Hischier. Could Lafreniere face a similar challenge from any of the other top prospects in a highly talented 2020 top end?  It includes No. 2 centre Quinton Byfield, No. 3 right winger Lucas Raymond and a pair of special scorers in a dead heat at No. 4, centre/left winger Cole Perfetti and left winger Alexander Holtz? continued