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GameDay: @ Colorado (23-20-3, 49 Pts) 9:00 ET

Published

on January 20, 2007

in 2006-2007, Avalanche and GameDay

. 2 Comments

Update (5:07 PM): According to John Niyo of the Detroit News, Joey MacDonald will be in net tonight as Chris Osgood was sent back to Detroit to recover from the flu instead of going to Denver with the team. (via Gorilla Crouch). - Matt

Tonight is the second of four games between these two teams this season. The Wings won the first meeting, 3-4 in a shootout on January 9th in Denver. The teams will meet again on the 28th and will wrap up the season series on March 4th.

Since losing to the Wings on the 9th, the Avs have gone 2-2-0, bringing their record for January to 5-2-1. They last played Wednesday night, a game in which they beat Phoenix 4-3. On Monday, though, they lost 3-1 in San Jose. Two days after they lost to the Wings in a shootout, they lost to the Flames in regulation, 7-3. They then went on to beat Anaheim, 3-2.

It looks like Peter Budaj is solidifying his spot as the Avs’ starter. Big-name goalie Jose Theodore has not played a full game since Colorado’s 3-2 win over Chicago on December 23rd, and has either been pulled early or played relief duty since.

The Wings’ win-streak was snapped at five last night when they lost 3-1 to the Blue Jackets last night in an uninspiring performance in Columbus. They looked flat for much of the game, with the exception of a span of time surrounding their 3rd period goal. The Jackets, on the other hand, looked highly motivated and probably could have won by a wider margin. The Wings ran into penalty trouble, with at least two hooking penalties being accompanied by a textbook dive on Anson Carter’s part. It just wasn’t the Wings’ night.

The choice of goaltender tonight depends on Chris Osgood’s health. If he’s over the flu, he’ll be the starter. If he’s not, Joey MacDonald will get some more NHL action. For those of us who have questioned the logic of starting Dominik Hasek against the weaker team of a back-to-back series (guilty), Ken Daniels of FSN had some insight last night after the game. He said that the Wings don’t want Dom to have to play in the second game of such situations because he doesn’t get the full pre-game regimin due to the fact that few players skate on that second day. Since travel has been involved each time the Wings have had to play back-to-back, Dom was even less likely to ever play the second night. I can understand that reasoning, though it’s very unfortunate that the first team always seems to be the weaker of the two, while the starter on the second night often seems to be thrown to the wolves.

Mathieu Schneider remains out with a second-degree MCL sprain. According to Ansar Khan, it’s a 3-4 week recovery time, which would put his return at January 28th at the earliest.

The Wings need to rebound with a better game tonight. They cannot play like they did last night and expect to have chance against Colorado, especially if Joey MacDonald is in net. For his sake, at least, they’ll need to be tighter. Their last game against Colorado was one of their best games this season. It would be great to see a similar performance out of them tonight.

Wings 4, Avs 3 (SO)

Published

Matt Saler

on January 10, 2007

in 2006-2007, Avalanche and Game Reports

. 0 Comments

The Wings finally halted their skid last night, beating the Colorado Avalanche 4-3 last night in Denver and winning in a shootout for the first time this season (1-3). It was one of the most exciting offensive performances of the year by the Wings, who peppered sophomore goalie Peter Budaj with 43 shots through three periods and overtime. Budaj was forced to make a number of spectacular saves as Detroit’s creative juices were flowing in overdrive last night, rendering the Colorado defense helpless spectators more often than not as the Wings put on passing clinics.

The team defense was strong overall, with the exception of three plays, each of which led, unfortunately, directly to a goal. Given the nature of those plays, it is probably unfair to hold the result against the goalie asked to come up big, but when that goalie is Dominik Hasek, it doesn’t seem too far out of line to expect more. Hasek was just average last night, not spectacular, making largely routine saves on 22 of the Avs’ 25 shots. Three shots got by him on fast breaks and rendered the Wings’ hard offensive work moot, as they lost two leads and had to come from behind in the end. That’s not to say the defense gets a free pass on the plays. Dom did come through in the shootout, though, and that counts for a lot.

