Archive for the 'Henrik Zetterberg' Category

5/6 Notes

Published
by
Matt Saler
on May 6, 2008
in Fabian Brunnstrom, Henrik Zetterberg, Injuries, Playoffs, Stars and Valtteri Filppula
. 0 Comments

Update (4:50 PM): Kukla’s Korner has transcripts of the Dave Tippett and Marty Turco/Brenden Morrow calls. - Matt

Update (3:11 PM): Alanah at Kukla’s Korner has the transcript from Henrik Zetterberg’s conference call posted. It’s a long read, but a good one. - Matt

Bruce MacLeod reports that Valtteri Filppula (twisted leg) did not skate for the second day in a row. Filppula told Helene St. James, “I feel better,” and that he’ll try to skate tomorrow.

Although Mike Babcock is telling the media he expects Filppula will play Thursday, the team continues to prepare for his possible absence by using all new second and third lines. This is just prudence in action because Fil’s status for Game 1 is dependent on whether or not he can make the Wednesday skate. If he can’t, it looks like the team will have to go with the adjusted lineup and hope that three practices is enough to gel the units together. Given the experience level of all six forwards involved, that shouldn’t be a problem, however.

On the Stars side of things, Mark at Andrew’s Dallas Stars and NHL Blog, has an update here. On a semi-related note, my series preview is coming Thursday, early in the afternoon.

Paul Kukla has the NHL press release on the officials for the Conference Finals here.

Also, via Snapshots comes the latest on the Fabian Brunnstrom sweepstakes. Basically, we should know where he’s headed in a week to ten days.

Lastly, the NHL hosted media conference calls with Mike Babcock, Henrik Zetterberg, Brenden Morrow and Marty Turco, and Dave Tippett today. I expect transcripts to be made available soon. I’ll post them when they show up on the Media site.

Zetterberg’s Spinner

Published
by
Matt Saler
on May 2, 2008
in Henrik Zetterberg and Video
. 1 Comment

Via Kukla’s Korner, the video of Henrik Zetterberg’s second goal of the night from Game 4:

Johan Franzen’s Hat Trick

Published
by
Matt Saler
on April 26, 2008
in Avalanche, Henrik Zetterberg, Johan Franzen, Playoffs, Valtteri Filppula and Video
. 0 Comments

For your viewing pleasure, Johan Franzen’s hat trick via NHL TV: (after the jump)
Continue reading ‘Johan Franzen’s Hat Trick’

Zetterberg, Datsyuk Selke finalists

Published
by
Matt Saler
on April 25, 2008
in Henrik Zetterberg, Links, Pavel Datsyuk and Selke
. 0 Comments

Update (4:49 PM): Bruce MacLeod relates that he had the three finalists finishing 1) Datsyuk 2) Madden and 3) Zetterberg on his ballot. - Matt

Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk have been named two of the three Selke Trophy finalists. John Madden of New Jersey is the other. Congratulations to them both. I just hope the votes don’t get split between them.

4/9 Links

Published
by
Matt Saler
on April 9, 2008
in Henrik Zetterberg, Hockey Bloggers, Hockey Media, Injuries, Ken Holland, Mike Babcock, Playoffs, Predators and Sergei Fedorov
. 3 Comments

Update (3:53 PM): Bruce MacLeod provides some perspective here. - Matt

Update (12:29 PM): Over at the NHL Fanhouse, the gang has a roundtable on the Western Conference playoffs. - Matt

Update (12:15 PM): Here’s yesterday’s obligatory read, in case you missed it: Scotty Bowman’s Q&A with the fans on Slapshot. Be sure to check out George Malik’s question. - Matt

Update (10:55 AM): Dave of Gorilla Crouch has a look at the Wings’ faceoff trends against Nashville this season here. Direct link to his handy Google Spreadsheet on the topic here. - Matt

Preview coming. For now, some links:

… IwoCPO, who’s been a veritable posting machine the past couple days, has his first round predictions up at Abel to Yzerman.

He also appeared on the New York Times’ Slapshot blog here.

… Bruce Ciskie previewed the Wings/Predators series over at the NHL Fanhouse.

… For those fluent in Portuguese, Humberto Ferndandes has a preview of the series at Red Wings Brasil. Here’s a rough translation.

