Wings Year In Review, Part II: Was This A Fateful Season Turned Around By Fate?

By Adam W Parks

Back in the middle of the season, many people were calling this a fateful season for the Red Wings. Now that they have miraculously climbed their way into the fifth seed many more might say that it has been an act of fate.

I do not agree with either outlook. I'd rather look at the season as a whole and see where things went wrong, went right, and how this team managed to end up with 102 points and the fifth seed in the Western Conference.

If anyone ever wants to know what kind of an impact injuries can have on a team, tell them about the Red Wings of 2009-10. With several offensive absences before the season even started things were already stacked against Detroit. Then Johan Franzen was lost with an ACL injury, and the dominoes began to fall. That bastard injury bug transformed what was supposed to be a semi-transition year in Detroit and into a season of 82 battles in a war to make the playoffs. As player after player got bit, Mike Babcock pushed his depleted lines forward and squeezed all possible production from every ounce of potential.

I'm going to take a looooooong look back on the regular season to all of the departures and the injuries, and just how impactful additions like Patrick Eaves and Drew Miller were to this team.

HOSS-SUCK TO THE SUCK-HAWKS

Let's start with the departed. Most notable would have to be Marian Hossa who signed a 12-year, $62.8 million deal with Chicago for a shot at three straight Stanley Cup Finals defeats with three different teams.

What did we have with Mary-Anne last season? A team-leading 40 goals along with 71 points in 74 games during the regular season, but only six goals and 15 points in 22 playoff games. What have we missed this season? Hossa missed the first couple of months this season but still put up 24 goals and 51 points in 57 games. For comparisons sake, Pavel Datsyuk scored 27 goals in 80 games, Tomas Holmstrom got 25 in 68, and Henrik Zetterberg netted 23 in 74.

He was a hired gun that misfired in the playoffs, that is all. I sat next to a couple of Blackhawks fans at The Joe who drove in from Chicago for the game on my birthday on January 17. I told them, "Good luck with that 12-year contract." They both expressed concern and disappointment in the commitment to Hossa.

SAMI'S CAREER YEAR IN VANCOUVER

Then there is Mikael Samuelsson, the Swede who bounced around the league until landing in Hockeytown for four solid seasons. Sami was never known best for his abundance of scoring in Detroit, but rather his timely goals and ability to annoy the piss out of his opponents.

What did we have with Samuelsson? 19 goals and 40 points in 81 games last season. Modest compared to Hossa, though with those numbers he would rank fourth and seventh in goals and points respectively for the Wings this season. What have we missed? Samuelsson flourished in his first season with Vancouver and, at age 33, achieved career highs in both goals (30) and points (53) in 74 games.

He is a guy that is probably remembered less than others, but we might miss his shot and toughness more than anybody else during the playoffs.

HUDLER THE HEDGEHOG VISITS MOSCOW

How about the Russian immigrant, Jiri Hudler? "The Hedgehog" remains a polarizing player even after he fled for a tax-free contract. Some people hated him to begin with, some despise him for leaving, and some miss his spunkiness and offensive talents.

What did we have with Huds? 23 goals and 57 points while playing all 82 games last season. What have we missed? It's hard to judge the numbers without seeing the competition on the ice, but Hudler averaged a point per game(54) and scored 19 goals for the Dynamo of Moscow in the Kontinental Hockey League.

Signs seem to be pointing to a return of Mr. Spunky to Hockeytown next season. His welcome will likely be mixed, but if he can put up 20/50 again, hard feelings will surely be forgotten.

Those three players were all in the top ten in scoring for Detroit last season. (Tomas Kopecky also left and he ranked 13th in points for the Wings last season, though I don't think anybody really misses him that much.) You cannot replace that type of production; not with as of a budget as Ken Holland had.

What Holland did to counteract the departures was masterful work of finding the right pieces that have fit perfectly. These free acquisitions have been as important to the success of this season as anybody.

BERRRRR-TURRRRRD-ZZIIIII!

Let me start with the Turdzzi. In Detroit Todd Bertuzzi has been anything but his old self. He kinda plays physical. He sometimes scores goals. He occasionally shoots when he has an open look. And despite all that luke-warm praise, Mr. Burt has been the Iron Man of forwards for the Wings as he has played in every single game this season (Nicklas Lidstrom and Brad Stuart are the only others to do so), whether we want him out there or not.

I have been kind of hard on Bertuzzi all season long for the dumb passes, stupid penalties, and caveman-like decisions. I couldn't stand the guy when he was in Vancouver, and I did not like the move to bring him to Detroit the first time, let alone again for this season.

However, his 18 goals are good for fourth on the team, his four game-winners is third most, and his 44 points puts him at fifth. He has been rotated into virtually every combination on every line thinkable by Mike Babcock, and the guy rolls with it. He has bought in and he loves it here.

Is he perfect? Hell no. Does he take too many penalties in the offensive zone? Hell yes. But that's Bert, the guy you love to hate and hate to love.

WINGS CLEAN UP ON EAVES

It took a while to really notice Patrick Eaves, but now he has wormed his way into our hearts with his endless energy on the penalty kill and forecheck, and his surprising toughness. Check out his fight against Kris Versteeg from my birthday game:



Not too pretty, but he hung right in there, didn't duck nor hide, and got some good shots in on Versteeg.

