Metro Detroit

Red Wings welcome high school journalism students

By Jennie Miller
C & G Staff Writer

» Click on image to view full size « Photos by Steve Galli/DRW Jake Lourim, a senior at Troy High School, participates in High School Journalist Day at Joe Louis Arena. Photos by Steve Galli/DRW Jake Lourim, a senior at Troy High School, participates in High School Journalist Day at Joe Louis Arena. Photos by Steve Galli/DRW Max Ellsbery, a senior at Southfield High School, takes notes during a mock press conference with Detroit Red Wings players and management. Photos by Steve Galli/DRW Max Ellsbery, a senior at Southfield High School, takes notes during a mock press conference with Detroit Red Wings players and management.

DETROIT — Detroit Red Wings players Todd Bertuzzi, Dan Cleary and Valtteri Filppula were put through the wringer during a press conference at Joe Louis Arena Feb. 16, but it was a very different crowd of journalists asking the tough questions.

Sixty high school students were armed with notepads, recording devices and cameras, putting the players, General Manager Ken Holland and head coach Mike Babcock in the hot seat. The event was part of High School Journalist Day, held annually by the Detroit Red Wings to give students the chance to step into the shoes of a sports journalist.

“This is a chance to really feel what the industry is like,” said David Corbat, 17, a senior at Fraser High School who works for the school’s video news outlet, “The Flash,” and hopes to study broadcasting at Grand Valley State University next year.

“It’s not as easy as it seems,” said Paige Kulpa, 16, a junior at Roseville High School who writes for the Panther Prowl.

Upon their arrival at The Joe, the students had the opportunity to tour the press box and sit down with a panel of reporters who regularly cover the Red Wings, including Kevin Allen of USA Today, Michael Caples of Michigan Hockey, Shannon Hogan of FOX Sports Detroit and Ken Kal of 97.1 FM. They then got to sit at center ice and watch the Red Wings practice.

Later in the day, the students took part in mock press conferences with selected members of the team and management. And they didn’t hold back with their questions.

From the home-game winning streak to challenges on the road, the Red Wings fielded inquiries into their camaraderie, injuries, the upcoming trade deadline, off-season activities and the recently-announced 2013 Winter Classic.

Of the historic 21-home game winning streak accomplished Feb. 14 and furthered in subsequent games, Holland said the team has to keep moving forward.

“It’s nice, but … you can’t sit back and admire whatever work you think you’ve done,” he said. “It’s a new challenge every day.”

The students’ probing forced Holland to think critically of the team. He said that he’s not eager to make any serious changes, despite what some might see as negative characteristics of the makeup of the bench.

“If you look at our team, if you’re going to be critical of our team, you’re going to say, we’re not big enough. We’re not hard enough. We’re maybe a little bit too old,” Holland said. “And you’re probably right in some of those areas. But I think those things are also the reasons why we win. … We believe that sticking with one philosophy is really the reason why we’re going to win, but it’s also the reason why we might lose in the first round of the playoffs, too. But, I believe, over time, one philosophy is going to allow you to have more success than you would if you start jumping around and changing philosophies.

“We’ve got a pretty good program going on and … I’m slow to change because there’s further to fall than there is to go up. I’m proud of everything our organization has been able to accomplish. I know we’ve had some major disappointments, but we’ve also been able to win some championships. … We’ve given our fans lots of hope. We’ve broken their hearts lots of times. But we’ve also given them four (championship) parades.”

For the students — many of whom are sports lovers and players in addition to having an interest in journalism — the opportunity to spend the day at The Joe was one they couldn’t pass up.

“I’m a student-athlete, and my teacher knows how into sports I am,” said Max Ellsbury, 17, a senior at Southfield High School, a sports writer for the Southfield Jay and a member of the wrestling, football and track teams. He will attend Western Michigan University next year. “I felt like journalism would open a new world for me, just as sports would.”

“I’m a big sports guy — I have a great interest in sports,” echoed Jake Lourim, 16, a junior at Troy High School and sports editor of the student newspaper, The Independent. This is Lourim’s second year attending High School Journalist Day.

“I like to learn the tools of the trade and (get) advice for how to conduct yourself in this profession,” he said. “I also enjoy the insight into the team from coach Mike Babcock and General Manager Ken Holland because they’ve been so successful over the years.”

Having been before the glare of the media for years as a player, Bertuzzi had some advice for the students as they begin their pursuit of a career in journalism.

“For me, it’s about respect,” Bertuzzi said. “I think not having someone go too deep into (a story), not trying to force something out of someone’s mouth. If someone says this is the answer, then just take it as the answer. I think when you get them needling and poking at you to try to get an answer … it’s something that gets annoying to athletes, and if that continues, then they’re going to end up getting shut down, and you’re going to lose the opportunities to speak to that individual.”

For Corbat, his experience at the Red Wings event further solidified his desire to pursue journalism.

“Although it is a lot of work, it seems like something I’d be interested in doing,” Corbat said. “I love the stress of a deadline, the exhilaration of having to finish something now. It’s kind of a challenge, and I like that.”

The hard work the job entails was not lost on the students.

“You need to study a lot and get a lot of experience before you can become successful in the field,” Kulpa said. “It seems exciting, and you get a lot of once-in-a-lifetime opportunities and the chance to change someone’s life.”

But even if journalism doesn’t end up being these students’ chosen career, Holland and Babcock left them with some parting words.

“Find something you love to do,” Babcock said. “Keep working at finding what you love. … There’s no rush.”

“I wake up every day and I get to do something that I love to do, so it’s not work,” Holland said.
 

You can reach C & G Staff Writer Jennie Miller at jmiller@candgnews.com or at (586)279-1108.