Overall, in my opinion, it was one of the team’s best performances all season. They didn’t quite get the goaltending they pay for, but they were excellant on offense. They skated harder than they have been, making for beautiful replays even when a goal isn’t scored. They hit harder than the Avs and laid out a couple bone-crushers throughout the night. I got the impression that they would not be denied.

Althought the Wings began the game exhibiting good puck movement, the Avs were able to generate some solid pressure in the Detroit end for a good minute and a half until 4:00 or so. The Wings weathered that storm, however, and were soon getting chances of their own. Around 5:20, Pavel Datsyuk took the puck down the left wing and then dished it ahead to Henrik Zetterberg for a 2-on-1 down low. Hank slid the puck across the goalmouth to Tomas Holmstrom, who one-timed it toward the upper left corner, but it was knocked away with an acrobatic stick save by Budaj.

A shift or two later, a Jiri Hudler, Valtteri Filppula, and Jason Williams line generated a lot of pressure in the Colorado end. Hudler drew a hooking penalty at 6:29 and sent the Wings to their first power play of the game.

It didn’t take long for them to capitalize. On their second attempt at setting up, they scored almost immediately to take a one-goal lead. Datstyuk carried the puck over the line and dished it to Zetterberg, who dropped it back to Niklas Kronwall on the right point. Kronwall sent it across to Nick Lidstrom, who sent a wrister at the side of the net, where it was deflected to the backboards. Datsyuk picked it up behind the net, took a step or two our front and backhanded it across the crease to Zetterberg, who went down on one knee to slam it into the net on a one-timer. Budaj had no chance. 1-0 Wings at 7:20.

Continue reading ‘Wings 4, Avs 3 (SO)’

GameDay: @ Colorado (21-18-2, 44 Pts) 9:00 ET

Published

Matt Saler

on January 9, 2007

in 2006-2007, Avalanche and GameDay

. 0 Comments

Update (4:55 PM): According to Ansar Khan, Jason Williams is not happy with being slapped on the wrist Sunday: Babcock’s pet whined to the media today, and Khan has the quotes if you want to read them. Apparently, Babcock has kept Williams out of the loop on the fact that he’s supposed to be playing tonight, since the media knew before he did.

Also, it looks like there may be a scratch or two tonight since a couple of the guys have been fighting the flu. Babcock hasn’t yet decided whether or not they’ll sit, however. - Matt

Update (3:15 PM): Helene St. James confirms that Dominik Hasek will start tonight and that Jason Williams will return. - Matt

Tonight is the first of four meetings between these old rivals this season. The Wings won the 2005-2007 series 4-0, with wins November 23, 2005 (7-3), January 21, 2006 (4-3), February 4, 2006 (3-0), and February 12, 2006 (6-3). The teams will meet twice more in January (the 20th and 28th) before finishing up the season series on March 4 in Detroit.

The Avs are riding a three-game winning streak, with wins over Nashville, Tampa Bay, and Minnesota. The run matches a season high and comes after a three-game skid to end the month of December. In that stretch, they lost once to Dallas before dropping back-to-back games to St. Louis. Colorado is 11-9-1 at home so far this season.

Over the previous five games, the starting goaltender for the Avs has been second-year-player Peter Budaj, whose 2.41 GAA and 12-8-0 record are better than Vezina Trophy-winning goalie Jose Theodore’s numbers. Theodore is 9-10-1 this season, with a 3.10 GAA.

The Avs will be without defenseman John-Michael Liles tonight. Liles broke his foot in the team’s win over Minnesota on Saturday and will miss four weeks. It’s definitely a blow to the Colorado defense, as head coach Joel Quenneville told Terry Frei of the Denver Post:

“Johnny was playing well for us. He brings a lot to the table, and not just on the power play, but coming up on the attack. He’s a threat on the point offensively and was logging a lot of important minutes.”

Other current Avs injuries: Brett McLean (back), Patrice Briesebois (back), Jordon Leopold (groin), Brad May (shoulder).
Frei today focuses on the fact that tonight will be the first time in the history of the Wings/Avs rivalry that Steve Yzerman will not be in the lineup or wearing the C opposite Joe Sakic.

