Video tributes for past players can be touching. Typically, the first time a departing player returns to play his former team, there’s an early TV timeout where a thank-you video will air for him, showcasing highlight-reel goals, notable moments, and maybe off-ice shots community work. Fans give them one last cheer, and when a player was with that team for a long time, it’s fairly common to see them get a little choked up, before each party moves on for good.
…and that’s not going to happen today, for several reasons. Alex DeBrincat, currently tied for the NHL’s scoring lead, makes his return to Ottawa this afternoon. The bar for video tributes is typically pretty low, so the fact that he was only there for one season isn’t overly important. The fact that he wasn’t eager to return, citing a desire to be closer to home with a newborn child, enabling his trade to Detroit may be a factor… as fans did not take that well. The only way I see a tribute happening is if they want to rile up the crowd.
And despite the early start, these fans will be… well-hydrated?
That storyline is secondary to the stakes for this one: the last two meetings in particular between Detroit and Ottawa were playoff-level intense, with the Senators dominating on the scoreboard and physically. The Red Wings are likely sick of hearing and reading about that, and each team’s fanbase was at each other’s throats all summer long. So what better way to settle grudges than a matinee meeting in the second week of the regular season?
How to Watch
Time: 1:00 p.m. at Canadian Tire Centre
TV/Radio: Bally Sports Detroit / 97.1 The Ticket
Probable Lineups
With a 1:00 p.m. game, neither team will be holding a morning skate so Friday practice lines for each team are listed below. If Derek Lalonde speaks to the media later this morning, we’ll add any updates. Here’s what we do know:
Red Wings Lines
Berggren is up, but I would expect he does not suit up for this one. Derek Lalonde told the media after Friday’s practice that Robby Fabbri will be out for a month with a lower-body injury (not knee-related, thankfully), and another forward was dinged up during practice, but said he was considering going 11-7, and with the intensity expected for this one, that feels like the right call.
I know fans will want to see Berggren, but this feels like a necessary precautionary move: the Griffins are playing a weekend set in Colorado, and with the Red Wings also having to fly home to play Calgary on Sunday evening, the logistics of getting someone up in time would be difficult if there are any injuries today. Yesterday’s lines are likely what we’ll see, minus the mystery ailing forward:
Senators Lines
On the Ottawa side, neither Thomas Chabot nor Artem Zub practiced yesterday. Reports are that Chabot was under the weather, but will play (certainly a subplot, given the minutes he plays). Zub will not. To make room to call up a defenseman for Zub, the Senators waived and demoted enforcer Zack MacEwen (two games into a three-year deal). As much as I’d like to dunk on that cap management, there are multiple teams totally capped out right now, having to play a skater short. Many point to the lack of the salary cap increase but I mean… teams knew that was coming for a couple years.
Per Daily Faceoff, these are the expected lines based on yesterday’s practice, and Chabot’s assumed health:
Tkachuk – Stützle – Giroux
Joseph – Greig – Tarasenko
Kubalik – Norris – Batherson
Kelly – Chartier – Kastelic
Chychrun – Chabot
Sanderson – Hamonic
Brannstrom – Bernard-Docker
Korpisalo
Forsberg
Keys to the Game
1. Bad Blood or Fresh Start? Similar to one of our keys last game, which proved prophetic when consecutive scrums involving Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin erupted late, the Red Wings have to keep cool to not make this game too much about avenging last year’s embarrassments, and not let a potent Ottawa power play get easy opportunities. The other side of that is, how intense will this game really be? It’s much-anticipated, but it’s Game #5 for both squads in a long season, sometimes the bad blood dissipates over a long summer. Ottawa was also right in the thick of the playoff hunt in those now-infamous games for last season, do they bring that same intensity in mid-October?
2. Retooled D vs. High-Powered O. Beyond the physical punishment, Ottawa’s offense looked elite against Detroit last season. Detroit tried to shore up the defensive group this summer with Justin Holl, Shayne Gostisbehere and Jeff Petry. Will a more experienced and poised defense be enough to slow the likes of Tkachuk, Stützle, Giroux, Tarasenko and Norris, who are all above a point-per-game this season?
3. Fight Fire with Fire. It’s not likely Detroit will beat Ottawa with defensive improvements alone. With an offense averaging 4.75 goals over its first four games (matching Los Angeles and yep… Ottawa) and a power play clicking at an astounding 46.2%, how heavily do the Red Wings push the offensive gas pedal and hope the best defense against the Senators’ dangerous top-six is having the puck as much as possible themselves?
We’ll find out in a few short hours. LGRW.
