UPDATE:
Join me at 1:05 ET on Sirius/XM NHL Home Ice when I visit with Jim "Boomer" Gordon to preview tonight's Game 4 between the Red Wings and Blackhawks.
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Behind only a final and decisive Game 7, the 4th game of a seven-game playoff series most frequently defines the eventual outcome of a playoff series. It often times can conclude a series (4-0 sweep), renew a series (2-2 to make it a best-of-three) or force a team into a 3-1 series deficit that only 24 NHL teams (out of 262), have ever fought back from to be victorious.
For those that are mathematically challenged, that works out to a paltry 9.2%.
The extra day of practice and rest has allowed both clubs to soak in the significance of this contest. It certainly is an enormous opportunity for the Red Wings to not only place a stranglehold on this series, but also serve the Blackhawks with their first three-game losing streak of the season at the most inopportune of times.
The Blackhawks can recall both positive and negative memories of this very situation in past recent playoff runs. During their 2010 Stanley Cup march, the Blackhawks faced a 2-1 deficit in their opening round series against the Nashville Predators. Facing a hostile crowd in Game 4 at the Bridgestone Arena in the "Music City", the Blackhawks responded with a 3-0 victory and eventually went on to win that series in six games.
However, last spring during their opening round playoff series versus the Phoenix Coyotes, the Blackhawks fell 3-2 to the Coyotes in overtime of Game 4 at the United Center and eventually fell in six games to Phoenix.
The talk filtering out of the Blackhawks camp over the past two days has continued to focus on disrupting
Jimmy Howard's ability to clearly see pucks.
Joel Queeneville has hinted at shuffling his lines and perhaps moving
Patrick Sharp to play alongside
Jonathan Toews and
Marian Hossa, in an attempt to spark the struggling Toews, who has a meager 3 assists through his first 8 playoff games this spring.
Meanwhile, the Red Wings appear poised set to dig in tonight and do their best to take what they expect to be the President Trophy winners best punch tonight. One way in which they feel they can greatly enhance their chances of offsetting Chicago's expected elevated level of desperation is to take advantage of any power-play opportunities presented to them this evening.
The extra time off has provided the Red Wings with a chance to examine why they have started off 0-for-12 with the man advantage in this series through the opening three games. Adjustments have been made and whether tonight is the night Detroit is able to crack the goose egg could prove to play a critical role in whether this series shifts back to the Windy City tied at 2 games apiece or with the Red Wings sitting in a commanding 3-1 series lead.
Puck drops at 8:00 PM ET. (CBC, NBCSN, RDS)
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DETROIT LINE COMBINATIONS
Franzen - Datsyuk - Abdelkader
Filppula - Zetterberg - Cleary
Nyquist - Andersson - Brunner
Miller - Emmerton - Eaves
Kronwall - Ericsson
Quincey - Smith
Colaiacovo - Kindl
Howard
(Gustavsson)
CHICAGO LINE COMBINATIONS
Sharp - Toews - Hossa
Saad - Bolland - Kane
Bickell - Shaw - Stalberg
Carcillo - Kruger - Frolik
Keith - Seabrook
Oduya - Hjalmarsson
Leddy- Rozsival
Crawford
(Emery)
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I wanted to link
this article penned by
Cam Cole of Postmedia News on the Wings GM
Ken Holland.
It certainly pulls back the veil on the thinking of Holland and his management group when dealing with younger players and their thought process when the CBA changed dramatically following the lockout in 2005.
Furthermore, it once again highlights the vast amount of talent in the Red Wings' system that is currently developing at other levels, as the parent club patiently awaits their development to warrant an eventual spot with the big club in Detroit.
In particular, Cole highlights the depth on the blueline with injured
Danny DeKeyser, WCHA defenceman of the year
Nick Jensen, CHL defenceman of the year
Ryan Sproul, one of the top QMJHL rearguards in
Xavier Ouellet along with
recently signed Mattias Backman of Sweden.
Add to the mix the performances this week by
Tomas Tatar with the Grand Rapids Griffins, as they rallied from a 3-1 deficit in Game 6 to defeat the Toronto Marlies 4-3 and clinch a spot in the AHL Western Conference Championship against the Oklahoma City Barons (Edmonton Oilers' affiliate). Tatar has 8 goals in 11 playoff games, scored two goals in the decisive Game 6.
Martin Frk of the Halifax Mooseheads scored three goals and added an assist as his club secured a spot in the Memorial Cup Final with an impressive 9-2 victory over the London Knights at the Mastercard Memorial Cup.
This is not to mention the likes of
Calle Jarnkrok,
Teemu Pulkkinen,
Riley Sheahan,
Landon Ferraro,
Tomas Jurco,
Adam Alquist,
Andreas Athanasiou and of course, goaltender prospect
Petr Mrazek.
Regardless of whether Detroit is able to win this series against the Blackhawks or not, it appears Holland's patience has begun to pay dividends for this hockey club as their future appears to remain bright as one the of NHL's most competitive teams for years to come.
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