… One of the few Predator bloggers, PredJoe, has some comments on his team here. His outlook is positive.

… Most media are writing the Wings off, but James Mirtle is one journalist who isn’t. He has them going all the way.

So does the Denver Post’s Terry Frei.

… Ansar Khan “dispels” some myths about the Wings in his latest. It’s pretty basic stuff and what’s surprising is so much of the hockey media just doesn’t get it.

… The Wings have noticed the animosity coming out of the media and, predictably, they are less than appreciative. George Malik has a brief roundup here. Note McCarty’s quote especially.

… Malik also has a roundup of the latest injury updates.

… Did you know that Mike Babcock is on the hot seat? Neither did Ken Holland.

… The News’ Bob Wojnowski has a nice long piece on Henrik Zetterberg in today’s edition. The best part? Hank’s final quote:

“Hopefully, we can come to an agreement and I can stay here for a long time. I’ve noticed the last two years, when I’m in Sweden at the end of August, I really want to come back home. They take care of us here and we have a good team. It’s nice.”

… The Washington Post has a piece on former Red Wing Sergei Fedorov that’s worth reading. (via Abel to Yzerman)

… TSN has a new look, but still doesn’t have sport-specific RSS feeds. What’s that about? On the new look: it’s slick, but will take some getting used to.

… On a related note, the new NHL TV portal has launched. It looks good. The Hockey Show is on at 11:30 AM ET today.

3/27 Notes

Published
by
Matt Saler
on March 27, 2008
in Aaron Downey, Brad Stuart, Darren McCarty, Dominik Hasek, Henrik Zetterberg, Injuries, Pavel Datsyuk, Tomas Holmstrom and Valtteri Filppula
. 3 Comments

Update (8:01 PM): From the “why make it public?  file: Dave Waddell got the location of Brad Stuarts broken finger from the man himself:

“I have pretty good grip with my other three fingers (on his right hand), so that’s a good sign.”

For those keeping score at home, that’s his top hand, which should mean his return will come earlier than expected since his lower hand does most of the serious gripping. Stuart is confident about being back in time to play in Game 1. Here’s hoping he’s mostly, if not all, healed by then because that hand will have a big target on it now that the whole world knows the location of the injury.

Waddell also has something on the McCarty versus Downey situation. Key quote from Mike Babcock:

“We’re giving Mac an opportunity (tonight), Downs probably won’t be playing (tonight), but that’s just so Mac can get into a game. That’s no reflection on what Downs has been able to do with us.”

Still, both players will be competing for roster spots. George Malik sums it up nicely:

One might see McCarty’s ready-to-play status is healthy competition for Dallas Drake and, to a lesser extent, Jiri Hudler or Tomas Kopecky as a 3rd/4th line presence who can excel on the forecheck instead of a replacement for Downey’s role as a pure “policeman.”

Of course, McCarty’s ability to excel on the forecheck at the NHL level these days has yet to be proven. - Matt

Update (2:14 PM): … Ansar Khan reports that Dominik Hasek will not play tomorrow and that Chris Osgood will start.

… He also says that Tomas Holmstrom is supposed to undergo further testing today. Apparently Mike Babcock doesn’t know the results of yesterday’s tests, but told Khan that it’s looking positive. I’ll believe it when I see Homer back in the lineup.

… Khan clarifies MacLeod’s comments on Samuelsson by saying the Swede left practice early. According to Babcock, he’s questionable for tomorrow.

… Dallas Drake told Khan he’s ready to go, but Babcock wouldn’t commit to it.

… Brad Stuart told Khan that he’s optmisitc he’ll be back in time for Game 1.

… Khan also confirms that Aaron Downey will be scratched tomorrow.  - Matt

Update (12:56 PM): MacLeod has more:

…  I don’t know why this didn’t register with me before when I looked at the lines: Mikael Samuelsson did not skate today. MacLeod says it’s because he has “tightness in his groin.” Apparently the team is being cautious, so his status for tomorrow is unknown.

… Dominik Hasek could play tomorrow, depending on how he feels tomorrow morning.

… It looks like Blues fans will be disappointed: Aaron Downey will be a healthy scratch, with Mark Hartigan (unfortunately) getting a spot instead.

