Filip Zadina talks about his NHL debut (with video)
By @MichaelCaples and @StefanKubus –
DETROIT – There was a new guy on the ice Sunday afternoon in Hockeytown.
It wasn’t Madison Bowey.
Filip Zadina, the No. 6 overall pick from last summer’s NHL Draft, made his long-awaited debut for the Red Wings Sunday at Little Caesars Arena.
The star-studded prospect recorded 10:30 worth of ice-time in his debut – a 5-3 loss to San Jose.
“Ten’s not bad, I think that’s a decent start for your first time,” Jeff Blashill said after the contest. “I think I mentioned earlier that [Vancouver forward Elias] Pettersson played eight in his, sometimes you’re easing your way in. I thought he was good. I didn’t think he was great, but I thought he was good. Obviously I thought if he was great he would have had more. He looks like, I thought there were moments where he was trying to create space for himself, that’s what he’s going to have to do. I think there were moments where the space got taken away quicker than he thought it was going to, that’s part of the learning process.
“We got him and [Michael Rasmussen] on the same line, and sometimes it’s easier to play with a young guy you’re familiar with, but it’s a lot to ask of two 19-year-olds in the NHL. I think the 30-year-olds won the night when you look at the two teams; Pavelski and Burns, they won the night. I thought it was a good first game for him. Didn’t get a lot of time on the power play, the first time we got a penalty 14 seconds in, then we scored with the extra skater, and then the third one wasn’t good enough, so he didn’t get a lot of a chance on that.”
Zadina ended up with a -1 rating, after the Sharks scored on his very first shift.
He recorded one shot on goal and one hit, as well, but was held off the scoresheet in the contest.
The fresh face still caught the attention of his veteran teammates, however.
“You can just tell the way he handles the puck, the way he moves up there, he’s going to be a very good player for years to come,” Niklas Kronwall said. “A good learning experience for him, and you’ll see more from him as we go along here.”
Zadina arrived in Detroit holding 31 points in 45 games with the Griffins this season. He was on a seven-game point streak in the AHL.
It is expected that his stay in Hockeytown will not be for the rest of the season due to contract stipulations, so Zadina will be trying to make the most of his opportunities.
Detroit plays Montreal on Tuesday, a team that passed on Zadina in the draft. In interviews with the media following his selection by Detroit, he made comments about wanting to fill up Montreal’s net – the game at Little Caesars Arena will be his second opportunity to record his first NHL goal/point.