Game 2 Morning Skate – Red Wings at Lightning

3:00p ET, Amalie Arena

Tampa, FL

TV: NBC

Radio: 97.1 The Ticket

Lightning Blog: Raw Charge

Almost exactly a year ago, 363 days to be exact, we were sitting in a very similar position. The Red Wings stole Game 1 on the road and were up 1-0 in a series in which they were the unquestionable underdog. Detroit headed into a 3p ET afternoon Game 2 with a chance to take a commanding series lead back home to Hockeytown.

So what about last year? A 4-1 butt kicking from Boston that was highlighted with Jimmy Howard and Brendan Smith gifting the Bruins a 1-0 lead.

The good news, however, is that those two cannot do the same today. Smith will be in the Cleary Cabana and Howard will be charting face-offs. Today will be a very different day with a different outcome hopefully. Getting outshot 46-14 can’t happen again. The Red Wings stole Game 1. They’re not going to be able to replicate that again against a team as good as the Lightning. We all love Petr Mrazek, but I don’t think he can win this series all by himself. Someone other than Pavel Datsyuk is going to have to step up and have a game to remember. It’d be real nice to see the Kid Line finally show up in a playoff game. You got your feet wet last season… it’s time to dive in.

For more on Game 2 expectations, check out Graham’s beautifully written masterpiece from yesterday.

The Expected Lineup

Forwards

Defensemen

Goaltenders

Scratches: Daniel Cleary, Teemu Pulkkinen & Jakub Kindl

Injuries: Eric Cole (spine), Justin Abdelkader (hand), Brendan Smith (dumbass) & Johan Franzen (concussion)

Forwards

Defensemen

Goaltenders

Bullets of Knowledge

• The Red Wings are 13-6 all-time in Game 2’s under Mike Babcock. They’re 9-4 after winning Game 1./

• Tampa is 7-6 all-time in Game 2’s. They’re 5-3 after losing Game 1 and 0-1 under Jon Cooper./