Red Wings fall to Blue Jackets in NHL Prospect Tournament finale, 7-3

TRAVERSE CITY -- In an extremely physical game that included several fights, huge hits and a very scary moment, the Detroit Red Wings lost their 2021 NHL Prospect Tournament finale to the Columbus Blue Jackets, 7-3, Sunday night at Centre Ice Arena.
The Blue Jackets jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period and got a hat trick from Yegor Chinakhov, who finished the tournament with a record six goals, while the Red Wings earned goals from 2015 fifth-round forward Chase Pearson, 2021 sixth-round center Pasquale Zito and undrafted defenseman Mason Ward.
With the win, Columbus improved to 3-0 in the Prospect Tournament, while Detroit fell to 1-2 with the loss.

But the game result became the secondary focus near the end of the first period when Red Wings defenseman Jared McIsaac was hit from behind into the boards by Blue Jackets forward James Malatesta, which caused McIsaac to lose consciousness.

After being taken off the ice on stretcher, McIsaac regained consciousness and had feelings in all his extremities. He was taken to a local hospital as a precaution.
"Obviously it's not a play that you want to see," Zito said about the hit on McIsaac after the game. "It's rough seeing your teammate go down that. But I'm hearing he's doing ok, so I'm glad to hear that."

Red Wings prospects coach Ben Simon gave a positive update on McIsaac's condition after the game.
"He's thankfully doing well," Simon said, noting that McIsaac was scheduled to be released from the hospital Sunday night. "He's moving his arms and legs. He's coherent, he's talking, so it's not as bad as it initially looked. Obviously it's a scary situation, but he was talking with his trainers, so it's encouraging that it wasn't as bad as it seemed."
McIsaac suffered season-ending shoulder injuries in each of the last two seasons, and Simon said he hopes Sunday's hit isn't another setback for the 21-year-old blueliner.
"Jared has worked his tail off to rehab from two significant shoulder injuries," Simon said. "You just feel terrible when things like this happen. But knowing Jared, I think he's mentally strong. He's got a sense about him that he's not going to let anything stop him, so it's day by day right now. Just (have to) make sure he's healthy."

Simon said he was proud of the way his team responded after the hit on McIsaac.
"It's difficult because you want to try to keep your guys focused, and you're concerned for Jared's health. But you have to continue on. You can't get distracted. As a pro athlete, there are a lot of distractions, but you have to stay focused."
The Red Wings prospects were already shorthanded in the tournament finale because of injuries, with forwards Lucas Raymond and Jonatan Berggren out of the lineup for Sunday's game, but Simon said he was pleased with his team's compete level on Sunday and their improvement throughout the tournament.
"We had some mental mistakes, but we had one practice, then we played three games in four nights, so there's only so much that you can throw at them system-wise for them to digest," Simon said. "But I do think over the course of three games, there was improvement. What I took away from the group is it's an extremely hard-working group, competitive group. I think a lot of players did a really good job competing."
The Red Wings now turn their attention to main training camp, which runs Thursday, Sept. 23 through Tuesday, Sept. 28 in Traverse City.
Red Wings players, prospects and tryouts will be divided into teams that will practice and scrimmage throughout camp, including the annual Red and White Game on Sunday, Sept. 26, followed by practices next Monday and Tuesday, before breaking camp to begin the preseason schedule on Wednesday, Sept. 29 against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Training Camp coverage will be live streamed and documented on DetroitRedWings.com and across the Red Wings' social media platforms.