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By Sarah Lindenau - www.RedWingsCentral.com September 17, 2007 Ryan Oulahen doesn’t have the flash and dash of other prospects and doesn’t play the type of game that makes many headlines. But the underrated center has been developing nicely in his two seasons with the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League. The 22-year-old is a strong defensive player known for his instincts, hard work, faceoff ability and penalty killing. He is coming off an 11-goal, 27-point season in Grand Rapids and now wants to take a step forward offensively. “I think I came into this year with a lot of confidence,” he said. “Last year I got an opportunity to play a lot of minutes in every situation and that just grows confidence and makes you a better player. The 6-foot, 190-pound forward worked on his conditioning and skating in the off-season, focusing on quickness, strength and power. He’s hoping to get a look in a couple of NHL exhibition games. “That’s my goal,” Oulahen said. “It would be nice to get a feel (for the NHL), to play against these guys and maybe build some confidence.” Oulahen is in the final year of his three-year entry-level contract. With continued progress, he’ll likely be re-signed, and may get an NHL look down the road in the same manner as Matt Ellis. For now, Grand Rapids is his likely destination. “Mentally you just go out there and work as hard as you can,” he said. “The ultimate goal is to be in Detroit. The sooner you get there the better.” — Team B beat Team A 4-3 at the Red Wings’ training camp in Traverse City, Mich., on Sunday. Randall Gelech had the game-winner while Henrik Zetterberg, Adam Keefe and Scott Brannon scored singles. Igor Grigorenko, Johan Franzen and Brent Sopel scored for Team A. Tryout forwards Adam Keefe and Neil Clark squared off in the only fight at the main camp, although it wasn’t much of a scrap. — Wings forward Valtteri Filppula is ready for more responsibility. The 5-foot-11, 202-pound center collected 10 goals among 17 points in 73 games last season as a rookie while playing a third- and fourth-line role. With veterans Robert Lang, Kyle Calder and Todd Bertuzzi gone, Filppula will be expected to take his game to a new level offensively. “Points come and that something I don’t like to think too much about,” he said. “If you play hard the points will come. I’ve always had a tendency to pass and that is a big deal for me to try and shoot more.” Filppula sat out on Sunday with a minor injury. He’s expecting to be ready for the start of the NHL exhibition season. The 23-year-old said he believes he’s capable of playing on one of the top two lines, but added that, “To play on this team, no matter what line you play on, you are going to play with great players. That makes it easier.” — The Red Wings are continuing to evaluate all of the candidates for the final forward spot in Detroit. Leading the way are Igor Grigorenko, Matt Ellis, Mark Hartigan and free-agent tryout Aaron Downey. “(Downey) can keep the flies off,” Wings head coach Mike Babcock said. “In saying that, you have to be able to play and contribute on one of our four lines. So we are going to evaluate him and see where he fits.” The “flies off” comment echoes Babcock’s words from last year’s camp, when he said the same thing about defenseman Brad Norton. — Babcock had more to say about forward Tomas Kopecky on Sunday. “He can’t over-handle the puck,” Babcock said. “Yet, in saying that, just the fact that he wants the puck is a whole different story than last year, when he got the puck (and) gave it to someone else. Now, he’s hanging on to it. That’s a positive and it’s obviously a huge step for him.” — The Red Wings cut 12 players from their roster on Sunday, but kept three players with junior eligibility in Cory Emmerton, Jan Mursak and Logan Pyett. All three will “probably play” against the Minnesota Wild, Babcock said, before being returned to their junior teams. Free-agent tryout defenseman Scott Jackson also remained on the roster and will likely get an look in the exhibition season. — Despite being listed Team B’s roster, goaltender Logan Koopmans is not in camp as he is still recovering from off-season hernia surgery. He will rejoin the Red Wings once he has fully recuperated. The injury-plagued Koopmans signed a one-year contract in the off-season. — The Wings will split into two squads for Monday’s red-and-white game, scheduled for 6 p.m. at Center Ice Arena. They close out the Traverse City portion of camp on Tuesday at 5 p.m. with a four-on-four game. Sarah Lindenau is a contributor to RedWingsCentral.com. RELATED LINK: Photos |
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