In contrast to the Avs, the Wings are riding a three-game losing streak that began last Thursday in San Jose. They then lost in LA and Anaheim, leaving them pointless thus far in their five-game road trip. This skid follows a four-game winning streak in which they beat two of the teams they’ve lost to lately (the Kings and Ducks). They’ll finish up the road trip on Thursday, in Phoenix.

Dominik Hasek started Sunday in Anaheim, the night after Chris Osgood got the nod in LA. Given Babcock’s seeming interest to play Hasek as often as possible rather than utilizing his capable backup, I expect to see Dom in net rather than Ozzie.

The Wings will be without defenseman Mathieu Schneider, who sprained his MCL Sunday night. He won’t be back until after the trip is over.

Chris Chelios will return to the lineup tonight after missing six games due to having to deal with a double homicide at his downtown restaurant.

Jason Williams should be back in the lineup after being a healthy scratch on Sunday. I made the mistake of uncritically regurgitating something Ansar Khan wrote last night, saying Jason’s return to the lineup would mean Jiri Hudler would have to sit. That’s not true. The only way Hudler will sit is if he’s in the doghouse (which may be what Khan meant - he’s just not very clear there).

Josh Langfeld was returned to the Griffins today. With Pavel Datsyuk healthy and Williams likely out of the doghouse, Langfeld had no spot in the lineup, so rather than keep him around, they sent him back to Grand Rapids, where he’ll get the playing time he’s accustomed to. The Wings now have twelve forwards and six defensemen and no injury insurance in the form of a called-up player.

With the Avs riding a three-game streak in which they’ve beaten tough opponents, the Wings will have a hard time reversing their fortunes tonight if they don’t come out strong. If they can play like they did for much of the Ducks game and not have bounces go Colorado’s way, they stand a good chance. In spite of the fact that the rivalry has cooled almost to death, these games are more emotional than most. It’ll be a good time for the Wings to get those three consecutive losses out of their mind and play some good hockey.

The game is on Versus tonight, not Fox Sports, so be aware of that when you’re trying to find it.

First-round playoff opponent settled

Published

Matt Saler

on April 16, 2006

in Avalanche, Oilers, Playoffs and The Team

. 3 Comments

Colorado lost last night but it was in overtime so they got the point they needed to avoid playing the Wings. That means we’ll see the Oilers in the first round, starting Saturday at 2:00 ET. I can’t say I’m thrilled about this matchup, given the trouble Edmonton has given the Wings this year but that’s no excuse not to win.

Wings 3, Avalanche 0

Published

Christy Hammond

on February 4, 2006

in 2005-2006, Avalanche and Game Reports

. 0 Comments

In a solid defensive effort, the Detroit Red Wings beat the Colorado Avalanche, 3-0. The Wings had seven successful penalty kills in the game and were unable to capitalize on three power play opportunities. Wings goaltender Manny Legace made 28 saves for the win. He looked incredibly strong today. There were certain instances that I couldn’t believe the puck didn’t go in the net; Legace had some unbelievable saves. I think Babcock has found his No. 1 goaltender.

The first goal of the game came 5:40 into the third period. Henrik Zetterberg passed the puck from the corner to the front of the net where Dan Cleary flicked the puck behind Avs’ goaltender Abeischer.

Mikael Samuelsson scored his 19th goal of the season on a pass from Tomas Holmstrom 10:01 into the third. The final goal came on a breakaway from Robert Lang with 1:31 left in the game ensuring the Wings’ victory in the Pepsi Center.

Since Dallas lost to St. Louis in OT, 4-3, the Wings are now two points ahead of the Stars in the Western Conference standings. The Nashville Predators are currently seven points behind the Wings in the Central Division with 70 points.

Offensive Scoresheet

Well that’s all for today, I’m going to the University of Michigan vs. Ohio State hockey game. Go Blue!

Wings 4, Avs 3

Published

Matt Saler

on January 21, 2006

in 2005-2006, Avalanche and Game Reports

. 0 Comments

The Wings won a bit of a wild one today, 4-3 over the Avalanche in Denver. The game was closely fought and exciting, with great goaltending on either side and fine offensive play by both teams as well. The rivalry may be different but these two teams still play good hockey against each other.

