Sure, they got beat, but the Detroit Red Wings weren’t about to feel defeated.
A 3-1 loss Thursday to the Florida Panthers was Detroit’s fifth setback in seven games, but the team didn’t look upon it as a slide back into their woeful ways that saw the club surrender seven goals Saturday in Philadelphia before rallying for a solid 5-1 win Sunday in Pittsburgh.
“I thought we did lots of good things,… Detroit coach Mike Babcock said. I thought we skated good.
“I didn’t like us in the first few minutes. After that I thought we skated real good. I thought we had energy, I thought we skated, I thought we did lots of good things.…
Detroit captain Henrik Zetterberg also was of the belief that even though they lost, the team remains on the right track in terms of the way it played.
“It was a little sluggish from the start but still I thought we did enough to be in the game from the second period,… Zetterberg said. “We got our legs going and we played a little better.
“I think we made enough chances tonight to get a point but obviously we didn’t score. The power play wasn’t good enough.
“We had a few opportunities but we couldn’t get the puck behind them.…
The Wings felt they created enough chances to win the game and that if they maintained that sort of work effort around the net, they will again soon be rewarded for their diligence.
“We had lots of opportunities,… Babcock said. “We hit the post four times. We didn’t score.
“We had some good looks and on lots of our good looks we didn’t even hit the net. “We’ve just got to do a better job of executing around their net.…
Mind you, not everyone in the Wings room was in kumbaya mood.
“Anytime you don’t win you haven’t done enough,… Detroit defenseman Niklas Kronwall said. “We did lots of good things but in saying that we need to bear down when we get the chances.…
That being said, Kronwall didn’t feel that this loss was comparable to the defeats the Wings endured earlier in the month. “The stretch we went through there we had no energy,… Kronwall said. “We didn’t take care of the puck well enough. Tonight we did some good things.
“The energy was back. I felt we were going. But in saying that we’ve got to find some more edge when we get our chances.…
Cole Tallies Babcock was talking before the game about how he needed more from Erik Cole, the power forward the Wings picked up at the trade deadline from the Dallas Stars.
“We need him to be big and physical and heavy on the puck and use his speed to create chances for us,… Babcock said.
In response, Cole registered the lone goal for Detroit, his second as a Wing and 20th of the season.
Cole admitted that it’s been a bit of a struggle for him to adjust to his new role as a Red Wing.
“Some things I don’t feel like I’m playing as well as I can right now,… Cole said. “I’m one of the guys that needs to execute better and demand more of myself and raise that level of expectation, what my teammates expect of me.
“It’s been OK, I think I’ve gotten better. I think it’s slowly coming. I think it was just a bit of whirlwind, the whole transition. Everything is a little different. I’m adjusting and trying to fit in.…
The coach sounded like he still expects more from Cole.
“I need Coler to win more battles,… Babcock said. “I need him to be physical and win more puck battles. If he does that he can help our team.
“He’s got the ability to do that so he needs to do that.…
Long Time Coming The only player in the lineup Thursday who was an NHLer the last time the Wings lost in Florida was Jaromir Jagr, so perhaps it was appropriate that he’d score twice to give the Panthers their first home-ice victory over the Wings since Feb. 8, 1996 and just the second overall in franchise history.
The two goals also moved Jagr past Phil Esposito (717) for fifth on the NHL’s all-time goal list.
“Good player eh?… Babcock said of Jagr. “The thing about it too is I don’t know how many years did he leave the league for?…
Jagr, 43, spent three seasons from 2008-11 playing in the KHL.
“Just think of how he would have scored if he didn’t leave the league,… Babcock said. “He’s got to be one of the greatest players of all-time, when you think about it as his age and doing what he’s done.
“People thought he was done a long time ago and he’s obviously not done.…
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