Morning Skate: Yes yes, without the oops
The Coyotes and the Red Wings will face-off for game 2 of the series tonight and the Wings will hope that there is a lot less "oops" on the penalty kill.
- Some of the Wings fans (me included) got their wish as Justin Abdelkader is in the line-up for tonight. Gator will replace Jason Williams who was very ineffective in game 1. Abdelkader brings the physical play as well as comparable scoring touch. To me, it was just a matter of time before Gator reappeared.
- Ilya Bryzgalov did look human after all. Granted, the two goals he let in were a bit odd (whiffing on a Holmstrom shot, screened by at least two on the second goal) but that also shows the Wings what they need to do to score. Bryzgalov was solid on the shots that he saw with no traffic or that he had time to adjust to. Detroit needs to
- I think it's safe to say that the PK won't be that bad again. They were due for a stinker and it just happened to be in the first game. Expect the PK to be better now that they've had a look at the Coyotes power play and how they move the puck.
- Detroit needs to find a way to deal with the forechecking of the Coyotes. The aggressive style that the Coyotes started to use from mid second period on was pressuring the Wings to move the puck before they were ready. I'd suggest more support from the forwards instead of waiting in the neutral zone for passes they need to have one or two go back and help make sure the puck gets out of the defensive zone to begin with.
- Wings also need to do better in the dot. The draws were dead even in the first game but the Wings need to do better on defensive zone draws. Greg Wyshynski pointed that out yesterday with the numbers:
The numbers reinforce that: Henrik Zetterberg was 2-for-8 on defensive zone faceoffs and Darren Helm was 4-for-10. Both saw time on the PK last night against the Coyotes.
- Oh, that Mikael Samuelsson guy won the game for the Canucks in overtime last night as he scored his second goal of the night. He then called Team Sweden and told th--well you know what he said.
- Bit of a sidenote and unrelated but today's the 3rd anniversary of the tragedy at Virginia Tech. As a current Hokie, this day has a lot of significance so if I'm not quite up to par on the hockey coverage you'll know why.
- The Wings PP wasn't all that spectacular in the last game either, going 1 for 6.With Williams off the blue line and in the press box on the man advantage, either Brad Stuart or maybe even Jonathan Ericsson will fill that spot. The power play needs to do a better job keeping the puck in the zone but more importantly setting up for shots closer to the net. Holmstrom in front of the net can only do so much and forcing the Coyotes to move more could open up the power play.
- A lot of people keep insisting that the Red Wings were tired in game 1. I'd say that only one guy was tired: Brian Rafalski. Rafalski played 29 minutes in the game 1 loss and was out for 7 minutes on the power play. I think the rest of the team just got too relaxed and tentative and tried to control mistakes a little too much rather than being tired.
- Five For Howling is your Coyotes source once again. Oh hey, look: it too has been whited out to "help" the hockey team. It also seems that the entire NHL fanbase has joined forces with FFH to spread Red Wings hate. Although I guess that's what happens when your team hasn't qualified for the playoffs in the post-lockout era huh?
23 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Great write up.
And my condolences to you and your fellow Hokies as you live in the shadow of that tragedy today.
appreciate it
it’s still tough even (only?) three years later.
by Casey Richey on Apr 16, 2010 11:25 AM CDT up reply actions
WOOHOO
AFROGATOR IS IN!!!!
I like Williams, but I think Afrogator is going to do a much better job at being a disturbance and providing some energy to the Wings.
4th line
Abby does not need to be the saviour. What he needs to do is create havoc and chaos for the 5-7 minutes that he plays. He needs to bring a physical presence to the lineup. Williams is an “in-betweener” – he’s not talented enough to play on one of the top scoring lines, and not physical enough to be an effective checker.
i'm exited to see the ab-dol-kator out there.
i was switching through the three games yesterday. man that was a nice setup to give samuelsson the winner. i dont know about anyone else but i miss the guy. in other news, sabres>bruins and habs>caps. surprisingly, ovie didnt do much of anything.
by the way, i think it’s a pretty healthy thing to watch some games outside of your team. it will help the small percentage of you put those conspiracy no/bad calls in perspective. because i saw plenty throughout, and i think it’s safe to say gary didnt call any officials to put in a favor. that is all :)
: |Ovie was still shot-less when I turned on a movie
by Casey Richey on Apr 16, 2010 11:24 AM CDT up reply actions
Watching playoff hockey is also healthy because it is the greatest thing since the invention of things
Love playoff hockey. I love my Wings, but if there is a playoff game on, I’m watching. The quality is so good and the intensity is palpable.
My two favorite teams are the Tigers and Brewers. Drunk tigers. That sounds about right.
Me in 140 characters
hells yes.
such a simple yet effective quote
by Casey Richey on Apr 16, 2010 12:37 PM CDT up reply actions
AbdelKader in = victory instantly
TULO = 2010 MVP!
Troy Tulowitzki: "When people think of the Rockies, I want them to think of a winning organization."
LETS GO WINGS!
Special Teams seem to be the key
Hey Guys,
Been reading the threads here for a while now, figured I’d join up. It definately seems like after watching the first game that Special Teams are going to be one of the deciding factors in this first round match up. That being said Phoenix did catch a couple of breaks on their PP, the first one going off of Stuart’s Foot and the Third where Helm was interfered with, that is playoff hockey though where one teams catches breaks and the other doesn’t. Having Abby in the lineup should help answer Doan a little in the hitting department.
New lines
It always seems that whenever the Wings go with the same lines for too long, they just get stale. The Z/Flip/Bert line to me is very stale. I’d like to see Flip back at center on his own line to help give the Wings 3 good offensive lines. The fourth line (with Williams in) was a hodgepodge that just doesn’t work. My new lines…
Datsyuk/Bertuzzi/Holmstrom
Zetterberg/Franzen/Cleary
Filppula/Miller/Abdelkader
Helm/Draper/Eaves
I don’t expect Abdelkader to get as much ice time as Flip would, but they could always double shift Z or Pav in there. Also if you want Gator on the fourth line, then throw eaves with Flip and Miller. I didn’t like the Draper/Miller/Williams line at all. I think Bert could use a change to in order to spark him. Same with Franzen.
It also seems that the entire NHL fanbase has joined forces with FFH to spread Red Wings hate.
It’s not hate, they just want to back a winner!
I Kiiiid! (I know the history thanks)
Best of luck tonight (Just not too much)
Support Your Local Coyotes Blog - Five For Howling
JaredFromLondon: ...Odin, he's cool.
haha understood
as my comment was joking as well. I just hope I can actually watch it (bars sometimes aren’t good for watching games…in Virginia)
by Casey Richey on Apr 16, 2010 4:44 PM CDT up reply actions
I hope so to.
Either way it should be a good one.
Support Your Local Coyotes Blog - Five For Howling
JaredFromLondon: ...Odin, he's cool.

by 














