Frkwatch: Playoff Update and Regular Season Thoughts

My seats for Game Two vs. Saint John. Not pictured: Frk scoring half a dozen goals, the chunky kid who ruined 75% of the photos I tried to take.

It's been a while since I updated the blog or made an attempt to post. While traffic soared during January and February thanks in large to a lot of good posts, I was incredibly busy with life in February and March, and got quite ill the last few weeks with some kind of bizarre chest cold that sapped the life out of me. I'm on the mend but between work and life it's been hard to maintain some kind of consistency in terms of writing. Kudos to the fellas at Winging it in Motown for keeping things interesting the past few weeks. If you don't already participate in the game threads like I do from time to time, you should join in on the shenanigans. All your favorite WIIM guys are there acting silly. Sometimes JJ gets stern but someone has to, otherwise we all go insane.

Special shoutout to Graham Hathway for a rather controversial post about the now-signed Daniel DeKeyser. While some disagreed that missing the boat on signing DeKeyser would be a miserable failure, Graham had some excellent points in the article he wrote and the comment section about his value to the Red Wings. What was more interesting about the article Graham wrote was the bizarre assault "GallopingGreg" attempted on Graham and his analysis. It was a real treat to see the Red Wings community throttle Graham's would-be nemesis. He didn't have a leg to stand on at any point and it's a beautiful thing to see the community come together to dispatch a troll. Anyway, please send your love to Graham over at Winging it in Motown or Twitter. He's Canadian, which instantly makes him more likable than all other Red Wings fans. Just kidding. Sorry.

Time to get down to business. The QMJHL regular season ended recently and it was a very interesting final 20 games or so for the Moosehead, as Nathan MacKinnon got injured near the end of the season and while he's back now, there was concern the team would struggle without him. Enter Marty Frk. In the month of February, Frk played in 11 games, scoring 11 goals and 20 points with a plus/minus of 10 and 14 PIM. In March, Frk played in 9 games, scoring 4 and registering 11 points with a plus/minus of just +1 and 8 PIM. Frk finished the regular season with 56 games played, 35 goals, 49 assists, 84 points, a plus/minus of +31, 84 PIM, which was all good for 13th in QMJHL scoring. Frk was quite impressive in the final three months of the season, matching the creativity of his linemates and future first round draft picks Nathan MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin.

I was able to attend a couple of games in the final months of the regular season and I had a few follow up thoughts to Frk's impressive scoring run at the end of the season. The biggest lesson learned from Frkwatch is that Frk possess that rare game-breaking ability that generational forwards like his idols Jaromir Jagr and Sergei Fedorov have. Marty Frk is the kind of player who can take over a game and use his offensive prowess to frustrate and stifle defenses and goaltenders with a blistering shot and his uncanny ability to find open ice. He has a real nose for the net and finding the right place to be when it comes to scoring. Junior hockey is one thing but Frk always looked out of place with the Moose, if only because he already knows how to play the offensive weapon role he is most suited for. Obviously his development required him to "grow up" in junior, but he possesses an offensive maturity that fueled both his game and MacKinnon and Drouin's throughout the season. That line was lethal whenever it was on the ice.

Unfortunately, Frk's strength is also his biggest weakness: his ability to make the game all about him caused some trouble when it came to penalties. Early in the season, Frk struggled to get into form due in large part to the leg injury he sustained late in the summer. Frk's "double tap" skating method (which I covered earlier in the season), caused him to very slowly leave the offensive zone and lag behind very slowly on backcheck. This backchecking improved drastically as the season went on, but Frk's tendency to take stupid penalties, namely retaliatory ones, never faded. A lot of this is mental maturity: it's hard to be critical of a nineteen year old kid bound for the NHL, but rather than pretend this player has no flaws, I'll lay it out there as I see it. Frk may be able to take over a game, but his tendency to pester defenses and retaliate when they use their physical frames to push him around is a glaring weakness in his game.