… It looks like Valtteri Filppula will be back tomorrow. - Matt

Update (11:52 AM): Just after I publish, I see Bruce MacLeod’s latest:

… Hasek did not practice today, so he must be out tomorrow. Jimmy Howard already made the drive down I-96 and practiced with the team this morning.

… Darren McCarty’s debut is still on.

… Tomas Holmstrom “took a quick twirl,” but didn’t stay any longer than that.

… Valtteri Filppula stayed out there the whole time, though MacLeod casts doubt on his status for tomorrow night by saying “[he] might be back in the lineup soon.”

… Lastly, the line combos from practice:

Datsyuk-Zetterberg-Cleary
Hudler-Franzen-Filppula
Kopecky-Draper-Maltby
Hartigan-Drake-McCarty

Don’t read too much into Drake’s presence on the fourth unit. He practiced Monday as well, but  didn’t play Tuesday. There’s still a chance he could sit out once again.

The defensive pairings haven’t changed:

Lidstrom-Rafalski
Kronwall-Chelios
Lebda-Lilja

 - Matt

… The big news is that Darren McCarty will make his re-debut with the Wings tomorrow night against the Blues. It will be his first game in the Winged Wheel since May 3, 2004, and his first in the NHL in nearly a year. No word yet on who he’ll be skating with, but don’t expect a full-fledged reunion of the Grind Line. He probably won’t be getting third line minutes.

Thanks to Christy Hammond at Behind the Jersey, who was kind enough to give me tickets, Megan and I will be at the game. No pressure Mac, but a repeat of your last home debut would be nice.

… Tim Miller, writing over at Bleacher Report, has a good take on the whole McCarty return. He provides some needed perspective on the situation. Referring to Friday, he writes,

A great game, and a great story, but one that a Red Wings fans should hope ends on April 6th when their top 12 forwards, including Holmstom and Flippula, are deemed healthy enough for the post-season.  The lineup that has driven this team to the President’s Trophy and gives them the best shot at post-season success.

Miller goes on to cite McCarty’s speed problem, his effective disappearance in Calgary, and the fact that he’s returning from a rib injury, which he says is “not a the best injury to have for a grinder.” Indeed.

I’m thrilled to see the success of Mac’s comeback attempt, but I’m keeping my expectations low. I joked about his hat trick above, but I don’t actually believe he can reproduce his AHL performance in the NHL. The question is whether or not he can fill a role on a team that is already very-well rounded. On one hand, I hope he can, but on the other, I’m with Miller. Mac is not going to be the one piece that puts the Wings over the edge because they already have all the pieces. If his addition does nothing more than give them the option of inserting him into the lineup, that’s fine because it’s really all they need.

… Helene St. James reports that Dominik Hasek (flu) is on antibiotics. If he can’t practice today, the Wings will recall Jimmy Howard, who they sent back to Grand Rapids yesterday. Here’s hoping the flu bug doesn’t spread any further.

… Barring a setback in today’s skate, Valtteri Filppula (knee, groin) is expected to return tomorrow night. Dallas Drake, on the other hand, is questionable with a bruised sternum.

With Fil and Mac in the lineup and Drake out, the lines should look something like this:

Filppula-Datsyuk-Franzen
Samuelsson-Zetterberg-Cleary
Kopecky-Draper-Maltby
McCarty-Hudler-Downey

… The status of Tomas Holmstrom (abdomen/groin) for the remainder of the season is still unknown. The results of his tests should come out today. It’s not looking like he’ll be back before the end of the regular season.

… Ted Kulfan reports that Brad Stuart (broken finger) will start rehabilitation today or tomorrow. The goal is to have him back by Game 1 of the first round.

… The Wings will have an open practice on Saturday. The doors open at 11:00 AM and the skate starts at noon.  If you bring new or used hockey equipment, you get in free. Otherwise, it’s a $5 donation. The money and the equipment will go toward inner-city youth hockey programs.

… Ansar Khan has a nice piece on the possible Selke candidacies of Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg. Arguments can be made for both players, who should finishe 1 and 2 in any case. However, I think Datsyuk’s reputation as an offensive forward hurts him. It seems to me that his two-way ability is one of the best-kept secrets in Hockeytown. Zetterberg’s two-way game is well-publicized and has been ever since he entered the League. Datsyuk, on the other hand, is only getting acclaim for his defensive play more recently.

