WING THINGS
The Wings beat the Panthers Saturday night in their first game back after the Christmas break. They took advantage of the Panthers league-worst penalty kill and capitalized twice on the powerplay in the first period.
After a pretty goal by Sean Bergenheim and a breakaway goal by Nick Bjugstad off of a costly Tomas Jurco turnover, the Panthers had the game tied after two.
Brendan Smith scored his first of the year in the first minute of the third and Gustav Nyquist followed that up with his fifth of the year less than a minute later. Bergenheim pulled the game within one with over fifteen minutes left in the game but the Wings held off the Panthers offense for the win.
The Wings’ victory over the Panthers had many promising points as well as some big mistakes. They went two for five on the powerplay and battled back to regain the lead after the Panthers mounted a second period comeback. Turnovers proved to be costly, and the inexperience of the youth in the lineup showed through. In short, there were lapses where the Red Wings played sloppy and very un-Red-Wing-like.
On Bjugstad’s goal, Jurco attempted a risky cross-ice pass the was easily picked off and taken in on a clean breakaway. The team’s vets like Datsyuk and Zetterberg make those cross-ice plays look easy but Jurco didn’t fare so well.
Nyquist had a bad giveaway at the exact same spot along the boards in the third though, this time in the defensive zone. The scrambled breakout, started after the linesman waved off the icing, was easily broken up by the Panthers forecheck. Nyquist failed to see Marcel Goc closing in and tried a touch pass across to Jurco. Goc kept the puck in, and after a bad-angle shot redirected to a wide open Sean Bergenheim, the puck ended up behind Gustavsson.
Both goals were examples of plays where the Wings could’ve opted for the simple safe play, but instead got too cute or overcomplicated the play. Particularly as players return from injury and the team begins to come together again, the Wings have to play smart and simple.
GAME 41 @ NASHVILLE
Tonight’s game in Nashville will mark the halfway point in the season. Nashville is last in the Central Division and 4-5-1 over their last 10 games. The Preds have a winning record on home ice so far this season but have struggled at Bridgestone Arena in December where they have a 3-4-1 record.
Jimmy Howard will be getting the start after missing three weeks with a knee injury. Howard will be looking forward to getting back between the pipes after a sub-par start to his season.
Darren Helm is also expected return to the lineup against the Predators. Helm has only played in 15 games this season but has managed to score seven goals and three assists in that time. Expect to see him centering the third line with Tomas Jurco and Justin Abdelkader.
The Predators boast a strong powerplay, particularly at home, so staying out of the box will be a key for the Wings. The Red Wings will also want to avoid falling behind to the Preds. Despite their low position in the standings, Smashville is 13-0-1 when leading after the first period.
STARTING LINES (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
RED WINGS
Bertuzzi – Datsyuk – Tatar Nyquist – Zetterberg – Alfredsson Abdelkader – Helm – Jurco Miller – Andersson – Cleary
Kronwall – DeKeyser Kindl – Quincey Smith – Lashoff
Howard (starting) Gustavsson
Injuries: Weiss, Ericsson, Franzen
PREDATORS
Wilson – Fisher – Hornqvist Borque – Cullen – Stalberg Spaling – Legwand – Smith Nystrom – Gaustad – Hendricks
Weber – Josi Ekholm – Klein Jones – Ellis
Hutton Mazanec
Injuries: Rinne