Johan Franzen, who played well in the playoffs last season and had his breakthrough season in 2008-2009 has really shown he can step up when it really matters. He leads the Red Wings with 18 points, half of which come from goals. He has been the biggest asset to Detroit in these playoffs. 

Chris Osgood has also been outstanding. Many doubted his play because of his season stats and most people do not look at him as a Stanley Cup goalie even after last season. He has shown that he is more than capable though. His stats may not be up there with Fleury or even Khabibulin but his 0.922 save percentage and 2.06 goals against average have proven to be strong enough, even without Brian Rafalski in the first five games of the Anaheim series. 

Scoring has been coming from other unexpected places. Pavel Datsyuk has been seldom seen in these playoffs and has been held to just five points in 12 games. Second and third line players like Dan Cleary, Valtteri Filppula and Jiri Hudler have stepped up their game and have combined for 27 points in only 12 games.

Detroit was able to take game 1 of its series against Chicago because of these backup goal scorers. The series is not over yet though, not by a long shot. Detroit won the season series against the Black Hawks 4-2 but they lost the last two meetings. Detroit will need to keep up with the speed and skill of Chicago’s young players like Patrick Kane, Patrick Sharp and Jonathan Toews. Chicago’s young blue liners like Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook will also need to be contained. Veterans Brian Campbell and Martin Havlat pose major threats offensively as they have combined for 22 points in twelve games. 

Detroit’s goal-tending has to remain rock solid and their go-to offence-men like Datsyuk have to step up in order for them to win three more games in this series.

But the Red Wings’ roster looks remarkably similar this year as it did last. In fact, if the Wings have anything, it’s too much talent, and not enough room to make use of it all – a striking blend of fresh faces who have impressed beyond expectations, and veterans who have been around to see the team through four championships that’s so deep it’s actually squeezing NHL-ready players out of contention. And that’s not really a problem you mind having all too much.

In ‘07-’08 the Wings’ record was 54-21-7, totalling 115 points. They led the NHL in most shots taken per game (34.4) and in fewest shots allowed (23.5), led the league in face-off percentage (53.3) and they outshot opponents in 71 of 82 games. And there is very little reason to expect any of that to change.

Bringing Back the Talent

Forwards Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg have become the face of the organization upon the departure of Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan – both late draft picks hand-chosen by master scout Hakan Andersson. Combined, they totalled 189 points and were a +71. While the Eurotwins will start this season on different lines, countless times when the Wings have struggled it’s been the pairing of these two in combination with Tomas Holmstrom’s antics in front of the net that’s helped them back up – and we have no reason to expect anything different this season.

Secondary scoring shouldn’t be a problem either – between the breaking out of journeyman Dan Cleary and big Swede Johan Franzen last season, and the only increasing production of youngsters like Valtteri Filppula (recently resigned for three years) and Jiri Hudler, the Wings have got it taken care of in terms of production. And of course the old grinders, Kris Draper, Kirk Maltby, Darren McCarty and the likes, are still around as well.

The Wings’ blueline, logjammed as it is, goes 10 deep. Starting off with Nicklas Lidstrom, the perennial Norris Trophy winner and first European captain to win a Cup, the back end is stacked – former Devil Brian Rafalski, finally injury-free Niklas Kronwall and his new defensive partner, another journeyman who found a home in Detroit, Brad Stuart make up the top four for a blend of skilled puck-moving defensemen, and physical battering rams. Coach Babcock has said the fifth and sixth spots will be taken up by Brett Lebda and Andreas Lilja, but veteran Chris Chelios will also be back, and Derek Meech, Kyle Quincey, and Jonathan Ericsson are waiting in the (no pun intended) wings.

When it comes to goaltending, a lot has been said about Chris Osgood – formerly it was argued that he was perhaps the “worst goalie to win a Cup”, but few can claim him the worst goalie to win two. Ozzie stepped up last season and had a career year, proving that he earned the starting job this coming season and relegating prospect Jimmy Howard to at least one more year of being “the future of Red Wings goaltending”. Of course, Osgood has to keep it up, as he’s not the elite goalie some teams boast – but with the sort of defense the Wings have, his calm, patient demeanor should take him far.