I love the third line of him and Kris Draper winging for Darren Helm. With all that speed they are a tough matchup for any line in the NHL, and they have the production to prove it. The trio finished ninth through eleventh in points for the Wings, Helm with 24, and Draper and Eaves each with 22.

What a bounce-back season for Mr. Eaves! He showed immense potential with the Ottawa Senators in 2005-06, scoring 20 goals as a rookie and accumulated 32 points with 14 goals his sophomore season. But he slumped after that, only scoring eleven goals over the next three seasons. He has 12 this season.

DETROIT STRIKES LIGHTNING WITH DREW

How happy do you think Drew Miller is that the Tampa Bay Lightning let him clear waivers earlier this season? How happy are you that the Wings snatched him up?

The former Sparty was an Anaheim call-up for the 2006-07 Stanley Cup Champion Ducks. That's him there holding the Cup as his brother, Ryan, forces a jealous smile. Over the next few seasons he continued to split time with the Portland Pirates in the AHL. He never fully cracked the Ducks' egg, and he was goal-less and scoreless in 14 games as a role player without a role in Tampa. The Wings picked him up in November and he finished with double digit goals (10) and 19 points.

Why did Justin Abdelkader stay put in Grand Rapids? Because it's been Miller's time. He has been like a really good Grateful Dead concert from Jerry's final years: a gem from the scrap heap. His gritty work on the fourth line and self-sacrificing style on the penalty kill make him invaluable at the end of the roster.

He has an impressive plus-five rating in a Wings jersey which is tied with Niklas Kronwall and Tomas Holmstrom and better than Dan Cleary/Helm/Draper (-2), Valtteri Filppula (-4), and Jason Williams/Bertuzzi (-7). Miller reminds me of Maltby in his younger years. Hopefully he remains a Wing for a long time.

Who knows where Miller would have landed if it were not for Wings' depleted roster early in the season? Speaking of a depleted roster, this team's chemistry and character stems from the guys who fell and picked themselves back up this season. Without the injuries this team would be in an entirely different position, though that is not necessarily a bad thing anymore.

WITH AND WITHOUT THE MULE

This team took on an entirely different look when Johan Franzen blew out his ligament against Chicago in the third game of the season. Though he was just the first of many to fall, his absence was missed the most; the Wings' top lines were not nearly as dynamic without him.

When he finally came back in February expectations were high that the Wings would immediately flip the ship around, but they lost two of his first three games back despite his two goals and three points. Franzen played for Sweden which helped with his timing and stamina, so when the Wings resumed their season the mule was ready to pack everyone on his back and lead down the long, treacherous trail towards the playoffs.

The Mule can score from anywhere on the ice, but when he gets the puck around the opposition's net the guy is nearly unstoppable. I also understand that he can even melt red leotards right off of roadies with his work on the guitar...but I have no personal experience watching that.

He opens up the ice for Pavel Datsyuk and draws attention away from Tomas Holmstrom. He changes the complexion of the team and provides great flexibility for Babcock. There is no way, no possible way that the Wings would have made the playoffs without his return.

INJURED KNEE, DONE DIRT CHEAP

Niklas Kronwall was having a breakout season offensively with five goals and 13 points in 21 games before his MCL was blown up from a knee-to-knee hit courtesy of Montreal's George Laraque. Kronwall missed two months. Laraque received a five-game suspension.

Kronner returned in late January, perhaps rushing the knee, but had to go back on the shelf in February. He has been relatively healthy since the Olympics break, and in that 21-game stretch he posted nine points and just two goals, though both goals and five of those points came in the final seven games of the season.

It looks like Kronwall is just now getting back into offensive form for the playoffs, though I'm looking for the bone-splintering hits rather than the goals! (Click on the picture to the left and play Where's Waldo for the four ladies with the "Oh My!" expressions on their faces. Priceless!)

Let's see, who else was there? Valtteri Filppula missed 27 games. Jason Williams lost 38. Holmstrom was sidelined for 14. Dan Cleary for 18, Eaves for 17, and Henrik Zetterberg for eight. Between injury and healthy scratches Jonathan Ericsson missed 20 and Kirk Maltby 30. Did I mention exactly how many Franzen missed? 55! Oh, and Andreas Lilja, who may not be a favorite amongst the fans but still is super solid on defense, missed an entire calendar year. Am I missing anybody?

It has been a ludicrous season when it comes to injury-induced adversity, but these guys persevered and finished better than any team in the league.

Some people believe in fate, that everything happens for a reason, or that God intended things to be a certain way for a certain purpose. I do not. (But then again I believe in Bigfoot.) If it was indeed fate that led to the prevalence of guys like Eaves and Miller, and the revitalization of guys like Draper and Lilja, then it must have also been fate that caused all those injuries too.

Perhaps that is the way of the world works, and perhaps a seven feet hominids covered in hair are tramping around Hiawatha National Forest in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. It all depends on how you perceive things. I perceive the Wings as a team that worked extremely hard in the face of seemingly insurmountable hardships, relied heavily on each other and their coaches and their fans, and emerged out of a pile of shit shinier than any team in the NHL.


Chalking this season up to fate does not give this team the credit it deserves. I hope that I have.

Peace.