GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Goalie Petr Mrazek has been able to stop just about everything so far except the hype.

The 20-year-old Mrazek, coming off a standout performance at the World Junior Championships, is in camp with the Grand Rapids Griffins under the microscope to see if he is the Detroit Red Wings' goalie of the future.

For now, it remains to be seen what happens to the 6-foot-1, 184-pound Mrazek in the next week. If he performs well at Friday’s scrimmage and in preseason games Saturday and Sunday, he could be between the pipes when the Griffins open the season Oct. 12 against Milwaukee at Van Andel.

On the other hand, he might find himself with the ECHL club in Toledo for more seasoning. But even if that is the case, be sure the Red Wings want to see what the young Czech prospect can do.

“He’s athletic and patient, those are his two strongest points,” said Chris Osgood, who serves as goalie development coach in the Detroit organization and is in Grand Rapids this week to watch the goalies. “His competitiveness and confidence are the keys to his success right now.”

The Red Wings’ fifth-round pick in 2010 (141st overall), Mrazek went 75-37-10 with a 2.87 goals-against average in three seasons with the OHL's Ottawa 67's. He had a 2.84 GAA and .917 save percentage last season.

He signed a three-year entry level contract with Detroit in October that takes effect this fall.

The highlight of his young career came in January when he represented the Czech Republic in the World Junior Championships. He was named the tournament’s top goalie even through the Czechs were eliminated in the quarterfinals by Russia. Most notable was Mrazek's 52-save performance in a 5-2 victory against the United States.

“The juniors were the best thing that could have happened to me,” he said. “It could have gone bad and it could have gone well. I was fortunate it went well, and it helped me out with confidence knowing I could play.”

Mrazek calls himself a confident player but doesn’t consider himself as flashy as some have described. He doesn’t see himself like another Czech goalie, Dominik Hašek.

“I didn’t like his style and the way he played but I like a lot the way he was focused on the game and wanted to win every game and every puck,” Mrazek said.

The Griffins need to improve in goal. Last year, the combination of Jordan Pearce (3.68 GAA and .871 save percentage) and Thomas McCollum (3.49, .857) struggled. It wasn’t until the Red Wings sent Ty Conklin down that the goaltending improved. They went 8-4 with Conklin (2.40, .915) before he returned to the Red Wings late in the season.

"Everything will be determined by how I play here and I'll just let that take care of itself," Mrazek said. "If coach here likes how I'm playing, how I work out and everything, then I wish I will stay here and just work to get to the NHL someday."



Griffins' coach Jeff Blashill is playing wait and see with his goalies. He called the race wide open and said he wouldn't oppose rotating two goalies.

No matter where he starts the season, Mrazek will play in Grand Rapids at some point this season.

“We have to watch him,” Osgood said. “We’ve really only watched him in junior games so we’ll see what he does. There will be a lot of good players in this league because of the lockout, so he should get a chance to see some good competition.”

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