The 84 PIMs are an early warning sign of a particular attitude on the ice. No, Frk isn't a whiner or a diver or the kind of player who won't own up to his mistakes. Frk is intense. He wants the puck and wants to lead the forecheck and he wants all passes directed to him. I would argue this nature is precisely the kind of aggression Fedorov and Jagr expressed during the early years of their career, before defense became a top concern. Frk has that special nature and while it comes with a propensity to draw dumb penalties, that immaturity will wain in time as Frk learns to play a two way game in Detroit. At the very least, the lack of defensive responsibility will be hammered out of him in Grand Rapids, where he will no doubt spend the next two seasons.

FRK YEAH, MOOSE DIVE HEADFIRST INTO THE PLAYOFFS

The "Frk Yeah" saying will no doubt be abused by Red Wings fans for years to come (provided he isn't traded for an overpaid defensemen) and has already become a regularly occurring rally cry on Winging it in Motown's game threads. Halifax Moosehead fans have been saying "Frk Yeah" for a few years and were going crazy at the Metro Centre on Friday March 22nd when the playoffs began for the QMJHL. Frk kicked off the playoffs with a show of his skills, scoring a Moosehead record five goals and three assists for eight points with a plus/minus of 4 in an 11-1 thumping of the Saint John Sea Dogs. Frk finished the four game sweep with six goals and four assists, good for fourth among playoff scorers in the Q League playoff scorers. He's tied with teammate Johnathan Drouin, for what it's worth. Here are the highlights of the game:

The eight point night is the perfect example of what Frk is capable of when he takes over a game. I was there for the second game where the Moose eaked out a one goal victory. Frk was all over the ice trying to make the offense run. Unfortunately Frk had a blank score sheet but had 5 shots on goal. Here are a couple of pictures and a video I took at the game:

Frk during a faceoff, probably thinking about how soon he can replace Mikael Samuelsson. Photo courtesy of PG Marsh

On the forecheck. He's always the last man to leave the zone. You can tell he loves to backcheck. Photo courtesy of PG Marsh.

As the Moose wait to commence their second round matchup against whatever ragamuffin team ekes out a win to face them, there's time to reflect on the strength of their opening round win. Kudos to Saint John goaltender Sebastien Auger for trying to keep his team in Game Two, but holy crap did that kid ever get hammered in goal. The second round is going to be slightly more difficult for the Moose, so expect more 4-1 or 5-2 scores. Can Frk keep up the production and lead the Moose to the Memorial Cup? Stay tuned to Frkwatch.

In the meantime, if you want to talk more about the Mooseheads (Meesehead?) please drop a line in the comment section, or shoot me a tweet at my Twitter, @wizofozblog.

Frkwatch Game Two: Fifteen for the Moose

This is a semi-frequent piece that I will run as much as I can attend Detroit Red Wings' prospect Martin Frk's QMJHL games. The views and opinions are those of myself and ONLY myself. I can't claim objectivity; my sole purpose is to report what I see myself.

Frk leaving his own end on the rush. Photo courtesy of PG Marsh.

The Halifax Mooseheads are on a roll. After losing their home opener, the team has won thirteen straight games, including  7-3 victory over the PEI Rocket at home Sunday night that included five goals scored in two minutes of play in the second period. The win was huge for the Moose, who took two points off of division rivals and increased their lead in the overall standings of the QMJHL. The team looked very impressive the entire game, the exception being some shaky goaltending in the second period and some lazy power play chances that turned into two shorthanded goals. Feel free to check out the statistics of Sunday night's game right here on the Q's website.

The win at home wasn't the only bright spot for the Moose. Forward Marty Frk had a big night. Frk set up the first goal and rifled home the last goal in the third period en route to a 1G, 1A, 4S, and 0 PIM performance. This brings Frk's season totals to three goals, eleven assists, and fourteen points in fourteen games. Most importantly beyond statistics, Frk looked like the player all Red Wings fans (and management) want him to be in the future.

