In Friday’s penultimate preseason game, a home dress rehearsal for a mostly NHL squad, Red Wings forward Austin Watson made his mark.
Midway through the first period, star defenseman Moritz Seider got into a scuffle with Senators forward Jan Jenik. Watson intervened, dropping the gloves and dragging Jenik, Ottawa forward Zach MacEwen and a linesman along the ice while throwing punches. It was a message not to mess with Detroit’s stars, even if it cost Watson an ejection, part of 27 minutes in penalties that left the Red Wings shorthanded for seven.
Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports
This skirmish, even with the penalties, is what Watson was signed on a professional tryout agreement to do. He’s a heavyweight, a player who engages in the rough stuff so his teammates don’t have to. And Detroit certainly appreciated his toughness.
“I like that. I think it energizes our guys,” Red Wings coach Derek Lalonde said after the game. “Obviously, Mo’s a very important player for us. We don’t want him to get in any of those type of situations. And actually, I liked it a lot.”
So too did general manager Steve Yzerman, it seems, who signed Watson to a one-year contract Monday. It’s a two-way deal, not the one-way that Watson said he wanted. But the signing reflects Detroit’s desire to add grit to the lineup, as well as Watson’s ability to bring it.
“For me, being able to bring that element of some physicality, being hard to play against, sticking up for guys when that’s necessary,” Watson said Wednesday of what drew him to Detroit. “I thought that could be a good fit for both sides.”
Watson has been in this position before, having signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning after a successful PTO last season. This process primed Watson for success yet again in turning a tryout into a contract.
“This year, having only played 30 some games (last season), I kind of had a little bit of an expectation that this might be the case,” Watson said Wednesday. “And having gone through it before, I think, has made it a little bit easier.”
But Watson also made life easier on himself by proving that he isn’t a one-dimensional enforcer. He fights, sure, but he also brings other skills to the table. And when liking Watson’s fight and signing him to a contract are two different things, it takes more than hard fists to get an NHL contract in today’s NHL. Throughout his PTO, Watson proved his ability to impact games in different ways.
If Detroit wanted to see skill, Watson showed it when he made a beautiful backdoor pass to linemate Tyler Motte in the Red Wings’ first preseason game. If Detroit wanted Watson’s physicality to transcend dropped gloves, he finished 12 hits in his preseason game in Pittsburgh, more than double the next nearest teammate. And if Detroit wanted to see that Watson could hold his own in games that didn’t get testy, Saturday’s final preseason tilt in Toronto saw Watson block a couple of shots and kill penalties against an NHL-heavy Toronto lineup.
Watson showed everything he can do for Detroit in all facets of the game, earning him his big contract. This was the plan all along for Watson, and he used his niche role to turn a low-percentage tryout into an NHL roster spot.
It’s a role Watson carved out just to play in the NHL. He jokes that he got tired of riding in buses, that he likes playing in the NHL, so he figured out a way to stick around. As a former first round pick, Watson came into the league with plenty of skill, but that can only go so far.
“Can you can you get good at the intangible things?” Watson explained of his career decisions. “Can you get good at forechecking? Can you get good at playing in your own end? Can you get good at penalty killing? A lot of things like that. And sometimes guys don’t want to do that.”
Watson did all that, and it’s why he has a job with the Red Wings.
In today’s NHL, the enforcer role requires a player to bring more competency. The days of hired gun enforcers are long gone, since before Watson himself was in major junior.
Even if the fight was a big exclamation point for Watson, there was just as much value from the other film he put together. Way back on the second day of training camp, Sept. 20, Lalonde said of adding a physical element, “When done the right way, I think it’s extremely valuable. Obviously we have some skill, we would like that skill to be comfortable the way they play, and that can look different at times. So, of course, we would love that element if it’s the right fit.” Watson proved he fits the right way with his hitting, penalty killing and ability to create offense.
Even in that game he got ejected for his fight, Watson showed these traits, with Lalonde praising, “It’s amazing, just one guy with that mentality helps the group out a ton. Up to that point, Austin was good in his game. (He) kills penalties, he had a beautiful Grade-A chance on the back door, five-on-five. He’s done some good things with his play also.”
Watson did a lot of good things on his professional tryout, and now he has earned a contract. It’s not so often that players earn NHL deals from PTOs, so it’s a testament to both Detroit’s need for physicality and Watson’s ability to bring it that he earned a contract.
