yave1964 Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 After a four game winning streak, looking solid running the record to 6-2 they have now lost 4 in a row, going 0-2-2 during that time, including a three game home stand. Why? Jimmy Howard has been shaking off the rust from his recent injury, He now has a record of 3-4-2 Ericsson is injured, out three weeks. He easily has been their best defenseman Darren Helm was due back, then had a set back with a sore groin. The last two losses were to the Senators who had a vendetta with Alfredsson and the Rangers who were a desperate team. Quite frankly the Wings have looked lethargic and boring. They seem to be allowing the game to come to them not pushing the play like they did early in the season. As Henrik Zetterberg goes, so goes the Wings. This has been true for years, When he was the best player on the ice early this season, especially in the third periods the Wings were very tough, almost unbeatable. When he plays at a more human level, as he as done lately nobody else has stepped up, same problem as last season and the year before, and we are a very beatable club when that happens. We have been trying to make a trade or two, offering to essentially give Tootoo and/or Samuelsson away for a used Randy Mckay hockey card, but no takers. Teams with injuries are riding them out, the Wings will need to eat a portion of the salary to get a club to bite, maybe even almost all of it. To do so, We need to make this happen to clear space to get Nyquist back in the NHL where he belongs. Weiss is struggling, pressing to hard. Franzen is slower than ever and frankly has slipped even more. Bertuzzi has played a top six roll most of the year and has a whopping 4 points. Okay, so the lines moving forward as I see them: It is time to split Datsyuk and Zetterberg up. Abdelkader Datsyuk Franzen Zetterberg Weiss Alfredsson Cleary Helm Nyquist Miller Andersson Eaves Bench: Bertuzzi and Tatar Pavel has had luck in the past pulling Franzen out of his funk. If we put Z and Alfie both with Weiss he is a lock to break out. Helm back on the ice with Cleary and Nyquist as a third line is solid as can be. And Andersson has been okay but not better than fourth line, with veteran role players Miller and Eaves he should find his role. I love Tatar, think he is a Dan Cleary type but there is no room and we desperately need to figure out a way to get Gus in the lineup. Defensively, we are woefully young and inexperienced, especially with Ericsson out. Kronwall is the only one I trust as a puck mover, though Dekeyser has shown a nice ability to throw a solid outlet pass. Quincey is stil Quincey, Kindl seems to have taken a small step back this year and Smith, heartbreakingly seems to have not progressed at all. To my utter shock and amazement Lashoff has proven to be reliable for the most part, and in a certain role is not bad. So to sum up, break up the two big boys, allow them to help others to break out of their funk. Right now they are difficult to watch, but they are close to breaking out of the funk. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago Hawkie Posted October 29, 2013 Share Posted October 29, 2013 Injuries seem to have a lot to do with it. I can only imagine how far the Wings would have gone last season in the playoffs had there not been so many injuries. Some of their other problems seem to have mirrored the Hawks' issuws before the Hawks broke out of it last night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammer2 Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 @yave1964 I have not seen a lot of the Wings this year, but I'm wondering if Nyquist would fit on the top line? He certainly has top 6 potential, but I don't know if he has earned a shot at the top line. Of course, if you do that, you have Franzen making a lot of money on the 3rd line, and history has shown if he is not playing with a talented offensive minded center, he does not produce. Nyqusit could really break out if paired with Datsuyk, might be a decent option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yave1964 Posted October 30, 2013 Author Share Posted October 30, 2013 (edited) I believe Nyquist could sep into a top six role right now, his size and the fact that he is easily bumped off of the puck goes against him, but he has a lot of magic in his stick, kind of a Pavel lite. Franzen, like you mentioned Jammer absolutely has to be surrounded by skill to work. He is a poor player whose one skill was scoring and that has eroded. I seriously would not be surprised to see the Wings buy him out next year. Edited October 30, 2013 by yave1964 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Commander Clueless Posted October 30, 2013 Share Posted October 30, 2013 Officially, I think it's just a slump. The disruption to the Kronwall-Ericsson pair seems to have a large impact on them as well. It'd be nice to see the wings play Nyquist because he's an impressive young player. Some new blood could boost them a bit. Or just wait until they get back to playing the much easier Eastern teams. The West is on a rampage. Unofficially, it's clearly Alfredsson's fault. Just like everything else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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