Abel to Yzerman
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Central Concern?
by IwoCPO on 11/25/07 at 11:09 AM ET
Comments (12)
Updated 1400 EST: Be sure and read Baroque’sanalysis of the Central. The statistical ying to my reactionary yang.
You’re still reeling. This whole damn season is some sort of wacked-out opposite of everything we’ve come to take for granted thing. Eleven games against the Central and only ten points out of a possible 22? A sweep in the far west for the first time, what, ever? Blanked by Chicago? Can’t sell out the Joe? Hasek in the tank and Osgood on fire? And then, finally, this…
Khan(!)
“Tonight—and I never, ever say this—was the first time in a long, long time we didn’t have enough people ready to play and ready to compete. That’s unacceptable and that’s not Red Wing-like.’’
It’s rare that Uncle Mike calls his buddies out in public. Unprecedented really. But there it is, and, yep, it’s deserved. What was a cute little aside--this temporary difficulty with our little Central sisters--has become an issue.
The concern lies in two areas. First, 32 games against this division means you’d better ramp it up if the annual cakewalk is to continue. After this recent 9-game bowl of cranberry sauce, two weeks in a padded room with Dylan blaring from cheap speakers, it’s pretty damned obvious that a philosophical shift is in order. The organ-I-zational mindset that games against Gary’s Central have been pre-ordained as victories for the Dynasty? No more.
Last night proved that despite wakeup calls from every team in the division, the Wings still believe their sweaters are enough to eek out victories against the teams they rightfully owned for a decade. The Wing players themselves have probably come to grips with the fact that there are no cakewalks in the division, or even the conference. The real problem though? Columbus, Bubba, the Bitter Blues and the Hawk team it’s hard to hate...they all know it too. The mystique is gone. I guarantee you right now we won’t see another quote from another Central opponent this year that reads like this: “We gave them too much respect.”
That fear of being embarrassed? It used to be good for a goal/game. Not anymore.
Worse than a late acknowledgment that they’d better ramp it up against the Central? These inter-division games are exposing some flaws. Defensively, the Wings are not playing responsibly. Giveaways in their own zone, poor coverage around the net, Rafalski continuing to prove that success within the New Jersey system may be attributed to the system itself. Chris Osgood was brilliant in the second period last night, but only because he was forced to be. That was an assault.
And how about something deeper? Mike Babcock wants to point fingers, even if deserved? Ok. Let’s point some. Is breaking up the Flying Circus the best idea at the tail end of three games in four nights? Is that what you do with a tired team, throw a wrinkle in there? Is breaking up the league’s hottest line a good idea for a game that, divisionally, you need to win? And, hey, if you’re going to have a grind line for the fourth unit...make it a grind line. Don’t half-step it. Put Maltby back there with Drake and Downey. Get Hudler back on the third (or second) line where he can at least be of some use offensively. On the fourth line he’s invisible. No one’s going to set him up. And any offense he attempts to generate is going to be wasted because there are no finishers out there with him.
Oh, and Mike, nice timeout from Hitch last night, eh? The guy got the slightest hint of a momentum swing and he acted. Rallied his troopies around him, chewed some ass and, woops, a goal. When’s the last time Babcock called a timeout for any reason other than to give the Circus a rest before a final push? Yeah, it’s a veteran team. No, they probably don’t need the same amount of care and feeding a young team like the BJs do. But, it’s an option and one that’s never used in Detroit.
This is not a panic-stricken plea for wide-scale changes. Not necessary. This Central slump is correctable and will probably not last. Talent will eventually rise to the surface, as long as the effort is there. Fortunately, pride will take care of that.
Parity’s the catch word across the league these days. It was Gary’s dirty little secret fantasy and now he’s got it. His favorite division is a prime example and in that case, it’s hard to fault him too much. Last night’s game was one that could have earned a few fans, if any had watched outside of Michigan and Central Ohio. The possibility of that is so slim I can’t even fathom it. At the very least, it’s done this: if I had to choose one game to attend this year, it could very well be the next one against Columbus. When’s the last time anyone said that?
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Comments
Woo-hoo! I got noticed! 
(Nobody has told Todd to dump the chick yet, I guess.)
Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 11/25/07 at 03:24 PM ET
Baroque: That was a Very inciteful post!
Paul Kukla should post that by itself. (Not that IWO cluttered it up or anything) 
IWO, good stuff. It is amazing what a difference Murray, Savard, and expecially Hitchcock have made. With Barry Trotz, the Central has the best coaches in the NHL. Absolutely.
