The Absence of the Mule Made the Heart Grow Stronger

By Adam W Parks

Thursday, February 11, Sharks 3 @ Red Wings SO

It is impossible to accurately measure just how much the Red Wings missed Johan Franzen during his four month absence. The closest that I can calculate is a whole bunch.



Where have these types of goals been all season long? Bestill my aching Hockeytown heart. Open ice and passing lanes on the power play have been as scarce on the ice as Chris Osgood has been in net. That shot looked so effortless and was so fast off his stick that I did not believe that it went into the net. Pavel Datsyuk thought it looked easy.

As much as I missed him, I am not prepared to say that The Mule is ready to bear the weight and lead his team down the long and dusty trail and into the playoffs. But judging by his numbers in his first two games back he is certainly trying to do so.

On Tuesday in St. Louis, his first game back, Franzen picked up an assist on Datsyuk's third period goal that sparked the Wings comeback to tie and force overtime. On 25 shifts and 17:28 of ice time he threw four shots on net and threw three hits on Blues players; both tied for second best for Detroit on the night.

Thursday night The Mule looked possessed. Expert talking heads all say and said that the first game back from injury is an adrenaline-fueled romp that leaves the returning player fatigued and slow for the following few games after. Not Franzen, he only got stronger, faster, and more aggressive. He was third amongst forwards in ice time (20:44 on 28 shifts) and tied Darren Helm for the team lead with seven hits. He scored the one goal off of his team-high six shots (tied with Henrik Zetterberg) and was aggressive going to the net. Evgeni Nabokov stopped a career high 50 shots and a few of his most spectacular came against a crashing Franzen, like this one:



Franzen is a difference maker on this team. He can score from anywhere on the ice. He throws his weight and agitates the opponents. In just two games he has shown how much lift and energy he brings to the lineup, but this difference maker has yet to make a difference in the win column.

The Wings are winless in their last four and host a deadly Ottawa Senators team on Saturday that has recently been tearing the Eastern Conference apart). The Sens rode an eleven game win streak from mid-January into February and have gone 13-1-0 in their last 14 games. Not exactly a team that the Wings (3-5-6 in their last 14) need to or want to meet in the final game before the Olympics break.

"I think we played good, we played with a lot of speed," Franzen said about Thursday's game. "It looked like last year, not like the past two months here."

It may have looked last year but it still resulted like the past two months. I do not want to get started on shootouts, but during this current 14-game stretch the Wings have won just one in six shootouts and are 0-1 in overtime periods.

Franzen might be The Mule, but he is not The Savior. The Wings need to take a page out of the book of Franzen and play stronger, faster, better as a team game after game if they want to make the playoffs, because picking up single points in losses will not get them ahead of Calgary or Nashville, nor keep them ahead of Dallas and Anaheim.

The Clock Is Ticking, And As Of Now...

I must return to work shortly, so I will not be able to give an update on what the Wings do if they make another move before the 3:00 PM roster freeze today. Here is what they have already done.

Bad boy Brad May, signed shortly after the season started, has been placed on waivers. He is not expected to be claimed by any other team by Saturday noon deadline. If he clears and does not retire, May will likely skate with the Griffins and be available to the Wings down the stretch if needed, though Justin Abdelkader is certainly a better option for the playoffs.

This and any other moves the Wings make today are necessary to clear room on the roster and under the salary cap for the return of Andreas Lilja. In order for the defenseman to return to the roster, the Wings must wipe away $1.2 million from the payroll. May's contract is for only $500,000.

This means if the Wings want Lilja back now, then Ken Holland must move another player. It was whispered that Jason Williams and his $1.5M would be traded, and that could still happen, but it is more likely now that Brett Lebda ($650K) will be moved. Mike Babcock will not need eight defensemen and moving Derek Meech, who makes less than $500K, would not clear enough salary.

If the Wings do not make anymore moves then that means Holland is not convinced that Lilja is set to return and will not play on Saturday. The freeze ends at 11:59 PM on February 28th, and the NHL trade deadline is on March 3.