Key Losses

Heading into the summer there were a few questions about who would stay and who would go – but only a few. Elite goaltender Dominik Hasek finally decided to call it quits after a shakier year than he may have liked, wherein Osgood replaced him in the first round of the playoffs and never looked back. The decision to bring Dom back last year was undoubtedly a good one, but his departure shouldn’t make a large impact on the team this season and nor should the other loss to retirement, forward Dallas Drake, who had a strong playoffs – and it was great to see him finally lift the Cup and go out on a high note – but is hardly irreplaceable.

Key Acquisitions

Considering how many players were expected to stay on board, especially after the resignings of Lilja, Stuart and, later on in the summer, Filppula, the Wings weren’t really expected to make too much of a splash in the market this summer. On Free Agency Day they picked up goaltender Ty Conklin who, despite a sketchy history with teams like the Oilers and Blue Jackets, stood tall in net for Pittsburgh this past season and will provide both a strong backup for Osgood and a good challenge for Howard – and most of Detroit expected that to be all. When the announcement came the next day that Ken Holland had landed forward Marian Hossa for a year, fans were stunned. Hossa, an elite winger who had 66 points this past season and 100 the seasonbefore deserted Pittsburgh and scorned incredible offers to come to teams like Edmonton, choosing instead to sign for one year with the team he felt had the most talent and the best chance to win – quite the vote of confidence. Hossa will be paired with Datsyuk and Holmstrom, making the Wings’ line of Zetterberg, Franzen and Hudler arguably the best second line in hockey.

In the System

Wings forward prospects Ville Leino (sought out by Finnish scout Ari Vuori and signed shortly after Fabian Brunnstrom decided to choose Dallas over Detroit this past season) and Darren Helm (who had a fantastic playoff run with the Wings this past season) along with defensive prospect Jonathan Ericsson (once ‘Mr. Irrelevant’, the Wings final pick, 291st in the ‘02 draft) were just sent back to the AHL affiliate Grand Rapids Griffins after being deemed by Mike Babcock “the best players I’ve ever been involved with sending to the minors ever”. The Wings are also currently looking to trade defensive prospect Kyle Quincey despite loving his size and the physical presence he brings – because there simply isn’t room (similarly, enforcer Aaron Downey was recently waived as well and will start the season in GR). Goalie prospect Daniel Larssen will join Jimmy Howard in Grand Rapids this season along with other names who have both seen NHL playing time or are expected to soon – Mattias Ritola, Jakub Kindl, Cory Emmerton. Right now the team’s sheer depth is incredible – and something Detroit will be banking on for years to come.

It will be hard for the Wings to repeat – but if any team has a good chance, it’s this one. The team starts off the season chasing Montreal’s record for repeat 100-point seasons, hoping for #9 this year. There is talent playing on Detroit’s third line that could crack the first line on other teams’ rosters, and most importantly that talent intends to stick around – the Wings have created a system that instills loyalty in its players, many of whom have taken hometown discounts to resign with the team. The players believe in the city, the management, and each other – they play hard, with this sort of talent, every single night, and they’ve creatd a reputation that’s got other teams scared of them.

When goalie Chris Osgood was asked during last spring’s playoffs whether there was anything his team did not have, he snappily replied, “A weakness.” Without being too cocky, his statement does hold some water. Is it true enough, though, to lead the Red Wings to Stanley Cup #12? We’ll see starting this Thursday night when the team raises the banner at home against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