The Wings jumped right out with the lead, scoring 49 seconds. Brendan Shanahan, playing on a line with Kris Draper and Pavel Datsyuk, sent the puck from behind the net out front to Datsyuk, who one-timed it past David Aebischer to make it 1-0.

The Avs struck back less than a minute later when John-Michael Liles sent a floater from the point and Ian Laperriere got his stick on it to redirect it into the net. Manny didn’t have much chance on it, being both screened and beaten by a deflection.

Quick goals aside, the opening minutes of the first period were pretty fast paced. Both teams skated hard and they were trading chances up and down the ice. Both goalies were solid during this stretch and so was the Red Wing penalty kill, which allowed just one shot on the Avs’ first power play.

The Wings’ passing was a little messy in their own zone but pretty tight in the offensive end. They held the puck in the Colorado zone for long stretches of play but couldn’t convert until the game settled down a bit sometime after the mid-point of the period.

Mark Mowers, playing again in place of Henrik Zetterberg, connected with Tomas Holmstrom to make it 2-1 at 17:03. Mowers started out behind the net but came out front with the puck. He turned around, and in the process, sent the puck toward the far post. Tomas Holmstrom got his stick on it to Aebischer’s right and redirected it into the net, giving the Wings the lead again.

Less than two minutes later, the Wings extended their lead and this time it came on the power play. With Antti Laaksonen in the box for hooking, the Detroit put on a great power play and forced David Aebischer to make some spectacular saves. He robbed the Wings on three straight rapid-fire shots by throwing himself around desperately and closing what had been an open net a split second earlier. With the Colorado crowd cheering, “Abby! Abby!” the Wings got their goal. But it wasn’t “Abby’s” fault. Mathieu Schneider took a low shot from the point and it deflected off a Colorado defenseman’s skate out front and changed direction. It didn’t hurt that both Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan were in front of the net at the time. 3-1 Wings, at 18:51.

The Avs began the second on the power play (a carryover from the first period) and had trouble getting set up in the face of the aggressive Red Wing penalty killers. They did score, however, though with very little build up. Patrice Briesebois’ shot from the point was redirected 12 feet in front of the net by Andrew Brunette and beat Legace to put the Avs within one, despite their crappy power play (1:29).

After that, the pace continued to be quick, with the teams playing fairly even hockey up and down the ice. The teams traded uneventful power plays once and then again, though this second time resulted in a 4-on-4 situation and a Colorado goal.

Rob Blake got off a blast from the point despite not having much space to do so and it hit Chris Chelios, who was trying to get out of the way, on the way to the net. On top of deflecting the shot, Cheli was probably screening Legace and because of it, he had no chance to stop the puck. 3-3 tie, at 13:23.

The Red Wings’ half of the 4-on-4 expired first and the Avs went on the power play. Kirk Maltby then was called for boarding and the Avs got a 5-on-3 chance but the Wings did a great job of killing it off and stimying the Colorado momentum.

The Wings soon got their own 5-on-3 chance but they were able to capitalize on it, unlike Colorado. It took them less than 30 seconds to do it too. Pavel Datsyuk’s pass through the crease connected with Robert Lang, who just barely got it over Aebischer’s pad and into the net. The pass was made possible by Holmstrom’s work keeping the Colorado defenseman out of the lane. The Wings were still on the power play after that but were unable to score again. 4-3 Wings, at 17:02.

The third period consisted of the Wings withstanding Colorado attacks and countering with attacks of their own. They had to hold off another 5-on-3 power play but did so because of Legace’s strong goaltending and the skaters’ ability with the puck. The last Colorado power play of the game was a nail-biter, with the Avs skating very fast and hard while the Wings’ just held on and waited for the clock to run down. Colorado pulled their goalie late in the game and got some mileage out of it but not enough for their purposes and the Wings got the puck out of the zone enough to prevent a goal. Wings win 4-3.

I didn’t enjoy this NBC broadcast as much but that’s probably because I was getting awful reception in my room. The NBC “JV” squad wasn’t so hot, either. Cuthbert was acceptable but I found myself considerably annoyed by McNab, the color commentator. Cammie Granato didn’t pipe up as much as she could have though I must say, it wasn’t “tonight,” Cammie, especially in Denver. “This afternoon” would have been a bit more accurate. Anyway.

