Joe Hicketts Makes Strong Case For Making Red Wings
By Nick Seguin
6 years agoAt the end of Detroit’s 4-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs Friday night, the online chatter wasn’t around the Maple Leafs trio of young superstars, it was around Joe Hicketts. The 5’8” defenseman played in his third and final preseason game on a squad, and against a squad, that were made up mostly of NHL players. And he looked like he belonged.
Training Camp
The Red Wings signed Hicketts in 2014 after he went undrafted in the NHL Entry Draft. Last year, he played his first season for the Grand Rapids Griffins, leading team defensemen with 34 points in 73 games. He was also a key cog in the Griffins’ Calder Cup win.
Hicketts showed up at training camp this year ready to impress and impress he did. Playing a strong game at both ends of the ice, Hicketts led all defensemen with three assists and ten shots in three preseason games. His 5v5 on-ice CF% was an even 50%, which is better than Danny DeKeyser’s, Mike Green’s, and Trevor Daley’s.
Friday night’s game was no doubt the icing on his preseason cake. He led the team with five shots and five hits in 20:14 of ice time. He saw time on the powerplay and showed a confidence and willingness to jump into the play and create chances.
An Uphill Battle
Hicketts has had an uphill battle to make the NHL, though. His small frame and choppy skating have forced him to prove himself at every level of hockey. And he’s still got more proving to do. “I think I’ve done everything in my power over the last couple years of junior, last year in the American League and over the summer to prepare myself to get to that next level,” Hicketts told MLive. “Like I said before, I hope it’s been enough to keep me here. If not, you go down and you got to do the same thing year after year.”
Despite his size, Hicketts plays an explosive game and thrives off of building momentum with big plays. “I’ve been not necessarily the biggest hitter but I like throwing the body around,” Hicketts said to MLive. “It’s a way that kind of engages me both mentally and physically. If you can give the team a spark, obviously it kind of helped on the power play there for us at the end.”
Hicketts is, of course, referring to the two consecutive hits he laid on Morgan Rielly and Tyler Bozak late in the third period. They were big enough to draw an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty from James Van Riemsdyk and send his team to the powerplay for an attempt to tie the game.
Where He Will Start the Season
Both Henrik Zetterberg and Jeff Blashill praised Hicketts’ preseason. Zetterberg told MLive that Hicketts had a strong preseason and he’s a tough guy to play against, despite his small frame. In his post-game presser, Blashill said, “Joe’s a good player, Joe’s a gamer. He just wants to be an impact every single time he’s on the ice. He doesn’t look the part. He’s smaller and not a great skater. Most of those guys don’t play in the NHL. There’s very few of them that are.” Blashill concluded his comments by saying he “had a lot of time for Joe Hicketts”.
Skip to the 3:00 mark to hear his comments on Hicketts.
One can’t help but notice that Blashill stopped short of saying Hicketts looked like he belonged or that he made a strong case for himself this season. It’s pretty clear that the 21-year-old is going to find himself re-assigned to the Griffins in the next couple of days and that’s because the Red Wings have made it very hard for young defensemen to crack this roster. With the signing of Trevor Daley this offseason, there isn’t a spot for all of Detroit’s defensemen who have NHL experience:
Daley – DeKeyser
Green – Ericsson
Kronwall – Jensen/XO/Sproul
Ryan Sproul is likely going to meet the waiver wire and Nick Jensen and Xavier Ouellet have proven themselves at the NHL level. They aren’t going anywhere. Of course, with a D-corps with an average age of 30, there are bound to be some injuries and that’s where Hicketts is going to get his chance. Kronwall, in particular, has already suffered back spasms that have kept him out of most of the preseason and Jonathan Ericsson has nagging injuries that generally keep him out for chunks of the season.
Hicketts had a great preseason and definitely made a case for himself being NHL-ready. Unfortunately, with Detroit’s crowded blueline, he’ll have to wait a little longer for his opportunity.
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