On his first shift of the night, Frk was forechecking harder than I've seen him play all season. He took a hard wrist shot, followed it up with another, and linemate Brett Andrews buried his fourth of the season three minutes into the game to make it 1-0. Frk is looking more and more like a deadly threat on the forecheck and as usual he demonstrated an incredible sense of where to be when the puck is loose. He's passing the puck frequently to wide open teammates and is finally taking more shots on goal. He may sit 8th on the team in scoring but as soon as he starts shooting one-timers from the point like he did on his goal in the third period, he's going to rack up the points very quickly.

Frk digging for the puck. Photo courtesy of PG Marsh.

The most impressive thing about Frk during this game was his speed. Despite my initial concerns over his lack of interest backchecking or pushing himself to skate hard, Frk demonstrated some serious wheels on Sunday, especially pushing the action through centre ice. Frk is showing a lot more Filppula and less Franzen, for those of you who understand Red Wing comparisons. It's interesting to see him working on the different elements of play from game to game.

Extracurricular activities from Frk? Photo courtesy of PG Marsh.

Another big plus from this game was Frk mixed it up without drawing any dumb penalties. Currently, Frk has 24 PIMs, good for third on the team and second among forwards. He's definitely not one to shy away from giving and receiving hits, especially questionable ones, but he played with conviction and discipline on Sunday, which was refreshing and necessary as Halifax took a few unnecessary penalties.

The biggest downside to Frk's season thus far is the undisciplined penalties as well as his strange tendency to be on the ice for bad, preventable goals. He is the one of three Moosehead skaters with a plus/minus of even or below. While most of his teammates currently possess double digit plus/minus numbers, especially the top ten scorers, Frk is simply even. It's hard to pinpoint the reason why this is the case, although one could suggest it is his linemates being inexperienced, or perhaps the discussion could be traced back to his lack of backchecking, or even just "back luck". Either way, it's something I have no doubt he will be working on over the next couple of weeks as the Moose hit the road to defend their streak before returning to the Metro Centre on November 16th to play second place Rouyn-Noranda. By the time the Moose play the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles on November 23rd, the next edition of Frkwatch, we may just be talking about how Halifax are Canada's best junior team, and how Marty Frk of the Red Wings is lighting up the Q.

Nearly eight thousand in the Metro last night for the win. Photo courtesy of PG Marsh.

That concludes the third of many forthcoming Frkwatch entries. I'd love to read some feedback so please feel free to comment here on the blog or follow me on Twitter at @wizofozblog. Thanks for reading and as a Canadian icon used to say, keep your stick on the ice.

Frkwatch Game One: A Rivalry Renewed

This is a semi-frequent piece that I will run as much as I can attend Detroit Red Wings' prospect Martin Frk's QMJHL games. The views and opinions are those of myself and ONLY myself. I can't claim objectivity; my sole purpose is to report what I see myself.

Warmup skate, Sept. 29th 2012. Photo courtesy of PG Marsh.

The Halifax Mooseheads have been touted as one of the country's most interesting teams to watch this season. With Nathan MacKinnon leading the charge on offense, not to mention his status as the potential first overall pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, the Moose could be the Q's President Cup Champions come spring and may just challenge for the Memorial Cup. If you have an itch to dive into the mind of MacKinnon, here's his Twitter. For that matter, you can follow Martin Frk on Twitter right here.

Thus far, the Mooseheads have started strong, posting a 3-1 record in 4 games and registering fifth among CHL teams in the BMO CHL Mastercard Top 10 Rankings. On the downside, the Moose were spanked 6-1 in front of 9,223 fans Friday night at the Metro Center by the Gatineau Olympiques. It was quite a crowd killer for the home opener. Thankfully, the Moose were forced to go right back to work the following night against the provincial rival Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, my hometown team, and a relatively easy opponent to beat up on after a bitter pill swallowing the night before. It should have been an "easier" game, but it wasn't. Red Wings' prospect Martin Frk was in the lineup, and thankfully there were no shenanigans on the same level as the exhibition game that took place in September.

