Gameday Updates
Red Wings call up F Givani Smith. High-energy guy who has 4 points (2-2-4) and 7 penalty minutes in 4 games with the Griffins this season. Was a 2nd round pick in 2016.
— Helene St. James (@HeleneStJames) October 25, 2019
And, from the morning skate, it looks like the Red Wings could be down two forwards tonight. Plus, Danny DeKeyser did not skate today and it looks like he will miss his second straight game.
#RedWings lines at the skate:
Bertuzzi-Larkin-Helm
Athanasiou-Filppula-Mantha
Hirose-Nielsen-Svechnikov
Ehn-de la Rose-Smith
Erne (injured) is skating. Glendening and Abdelkader are not skating after getting injured previous game. pic.twitter.com/gGt3xrbvQc— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) October 25, 2019
Defense pairs at #RedWings skate:
Hronek-Green
Cholowski-Daley
Biega/Bowey-Cholowski
DeKeyser (lower body injury) not skating.— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) October 25, 2019
He corrected Daley’s partner to be Nemeth.
#RedWings power play units:
1. Bertuzzi (net front), Larkin (slot), Hronek-Hirose (half walls), Green (point).
2. Smith (net front), Filppula (slot), Athanasiou-Mantha (half walls), Cholowski (point). pic.twitter.com/Rjenw1P6sq— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) October 25, 2019
Injury updates:
#RedWings Blashill said Glendening (hand) our 2-4 weeks, DeKeyser (lower body) out 2 more weeks, Abdelkader day to day and Erne could return Sunday.
— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) October 25, 2019
Looks like Jimmy Howard will get the start tonight against the Sabres.
Givani Smith at the #RedWings morning skate prior to tonight’s game vs. @BuffaloSabres Howard in starter’s net. pic.twitter.com/qlUJJUswBf
— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) October 25, 2019
Lineups
Red Wings
Forwards
Tyler Bertuzzi — Dylan Larkin — Darren Helm
Andreas Athanasiou — Valtteri Filppula — Anthony Mantha
Taro Hirose — Frans Nielsen — Evgeny Svechnikov
Christoffer Ehn — Jacob de la Rose — Givani Smith
Defense
Filip Hronek — Mike Green
Patrik Nemeth — Trevor Daley
Madison Bowey — Dennis Cholowski
Goalies
Jimmy Howard
Jonathan Bernier
Sabres
Forwards
Victor Olofsson — Jack Eichel — Sam Reinhart
Jeff Skinner — Marcus Johansson — Vladimir Sobotka
Zemgus Girgensons — Johan Larsson — Kyle Okposo
Jimmy Vesey — Casey Mittelstadt — Conor Sheary
Defense
Jake McCabe — Rasmus Ristolainen
Rasmus Dahlin — Colin Miller
Marco Scandella — Henri Jokiharju
Goalies
Linus Ullmark
Carter Hutton
Keys to the Game
1. Commit to a Game Plan
The Wings are on a real bender right now having lost six straight games, the type of losing streak that we’ve seen many coaches over the years get fired for. Now, I’m not saying that Steve Yzerman is going to necessarily come down with the proverbial ax on Jeff Blashill this early into the season, but eventually, something has to give. Enough with the line blender already — this annoyed many fans last year — and commit to building chemistry or at least riding out some line combinations that give the younger players a chance to show their offensive talents. The Wings called up Evgeny Svechnikov on Tuesday for a reason, and that reason wasn’t to play him 10 minutes per game in a bottom six role.
2. Show Some Fire
There was a scoring chance during the second period of Wednesday night’s game in Ottawa where Brady Tkachuk stood alone at the side of the Wings’ net. There, he received a redirected pass from Thomas Chabot and got about four to five whacks at trying to push the puck past Jonathan Bernier. Not a single Wings player grabbed a hold of Tkachuk and came to their goaltenders rescue. It was a sad sight really because it showed that the team was being pushed around by another bottom feeder in the division. The Wings need to show more push back, they’re on a six-game losing streak and it’s time to show some urgency and stand firm on their feet.
3. Stay Out of the Box
The Wings can’t keep giving up added chances, considering they’re having a hard enough time keeping the puck out of their own net lately — they’ve given up five goals in five of their last six games. One team that will bury you on the man advantage are the Sabres, currently clicking at a 30.8% rate (4th-best in NHL). One player to watch out for is Victor Olofsson, who has scored all six of his goals this year on the power play.