• Pavel Datsyuk: Definitely a hard working player for the wings. Does his best every time he steps on the ice. Never stops excelling offensively and defensively.Simply Pavel, as always. Unfortunately for Datsyuk, this year won’t be his.
• Johan Franzen: Franzen has been the surprise of the playoff for the wings, maybe even bigger than Osgood. Johan was extremely productive through out the whole playoff run. Will he win it? I don’t think this year’s the one, he hasn’t proved enough yet, besides the fact he’s getting better with the puck. Is he the MVP? No, since the team kept winning even when he wasn’t in the line-up.
• Nicklas Lidstrom: Lidstrom has been the same year after year. He is by far one of the Wings best players, but sometimes the best player doesn’t necessarily happen to be the MVP, especially in a team like the Red Wings that has so much in-depth talent and the possibility to play better and compensate when Lidstrom isn’t on the ice. They can do so in the playoffs due to the importance of every game, but if the Conn Smythe was awarded for the season’s MVP, I’d go with Lidstrom all the way since the Wings, the best team in the NHL, went through their worst period of the season when Lidstrom was out.
• Chris Osgood: Chris has been outstanding for the Red Wings ever since Mike Babcock pulled Dominik Hasek to throw him in and make him the starting goaltender for every game ever since. Some say he doesn’t deserve much recognition since he’s only shot at 20-25 times a game, but with a team like the Pittsburgh Penguins, any shot counts and any shot could go in. Is he going to win it? One thing’s for sure, he deserves it as much as the one I picked to win it. But unfortunately for Osgood, there is still doubt about his talent.
• Henrik Zetterberg: Who stands right next to Lidstrom in the best player category? Henrik Zetterberg. This guy may not be qualified as the next one, has not been drafted in the first round, doesn’t get as much attention as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, but I truly believe that if the Red Wings are to win the cup, Zetterberg is the perfect pick to win the Conn Smythe. I’ve been thinking about him for a while, but only after game 4 did I really know he was the one. This guy is constantly giving his best and it shows by his plays on the ice how devoted he is to give his team the win. In game four, with his team up by one and less than a minute left in regulation, Henrik was all over the net blocking shot after shot helping his team maintain the lead and win the game. Let’s not forget the over a minute 5-on-3 the Penguins had with a little over 5 minutes left. To me, that was a defining moment in that series. Zetterberg, who was on the ice during the 5-on-3, did a great job by blocking shots, playing extremely well defensively, almost getting a breakaway, going on a 1-on-1 and spending almost half a minutes carrying the puck in the Penguins’ zone. A defining moment for a defining player.

So yeah. I picked Henrik Zetterberg to win the Conn Smythe. If the Wings win the cup but a player from the Penguins is to win the Conn Smythe, you guessed it: I’d give it to Sidney Crosby. Crosby has been the Penguins best offensive player, or even best player overall. If the Pens happen to come back and win the cup, well I’d still give it to Sidney Crosby. During the season, Evgeni Malkin was the Pens player in Crosby absence, but in the final, Malkin is nearly visible on the ice and to win the cup, the Penguins are going to need Crosby to be their most dominant player on the ice every night. Whatever happens, we can all agree that both teams are giving us a nice Stanley Cup final, although it’s as if the Penguins only started playing in game three.

More and more is Price beginning to look like the 20-year-old kid he is. The pressure in the Stanley Cup playoffs is immense and Philadelphia is a tough building to play in.

Here’s what I wrote back on April 3: “I think, and hope, the Canadiens end up regretting trading (Cristobal) Huet instead of keeping him as insurance for the playoffs.”

Dreams, my friends, can come true. With the Flyers now up two-to-one over Montreal, I can’t help but think of Happy Gilmore headbutting Bob Barker and telling him: “The price is wrong, bitch.” Best. Cameo. Appearance. Ever.

Still on the Flyers/Habs series, is Darian Hatcher not the biggest doofus in the NHL? His hit from behind on Francis Bouillon was bush-league and typical of the Philadelphia Flyers. But it takes a special type of moron to do it in the third period with his team up three-nothing. Hatcher single-handedly got the Canadiens back into the game and while I hate both teams equally, a part of me was hoping the Habs would tie it up, and even win it in overtime, so Hatcher could feel like even more of an idiot. What a douche bag. I hate Hatcher.

Here’s a video called “Hitler Loves the Flyers” courtesy of Slap Shot, the New York Times hockey blog. It was made after the Habs won game one of their series with Philadelphia so while the shots at Martin Biron are clearly unwarranted today, the numerous disses thrown at Danielle Briere are simply amazing. The video is golden. Enjoy!

Seriously, how does Detroit do it? Johan Franzen, aka “The Mule,” is tied for the NHL playoff goal-scoring lead with seven goals in only eight games.

So, uh, who the hell is this guy? Franzen scored 27 goals in the regular season to go along with only 11 assists. Eight of those goals were game-winners and 14 came on the power play. The guy’s a sniper. To close out the regular season, Franzen scored 15 goals in Detroit’s final 16 games. He’s picked up right where he left off in the playoffs.

I must admit that I knew Franzen was poised for a breakout season. I picked him in the last round of my keeper league fantasy hockey pool. Sure, I dropped him after he opened the season with only one goal in 17 games, but, well, that’s besides the point. I still knew.

Franzen is the next player on the long list of successful late Detroit Red Wings draft picks. He was chosen in the third round, 97th overall back in 2004.