Despite the efforts of Halifax's potent offense, goaltender Phillipe Trudeau of the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles kept the game close. He registered 36 saves, good for the first star of the game, but the Mooseheads prevailed 3-2 in a shootout. Zachary Fucale had 20 saves for Halifax, with Luca Ciampini and Brent Andrews scoring. Bronson Beaton and Michael Clark scored for Cape Breton. All goals were scored in the first period.

Martin Frk's stat line for the night is not quite indicative of his performance or his impact on the ice. Frk assisted on Ciampini's goal, the opening goal of the game, was even in +/- for the night, had three shots, and picked up two penalty minutes for an elbowing minor in the second period. Unfortunately, my seats for this game were in Section 32 (which is as far away as the number suggests), so any photos I captured are not quality images. The long term plan is to snap some pictures with a high quality digital camera. Apologies in advance for the image quality.

Frk...playing in his own end? Photo courtesy of PG Marsh

In terms of his play in the offensive zone, I compare Frk to a shark. This guy has a keen sense of where to be in the offensive zone, and can turn a simple offensive zone rush into a dynamic opportunity. When he smells blood in the water, so to speak, he consistently finding in the right places for a scoring chance, and can make some tape to tape passes when he runs out of space himself. There was only one shot on goal on the evening that seriously threatened Trudeau in the Cape Breton net. Overall, he was a playmaker for his line on Saturday night, which should be good to hear for Red Wings' fans and management because it's already well known that he has a good shot.

Defensively speaking...Frk has a long way to go before he will be compared to two-way Red Wings like Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg. In most of the shifts I witnessed, Frk was the last Moosehead player to leave the offensive zone and he rarely placed himself in the thick of a defensive effort. That isn't surprising given that his primary function is to be a potent shooter on offense, but the above photo was one of the few times Frk drifted away from the blueline toward his own net.

To be fair to Frk, and many people will argue this, the best defense is a good offense. He did pick off a couple of passes or attempts to clear centre ice by the Eagles, which was impressive. The Moosehead attack threw their weight at Trudeau all game long, but couldn't solve him after the first period.

The Moose on the attack. Photo courtesy of PG Marsh.

Unfortunately, the game wasn't all about Frk's offensive rushes and attempted playmaking. Once again I found myself scratching my head over his choices when he attempted contact with opposing players. There were two non-related hits that were not penalty worthy, but were either from behind or the side and one while the player was on their knees attempting to get back up. His penalty was a blatant elbow to the face of an Eagles. The elbowing penalty (at 7:39 of the second period) didn't result in a power play goal for the Eagles, but it wasn't a particularly disciplined play. In a way, he made up for it when fresh out of the penalty box he helped to initiate a play in the offensive zone.

The Moosehead were able to squeeze a win out of Cape Breton in front of 8,580 fans after a reality check the previous night. Marty Frk had as good a game as any other Moosehead forward, and is slowly gaining momentum lost after a disappointing exhibition game and three mediocre regular season contests. It's no secret that Frk had surgery just before the preseason began on one of his legs. His relatively slow exits from the offensive zone, including a peculiar tendency to stride twice with the same leg before gaining speed, are likely the reason for his zero goals and two assists in four games so far. Full credit to the guy, he's definitely a playmaker on the ice and when he can play without concern of injury, he will be alongside Nathan MacKinnon in the Moosehead offense.

Bonus picture from the nosebleed section. Photo courtesy of PG Marsh.

That concludes the second of many forthcoming Frkwatch entries. I'd love to read some feedback so please feel free to comment here on the blog or follow me on Twitter at @wizofozblog. Thanks for reading and as a Canadian icon used to say, keep your stick on the ice.