Finally, everyone needs to chill. It is a long season, and you do not want your team to peak in November. You need to peak in March or April.
Posted by w2j2 from Michigan on 11/25/07 at 04:30 PM ET
Yeah, I watched the majority of that game last night, and it reminded me a lot of the Wings’ playoff series with Edmonton. They could not bring the puck out of the neutral zone with any speed or consistency because the neutral zone was loaded with BJs (ie., the trap). It was frustrating and annoying to watch, and the difference was a superior effort by the BJs. Hudler has deserved a better fate than the 4th line, but there were some extenuating circumstances last evening. Regardless, the Central division is tired of being spanked by the Wings and are obviously ramping up to play the Wings, and the Wings are not reciprocating. Maybe this string of losses will up the intensity for the next game.
Posted by PDXWing from Portland, OR on 11/25/07 at 05:36 PM ET
w2j2:
Andy Murray is no slouch either. Wings are 1-3 against the Blues since he took over.
Posted by HockeyTownTodd from upset when blogs don’t live up to my expectations on 11/25/07 at 05:47 PM ET
When’s the last time Babcock called a timeout for any reason other than to give the Circus a rest before a final push?
In the game against Nashville, Babcock called a timeout before a lengthy 2 man advantage during the first period. Unfortunately, the Wings were not able to convert. And more importantly, they did not have a timeout to use late in the game when they were down by one goal.
Posted by Justin on 11/25/07 at 08:25 PM ET
Parity sucks. I would rather have boring wins in perpetuity against Central Division doormats, but that’s kind of hard to do when you’ve got, as W2j2 notes, extremely regimented coaches in Trotz, Hitchcock, and Murray squeezing every bit of talent out of their limited rosters, and Savard playing to the strengths of players who love to free-wheel and lean on a sometimes-dominant goaltender in the inconsistent but highly-talented Khabibulin.
Rafalski isn’t Nick safe, and people start piling on the guy? I’m a bit confused about that. Rafalski’s both adjusting to being the “defensive” defenceman on a pairing for the first time and he simply plays a riskier brand of defence, eschewing the poke-check for a skate-into-the-guy-and-bump-him soccer tackle, and when that’s your go-to move, guys are gonna get by you on occasion. He’s much steadier than Schneid, who would tend to get lost in his own zone with alarming regularity, but he drops the poke check because his wingspan isn’t particularly large, and, as stated, that equals a “rush the man” defence that, when it’s timed wrong, results in somebody blowing by you while your hockey pants drop to your knees.
If Lilja played like he did vs. Columbus every night, on the other hand, we wouldn’t bag on him…
I thought that Babs’ decision to break up the Flying Circus on a night where the Wings weren’t paying attention to detail against a team for which details are EVERYTHING was stupid. You’re trying to put players who don’t innately know one another’s tendencies together, and, in the case of Filppula and Franzen, two forwards who haven’t found their form yet and overpass against a team that thrives on neutral-zone turnovers. Bad idea.
I’m not even worried about Dom, honestly, in comparison to what I think is parity hitting us where it hurts--on our second line. I fully expected Filppula to put up 30-40 points, and I don’t expect Hudler to do much more than score 20 goals, so I can understand why Babs gives him a kick in the pants on occasion, but Sammy’s got to be more consistent, Franzen needs to bear down and get back to using his size and speed to back guys off through the neutral zone, and Drapes has had a bit of an offensive hiccup of late, and if he and Cleary can get their chemistry going a little better, we won’t be so worried about that second line not scoring...and it would be nice to see Babs give the fourth line ten minutes a night, but he doesn’t seem to want to do that to Drake or Downey (to which, I ask, why not put Kopy, Ellis, and Hudler together and see what happens?)…
But, overall, I think that the Red Wings’ pridefulness and artistic flair have shown up at awful times--but much earlier than they did last year or the year before, where we blew tons of games late in the year--against a Central Division that’s far too good to take so un-seriously because the boys think the Preds, Blues, Blue Jackets, and Hawks must be “beneath” them after kicking their butts so regularly, and, perhaps moreover, as such, they can go ahead and try to author an aesthetically-pleasing goal-mouth tap-in or the perfect passing play for the one-timer instead of just shooting the damn puck at the net and retrieving the rebound.
