Archive for the 'Chris Osgood' Category

More conference calls

Published
by
Matt Saler
on May 7, 2008
in Chris Osgood, Johan Franzen, Links, Nick Lidstrom and Quotes
. 0 Comments

Kukla’s Korner has the transcript of the Johan Franzen, Nick Lidstrom, and Chris Osgood conference call here. I like Osgood’s comments about the six-day layoff, but the highlight of the the call comes from Johan Franzen:

Yeah, records, I don’t want to talk about the records. I just want to win eight more games this season.

Kukla’s also has the transcript from the Ken Holland and Mike Babcock call. The highlight of this one is Babcock’s commentary on Nik Kronwall, which included this gem:

But the dimension that makes him different than Rafi and Nick is he’s out there hunting you down. He’s looking for you. He’s going to get somebody in this series, I guarantee it.

Osgood gets the nod

Published
by
Matt Saler
on April 17, 2008
in Chris Osgood and Dominik Hasek
. 2 Comments

Update (4:33 PM): Bruce MacLeod has posted another piece on the move. - Matt

Update (2:57 PM): Ansar Khan has more, including quotes from Dominik Hasek and Mike Babcock. - Matt

Bruce MacLeod reports that Mike Babcock has decided to start Chris Osgood tomorrow night.

With Hasek’s confidence in himself at a low point and Osgood looking so steady last night, I think it’s safe to say this is the right decision. After thinking it over since this morning, I’ve come to the conclusion that this is not the time to test Hasek’s tendency to rebound from bad games.

Also, it’s possible we’ll see a changeup in the forward lineup, which would mean the insertion of either Darren Helm or Justin Abdelkader. Babcock told MacLeod he’s sleeping on it.

3/18 Injury Update

Published
by
Matt Saler
on March 18, 2008
in Chris Osgood, Darren Helm, Dominik Hasek, Injuries, Links and Tomas Holmstrom
. 1 Comment

Update (3:33 PM): George Malik has some more on the injury situation here. - Matt

Update (2:40 PM): Helene St. James has a couple further details:

Draper apparently felt good after skating today. That seems to indicate that the Helm recall is more of an extra caution than a necessity.

Holmstrom, on the other hand, is “still shying away from hard stops and starts.” So it’s no surprise that Mike Babcock is holding him out of this week’s games, despite Tomas’ hopes for return.

Also, St. James reports that Babcock will finalize the defense by the last three or four games of the regular season. She characterizes the contest for the third pairing as a three-way one between Chris Chelios, Andreas Lilja, and Brett Lebda for the two spots. However, I think it’s safe to say that Chelios is a lock, so it’s more likely to be a two-way battle for the sixth spot.

I suspect that, when it comes down to it, Lilja’s penalty killing and shot-blocking ability will earn him that final spot at Lebda’s expense.

In related note, I’m a little surprised Derek Meech is apparently out of the equation, but it seems his chance to become a regular this season has passed. - Matt

Ansar Khan reports that the Wings have recalled Darren Helm from Grand Rapids because Kris Draper (groin tear) is not ready to return Wednesday after all. Draper is a “maybe” for Thursday night, depending on how he feels after practice tomorrow.

Helm was just returned to the Griffins yesterday along with Mattias Ritola.

Khan also says Tomas Holmstrom (abdominal strain) is eager to return, but he is not likely to play until after this week. The team is being cautious, as it can afford to do at this stage in the season. They need #96 for the playoffs, not for these last intradivisional games.

Lastly, Khan provides info on the starting goaltenders for the next two games: Chris Osgood will get the nod against Columbus tomorrow night and Dominik Hasek will be the man Thursday night in Nashville.

2/16 Notes

Published
by
Matt Saler
on February 16, 2008
in Brian Rafalski, Chris Osgood, Dominik Hasek, Injuries, Johan Franzen, Lines and Niklas Kronwall
. 0 Comments

… Both Ansar Khan and Bruce MacLeod report that Jimmy Howard will start tomorrow in Dallas. He has not started an NHL game since December 13, 2005, when he was pulled after allowing three goals on sixteen shots during the Wings’ 7-6 loss to Atlanta.

Given that the Wings seem to play more carefully in front of the young goaltender, this is probably a good move. They have not been giving Chris Osgood much support and he could probably use a game off to regain confidence in his teammates.

… Dominik Hasek (hip flexor) will not make the trip to Denver and Colorado, and it does not look like he’ll be back until  next Saturday in Vancouver.

… Brian Rafalski (groin) will make the trip, but it looks like he won’t be back until Monday against Colorado.

… Niklas Kronwall (clavicle) is also going along with the team, but Khan says he won’t be back until the Calgary game on Friday at the earliest.

… With Kronwall and Rafalski remaining out, Kyle Quincey will stay with the team at least one more game.

