Red Wings Preseason Review

by J.J. from Kansas on Oct 4, 2010 3:05 PM CDT

The Wings 8-game slate of preseason meetings is over and now the team rests up in anticipation of meeting the Anaheim Ducks for their season and home opener Friday Night in the Joe Louis Arena. The 5-2 loss to the Penguins set the preseason record at 3 wins and 5 losses, a couple numbers that should mean as much to Red Wings fans as if I were to say 15 podgets and 74 stankamarands (BTW, if I've just said something horribly offensive in a language with which you're famiilar, I'm very sorry). Mike Babcock has a plan for this Red Wings team and everybody's on board with it. The Red Wings played exactly one game the way the Red Wings can play games to make sure they knew they still could, the rest were try-outs and depth battles.

So, what have we learned through listening to radio broadcasts and searching for whatever glimpses we could of games? Well, we learned that Luke Schenn doesn't like being hip-checked and Brooks Orpik can't stand being beaten (seriously, five bucks says he's the kind of jerk who throws your Super Nintendo controller across the room and screams about how the game cheats if he doesn't win). We learned that both Marty Turco and Mike Modano look weird wearing red after so long in green. We learned that it takes Jiri Hudler approximately five games to remember he's got fifteen fewer feet on the boards to work his magic and we learned that Todd Bertuzzi will drop the gloves to stand up for a teammate now.

Aside from those things, there are a few other items of interest to take out of camp. Take the plunge for thoughts on Ritola, depth defensemen, goaltending, line chemistry, and more:

First up, the Ritola talk: As of posting this, Ritola has been placed on waivers, so he can be claimed by any other team who has an NHL roster spot for his services. Pat Verbeek, the pro scout for the Lightning who Steve Yzerman lured away from the Wings came down to see Ritola play, but there's no word yet. Ritola's got 24 hours to be claimed, so we'll know by this time tomorrow if I'm right, but I'm still waffling back and forth as to whether he'll be claimed, currently settling on "probably". What I do know is that the strong play of Jan Mursak in the preseason (who's also on waivers, but is VERY unlikely to be claimed) makes me worry a lot less about losing Ritola. Ritola is closer to NHL ready, but he's not there yet and I'm not sure a trial-by-fire in the Southeast Division is what's going to make him NHL-ready.
Look, as a person, I really like Jonathan Ericsson. For what he represents, I REALLY like Jonathan Ericsson. The thought of the last guy drafted in his class becoming an awesome NHL defenseman plays the same chord on my heartstrings as 'The Karate Kid' did. I'm rooting for him because I think he's nice and I think he's worked very hard. Unfortunately, I'm a Wings fan first and a Jonathan Ericsson fan ....well... somewhere way down the line. Big Rig might help the club in the long run, but I don't want him killing it in the short run to make that happen. Kindl played better in preseason. He's still rough around the edges and prone to make mistakes too, but I have more faith in both his offensive and defensive skillset and I want what's best for my team. Ericsson had a chance to crane-kick the doubters in the face this preseason and instead got his leg swept by suck.
I'm not looking at the stats; I don't care. From what I saw, both Jimmy Howard and Chris Osgood had good preseasons. Both looked technically sound and handled rebounds, puck tracking, and movement across the crease very well. I'm confident in what we're going to get out of our netminders this season.
Filed under the "no shit, Sherlock" category, but I like our top three lines very much. The big question was whether Hudler, Modano, and Cleary could find chemistry together. I think they very much can and will do so. They looked better as the preseason rolled on, imagine how good they'll look when they're actually firing on all cylinders.
If you think Nick Lidstrom is too old to continue to be one of the league's best defensemen (looking at you, Mike Brophy), then sound off now. I'll happily wager a crap sandwich featuring my own words against gleefully cramming your own opinions down your throat when he proves you wrong. Nick Lidstrom is smarter than you are, is better at hockey than you are, and is closer to getting brochures from the AARP than you are. Tell that to the best defenseman on your team.
I saw a lot of good things out of this training camp that helps assuage a lot of the worry about the Red Wings' future. Detroit doesn't have any very-high-percentage future stars in their farm system, but they're also a lot less likely to need those kind of players in the next couple seasons. What they do have is a crop of kids who can turn into those late-blooming game breakers we've come to appreciate. Tomas Tatar, Corey Emmerton, and Jan Mursak showed a lot of skill. If they do keep working to make the big club, they'll do it as emotionally mature guys who already know and follow the team's philosophy. Detroit doesn't build teams around one guy's style, they build guys around one team's style.