I did like the tidbit the crew related about Nick Lidstrom saying the Red Wings power play isn’t pass-happy, that they go for the most direct and quick shot without looking necessarily for the best. Ahem. I have been watching Red Wing power plays for 10+ years now and it has always been a valid complaint to say they pass too much. I’d hate to think what other teams must be like, if the Wings’ pass the least of any team on the power play. Scary.

Abel to Yzerman recap

UPDATE (22. Jan): The News reports that Niklas Kronwall got positive news yesterday and that it’s now just a matter of conditioning and strength-building. Once he’s worked his legs back to where they should be, he’ll be back. It will be fairly soon.

The paper also says that Henrik Zetterberg is not expected to play until Tuesday for the second game against the Predators in as many nights. He is supposed to skate today and that will likely have bearing on whether or not he plays, though. (DetNews)

Lines*

Datsyuk-Shanahan-Draper
Samuelsson-Williams-Lang
Franzen-Maltby-Cleary
Holmstrom-Mowers-Yzerman
Datsyuk-Shanahan-Holmstrom
Yzerman-Datsyuk-Shanahan
Maltby-Draper-Franzen
Cleary-Mowers-Holmstrom
Holmstrom-Samuelsson-Williams
Lang-Yzerman-Shanahan
Holmstrom-Samuelsson-Datsyuk
Holmstrom-Mowers-Cleary
Samuelsson-Draper-Maltby
Samuelsson-Cleary
Franzen-Cleary
Draper-Maltby
Franzen-Maltby

D-pairings

Lilja-Lidstrom
Lidstrom-Woolley
Lebda-Chelios
Chelios-Schneider
Schneider-Woolley
Schneider-Lilja
Lidstrom-Chelios
Lidstrom-Schneider
Chelios-Lilja

Franzen-Draper-Maltby-Schneider-Woolley
Datsyuk-Williams-Lidstrom-Samuelsson-Holmstrom
Schneider-Lidstrom-Lang-Yzerman-Shanahan

*compiled by Brian

GameDay: @ Colorado (27-18-3, 57 Pts) 2:00 ET

Published

Matt Saler

on January 21, 2006

in 2005-2006, Avalanche and GameDay

. 0 Comments

The Wings will face their old rivals, the Colorado Avalanche, for the second time this season today, and like last Saturday, the game will be televised on NBC. Detroit leads the season series, 1-0, after beating the Avs 7-3 at the Joe on November 23rd. It was the first game after Jiri Fischer’s heart episode on the 21st and ended a four-game skid for the Wings, who will face Colorado two more times before the end of the season.

The Wings have won their last three, including two over Philadelphia and the New York Rangers. Their most recent game was a commanding 4-0 shut out of Columbus Wednesday night, a game in which they improved upon their league-leading power play by scoring a goal on two of seven power plays (their PP stands at 24.8%). Detroit leads the Central Division race by three points over Nashville with 65 and is the top team in the Conference. This is the second of a two-game road trip, after which they will be home for three games, two of which will be against Nashville.

The Avs had won eight in a row before their 4-2 loss to lowly Chicago ended the third-longest such streak in franchise history. It was their first loss in 2006. Despite their recent surge, the Avs are still third in the tough Northwest Division, due to their 16-13-2 start. Concerns about their goaltending have been addressed by David Aebischer, who won his starting job back by winning the last seven games of the win-streak.

Manny Legace is slated to start today for the Wings. He sat out the last game and “backup” Chris Osgood played instead.

Henrik Zetterberg will not play due to his recent hip flexor injury.

Injured defenseman Niklas Kronwall (knee) will pay a visit to his doctor today and is expecting to be cleared to play very soon.

The game is on NBC and will be viewed by a national audience. You can be sure they will hype of the “rivalry,” however diluted it is these days. Don’t expect the broadcast to be as good as last week’s: Abel to Yzerman reports that we’ll have the “JV” crew, Chris Cuthbert, Peter McNab and Cammie Granato. Cuthbert is a good play-by-play man but I haven’t heard good things of Granato’s version of the between-the-glass feature.

Even though the rivalry has died down to a point at which it is hardly special any more, this should be a good game. Both teams have been winning recently and should play hard to keep it that way.