Patrick Kane out, Jonatan Berggren & Vladimir Tarasenko duo in Hockeytown Red Wings

Curiously, in the second National Hockey League (NHL) preseason game for the Detroit Red Wings, Patrick Kane is not playing. 

Ansar Khan shared a few interesting tweets that I’ll include below:

Interestingly, the coaching staff wants to give Jonatan Berggren a real chance to show what he has among the top six in the Detroit Red Wings lineup.

Although interesting, it’s wise on the coaching staff’s part. See where Berggren is compared to last season and determine where he might fit best within the group. 

Last season, Berggren went from playing on the top line for four periods of hockey to essentially sitting in the press box. (Obviously, he remained on the bench for the remaining two periods of the second game, but his skates barely touched the ice.)

Choosing to ice Berggren in place of Patrick Kane is a perplexing decision. Khan shares more details:

In short, it might be good to give Kane a bit of a rest since training camp has been so challenging. 

The Detroit Red Wings plan to play Jonatan Berggren and Vladimir Tarasenko together

While I get the excitement of seeing Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko on a line together, I’m more excited to watch Berggren play with Tarasenko for the time being.

Even if it’s just a few shifts of a preseason game, Tarasenko is a special player. 

Outside of his incredible skillset, Tarasnko is above all else a talker.

It’s silly to have that quality be so important, but to me it’s everything. A young player like Berggren needs someone ready to help him acclimate to the NHL-level game. Who better to learn from than Tarasenko?

While I watched the Saturday practice in Traverse City, Michigan, I was taken aback by how much Tarasenko talked. 

It wasn’t just to his linemates, but everyone. Coaches, defensemen, and goalies all seem to get an earful at any given moment and it was beautiful to see.

Something seemingly innocent and fun makes as big of an impression on me as someone who can break ankles while dangling in corners.

Far too often, I see players not communicating with each other. It’s something that maybe the best of the best players don’t need to do, especially if they’re well-acquainted with each other and their style of play, but more often than not players have to communicate with each other to be successful.

Tarasenko, in some ways, reminded me of Bobby Ryan, who was chatting all the time. He even helped Lucas Raymond beat Ryan for a spot on the Detroit Red Wings roster. 

Berggren (and even a guy like Simon Edvinsson) benefits from his teammates taking a moment to regroup or get ready for an upcoming faceoff. Or after the fact, what might not have worked or what could be improved? 

The duo of Tarasenko and Berggren will likely be a preseason experiment that is left in preseason. Berggren likely drops to the third or fourth line in favor of Kane stepping into the right-wing spot.

Out of all the possible reasons Berggren might stick on a line with Tarasenko (wherever that might be) is if Berggren’s more flexible moving to the left wing. 

Neither Tarasenko nor Kane have played much on the left wing, and both seem a bit more comfortable on the right wing. Tarasenko played left wing last season, but it was the first time in his career he was asked to switch wings. 

Berggren, like so many Swedes in both forwards and defense, is a bit more flexible it seems. If he’s more comfortable on the left wing then he might place higher than we originally thought in the Detroit Red Wings lineup (when he shows that he is ready for that type of role). 

It should be an interesting storyline to unfold during the preseason and gives me a reason to watch every shift of Berggren’s on the edge of my seat.

No matter where Berggren, Kane, or Tarasenko end up within the Detroit Red Wings lineup, they’ll make formidable additions. Don’t be too surprised when they take the NHL by storm.