… Khan also provides some mixed-up lines that Babcock tried in practice:

Franzen-Datsyuk-Holmstrom
Filppula-Zetterberg-Samuelsson
Kopecky-Draper-Maltby
Hudler-Drake-Downey (Ellis working in)

As he points out, that top line skated together at the start of the season prior to Franzen’s knee sprain.  As I wrote when Dan Cleary went down, Johan should benefit greatly from inheriting a larger role in Cleary’s absence. Let’s hope he takes advantage of the move to the top line.

1/26 Notes

Published
by
Matt Saler
on January 26, 2008
in All Star Game, Chris Chelios, Chris Osgood, Fabian Brunnstrom, Nick Lidstrom, Pavel Datsyuk and Steve Yzerman
. 6 Comments

Update (6:44 PM): Watching some of the pre-event coverage on CBC here in the Detroit area (home for the weekend). They say Pavel Datsyuk will face Tomas Vokoun in the breakway contest, while Chris Osgood will be up against Alexander Ovechkin. - Matt

… Tonight at 7:00 ET is the Dodge/NHL SuperSkills competition on Versus. Of the six non-YoungStar events (obstacle course relay, fastest skater, elimination shootout, accuracy shooting, hardest shot, and breakaway challenge), I can only find confirmation that Pavel Datsyuk and Chris Osgood will be competing in the last.

However, you have to think Pavel will be in on the accuracy event, the shootout event, and possibly the fastest skater as well.

Nick Lidstrom will probably be in the hardest shot competition and possibly the accuracy event.

Osgood, aside from the breakaway competition, will have to be in the shootout event.

… Speaking of Osgood, San Jose’s Ron Wilson is still hoping to convince Mike Babcock to start Evgeni Nabokov instead of the Red Wing. Sorry, Ron, but Osgood has been the better goalie this season, with his League-leading GAA and #3 save-percentage.

At first glance, Nabokov has his own League-leading stat, his 27 wins, going for him, but he’s played in 48 of the Sharks’ 49 games. That’s a winning percentage of .5625. Osgood, by comparison, has played in 26 of 51 with 20 wins for a winning-percentage of .7692, which translates out to 36 wins over 48 games.

Nabokov deserves to start the All Star Game over Osgood, Ron? Really?

… Ron Wilson, by the way, won’t give up the idea that his Sharks outplayed the Wings in the post-season last year. His comment that the Wings are “better now than they’ve ever been” is much appreciated, though.

… James Mirtle has a post up on how to fix the All Star Game. His solution? Make it a spectacle like the Winter Classic. No argument there, but I still think changing up the section process would go a long way in getting the fans interested, as well. In a day where so many fans have fantasy teams made up of players not from their team, why not have us vote for the entire roster instead of merely the starters?

… On a related note, the folks at AOL’s NHL Fanhouse talk about the future of the Game.

… Ted Kulfan has projected lines for the Western All Stars:

Nash-Datsyuk-Iginla
Sedin-Thornton-Gaborik
Arnott-Getzlaf-Perry
Horcoff-Kopitar-Ribiero

… I find this comparison of Daniel Alfredsson to Steve Yzerman just a little off-putting. I do not deny that he is a great leader and certainly the Senators’ MVP, if not the League’s, but Yzerman was one of those leaders that comes along just once or twice in a generation. I don’t think that’s just the Red Wings fan in me talking. To say The Captain is and was someone special is a major understatement.

Ottawa GM Bryan Murray pointed out that “winning brings recognition” and there’s no doubt that winning a Cup would vault Alfredsson to a higher level in the pantheon of leaders. But to Yzerman’s status?

I was impressed by Alfredsson in the Wings recent game in Ottawa, but part of my perception of him is tainted by having watched him get beaten by Buffalo’s Jason Pominville for a series-ending overtime goal in the 2006 Conference Finals. It’s unfair of me, I suppose, but that’s one of the first things that comes to mind when I think of the guy. (via Snapshots)

… George Malik has more on the Fabian Brunnstrom story.

… Ansar Khan has a nice piece on Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk.

… The Freep focuses on Chris Chelios today, with seven different Chelios-related headlines on their Wings page.

Luongo turns down All Star spot

Published
by
Matt Saler
on January 9, 2008
in All Star Game, Chris Osgood and Links
. 0 Comments

TSN reports that Roberto Luongo has decided to skip the All Star Game in order to spend time with his pregnant wife.  That should make Pascal Leclaire the starter and possibly open the door for Chris Osgood to be named a backup with Evgeni Nabokov.

That’s assuming the NHL is amenable to the idea of four Red Wings being on the team. If so, they should give Tomas Holmstrom a spot while they’re at it!

Detroit re-signs Osgood to three-year deal

Published
by
Matt Saler
on January 9, 2008
in Chris Osgood and Roster Moves
. 0 Comments

The Wings announced today that they have signed Chris Osgood to a three-year contract extension. Red Wings GM Ken Holland told the media,

“Chris has a tremendous career record as an NHL goaltender and his performance this season places him as one of the top goalies in the game today. He’s been a big part of our success in every season he has been with the Wings and we’re very happy to have him signed for an additional three seasons.”

The terms of the deal were not part of the announcement, but TSN reports that Osgood will earn “close to $1.5 million a season.”  TSN also points out that he is 50-11-12 since returning to the Wings for the 05-06 season.

