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Before I get into Wings vs Chicago, I’d like to apologize to anyone who was in a bad mood before reading my Montreal post game. My entry wouldn’t have helped. If you’re like me (and I’m sorry if you are) you woke up about 20 times trying to figure out what is so irksome about the team’s performance.
I pulled no punches in the preseason. This is not a playoff team. My hope for the past couple of seasons is improvement. Last season the team’s commitment to defense was obvious. They shaved off Goals Against with solid commitment and structure. Yzerman’s challenge this year was to add goals for. I assumed that we would see the same defensive commitment with an added set of plays to increase chances. What we’ve seen is a series of defensive lapses and teams marching in with odd man rushes. The team seems to have abandoned a defense that still needed work.
Players, to me, look like they’re “guessing”. Last year, there was at least defensive zone certainty. Now, every shift looks like a completely different cast of characters. Whatever systems were implemented, the players don’t know them. To me, that’s on the coaches. Only one coach is brand new, so…..we’ll see what things look like today.
The good part of back to backs is being able to put a disaster in the rear view. Hopefully, it’s not just a drive to another disaster. Blackhawks blogger Theo Fox gave me some incredibly generous insight of his own on this team. Here’s what he had to say:
Moritz Seider is going to be a beast, possibly Victor Hedman Lite. Lofty comparison but he was arguably one of the best players on the ice whenever the Griffings and IceHogs squared off two seasons ago and he's only gotten better since then.
Lucas Raymond is going to be an electrifying talent as a prolific scorer for the Wings in years to come. He will complement the power forwards and industrious centers like Tyler Bertuzzi and Dylan Larkin.
When he's on his game, Larkin reminds me quite a bit of Jonathan Toews. Again, lofty comparison but similar styles as captains of their teams.
Filip Zadina is a youngster you hope succeeds given his talent level and draft pedigree. It's too bad he got off on the wrong foot on draft day with his comment about making other teams pay for not drafting him earlier. Putting that aside, he is another scorer who Detroit could lean on over the next decade.
In the pipeline, I love the Detroit draft picks of Sebastian Cossa, Simon Edvinsson, Donovan Sebrango, Theodor Niederbach, and even Joe Veleno.
Thank you so much for that “foxy” write up! (I know, you can get one free punch if we ever me up for that horrible line).
Here’s where I’m at. Chicago is in as bad a mood as Montreal was. They may not have Kane tonight, but Debrincat can do his share of damage. All I want is a solid game from Detroit. Simplify. Stop trying 5 way passes that end up in your own net. Make the simple play to get the puck out and on net. And HIT THE NET.
Even if Detroit loses today, if it’s competitive and the team comes together, it will be a step forward. Chicago has a ton of new pieces and lost a heart and soul defenseman in Keith. With Toews gone last year, Keith may well have been the fill in. Kane’s not a “vocal” leader as much, but he’ll get you going on the ice. If Chicago gets a dose of what Montreal got last night, it’s going to be a rough outing.
Read my previous posts:
Wings vs Montreal Postgame
Wings vs Canadiens pregame
Soderblom leads Frolunda in goals
Wings shutout by Flames
Wings vs Flames pregame
Edvinsson logs 25:18 
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • 
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