Friday can't come soon enough.

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Comments

Karate Kid reference?

Well done.

I agree 100% on Ericsson. I’m sure he’s a nice guy who volunteers at homeless puppy shelters, but as it stands right now he is more of a liability to the Red Wings than an asset. Kindl provides far more of an upside, and his camp was just plain better. Plus, if Kindl doesn’t play well, we can fall back on the “he’s a rookie” excuse, whereas Ericsson spent an entire year last year learning how to play in the NHL, which clearly didn’t help.

The kid I was most impressed with in my limited viewing of the preseason was Tatar. I thought he showed some good hockey sense, he’s got a ton of speed, and he seems to have good hands. I think with a year or two of seasoning in Grand Rapids under Curt Fraser, he’s going to turn into a decent NHL-er. I am also looking forward to the progression of Brendan Smith. The kid clearly has the physical talent and skill to succeed at the NHL; the question will be whether he can learn what it takes to be a top-flight defenseman. Personally, I see him saying the right things, and from all I’ve heard he’s certainly not lacking in the confidence department. By the time he’s ready, I’d expect Lidstrom to retire, so we’ll be needing some new blood on the back end.

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by Amerinadian on Oct 4, 2010 3:13 PM CDT reply actions

Great post

This preseason was just a warmup. Bring on regular season!

by DetroitSports on Oct 4, 2010 5:30 PM CDT reply actions

The Big Rig connundrum

The ongoing discussion of Ericsson is an interesting one, though perhaps requires a bit more in depth reflection. It is true has been given every opportunity to flourish in the Detroit system, and at times he has struggled. I question, however whether his struggles have been greater than that of former Wings Lebda and Lilja. The Twin Towers of Turnover were defensive liabilities in their own end throughout their respective tenures in Detroit (while Ericsson’s struggles could be chalked up to last year being his rookie campaign). Lilja seemed to be granted great deference because he did excel at blocking shots on the PK. Still, these two were hardly defensive stalwarts. I don’t see Ericsson as a downgrade, particularly when age and salary are factored in (both of which must be considered in the cap age). He has the size, skill, and mentoring to become what management wants him to be. If he can iron out his confidence issues, that is (an admittedly BIG if).

This is his season to prove that either he belongs or he will be let out to pasture. Kindl’s impressive showing in the pre-season should shorten the leash on Ericsson, and the competition for the job on the 3rd pairing could also push Ericsson to play the best hockey of his career (something that Meech was unable to do in previous years). Whoever ultimately wins the job will further benefit from skating with Salei (again, an upgrade in my estimation over either Lilja or Lebda).

Ultimately, Detroit sports an abundance of riches in the back end. Ericsson, if he doesn’t pan out, will fetch a decent return on the market (see Kyle Quincey), while Kindl and Brendan Smith appear to both have very bright futures. I’m looking forward to the Wings D to help Howard improve on 2009/2010’s stellar rookie campaign.

by LeftWingLocked on Oct 4, 2010 5:42 PM CDT reply actions

I agree partially

I don’t think the Wings should trade Ericsson just yet, but I think Kindl has earned the right to be the #6 defenseman on the depth chart at season’s start. Ericsson could have definitely used more structure on the back end last season and I think that did hurt his development, but just like Howard is too old for a sophomore slump, Ericsson is too old for his continued mistakes to just be cast aside.

Unfortunately, the Wings got nothing for Quincey, who they lost on waivers. You’re right that we can probably get some return for Ericsson though.

by J.J. from Kansas on Oct 4, 2010 6:05 PM CDT up reply actions

Well put, but three quick points...

