Red Wings 4, Penguins 3: Notes from the Preseason Opener

The Red Wings win their preseason opener over Pittsburgh. Here's more on Simon Edvinsson's strong performance, Jonatan Berggren's point to prove, and Detroit's ongoing goaltending battle

The Detroit Red Wings knocked off the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-3 Tuesday night at Little Caesars Arena to start their preseason off victorious.  

2023 first round pick Nate Danielson notched his first NHL goal in the first period of his first game.  Detroit's power play struck twice in the second period, snapping its Traverse City dry spell.  In the third, Michael Rasmussen notched the game-winning goal, courtesy of an incisive Simon Edvinsson feed.

The squad the Penguins brought to Detroit featured just four players who appeared in 25 or more games a year ago, so the Red Wings' victory should perhaps come as no surprise.

"It's just to good to play," said head coach Derek Lalonde after the victory.  "We'll have some game video, some good reps out there, a little sloppy in some areas...Like to be a little cleaner in some areas."  He went on to call the performance "fairly good" and "what you expect a first exhibition game to look like."

Playing in his first competitive game since shoulder surgery last spring, Simon Edvinsson delivered a promising performance from the back end for the Red Wings.  

"He's been good, he moves the puck really well, his skills are obvious," said Michael Rasmussen of the 20-year-old Swede. "It was really nice to see him mix it up today and get physical and play aggressive. I thought he had a good game."

Playing beside Jeff Petry, Edvinsson showed the smooth puck-moving game that made him the sixth pick in the 2021 Draft without sacrificing physicality.  Early in the first period, he delivered an excellent royal road feed across the heart of the Penguin defense.  Though that chance didn't convert, Edvinsson replicated the play on his eventual game-winning assist for Rasmussen.

In his own end, Edvinsson wasn't perfect.  He and Petry were on the ice for Pittsburgh's second goal, and there were moments where he wasn't as quick to identify danger in the defensive zone as you might hope.  Still, he was impressive in killing plays and level-headed in getting the puck out.

By game's end, he'd earned the right to play beside Moritz Seider as Detroit rode out the Penguins' empty-net bid to tie the game, and in that position, Edvinsson looked quite at home.

"You want him to be heavy," said Lalonde of Edvinsson.  "These games are really important, especially him missing pretty much the entire summer of contact.  Some positives, some good...He can do things you just can't teach, but there's still some things in his game he needs to keep growing."

Because Jonatan Berggren wasn't sent back to Grand Rapids upon earning his NHL call-up last season, it might have been tempting to assume he was a lock to open the season as a Red Wing, but Berggren himself isn't making that assumption.

"I feel I definitely have something to prove," Berggren said after morning skate today.  "I feel like I had an okay first year, 65 games or something, but feeling like I need to compete for a spot now.  Nothing is given to you in this league."

When asked directly if he was approaching camp on the assumption that he'd wind up with the big club, Berggren replied "Oh no, I feel like I have something to prove, and I feel like I need to compete for my spot."

Berggren's place in this evening's line-up reinforced the notion that an NHL roster spot is far from assured.  He played on Detroit's third line with Taro Hirose and Danielson.  The former is likely to embark on another season as a Griffin who will play a few games with the Red Wings when injuries mount, and the latter is all but assured to return for another season of major junior.  The reality of Detroit's improved depth is that Berggren's path to regular NHL minutes is harder.

Lalonde said of the young winger, "The way we were built last year, he gave us something we didn't have, and he gave us an impact."  In that sentiment, Lalonde at once acknowledges Berggren's obvious gifts, while also hinting that the Red Wings' improved level on the fringes of the line-up is a challenge for him.  Lalonde added that Berggren's game away from the puck has room for improvement, as well as his willingness to operate in "hard areas."

On Tuesday night, Berggren showed both the upside and downside of his developing game.  He demonstrated his typical imperiousness with the puck on his tape, threading passes into the slot with regularity and picking up an assist on Danielson's goal.  He slipped behind defenders to find space and quality chances.  His elusiveness and deception drew a penalty.

However, he was also guilty of a bad turnover deep in his own end, which led directly to Pittsburgh's second goal.  It was the sort of play where an NHL coach needs his winger to usher the puck to safety, and Berggren wasn't able to do get that done.

Despite that, I would be surprised to see Berggren start the season in Grand Rapids rather than Detroit.  His offensive gifts are too tantalizing, and I suspect he needs to learn to find his way to those "hard areas" at the NHL level, rather than against inferior competition.  

As for his approach, Berggren noted this morning that in the preseason he intends to "just play my game that I've been doing all my life and just show them that I did a lot of work this summer and show them that I'm ready to take a spot this season."

James Reimer started the game in net for the Red Wings, with Jan Bednar coming on in relief just past the midpoint of the second period.

Reimer, who earned plaudits from Lalonde for his performance in the Red & White game Sunday, faced a light workload in his 30:14 of action.  He stopped seven of the nine shots he faced, but he hardly stood a chance on either of the goals he conceded—the first a byproduct of a defensive breakdown, the second on a 2-on-0 after the aforementioned Berggren turnover.  

It wasn't a spectacular performance by any stretch, but it was a solid one, and Reimer would seem to maintain a lead on Alex Lyon for the number two goaltending spot behind Ville Husso.

Bednar, meanwhile, earned his opportunity based on strong performances at both rookie camp and training camp, according to Lalonde.  Unfortunately, it's impossible to ignore that this development also represents Bednar appearing to jump ahead of Sebastian Cossa on the Wings' organizational depth chart after Cossa's struggles in Traverse City.

Bednar started slowly but finished with a tidy 12 stops on 13 shots.  The lone goal he conceded (to Pittsburgh's Sam Poulin) was one he would certainly want back, losing his post and allowing an innocuous stuff attempt to slip through him.  However, Bednar recovered nicely and answered every subsequent question the Penguins asked of him.

Though he won't make the Red Wings, Bednar may well be in the process of solidifying a spot in Grand Rapids to start the season.