Line-up change for Thursday

by Casey Richey on Oct 5, 2009 9:20 PM CDT in News Comment 6 comments

Hoping to jumpstart the defense, Mike Babcock has replaced Brett Lebda on the third defensive pairing with Derek Meech. A move welcomed by many, including me, could pay off for the Wings against the Blackhawks. Meech is slightly bigger than Lebda and is more of a defensive defenseman than Lebda. This should prove to be beneficial against the potent Blackhawks offense that has speed and good passing.

Chris Osgood is expected to start in net for Thursday's game and hopefully he'll be able to bounce back from the opening game loss. Darren Helm is listed as questionable for the game but it's unlikely that he will be rushed back to the line-up.

Link to mlive.com article.

Poll

Is pulling Lebda for Meech the right move?

Yes! About time!

160 votes

Nah, give Brett some slack.

34 votes

194 votes | Poll has closed

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Comments

not the only change i was hoping for. i think eaves should be in for maltby or abdelkater, especially maltby

by Fiend on Oct 5, 2009 11:39 PM CDT reply actions

i agree

but i think he will make his appearance by game 5. I think Babcock is a little hesitant to put the new guy into the lineup until he’s fully learned the system. That being said I think after playing Chicago and Washington, Eaves could make his debut against Buffalo

Winging It In Motown

by Casey Richey on Oct 6, 2009 7:16 AM CDT up reply actions

Yea thats a goood point, i think you may be right that eaves will play soon, and i hope you are. im also happy to hear were replacing lebda, making me more comfortable with our d. At the same time ive always felt the same way about meech as i did Lebda.
I really think the wings can have a great season if they play thier cards right though.

by Fiend on Oct 6, 2009 2:16 PM CDT up reply actions

Maybe Abdelkader, not Maltby. Maltby, Kronwall. and Leino were our best players in Sweden. As much as I think Maltby’s time is over, until he proves this is true, he deserves the spot he has.

As for Meech for Lebda, YES. Finally. Lebda needs to be traded. He’s too much of a defensive liability and the man plays defense.

by Apocalyptic0n3 on Oct 6, 2009 8:23 AM CDT up reply actions

Agreed

I would think, though, that if Abdelkader was coming out of the lineup, he would have been in Grand Rapids as soon as the plane hit the runway.

I would have thought that Babcock took advantage of Maltby’s non-goal performance in Game 2 and remove him from the lineup – albeit briefly – for Patrick Eaves. But, clearly he hasn’t. I’m wondering just how badly Patrick Eaves lost the battle for the 12th forward…

by Michael Petrella on Oct 6, 2009 10:07 PM CDT up reply actions