Season Halfway Through, Wings Embarrassed In Anaheim

By Adam W Parks

Tuesday, January 5, 2010 Red Wings 1 @ Ducks 4

Apologies for the hiatus. Holidays plus work plus new dog equals less time to write for all of you. But do not pine, everything is fine at the halfway point of this tumultuous hockey season. 41 games in and the Wings sat in a (ahem) good spot peeking at the playoff picture just three away from the eighth and final spot. With all the negatives considered and reconsidered at the midpoint, there are several gleaming positives on this somewhat bleak first half.

Jimmy Howard has proven he is the real deal, supplanting Chris Osgood as the regular starter. Todd Bertuzzi has proven he can buy into the Wings' system and that he still has some goal-scoring left in his tank. Salty-dog veterans like Tomas Holmstrom, Kris Draper, and Kirk Maltby have proved their old balls still have merit, and each has earned an opportunity to chase their respective fifth Stanley Cup in Detroit. Free agent pickups like Brad May, Patrick Eaves, and Drew Miller have proved to be essential additions on a depleted roster. Fledgling players like Darren Helm, Justin Abdelkader, and Derek Meech have shed their Griffin feathers and proved they belong in the NHL, while Grand Rapids regulars like Kris Newbury, Mattias Ritola, Jakub Kindl, and Doug Janik have proved that the Wings' farm system can still yield some decent crops.

And last but not least, Mike Babcock has proven that he is the best coach in the NHL and, as long as the Wings do indeed make it into the playoffs, he should certainly win his first Jack Adams Award this season. But question marks and possibly controversy still swirl amidst his team. Yes players are returning, but are they being rushed back? Will they step back into the roster and produce immediately? Who will be the odd men out (my vote goes to Ville Leino) when everyone else is back? Will the chemistry be disrupted? Who will be the starting goaltender come playoff time and who will be the backup?

Frustrated In Oz

All of those questions above do not concern me much, but this thing about Chris Osgood not being happy with his playing time and questioning Babcock worries me.

“You have to get into some games and get into a groove and then I can play like I can," Osgood said. "It’s not that I don’t know how to do it. But if you don’t play, it’s impossible to get to that point. I’m a goalie, ok, and I’ve been playing for 20-some years since juniors. What I say (about goaltending) is closer to the facts than what he (Babcock) would say.”

Um, yeah. Exactly what the Wings need right now. Ozzy has been the best punching bag Detroit goalie ever. The Beatles may have had a Rubber Soul, but Ozzy's elastic ego has taken more shots from fans and media than his pads. When he wins with the Wings, it is usually despite of him. When the Wings lose, it generally comes with spite for him. He has three Stanley Cup rings in Hockeytown and his last two playoff runs he has arguably played his best hockey of his career. But has Ozzy's Yellowbrick Road led him into a wall?

I doubt there are many out there who sympathize with Osgood on this matter; he might be on an island here. He only has seven wins to his ten losses (four in overtime). His save percentage (.901) and goals-against average (2.72) on the season are down compared to his career numbers of .906 and 2.48, though they are better than last season (.887 and 3.09) when he swapped starts with Ty Conklin on a relatively regular basis. Osgood's beef about playing time is understandable to a point; he wants to see some ice time to stay fresh. The problems are he has not been good enough when given the opportunity, Detroit has been unable to find consistent scoring and thus require consistent goaltending, and the Wings are not in a position where they can afford to gamble on games just so guys can shake the dust off their skates.

He has not seen ice time in the past six games and his last start came on December 20, the first of back-to-back 0-3 shutouts to the Chicago Blackhawks. Since winning three straight decisions on October 31, November 3, and November 5, Osgood has gone 1-4-2. That is only four out of a possible 12 points for a Wings team during its most desperate stretch. Since November 5 Howard has gone 13-7-1 (including Tuesday's loss to Anaheim). Now it is unclear whether Osgood is playing that poorly, or whether his teammates are playing that much better in front of Howard, but the bottom line is Detroit has a better chance of winning with the rookie in net and the veteran on the bench.

If this situation progresses it will become a sad end to an amazing era for Chris Osgood in Detroit. I hope this will not be the case. Ozzy has won for us and fought for us. He deserves a better send off, but he does not deserve playing time. Not right now. If Howard is not the goalie of the future, as both Daniel Larsson and Thomas McCollum are playing great in Grand Rapids, then he certainly is the guy for the present. If this situation does not improve, Ozzy could fall further out of favor with Babcock and we might see one of those Griffin goalies sooner rather than later. Osgood needs to improve his disposition (because Babcock will not change his strategy) and concentrate on playing better hockey if he really wants to play hockey.

Back Away Slowly, I Might Explode

Enough of that unpleasantness...let's discuss Tuesday's game! That was a trash game for the Wings. They were fortunate not to be down 6-0 after the first period when the Detroit Winged Warriors looked like a bunch of Garbage Pail Kids. All of those turnovers and their awful excuse for defensive play was frustrating to the point of nausea. I felt as if my skull was going to rupture and spew watching that disgusting display, especially against a rivalry team that was 13 points out of the playoffs going into the game. The Ducks are a desperate team this season, but so are the Wings, and last night Detroit looked, well, pathetic.

Losing in Anaheim is nothing to be embarrassed about. They are a team with a lot of pride, talent, and motivation to beat the Wings. However losing to Anaheim in that fashion was very embarrassing. Detroit is on a five-game roadtrip that includes a few contests against very good teams. They spanked the Coyotes (currently fourth in the West) 4-1 to start the trek off on the right skate, but this loss to the Ducks offers a gloomy outlook to the rest of the journey. They will finish the California jog with a visit to Los Angeles (seventh) and then San Jose (second) before heading back East to face the Islanders. With Nashville picking up a win last night the Wings fell five points out of the last playoff spot, and the Kings and the Sharks are hungrily awaiting their revenge (Detroit is 1-0 against each team this season). To the point: those were two valuable points that they handed out to the Ducks like bread crumbs.

Filp Flips One In

Valtteri Filppula is back in the lineup and back in the boxscore. His third period goal was his first since he returned against the Blue Jackets on December 26, and his first overall since October 17 against Colorado. Filp is one of those skilled skaters, play makers, goal scorers that the Wings have severely lacked of late. The goal gave the Wings a chance at a comeback, but inevitably it became nothing more than shutout avoidance.

Filp is the first of the significant injured Wings to return to the roster after missing nearly two months with a broken wrist. Henrik Zetterberg and Daniel Cleary are expected back very soon, possibly if not probably for Thursday's game in LA. Niklas Kronwall, Jonathan Ericsson, and Jason Williams should not be too far behind, while we will not catch a scent of the Mule, Johan Franzen, until sometime after the Olympics. Filppula adds an offensive dimension that Detroit desperately needs, especially on the power play, but even with him they are essentially a one line scoring threat. When Hank and Clears make it back Detroit will have two legit top lines again and pucks should find nets with greater ease and consistency.

Peace.