Archive for the 'Justin Abdelkader' Category

4/9 Injury Update

Published
by
Matt Saler
on April 9, 2008
in Brad Stuart, Injuries, Justin Abdelkader, Mikael Samuelsson, Playoffs, Predators and Tomas Holmstrom
. 2 Comments

Update (3:55 PM): Bruce MacLeod has an expanded version of the Babcock quote on Samuelsson provided by Ted Kulfan (below). - Matt

Update (3:08 PM): More from Kulfan. He characterizes the final statuses of Stuart, Samuelsson, and Holmstrom as game-time decisions. - Matt

Update (2:48 PM): A correction: The lineup as provided below has one of the “three of Abdelkader, McCarty, and Downey” in it: Downey (though St. James says it’s McCarty). Sorry about that. It’s what I get for writing a post during class.

That said, I’d still like to see Abdelkader or Downey play over Samuelsson, unless #37 is absolutely ready to go. On that note, here’s a great quote from Babcock via Ted Kulfan:

“[Samuelsson] just told me if it was up to him he wants to play. But my kid wants to play for us tomorrow, too. He’s one of those guys that’ll skate again tomorrow and we’ll see how he reacts.”

- Matt

Helene St. James reports that Brad Stuart (broken finger), Tomas Holmstrom (groin), and Mikael Samuelsson (groin) are all “questionable” for Game 1. She tempers that claim with quotes from Babcock that indicate the team is just practicing its usual caution by not saying for sure.

Bruce MacLeod, on the other hand, reports that it “appears that defenseman Brad Stuart will be ready to play.” He says nothing specific about Holmstrom, but lists him on the probable top line. He says it’s possible Samuelsson “might be ready.”

Ansar Khan says the final decision on Homer, Stuart, and Sammy won’t be made until tomorrow.

Based on all three reports, it doesn’t look like Justin Abdelkader will be in the lineup after all. MacLeod lists him as a likely stratch and St. James says Abdelkader told her he doesn’t think he’ll play.

A projected lineup via MacLeod and Khan:

Datsyuk-Zetterberg-Holmstrom
Filppula-Franzen-Cleary
Hudler-Draper-Samuelsson
Drake-Hartigan-Downey

Lidstrom-Rafalski
Kronwall-Stuart
Lilja-Chelios

Healthy scratches …
McCarty
Abdelkader
Helm
Lebda
Meech

Injuries …
Maltby (hamstring)
Kopecky (knee)

Not sure I’m a fan of that look. Unless Samuelsson is absolutely 100%, I’d much rather see someone more abrasive in that spot.

The Wings need to set a tone physically as well as offensively and defensively. Playing as much talent as possible is great, of course. But sitting all three both of Downey, Abdelkader and McCarty after Samuelsson’s had just one full practice (if that) since his injury? Not so much.

4/7 Notes

Published
by
Matt Saler
on April 7, 2008
in 2007-2008, Blackhawks, Brian Rafalski, Chris Chelios, Dallas Drake, Darren McCarty, Dominik Hasek and Justin Abdelkader
. 0 Comments

… The Wings wrapped up the 2007-2008 regular season with a 4-1 win over Chicago yesterday afternoon. There isn’t much to say about the game. The Hawks put up a fair fight, but were too shorthanded to do much, and the Wings were too businesslike to let the game get out of hand.

… We can hope that Jiri Hudler’s goal is a sign of more to come in the post-season. Darren McCarty’s feed on the goal may not become a regular event, but it looks like he’s rounding into form. Dominik Hasek’s performance also helped put to rest some doubts about his readiness for the playoffs.

… Two defensemen with minor injuries, Brian Rafalski (neck) and Chris Chelios (groin), sat out the game for rest purposes. Derek Meech filled in for Rafalski and Jonathan Ericsson was called up late to fill in for Chelios.

… Dallas Drake also had the game off, though apparenly not because of an injury. Justin Abdelkader subbed for the elder Wings forward.

… Tomas Holmstrom returned from a groin injury but wasn’t overwhelming.

… The Wings won the Jennings Trophy for fewest team goals-against, though not without some controversy. George Malik covers that here.

… Pavel Datsyuk finished with the best plus-minus in the NHL at +41. He still wasn’t mentioned during the NBC broadcast as a possible Selke candidate. The old stereotype of Pavel Datsyuk, the typically offensive Russian forward, persists.

