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112 days removed from the heartbreaking Game 7 in Detroit, the Red Wings are ready to turn the page on a new NHL season today. There's a lot to be said for the transition between a short offseason and the start of the most grueling season in major sports so it will be interesting to see how both teams come out to start the game. I noticed last night that several of the "top dogs" of the NHL came out flat--hopefully this won't plague the start of the Detroit season.

Here are five keys that I'm looking for in the first game of the season:

• Is Pavel Datsyuk back to 100%? I noticed in the preseason that he seems to have his speed back to normal and after watching NHL Network's replay of Game 7 yesterday, it is clear as night and day the difference between a healthy Pavel Datsyuk and an injured one. If he stays healthy, Pavel could have another MVP caliber year.
  
• Will Valtteri Filppula fill the void of Jiri Hudler? Hudler was known primarily as a set-up man and his puck distribution will be missed. But I noticed in the preseason games that Valtteri Filppula was skating very confidently with the puck and making some great passes...maybe there won't be a drop-off to worry about after all.
• Is Chris Osgood ready? Chris Osgood played very hit or miss in the preseason (often miss) but hopefully that was just a sense of preseason complacency. Osgood had quite a few goals slip past him that he should have stopped but there's no doubt in my mind he will play differently in the season opener and the regular season.
  
• Will the defense be back to normal? Last year's defense was very spotty at times and that could have come from the high offensive production leading to a relaxed mindset. With the undeniable talent of Hossa, Hudler, and Samuelsson all gone, how will the defense react when the pressure is more in their end? I liked what I saw out of Kronwall, Stuart, Lidstrom and Rafalski in the preseason but Ericsson and Lebda need to come together as a solid third pairing.
  
• What effect will Bertuzzi, Williams, Eaves have? All three showed flashes of their skills during the preseason but the question is how will they produce against another team's top lines, instead of 18-20 year olds. Each player has his own style of play that can help this team and I'm looking forward to watching them all as they settle into the final line-up.

The Wings drop the puck at 3 p.m. ET against the St. Louis Blues in Stockholm, Sweden and of course Winging It In Motown will have your live game thread and recap for the game.

More photos » by Marcio Jose Sanchez - AP

Hey, if I'm putting a Sharks picture on here, I'm gonna choose which one I like the best...I like this one :)(AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

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A lot of the writers for the hockey side of SBNation got together--electronically at least--and ranked the top 10 in the NHL and 1-15 in each Conference. Keep in mind these are the preseason rankings on who we think are the best teams right now. Here's what came out of the Top 10 poll as well as the Western Conference poll:

Western Conference rankings after the jump...

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More photos » by Nam Y Huh - AP

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Continuing with the season preview theme, here are three players that have a lot on the line with their performance. Note I don't mean they are all necessarily at risk for being off the team, just a lot to prove.

1.       Brett Lebda- With Jonathan Ericsson making the jump from Grand Rapids to Detroit and Jakub Kindl making similar progress, Lebda will need to prove he is worth his salary. The problem for him is that even if he can show some improvement, he might be traded away to free up some roster space for a cheaper replacement in Kindl. Lebda has the potential but doesn't always live up to it, reason for me to believe he will be gone sooner rather than later-assuming those waiting in line for the 6th spot continue to develop.

2.       Tomas Holmstrom- Although a fan favorite in Motown-and only in Motown probably-Homer's production has declined and his health has been problematic to say the least. I'm not saying his health issues are unfounded and minute because I know I could take one game of the abuse that he takes, let alone an entire season. But at a certain point, lack of production will cost you a roster spot. Add to the increasing speculation that Holmstrom might be dealt at the deadline, he has a lot to prove about his health and skills. Will the Red Wings be able to find someone that can do what Holmstrom does in front of the net? No, not even close. But they could find another player to fill the $2.25 million void.

3.       Darren Helm-  "The Kid" will be under pressure to follow up on his exceptional playoff performance. Luckily for him, and Wings fans, his skill is high and I don't see it dropping off all that much. With his contract up at the end of the season, Helm could showcase his talents for potential offseason suitors or give himself leverage for a hefty raise in Detroit. Helm has big expectations on his shoulders but could fit nicely into the scoring plans, despite that pressure. Contract years can make or break a young career but hopefully he'll handle it like he handled that epic lone man penalty kill. He has the least to lose but a lot on the line in terms of contract gains.

Continuing the Top 10 moments of the 2008-2009 regular season and playoff run countdown, we'll finish this off. Hopefully this will get you as pumped for the upcoming season as it got me. Once again, check after The Jump for a few words on each one. 

5. Johan Franzen's inside-out goal vs. Canadiens

4. Darren Helm's breakaway goal vs. Ducks

3. Johan Franzen's goal against the Blues

2. The Winter Classic

1. Darren Helm's One Man Penalty Kill

I hope you enjoyed this and I'm sure I left some plays out but these were the 10 that stuck out to me. Did I "forget" the Stanley Cup? No, not at all but I thought it would be better to remember everything that got the Red Wings to that point. 