1. Again, how long were Lilja and Lebda’s mistakes cast aside? I guess I’d just assume Ericsson receive some latitude here.
2. A case certainly can be made for Kindl. However, my concern is that it becomes a similar situation to Ericsson’s playoff run two seasons ago. He was brought in to fill in and (realistically) had nothing to lose (in terms of job security). It was when he actually had a roster spot that he started gripping his stick too tightly. Have we seen enough of Kindl to know that if/when he’s penciled in on the 3rd pairing he won’t suffer similarly?
3. I always forget that Quincey was lost to waivers. In my defense, however, the Kings did get a nice return on Detroit’s investment with him.

by LeftWingLocked on Oct 4, 2010 6:26 PM CDT up reply actions

Excellent point about Kindl

It’s definitely a possibility that he could take the opportunity I suggest Babcock give him and have the same bunch of setbacks Ericsson had. If we still have Ericsson on the roster, I think that gives the Wings a bit of security. At this point, I still remember that Brendan Smith has more experience playing as a defenseman than Ericsson does; but, I think that Kindl has earned the spot over the Big Rig.

by J.J. from Kansas on Oct 4, 2010 6:47 PM CDT up reply actions

As much as Leb-Duh drove me crazy, and Lilja was certainly no Norris winner, they both were at least serviceable. Both knew how to make the safe play, they just didn’t always know when. And when a mistake was made, it was usual a doozy.

Ericsson, on the other hand, has been mostly incapable of making that safe play. When pressured, he often tries to force a pass to the forwards or loses concentration while stick-handling, when he should just eat it, chip it off the boards, or use his partner. Without the puck, he picks poor times to pinch, often loses the 2nd forward, and is getting beat one-on-one with alarming frequency.

The way I see it, his only remaining upside is his slapshot and his ability to move the puck in the attacking zone. His size might be an asset still, but he’s not using that much either.

I’d be willing to let some of this slide as growing pains if he was still, you know, growing. But he doesn’t appear to be improving at this point, even a little, and that’s a problem. Its the mental game that’s killing.

by Nate A on Oct 4, 2010 7:51 PM CDT up reply actions

Can someone explain this?

Ericsson, if he doesn’t pan out, will fetch a decent return on the market (see Kyle Quincey). I’m confused why someone would get a decent return (Value) on the market, when a team lets a player go on waivers and is claimed off waivers by another team. The team that let the player go isn’t compensated. For example Detroit wasn’t compensated for Quincey, that mean there was no return on the market for them.

So Simply how can a player fetch a decent return on the market ?

by Dwings on Oct 5, 2010 1:23 AM CDT up reply actions

The Quincey thing

was just a simple error. I don’t think the Wings would put Ericsson on waivers. He’s going to make the team and he can be a serviceable defenseman, so if the Wings get rid of him, it will be via trade.

by J.J. from Kansas on Oct 5, 2010 7:02 AM CDT up reply actions

Clarification

My point was that Holland has demonstrated a willingness to avoid the situation they ran into with Quincey (i.e. uncompensated loss via waivers) by dealing players. The assumption that Ericsson would be Ville Leino’s trade last season is a prime example. When a player doesn’t appear to meet expectations or potential Holland seems willing to deal. Hence the potential for Detroit to get a return on their investment.Ericsson clearly has a spot on the roster this season and as such isn’t a risk to lose via waivers.

by LeftWingLocked on Oct 5, 2010 7:12 AM CDT up reply actions

Thanks for the Clarification

Thank you for explaining your point on Holland can wheel and deal players before they go on the wavier wire.

by Dwings on Oct 5, 2010 11:08 AM CDT up reply actions

The problem with Ericsson compared to Lilja is that Ericsson showed us huge promise back in 2008. We all touted him as the next big thing. As far as Lilja went, we all knew what we were going to get out of him. Good PK, very little offense, and some turnovers. No one expected anything more. Ericsson needs confidence, he looks very timid at times. It’s too bad he couldn’t have played more with Chelios a few years back.

by dewman8810 on Oct 5, 2010 4:00 AM CDT reply actions