On the Wings

Update (2:14 PM): Mike Smith is in net for Dallas, by the way. - Matt

Update (1:56 PM): To be fair to Marty Turco, I should also point out Dominik Hasek’s record against Dallas: 8-10-1-1.  - Matt

Update (12:15 PM): Mark Stepneski has some pre-game comments over at Andrew’s Dallas Stars Page NHL Blog. - Matt

The Wings and the Stars face-off for the second time this season this afternoon. They last met on Wednesday in Detroit in a game the Wings won, 4-1. The remaining two games are scheduled for February 17th and March 13th.

The Stars have dropped three straight and have been outscored 11-4 in that span. The loss to the Wings was just the second of those three, as they were knocked out by the Minnesota Wild, 6-3, the next night. Although they will be playing their third game in four nights, the Stars will be highly motivated to stop this slide, much like the Blues were on December 20th.

Since Wednesday, Dallas has fallen from first in the Pacific and second in the Conference to second in the Division and 4th in the West.

According to Mike Heika, the status of Sergei Zubov (hand) is uncertain. The defenseman has missed the last two games, but practiced yesterday and apparently kept it simple. He’s listed as questionable by the Dallas Morning News, though the notes section there says he’s a game-time decision.

Jussi Jokinen (knee), Jere Lehtinen (hernia), and Phillippe Boucher (shoulder) remain out.

Heika also notes that Dave Tippett switched up the forwards some in practice yesterday in an obvious attempt to generate some more offense.

As for the starting goaltender, that remains a bit of a mystery as Marty Turco has had two rough outings in a row, but saw the most time in practice yesterday. He was pulled after allowing three goals on four shots Thursday night and has beaten the Wings just once in his career. I’d say conventional wisdom would put Mike Smith in net today, but if Tippett wants to force Turco to overcome his demons, we’ll see #35.

For the Dallas side of things, see  Andrew’s Stars Page,  Razor with an Edge (official),  Stars Blog (Dallas Morning News), and Stars Scene.

The Wings have been idle since Wednesday and so are well-rested as they head into this brief road trip.  After the game today, they’ll head to Chicago to face the Blackhawks for the fifth time this season. Hopefully they won’t be caught looking ahead to that game when they have a motivated Stars team to deal with first. They’ll be looking to improve their 24-1-1 record against non-Central teams.

It looks like neither of the currently injured players will be returning today. Tomas Holmstrom (knee bruise) hopes to make it back  tomorrow, but it seems Mike Babcock has Homer’s return pegged for Tuesday. The same goes for Kirk Maltby (back strain), who isn’t as adamant about wanting to return this weekend.

Dominik Hasek will start this afternoon. Chris Osgood will get the nod tomorrow.

For more of the Wings’ side of things, see Snapshots, Abel to Yzerman, HockeyTownTodd, Behind the Jersey, No Pun Intended, Red Wings Nation, yzerman is god, Detroit Hockey, LetsGoWings, and Winging It In Motown.

HockeyTownTodd makes a good point in his latest:

Look for the Wings to return to a more basic game because of the crappy ice.A little more Dump ‘n Chase, very careful line changes (especially in the 2nd).This game could very well be determined by turnovers and takeaways.

The ice is a definite issue, but if turnovers and takeaways become a key feature in the game, the Wings should be in relatively good shape. Pavel Datsyuk is leading the League in takeaways with 64 and he’s more than capable of making something out of them. By the way, Henrik Zetterberg is the highest ranking Red Wing in giveaways at #56 with 30. That doesn’t surprise me, really. Hank can be a bit of a puck hog.

I thought the Wings played a solid game overall Wednesday night, so if they at least pick up where they left off, they’ll be in a good position to come out on top. The Stars will obviously look to elevate their play and they have the skill to make things uncomfortable for Detroit’s defense, but if they don’t catch the Wings napping, I don’t see them coming out of their tailspin just yet. If they can get Zubov back in the lineup and start Smith, they stand a better chance, but it’ll be tough either way if the Wings bring their “A” game.

Of course, we all know what happened last time the Wings faced a highly-motivated team that was looking to stop a losing streak.