Let's hear what you have to say about the Top 10 !

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Thought it would be a cool idea to do a Top 10 moments from last year. I'll start at 10 and work my way towards moment number 1 from last year's season and playoff run. Where available, I'll provide YouTube clips to refresh some memories (mine included) and offer a quick thought following The Jump. 

Note: feel free to comment on 6-10 but keep in mind as far as suggestions that there are still 5 to come.

10. Ville Leino scores in first NHL game

9. Kris Draper and Kirk Maltby Milestones

The short: Draper reaches 1000 games in a Red Wings uniform, Maltby plays 1000th game in NHL

8. Marian Hossa's goal against Atlanta

7. Chris Osgood's "mastodonic" save on Brad Richards

6. Brad Stuart's check on RJ Umberger

Check after the jump for why I picked each one. If you are satisfied with just the videos, check back tomorrow for 1-5.

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Andreas Lilja's post-concussion problems have been giving headaches to more people than just himself. Following the brutal beating at the hands of Nashville's Shea Weber in a demoralizing 8-0 loss in February, Lilja has yet to return to the ice for a game and has had constant ups and downs with recovery. As one of the biggest physical players on the team, Lilja was crucial to defense by way of shot blocking and clearing the crease of any blue-paint planted forward. If and when he returns to the line-up, the Wings would have a very solid 7 man rotation on defense.

But that's a big "when" and an even bigger "if" in the post-Eric Lindros NHL. Concussions aren't taken lightly, nor should they be, so Lilja's season and potentially his career are in jeopardy if the headaches and other symptoms associated with the injury don't stop any time soon. Adding to the complexity of the situation is that Lilja is in the final year of his contract, making $1.25 million and several young replacements waiting in the Wings.

There are several routes the Wings can take but they are all contingent upon whether or not Lilja is able to make a full recovery by the start of the season. We'll examine both routes and make a few assumptions in the process, because after all don't we all like to pretend we can be Ken Holland sometimes?

If Lilja is healthy:

• Returns to the starting six defenders, no doubt in my mind
• Likely would be paired with fellow Swede Jonathan Ericsson. That's a very physical third line pairing, averaging 6'4", 210 pounds.
• Brett Lebda would be the odd man out. To me, Ericsson has shown more in his very short time with the Wings than Lebda has in about 300 games.
• Detroit calls up a cheaper replacement for Lebda

If Lilja is unhealthy:

• If the problems continue, Andreas could wind up on the long term injured reserve list. If he's on the long-term IR, he's salary doesn't count against the cap until he returns.
• If the problems force him to retire, he could be placed on the long term IR and his contract would still not count against the cap; allowing the Red Wings to call up a replacement or sign for one.
• Lebda and Ericsson would likely stay as the 3rd line defensive pairing while a Grand Rapids guy like Jakub Kindl would make the jump to be the 7th man, seeing occasional or frequent play depending on injuries or lack of production from other players.
• Detroit could sign another a defenseman if Lilja's salary didn't count against the cap, as mentioned above.

So that's the long and the short of it. Detroit has several options to consider in order to deal with the situation. I would not fault him for retiring (even if temporary) due to complications from the injury. I personally would like to see him back in uniform at the start of the season because he is an invaluable asset on the penalty kill and the defending the stars side.

Let's hear what you have to say on it.

UPDATE: Ansar Khan of MLive.com had this article up today and this quote comes from it:

Unless Lilja makes a quick recovery, he will start the season on long-term injured reserve, taking his $1.25 million salary off the cap. The Wings currently are slightly over the cap. They must be compliant by the start of the regular season.

Out of curiosity, I would like to see how many people would be interested in a weekly "podcast" from Winging It In Motown.

It would likely be every weekend and cover the games of the week before as well as previews to the next week's games.

Please leave comments if you feel necessary.

by Carlos Osorio - AP

5 months ago: Detroit Red Wings goalie Chris Osgood blocks the goal against the Pittsburgh Penguins in he first period of Game 1 of the NHL Stanley Cup finals hockey series in Detroit, Saturday, May 30, 2009. Osgood stopped 31 of 32 shots to beat the Penguins 3-1(AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

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Sorry for the lack of posting. I moved back to Ann Arbor on Wednesday morning and have been without internet, which makes updating WIM kind of challenging. I don't have time to blog much about the articles that have come out since some of the players started skating earlier this week in Detroit.

I did want to point you all to the blogger roundtable questions since my last update:

• The Triple Deke asked us if we think the team will run out of gas this year after three lengthy seasons
• On Day #4 of the roundtable, Bingo Bango rounded up opinion on which player is going to have the most influential season
• Snipe Snipe, Dangle Dangle hosted today's commentary about the goaltender situation with Chris Osgood and Jimmy Howard this year

Hopefully by next Tuesday or so, I'll have functioning internet and ready to go full steam with Red Wings coverage. Until then, I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday weekend!