Even I have a hard time imagining Pavel winning the Selke over Hank, but that may just be my homerism for #40 coming through.

…  Over at Abel to Yzerman, IwoCPO suggests the Avs hire Patrick Roy as head coach after they fire Joel Quenneville. That would be … interesting.

… Lastly, I can’t let this pass without comment. The idea that Aaron Downey is a coward or classless is ridiculous. The guy has been the epitome of class all season and, by all accounts, is universally respected in the Wings’ locker room. He has been very smart to pick his fights wisely and so it’s no surprise to me that he turned down King Tuesday night. There’s no law, written or unwritten, that says he has to answer every challenge. Downey’s job is to spark his teammates with big hits and the occassional fight, not to allow himself to be goaded into dropping the gloves.

I’m sorry Blues fans, but if you’re looking for someone to call a coward or classless, look to your own team. Downey is a much better man than, say, Barret Jackman, who was, is, and always will be, a donkey.

If Downey decides to drop the gloves in defense of his character tomorrow night, I fully expect to see him acquit himself well. If he choses to keep his gloves on, I’ll certainly think no less of him.

2/27 Notes

Published
by
Matt Saler
on February 27, 2008
in Brad Stuart, Henrik Zetterberg, Injuries, Jonathan Ericsson, Niklas Kronwall, Oilers, Pavel Datsyuk and Valtteri Filppula
. 2 Comments

Update (10:26 AM): The comments on IwoCPO’s response to Drew Sharp are worth reading, as usual. Particularly Baroque’s from 8:36 AM. - Matt

Update (10:04 AM): Brennan at Gloveside has a great discussion on the Wings’ breakout troubles here. The post includes what has to be the line of the week at the end of third paragraph. I won’t spoil it for you.

As for the solution to the breakout issues: Nick Lidstrom, Brian Rafalski, Niklas Kronwall, and Chris Chelios. As talented and impressive as Derek Meech, Kyle Quincey and Jonathan Ericsson have been, they can’t measure up to the masters of that particular art form.  - Matt

Update (8:35 AM): IwoCPO responds to Drew Sharp’s column here. - Matt

… The Wings lost last night in Edmonton, 4-3 in a shootout. They overcame a two-goal lead in the third and then gave up a goal in the final minute of the period as the Oilers forced overtime. Robert Nilsson scored the only goal in the shootout to give Edmonton their 13th shootout win this season.

I was not able to watch the game, but judging from the highlights, it was an exciting one.

… Good news: Valtteri Filppula scored last night and now has two goals in a little over a week. That’s closer to the correct rate of scoring, Fil.

… More good news: Jonathan Ericsson notched his first NHL goal to put the Wings on the board. Hopefully that’s just the first of many, many more.

… Anyone else want to see Pavel Datsyuk shoot the puck like that more often? I love it when he breaks out that rocket snap shot of his.

… It was nice to see Henrik Zetterberg try something a little different in the shootout. That brings the number of shootout moves in his repertoire to a grand total of about 4. Maybe someday he’ll come across a goalie that hasn’t seen the Forsberg Deke™ and he can use that one again!

… Post-game links

… The papers are understandably stocked with stories about Brad Stuart today:

Helene St. James has a straightforward piece about the new defenseman, complete with quotes from Ken Holland. It looks like he won’t join the team until tomorrow, though he is expected to play Friday. The man slated to be his defensive partner, Niklas Kronwall, is expected to return that night as well.

Ted Kulfan’s lede says it all:

The Red Wings found out last season a team can’t have enough defensemen during the playoffs.

Very true.

Drew Sharp, of course, second-guesses the move and wonders why Ken Holland wasn’t able to land a forward when guys like Martin Lapointe and Sergei Fedorov went to the East for a song. Two words Drew: Central Division. Two more: Eastern Conference. Put them together and you have a simple concept: the Wings are in the same division as Chicago and Columbus, and those teams aren’t looking to do the Wings any favors. And vice versa.

The Caps and Senators, on the other hand, are in the Eastern Conference and therefore not immediate threats to the success of the franchise. Do you get it? Sure, it’s disappointing that the Wings were able to bring in some scoring help, but the simple fact that the Jackets and Hawks are in the Central meant the asking price was too high for them.