Nick Lidstrom finished +40, by the way.

… NHL.com is launching a re-design this week. It sounds like it’ll be pretty good

4/5 Notes

Published
by
Matt Saler
on April 5, 2008
in Brian Rafalski, Darren Helm, Injuries, Justin Abdelkader, Kris Draper, Lines, Mikael Samuelsson and Playoffs
. 0 Comments

Update (2:12 PM): Helene St. James notes that the playoff schedule given below is not yet official. It’s just what the team is anticipating.

Also, I’ve added a sidebar section with first round info and links. For some reason, it’s not showing up on the main page, but it’s there in the post pages. I hope to get that fixed, but because it’s tied to a conflict between the new version of Wordpress and the k2 theme I use, I can’t do much aside from wait for a fix to be posted. - Matt

Update (2:06 PM): For those wondering why the Wings signed Abdelkader when they could have just called up a Griffin or two, here’s my thinking (posted as a comment over at Abel to Yzerman in response to IwoCPO calling it a panic signing):

I think it’s a matter of timing. Abdelkader decided just this past week that he was going to forgo his senior year at MSU. When he told the Wings, they had two routes they could take: 1) sign him by the Saturday deadline and have him available for the playoffs, or 2) let him hang out for a summer and sign him by the August deadline so that he could join the organization next season.

The benefits of Option 1 are obvious: you can bring in a highly-touted prospect who would be idle otherwise. He brings a fast, physical style as well as buckets of motivation to play for his home team. If nothing else, he can join the group of young guys the team will be calling up at the end of the Griffins’ season and give the Wings a heck of a practice squad.

So, they signed him to an amateur tryout in order to whet his appetite. He then signed the entry level contract and now has the chance to play hockey in real life this summer instead of on his Xbox.

Not a panic signing at all. Just a realization that an idle Justin Abdelkader is a waste of talent.

- Matt

Ansar Khan has an update from practice:

… Tomas Holmstrom (abdomen/groin) is definitely going to play tomorrow. He’ll skate on Henrik Zetterberg’s wing with Pavel Datsyuk.

… Kris Draper (groin) is out tomorrow, but claimed he’ll be back for Game 1. So, the 10-14 days claim from the FSN broadcast Thursday night was incorrect. Draper implied that he’d be playing through pain by telling Khan he would play tomorrow if it were the playoffs.

… Mikael Samuelsson (groin) was on the ice but not for long. No return date has been set yet.

… The team recalled Darren Helm from the Griffins, apparently to give Babcock more options.

… The practice lines:

Datsyuk-Zetterberg-Holmstrom
Filppula-Franzen-Cleary
Drake-Hartigan-Downey
Hudler-Helm-McCarty

… Justin Abdelkader was the odd man out in practice, but Babcock told Khan he’d dress 13 forwards prior to the game and decide who sits after warmups.

… Brian Rafalski will be rested tomorrow, which means Derek Meech will be on the blueline.

… Lastly, Khan provides the first round schedule. Not times yet, but Game 2 will be an evening game, apparently:

Game 1 — Thursday in Detroit
Game 2 — Saturday in Detroit
Game 3 — April 14 in Nashville
Game 4 — April 16 in Nashville
x-Game 5 — April 18 in Detroit
x-Game 6 — April 20 in Nashville
x-Game 7 — April 22 in Detroit

x-if necessary

Abdelkader signs entry-level contract

Published
by
Matt Saler
on April 4, 2008
in Justin Abdelkader and Roster Moves
. 1 Comment

Bruce MacLeod reports that the Wings have signed 21-year-old Justin Abdelkader to a three-year entry-level contract.

No financial details have been release yet, of course, but there is a limited range for these types of contracts. As a “Group 1 Player” drafted in 2005, though, Abdelkader can receive no more than $850,000 a year and no less than $62,500 under the current CBA (PDF). It’s a good bet Abdelkader is in the upper half of that range.

He’ll be staying with the team throughout the playoffs.

No surprise here. Abdelkader had until tomorrow to sign in order to be eligible to play in the post-season and you know he wasn’t going to miss the chance to suit up for the Wings before next year. He is a homegrown Michigan boy, after all.

