Selanne...Selanne...ZETTERBERG

[eva unit zero 271]

For reference:

From Oct 5th to Dec 22nd, while often having his line shuffled and seeing many shifts with wingers like Samuelsson, Lang, and Cleary, as well as sometimes guys like Draper and Franzen, Zetterberg posted 13-8-21, +7 in 34 games. From December 23rd on, when the Dats/Zata/Homer line was put together, Zetterberg posted 20-27-47 and +19 in only 29 games. Had he maintained that pace for the remaining 19 games instead of getting injured:

13-18-31, +12 in those final 19 games would have landed him at 46-53-99, and +38. Assists would be the only major offensive category where he would have been outside the top ten--and top five in goals and +/-.

Had he managed that pace all season?

82 GP, 57-76-133, +54. That's league leader in G, Pt, and +/- and third in assists.

In conclusion:

Selanne is a very good player.

But had Zetterberg not been injured, at the rate he was going he might have been among the contenders this season for Hart, Richard, Ross, Pearson, and Selke with a realistic shot at all of them. Had he played that way for 82 games, he would likely have been a finalist for each and every one of them.

That's just scary.

[Zenithian 0]

Oh really? Comments like "Everyone is saying Selanne is a huge deal and there has been little talk of how important Z is to us."

and

"so I don't understand why the critics are all saying Anaheim is so favored over us and citing Selanne."

sure make it look like another "why isn't everyone picking the Wings" topic, which quite frankly, there are more than enough of.

You're right, I should have just deleted the topic. But someone would start one again claiming the East West Podunk times aren't picking the Wings, so what's the point.

Oops, you forgot to get the almighty BlakChamber's blessing to express yourself in the manner in which you choose. Shame on you for vexing him so! He is, under no circumstances, to be disturbed! Seriously BlakChamber, is your penchant for antisocial behavior a learned trait or is it congenital? I mean damn, ever since Matt made you a mod, you're exponentially more uptight and humorless than when you first showed up at LGW. Give it up, already!

Back on topic...The media has been all too eager to exaggerate the difference between the Wings and Ducks, partly out of socioeconomic bias, and partly out of a deeply embedded inferiority complex (as it pertains to relative accomplishment in the NHL). The Ducks haven't had so much as a whiff of success since they joined the league, so I'm sure it's easy for their fans and the West Coast media to be overly effusive in the praise of their team. That said, they do so at their own peril. This Wings team has a few notable parallels the 1997 team in terms of team toughness and response to the level of expectations from the "experts". If Anaheim thinks its physicality is going to intimidate the Wings, they've got another thing coming. Our top line is revved up, Hasek has reasserted himself as "The Dominator", and the forwards and defense are working well together to limit shots and scoring chances. In the past few years, I've had more hope than belief the Wings were going to go far in the playoffs - this time is different. I don't necessarily expect them to win it all, but I sincerely believe they have a very good chance to do so. If the Wings play their A-game in this series, I think they'll defeat the Ducks.

As for the predictions of the West Coast media, all they need to do is read my signature.

[stormboy 47]

For reference:

From Oct 5th to Dec 22nd, while often having his line shuffled and seeing many shifts with wingers like Samuelsson, Lang, and Cleary, as well as sometimes guys like Draper and Franzen, Zetterberg posted 13-8-21, +7 in 34 games. From December 23rd on, when the Dats/Zata/Homer line was put together, Zetterberg posted 20-27-47 and +19 in only 29 games. Had he maintained that pace for the remaining 19 games instead of getting injured:

13-18-31, +12 in those final 19 games would have landed him at 46-53-99, and +38. Assists would be the only major offensive category where he would have been outside the top ten--and top five in goals and +/-.

Had he managed that pace all season?

82 GP, 57-76-133, +54. That's league leader in G, Pt, and +/- and third in assists.

In conclusion:

Selanne is a very good player.

But had Zetterberg not been injured, at the rate he was going he might have been among the contenders this season for Hart, Richard, Ross, Pearson, and Selke with a realistic shot at all of them. Had he played that way for 82 games, he would likely have been a finalist for each and every one of them.

That's just scary.

it's a good point, and it certainly shows z's potential. realistically, though, no player maintains that constant pace throughout an entire season. i know that's not the exact point you were making, but just something i was thinking.

i think the reason that selanne has been getting so much more attention is because he has been around for so much longer. i has made his name as a big name player in the nhl -- hank is still working for it. also, zetterberg, like many of the wings (in my opinion) doesn't really have an extremely charismatic personality. i don't know that much about selanne, but it seems like he is more of an out going, outspoken personality. that, combined with his serious edge in experience, make him a bigger deal. he's a great player and a great guy.

also, i don't think we need to make excuses for hank. he's performing well at home -- he just needs to figure out a way to get it going on the road. if he can, he'll be a major contributor this series. as everyone is saying, it should be a great one.

[MarkovCocktail 0]

Selanne is a proven commodity who knows how to get the job done and consistently finds a way to do so (not counting his stint with the Avs). Hank has been, at least to the casual observer, quiet this postseason, and he's not at 100% because of his injury. Also, you have to consider marketing: Every team needs a flagship forward that the major networks can bandy about, and, like it or not, our guy is Dats.

While i'm not disagreeing with you regarding Selanne, I have to disagree with the statement that Zetterberg is not being marketed as our "flagship forward". The entire "I'm From Hockeytown" ad campaign features Hank as the only young player among Draper and Lidstrom, where Datsyuk is missing. Don't get me wrong, I'm a huge fan of Pavel but Zetterberg is without question 10 times more marketable. He's an exciting player to watch, good looking, has a good handle on the english language and as many have pointed out in this forum, appears to be the future captain of the team.

[Duckette 0]

Zetterbergs 4th career year:

63 Games Played

33 Goals

35 Assists

68 Points

+26

Salamis 4th career year

51 Games Played

24 Goals

48 Assists

72 Points

+3

Mark my words. . . Zetterberg will have more prosperous career. And he certainly won't be a team jumper, that alone makes him a better and more outstanding hockey player.

Teemu wasn't a team jumper. It's called coming to Anaheim (or maybe he was traded, IDK) then having a dumb ass GM who trades him to SJ, then going to COL to be with Paulina then coming back where he knows he should be. Not everyone is an Yzerman.

And pointing out Teemu's points in his 4th year were better than Z's. Teemu has never been a player destined to be blessed with a high + or - rating.