This is a great deal for the Wings, who are getting a bargain price for one of the game’s top goalies. Even if Osgood can’t keep up this pace over the next three seasons, his presence in the locker room will be invaluable, particularly  when the time finally comes for Jimmy Howard to make the leap to the NHL.

Ansar Khan asks the obvious question: “where does this leave Dominik Hasek?” Well, all Dom would say is he’s focused on his game now and that he’ll decide after the season. Now that the Wings have Osgood locked up, whatever Dom choses to do, they’ll be okay.

Wings 3, Stars 0

Published
by
Matt Saler
on January 5, 2008
in Chris Osgood and Dominik Hasek
. 2 Comments

I’ll have a few more comments on this game tomorrow morning, but for now I will say this:

After Hasek’s stellar 22-save performance today, it’s absolutely time to stop with comments like “… Hasek’s extremely shaky goaltending …” and “… doubts about Dominik Hasek in goal …”  While those things may have been true even a month ago, they simply aren’t any more.

At this point in time, between Chris Osgood and Dominik Hasek, the Detroit Red Wings have the best goaltending front in the League. I don’t think it’s even close.

1/4 Notes

Published
by
Matt Saler
on January 4, 2008
in Aaron Downey, Chris Osgood, Dominik Hasek, Injuries and Tomas Holmstrom
. 2 Comments

Update (4:22 PM): Just noticed that there’s a line about Kopecky in Khan’s post that I don’t remember seeing before. Either I missed it when I first published this post or it was added later, after I asked him about it. - Matt

Update (4:12 PM):  Ted Kulfan clarifies the Holmstrom situation with comment from Tomas on returning to the lineup versus Chicago:

“That’s the plan right now. We’ll see how it feels. I’ll skate again tomorrow (Saturday in Dallas) and hopefully I’ll be able to play (Sunday).”

- Matt

Update (2:16 PM): I shot off an email to Ansar Khan a few minutes ago and have already heard back. Apparently, Tomas Kopecky told him he’s fine and that he’ll be in the lineup tomorrow.

He practiced both days since the injury, so obviously it wasn’t a big deal. - Matt

Ansar Khan reports:

… Kirk Maltby (back strain) is hoping to return to the lineup Tuesday night against the Avalanche. This is contrast with Helene St. James’ report of earlier this week that stated he was looking at a January 12th return. Obviously, he’s made some big strides since Wednesday.

… Tomas Holmstrom  (knee bruise) is confident he’d be able to play tomorrow in Dallas, but says the team won’t let him. He’s hoping to suit up for the game in Chicago on Sunday.

… Both Khan and Bruce MacLeod confirm once again that Dominik Hasek will start versus the Stars while Chris Osgood will face the Blackhawks.

… No word on Tomas Kopecky, who was reported by FSN Detroit to have suffered a hand injury in the third period Wednesday night. Either he’s fine or the media hasn’t picked up on it.

… Also, be sure to stop by HockeyTownTodd and wish Baroque happy birthday. And read her piece on Aaron Downey.

There’s also Abel to Yzerman, calling out the Detroit sports media “since 1977.”

… Lastly, be sure to check out the various player grades and mid-season reports the media has posted at the halfway point:

Meech sent to Grand Rapids

Published
by
Matt Saler
on January 3, 2008
in Chris Osgood, Derek Meech, Dominik Hasek, Roster Moves and Tomas Holmstrom
. 0 Comments

Update (8:01 PM): George Malik has some observations well worth reading. - Matt

Update (7:03 PM): Red Wings TV has added an interview of Meech before the media. Derek mostly talks about getting back into a groove as far as his game goes. - Matt

Update (2:40 PM): Helene St. James has more, including quotes from Meech as well as Mike Babcock, and an alternate return date: January 17th.  - Matt

Ansar Khan reports that the Wings have re-assigned Derek Meech to the AHL on a conditioning stint.

As per Article 13.8 of the CBA (large PDF), Meech does not have to clear waivers to go down to Grand Rapids for conditioning and therefore is not in danger of being claimed by another team, though the League will review this move to ensure the Wings’ aren’t merely circumventing the waivers. The fact that Meech is little more than a 7th wheel on the Wings’ defensive bus, and that the team has no need to clear up roster space, has to mean there won’t be a problem.

He can only stay with the Griffins for 14 days, which will put him in six games and bring him back to Detroit just in time to accompany the Wings on their three-game California trip beginning January 19th.

This is a class move by the Wings. Meech has no doubt picked up a lot in practice watching guys like Nick Lidstrom, Chris Chelios, and Brian Rafalski, but there’s no substitute for actually playing. As a promising young defenseman, his career has in many ways been put on hold this year, so anything the Wings can do to get him playing time is a good thing.

Khan also reports that Tomas Holmstrom is looking at returning  either Sunday in Chicago or Tuesday versus Colorado.

Also, predictably, Dominik Hasek will start Saturday and will back up Chris Osgood on Sunday.