The others? Pavel Datsyuk, drafted in the sixth round, 171st overall in 1998. Nicklas Lidstrom, drafted in the third round, 53rd overall way back in 1989. Dude’s had a pretty good career, hasn’t he? Valtteri Filppula, who scored 19 goals this season, was chosen in the third round, 95th overall in 2002. Look for him to have a Franzen-type breakout season next year. Tomas Holmstrom, drafted in the 10th round, 257th overall back in 1994, has forged a nice little career for himself. And, of course, Henrik Zetterberg, drafted in the 7th round, 210th overall in 1999, is only one of the NHLs best players.

Unbelievable, eh? Detroit’s scouting and drafting department is the best in the NHL, no contest. If the Toronto Maple Leafs are serious about winning a Stanley Cup they should buy the Detroit scouting staff and get Ken Holland over here asap.

Sean Avery has officially transcended hockey. Here’s a piece about him in The New Yorker.

Speaking of douche-baggery, here’s an article I’ve been wanting to share for a long time, courtesy of The New York Times, on the timeless art of the face wash.

Is it time to officially give the Dallas Stars some respect? First they shoot down the defending champion Anaheim Ducks in five games and then they go into San Jose and win games one and two on the road. Yeah, I think some respect is due.

Dan Myers over at Penalty Shots thinks the Leafs should be considering, get ready for this one, Bobby Clarke for the general manager position. Clarke’s career record as a GM is a sparkling 714-443-199. It’s tough to argue with that record, but it’s not tough to argue that Clarke is a serious douche who left one hell of a mess behind in Philadelphia. While we do have what Clarke never did in Philly – a goalie – I just don’t see it happening.

The Toronto Marlies are moving on to the second round of the AHL playoffs thanks to an ugly goal by Bates Battaglia with only a minute to go in game seven last night. While I’m still losing sleep over the fact that Justin Pogge is not in net for the Marlies, Scott Clemmensen was great yesterday, making 33 saves to ensure the victory. He’s keeping the hopes of a parade alive in the city of Toronto. Sad, I know, but it’s all we’ve got.

Speaking of Toronto, when did we become the “City of Champions”? I thought Edmonton held that title? Did I miss the memo or something, because I sure as hell haven’t missed any championships.

I ask because Damien Cox wrote a blog post entitled “A Tradition of, Um, Something” in which he took the city’s sports teams to task for, well, sucking. He took shots at the Leafs (of course), the Toronto Rock, some OHL teams no one gives a damn about, the Raptors, Marlies, Blue Jays, and Toronto FC. Basically, anything and everything MLSE related. It’s just Cox being Cox, you know, in his tradition of, um, bad sports writing.

“I fully expect the Sabres to move him,” said Campbell’s agent, Larry Kelly.

Apparently, Campbell was upset with the Sabres only offering him a three-year deal at an average of $5.75 million per season.

“At 28 years old, Brian should be getting six or seven years,” Kelly said.

Aaron Portzline of The Columbus Dispatch reports that the Columbus Blue Jackets are still in negotiations with pending UFA defenseman Adam Foote regarding a contract extension believed to be worth between $3 million and $4 million per season for two years.

Foote’s agent, Rick Curran, says the ball is in the club’s court.

“We’ve had good conversations,” Curran said. “We’ve got a clear indication of what each is looking at. Now it’s up to the club to make a decision.”

Blue Jackets GM Scott Howson says he’s considering the offer, and word is that two parties will talk again later tonight.

“We have an offer from him,” Howson said. “And we’re considering it.”

Ansar Khan of mLive.com reports that Detroit Red Wings GM Ken Holland is actively looking to add secondary scoring to their line-up in the form of a second-line forward.

A depth defenseman is also on their shopping list.

Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock tells Helene St. James of the Detroit Free Press he’s convinced that forwards Valtteri Filppula and Johan Franzen won’t be used as trade bait.

“Guys like Val Filppula and (Johan) Franzen, they’re not going anywhere, I can tell you that right now,” Babcock said.

Meanwhile, unrestricted free agent forward Darren McCarty accepted the Red Wings’ contract offer and was immediately assigned to the club’s AHL affiliate for a two-week conditioning stint.

Graeme, one of our readers, brought this to our attention:

Hal Gill was a late scratch from the Toronto lineup tonight.

Sportsnet’s Greg Millen reported (at 8:34PM) during the Maple Leafs game against the Ottawa Senators that Gill is in fact sick, according to the club… bumer.