Stephen Weiss has not made a big impact on the ice for the Detroit Red Wings during preseason, but he is healthy for the first time since joining Detroit during the off-season last year.
Weiss skated during the off-season to rehab before joining some of the Red Wings for the informal captain’s skate at Joe Louis before heading up to Training Camp,
Weiss said, “It was great. It was nice to be back. It’s obviously been a while and felt pretty good for the first controlled game/scrimmage in nine months. I feel healthy, have no pain, and feel like I’m just going to get better and better.”
During the informal skate and during Training Camp he received his first real taste of the physicality that comes along with playing the game and he was excited to get back into the .
“That’s the biggest change from skating in the summer and having the skates at the Joe the last week. Starting to get contact again and guys leaning on you, and that will come with going through camp every day and playing exhibition games, your body starts getting used to that again and your conditioning gets back into game shape and you start taking off from there. Thought it was a decent start today. Having no pain is huge for me.”
Having no pain in the groin area due to the sports hernia or the surgery allows Weiss to focus primarily on the game and keep him from being distracted when on the ice.
Weiss said, “After what I went through last year, I’m not thinking about it constantly. Just going to go out and play. What I went through last year… I’m honestly just happy to be back on the ice.”
Weiss knows that he still has a lot to do to stay healthy this season.
“Just the little exercises you have to do, the stretching routines—all stuff I did before anyway,” Weiss said. “It just now becomes more important because of the two procedures last year. I’ve been in contact with the people I got treatment from all summer and making sure I’m staying on the treatment as well and just doing everything I can to feel as healthy as I can and feel as good as I can on the ice.”
With Weiss staying on top of everything he should be able to play a full season with Detroit.
Weiss did not pull any punches when talking about what his future could have been his surgeries and recover did not go well, “It could have gone the other way and it could have taken a toll on my career, to be honest. So to go through the summer and rehab really well and be able to get back on the ice in the summer and get on the ice without any pain and have that continue into camp has been wonderful for me and I feel like I’m going to get better and better.”
It’s just going to make me better this year and hungrier this year. – Stephen Weiss
Weiss’ NHL career could have been cut short last season, but thankfully for the Detroit Red Wings he will be coming back with a vengeance in order to live up to his contract.
Henrik Zetterberg is excited to have Stephen Weiss back on the ice for the Red Wings, as well.
Zetterberg said, “…it’s great to see him healthy and out here and really having an honest chance to show what he can do. He’s a great player, we all know that, and went through a tough year last year. He looks good out there and is going to be good for us this year.”
Even with spending most of last season on the sidelines watching the team play he has become more comfortable with playing in the Red Wings system.
Weiss talked about his comfort level with the Red Wings, “I feel much more comfortable, where to go—not thinking about it so much. Practice was easier today in terms of that stuff. I felt way better, more comfortable than last year already. For my first scrimmage in nine months, I just feel like I’m going to continue getting better.”
The Detroit Red Wings are expecting Stephen Weiss to be a big part of the team’s success this season and produce like he did in 2011-12 with the Florida Panthers, when he put up twenty goals and fifty-seven points; with Weiss being more comfortable with the Wings’ system should help him produce for Detroit.
If Weiss is able to tally forty to fifty points in his first healthy season with the Detroit Red Wings, then I would consider it to be a good season and a solid step forward for the veteran centerman.
Weiss will be probably start the season as the Red Wings’ second line next to Johan Franzen, Gustav Nyquist, Justin Abdelkader, and even possibly Henrik Zetterberg if Mike Babcock decides to split up the Euro Twins.