Ansar Khan quotes Ken Holland as saying, “Now it’s up to Mike (coach Babcock) to decide if he wants to use him.” You can bet “Abs” will make a good case for himself.

Kopecky’s ACL torn

Published
by
Matt Saler
on April 4, 2008
in Darren McCarty, Injuries, Justin Abdelkader and Tomas Kopecky
. 4 Comments

George Sipple reports that Tomas Kopecky tore his ACL and sprained his MCL last night.

According to Ken Holland, he’ll need surgery when the swelling subsides. He will miss 4-6 months, which puts him out of the playoffs for sure. At latest, he’ll be making his return to the ice around the time the Wings start the 08-09 season.

What a shame. Kopecky has had a solid season, occasional weak games aside. He plays angry, which is always a good thing to see in a Red Wings forward, and has the size to back it up. As Ken Holland told Sipple,

“We’ll miss him. Our depth is getting tested up front.”

The Wings do have that depth, though. Given the size and speed of Justin Abdelkader, it’s not outside the realm of possibility that he could find a place on the roster while players like Mikael Samuelsson (groin) and Kris Draper (groin) recover. His lack of experience counts against him, of course, but he stands a fair chance of winning over Babcock, I would think.

Darren McCarty is also an option, though he apparently has a ways to go with attaining NHL-level conditioning (one possible explanation for his being a healthy scratch twice since returning).

Best wishes on a speedy recovery, Tomas. See you next season.

4/4 Notes

Published
by
Matt Saler
on April 4, 2008
in 2007-2008, Blue Jackets, Dominik Hasek, Injuries, Justin Abdelkader, Tomas Holmstrom and Tomas Kopecky
. 2 Comments

… I only caught the first period of the game, so I can only comment directly on that.

I thought it was a marked improvement over their first period performance in Chicago Wednesday night. Dominik Hasek looked strong, the forwards were dangerous, and the defense was relatively tight.

It’s easy to write the Jackets off because they aren’t making the playoffs once again. However, they have developed into a talented team and are just a piece or two away from providing competition in the Central. The common assessment is that they just need a center for Rick Nash and a puck-moving defenseman. It’s hard to disagree. They’ve already got most everything else.

… Just from the highlight reel, it’s easy to see why the Wings had to make a comeback in this one: Pascal Leclaire. The guy had 36 saves in his first game back from a concussion and there were some very impressive ones.

Hasek’s 20 saves is an obvious improvement over his performance prior to being pulled Wednesday, but I’m a little concerned about the two goals he did allow. The replays show long shots that were only marginally screened. I can’t tell if either of them was tipped, but I do know that the original shooter got credit both times. So, if they came off deflections, it was off a Red Wing both times. That would just be Dom’s luck.

Maybe someone who saw them live can comment on Dom’s performance.

… The good news to come out of the game, aside from the win, was the fact that the Wings finally locked up first place overall and home ice throughout the playoffs. I hear they hand out a trophy for that, but I’m more interested in the fact that they won’t have to deal with any road Game 7’s.

… The bad news to come out of the game was the injury to Tomas Kopecky. He hurt his knee 6:40 into the third period when he got tangled with Manny Malholtra. He didn’t make it back and the initial impression isn’t a positive one. He’ll be undergoing tests to determine the severity of the injury.

Kopey is a role player on the team, but a valuble one. He’s still in the maturing phase of his game, but he plays with an edge that will be vital in the post-season. Here’s hoping he’s not out long.

… In addition to the bad news about Kopecky, the news on Maltby was less than good: Mickey Redmond said before the game that it looks like he’ll be out 10-14 days.

… With Vancouver’s loss and Nashville’s win, the Canucks and Blackhawks were eliminated from playoff contention. The remaining possibilities are Calgary and Nashville.

If Chicago beats the Preds tonight, we’ll see Nashville in the first round. If the Predators lose and the Predators win, we’ll get the Flames in the first round for the second year in a row.

… By all accounts, it sounds like Justin Abdelkader had a strong debut. Given that and the fact that Kopecky is hurt, he may find a regular injury replacement spot in the coming weeks.

Of course, there remains the small issue of his entry level contract, on which he and the team must agree by Saturday or he’ll be inelligible for post-season play. I doubt there’ll be much trouble with that, though.

… An injury update: Tomas Holmstrom (groin/abdomen) characterized himself as definitely in for Sunday’s game.