Updates
UPDATE: The Red Wings on Friday recalled left wing Taro Hirose from the Griffins. #GoGRG
Details >> https://t.co/jOHiN7W4aH pic.twitter.com/ohUhRHzqwf
— Grand Rapids Griffins (@griffinshockey) March 11, 2022
UPDATE: The #RedWings today recalled defenseman Luke Witkowski from the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins.
📰: https://t.co/LPQ5lZ0K16 pic.twitter.com/mRMRMcCESn
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) March 12, 2022
Witkowski shouldn’t see any ice time, but we’ll see what Blash does. Givani Smith and Taro Hirose are most likely to draw in, with Witter sitting as the 13th forward.
Hi de hi there friends and neighbors this is yer ol pal Ken Kal-Gary tellin y’all to tune into Red Wings hockey tonite from the ol barn they call the Saddledome. I counted my 100 cattle but there was only 97 so I jest “rounded them up” yee-haw 6:45pm @971theticketxyt pic.twitter.com/PnGqmgPdwp
— Ken Kal (@KenKalDRW) March 12, 2022
And who doesn’t love Ken Kal?
“You can feel the buzz around the city.”
Rasmus Andersson and Elias Lindholm on the strong season and thoughts on tomorrow’s game vs. Detroit. pic.twitter.com/M2RN4ES3Xd
— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) March 11, 2022
Not too much noise from the Flames today, but three observations about this clip. First, it does a good job orienting a Detroit fan on Calgary’s season; we rarely come into contact with them anymore. Second, Rasmus Andersson looks a helluva lot like Michael Rasmussen. Third, if I told you that Elias Lindholm departed this interview and robbed a bank, would you believe me? What if I told you he was auditioning for a stage rendition of Home Alone?
Red Wings Lines
Namestnikov – Larkin – Raymond
Vrana – Veleno – Gagner
Erne – Rasmussen – Zadina
Smith – Suter – Hirose
Leddy – Seider
Oesterle – Hronek
Staal – Stetcher
Greiss
Nedeljkovic
Note: Veleno and Suter’s positions are based on where they were playing on Thursday, with Smith and Hirose slotting in for Bertuzzi and Fabbri. I would say Suter playing with Vrana is a no-brainer, but Veleno had a great game a few nights ago. I am guessing Blash will juggle those lines a fair amount depending on game circumstances.
Flames Lines
Gaudrea – Lindholm – Tkachuk
Coleman – Backlund – Lewis
Mangiapane – Ruzicka – Toffoli
Lucic – Monahan – Dube
Hanifin – Andersson
Kylington – Tanev
Zadorov – Gudbranson
Markstrom
Vladar
Keys to the Game
The Flames should be pretty tired. They’ve played a lot of hockey lately— only four days off so far in March, to be exact. When the Wings were cashing in all those games early, Calgary was playing pretty scarcely. Maybe Detroit can cash in on Calgary’s heavy workload, especially with the unusual start time for the Flames.
Larkin on the score board. Thursday’s game was an interesting one because Larkin didn’t put up any points despite the team scoring five goals. Detroit got production from nearly everywhere else on the roster. That doesn’t mean he was ineffective, but if Detroit can combine the depth scoring with some top line scoring, they will be a tough customer tonight.
Let the hate flow through you. But in a good way! After the garbage we saw on Thursday, Detroit can use that emotion to refocus themselves. Keep moving forward, but take the energy with you into the tomorrows. Detroit doesn’t need Seider ramming Gaudreau through the boards because of something Dumba did two nights ago to prove a point to the league. They just need to take all that fire and rage, play some good hockey, and win a game against a great team.