I think there have been junctures in every one of the Wings’ 4 losses and shootout loss where a power play conversion could have either shifted momentum and/or put the opposition away, and nothing happened because the boys got fancy.
Less flow, more hustle.
Posted by George James Malik from South Lyon, MI on 11/26/07 at 12:32 AM ET
I agree with w2j2 that we need not be concerned about getting this team to perform at its peak right now. However, I don’t think IWO or anyone is necessarily concerned about the team playing its best but rather not measuring up. As Aristotle reminds us, excellence is a habit not an act.
The central is much improved, yes. It is the coaching that has helped a great deal, yes. What does that mean? The teams we face always talk about using us a measuring stick because we, according to their own statements, are among the league best and certainly the West’s best. What does that mean for them? It means that they do psychic cocaine before games against the Wings. We need to drink some Red Bull at least.
IWO also mentions that loss of a mystique, that halo which would guarantee deference in the neutral zone and consequently a goal or two. Even if the teams are playing the trap, they’re playing it aggressively, filtering our forwards to the boards just like our backcheckers do. Fine; welcome back to the NHL’s Western Conference. We have the ability to beat any team, including those that have the edge on us right now. What will it take to beat them? Psychic cocaine. The supplier is Babbles, the dealers are the veterans.
Posted by srt on 11/26/07 at 12:34 AM ET
I think maybe overanalysis is the problem in all the comments I just read.
Guys your not seeing the forest for the tree’s. Looking at the big picture, I think the problems the Wings are having go further than just the Central Division. They will continue with short interruptions when DET faces teams having a bad night.
Where have the takeaways gone? Dats in particular. Are the other teams telling their players to get rid of the puck before it gets taken away by one of our superior stalkers? Those takeaways disappeared with the game in CHI, and only returned (a little) in the STL game. How far back do you go before you find a team outshooting the Wings, well it happened in the last 2, and how about only 25 SOG for DET. That is the norm for 2 periods, not an entire game & overtime (check the box score for the CBJ game). Detroits recent problems go deeper than Central Division woes. It may be a case of other teams analyzing the game tapes and keying in on our tendencies.
Every time Detroit loses a couple, people start mentioning the trap. Well, sorry, I don’t buy that. The Trap has been around as long as I have been a fan, and I can tell you the trap only works for you if you are beating the opponents on the boards. Wings lose a few because they are getting beat on the boards and in the corners, and what do you hear? TRAP.
Hockey is a team game, and there is no point in naming players or pointing fingers. If a guy is not up to your expectations, what do you accomplish by further destroying his confidence? Coaches are hired to optimize a players skills and work around their weaknesses. Just let ‘em do their job.
Posted by HockeyTownTodd from upset when blogs don’t live up to my expectations on 11/26/07 at 03:35 AM ET
Sorry, Duke, I got so wrapped up in that, and forgot.
Suddenly I turned around and she was standin’ there
With silver bracelets on her wrists and flowers in her hair.
She walked up to me so gracefully and took my crown of thorns.
“Come in,” she said,
“I’ll give you shelter from the storm.”
Words and Music by Bob Dylan
Posted by HockeyTownTodd from upset when blogs don’t live up to my expectations on 11/26/07 at 04:02 AM ET
I agree. Things will come back to Earth. I think a tougher division is ultimately good for this team because it makes Babcock’s job of motivating his players and teaching them about grit and tenacity that much easier.
While I always want the Wings to win, I think this 9-game stretch of mediocrity is just what this team needed in order to get back to playing the hockey they played the last 20 games of last season, followed by a solid, tough playoff run.
Sometimes I think a coach’s words can fall on deaf ears, but now that Babcock has the empirical evidence of that stretch against the Central, his message should resonate.
Posted by Nathan on 11/26/07 at 03:40 PM ET
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Good post, Duke
New coaches and outstanding goaltending in the Central mean the Red Wings better clean up on all the other games. I really don’t think Detroit’s problems in the Central will change. Flying Circus or not the Wings lost too many big battles on the boards in the last 2 games. Keep in mind, the Wings came up short in the Central without any key absences due to injury. I pointed out a couple of times on hockeytowntodd how the season stats spouted by the msm have been declining ever since the Central Div match-ups started.
“Some things last longer than you think they will
Some kind of things you can never kill”
from ‘Cold Irons Bound’ by Bob Dylan
Posted by HockeyTownTodd from upset when blogs don’t live up to my expectations on 11/25/07 at 01:26 PM ET