Also, Martin Lapointe, Drew? You’re upset that they didn’t bring that loser back?

John Niyo has a refreshingly positive look at the move and makes a great point. Whereas teams like Dallas, Colorado, and San Jose are placing their hopes in their new acquisitions,

… teams like Anaheim and Detroit, the presumptive Cup favorites before Tuesday’s wheeling and dealing, are banking on something else: Themselves.

When Jiri Hudler’s turn came up at the shootout last night, Ken Daniels said a goal there would have be a much-needed boost to his confidence. He didn’t score, but you have to think that his not being traded was a boost of sorts. The same goes for the other struggling forwards. The management showed faith in the current squad and that counts for something. Whether the guys will honor that faith remains to be seen, of course, but it’s hard to believe that they won’t.

Niyo also points out that the Wings did not give up any of their “kids.” That will pay off in the future and, with the team they have at the moment,  shouldn’t hamper their chances now.

For another blogger’s perspective on the trade, see Gorilla Crouch.

Wings 4, Avs 0, Rivalry Fans 999

Published
by
Sarah Baker
on February 19, 2008
in 2007-2008, Aaron Downey, Chris Chelios, Derek Meech, Henrik Zetterberg, Injuries and Mike Babcock
. 10 Comments

The rivalry’s back and people are losing fingers. Okay so when the versus announcer shouted about a finger getting ripped off by Zetterberg, he was talking about a beautiful steal off of Jeff Finger, but we can dream, right? So for those of you who didn’t see the most bittersweet game of the year, you’ve undoubtedly now heard about the Nicklas Lidstrom crisis. Barely six minutes into the first, Ian Laperrierre took our prized captain into the boards in what appeared to be a relatively clean hit, except for a rising elbow. Lids crumpled and then struggled to return to play. He was helped off the ice and I’m pretty sure everyone watching was thinking concussion with how dazed he looked. Shockingly, it was announced later in the game that he passed the concussion test with flying colors. When Chris Chelios came on for an interview in the intermission, he looked like he’d just been to a funeral. It appears, however, that the attack on Nick was just what this team needed to come together and kick some butt. Aaron Downey did his best Darren McCarty impression, chasing down Laperrierre not once, but twice, to deal out justice. I don’t know about you, but I loved seeing Babs get all huffy with Granato. Why don’t they ever put mikes on the coaches? I would have loved to know what words were being exchanged there. Though it was pretty fun trying to guess. Oh and for anyone who was wondering about our defensive depth going into the deadline - we pitched a shutout yesterday without our top 3 defensemen. Youngsters Derek Meech and Kyle Quincey stepped up and showed they can be counted on to carry the big minutes if necessary. Sure it was only one game, but it still left me feeling a lot more comfortable about our depth chart.

Honestly if it weren’t for the whole Lidstrom debacle, this game would have been more comforting than a warm cup of cocoa on a cold winter day. The Wings ended their losing streak, righted their powerplay, and wrestled a win from the jaws of the injury bug. All at the same time, they revived a treasured rivalry. Though the animosity may have dwindled away over the years, the cup of hate has just been refilled. The Wings do not like it when you hurt their captain. Period. If we see the Avs in the playoffs, I expect the mood to be testy at best. I can’t wait. I wonder if the sales of Downey jerseys just skyrocketed…

1/28 Zetterberg Update

Published
by
Matt Saler
on January 29, 2008
in Henrik Zetterberg, Injuries and Links
. 1 Comment

Ansar Khan reports that Henrik Zetterberg will play tomorrow night against the Coyotes. He had no setbacks today during practice and is feeling good. Mike Babcock told Khan that he will not ease Zetterberg back into the lineup, eloquently saying, “If he’s playing he’s playing, if he’s not playing, he’s not playing.”

1/28 Zetterberg Update

Published
by
Matt Saler
on January 28, 2008
in Henrik Zetterberg, Injuries and Links
. 1 Comment

According to Bruce MacLeod, Henrik Zetterberg skated today for the first time since before the All Star Break. Apparently, his back felt fine, which is a definite good sign and should mean a return this week, either Wednesday versus Phoenix or Friday versus Colorado, is likely.