Blueliner 69 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 http://www.redwingscentral.com/stories/200...3_RWCReport.php Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock has already said Darren Helm will be in the lineup in the NHL playoffs, just as he was last year. Babcock also hinted that Ville Leino has a playoff spot within his grasp, too. Both forwards have excelled after being called up from Grand Rapids late last month. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
union drone 0 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 http://www.redwingscentral.com/stories/200...3_RWCReport.php The million dollar question (or is it the 833,333 dollar question ) is: who sits? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PROBIE4PREZ 58 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Helm in for Maltby is obvious but who will sit for Leino? Babcock has got a man crush on Kopecky soo I really cant see who else is going to sit Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
superstarsingh 23 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Obviously good news. It would be a crime if Helm was not in the lineup for the playoffs. He was simply amazing in last years run. His speed and grit is going to be apart of the Red Wings for years to come. Helm will be the next Drapes without a question. Injuries and the natural course of the Stanley Cup Playoffs will also enable Leino to get some playing time which he also deserves. Just looking at the core of prospects makes me excited. They are not even prospects to be honest, any other team, they would be on the top two lines. Its this type of depth that will help the Wings in the playoffs and I also feel that Kenny will be able to stand pat at the deadline because of that. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
waitahochiminute 2 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 gotta go with the players that can forecheck and get the puck moving...can't wait for the playoffs baby! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VM1138 1,921 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Awesome news. I feel bad for the likes of Maltby, though. Played in the playoffs every year with the Wings and now suddenly he might just....not be in them. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
P. Marlowe 748 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Helm for Maltby isn't obvious. The 4th line will propably consist players that Babcock thinks are hot that day. When Holmstrom returns there are Draper, Helm, Maltby, Leino, Kopecky and possibly Abdelkador auditioning for a spot in the 4th. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Heaton 1 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Helm in for Maltby is obvious but who will sit for Leino? Babcock has got a man crush on Kopecky soo I really cant see who else is going to sit It depends on the team we're facing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
russianswede919293 95 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 GO LEINO! And we all knew Helm was in. I bet playoff lines (no cap constraints for playoffs, Leino will go back down and be a black ace) Dats-Z-Homer Franz-Filppula-Hossa Cleary-Helm-Sammy Leino/Kopecky/Maltby (rotation)-Draper-Hudler Lids-Raffi Kronner-Sammy Lebda-Lilja Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Anomalously 0 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Helm in for Maltby is obvious but who will sit for Leino? Babcock has got a man crush on Kopecky soo I really cant see who else is going to sit How is developing guys in your system in games that don't matter much a man crush? I will never understand that line of thinking... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stormboy 47 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 GO LEINO! And we all knew Helm was in. I bet playoff lines (no cap constraints for playoffs, Leino will go back down and be a black ace) Dats-Z-Homer Franz-Filppula-Hossa Cleary-Helm-Sammy Leino/Kopecky/Maltby (rotation)-Draper-Hudler Lids-Raffi Kronner-Sammy Lebda-Lilja really? hudler with part time 4th line duty? yikes. i love helm, but i feel like you have to put huds with cleary and sammy. helm is a great checker, and i think we'll see him more in that role. my guess is that we'll have a few injuries to deal with during the playoffs (most teams do) and helm's and leino's places will really depend on that. with everyone healthy, it will probably be the normal top two lines plus cleary-huds-sammy as the third with some combination of leino/kopy/malts/drapes/helm as the fourth line. but say cleary, or sammy or god forbid dats, z, or hossa go down, we'll probably see helm and especially leino getting bumped up to the top six with our standard fourth liners getting their normal time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
P. Marlowe 748 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 (edited) Dats-Z-Homer Franz-Filppula-Hossa Cleary-Helm-Sammy Leino/Kopecky/Maltby (rotation)-Draper-Hudler Lids-Raffi Kronner-Sammy Lebda-Lilja Hudler should have his spot locked up already, I don't think he will be rotated. Imagine if Helm centered the third line and 4th line would be Leino-Draper-Hudler. Then there would be three lines that could score. That would mean that two grit players (Kopecky and Maltby) are sitting and that's not necessarily a good thing. really? hudler with part time 4th line duty? yikes. i love helm, but i feel like you have to put huds with cleary and sammy. helm is a great checker, and i think we'll see him more in that role. None of them really is a center though. Edited February 23, 2009 by P. Marlowe Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ben_usmc 253 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Kopecky/Helm/Leino line up would be good, Kopecky has been playing good whenever he has some youth on his line. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
eva unit zero 271 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 GO LEINO! And we all knew Helm was in. I bet playoff lines (no cap constraints for playoffs, Leino will go back down and be a black ace) Dats-Z-Homer Franz-Filppula-Hossa Cleary-Helm-Sammy Leino/Kopecky/Maltby (rotation)-Draper-Hudler Lids-Raffi Kronner-Sammy Lebda-Lilja Hudler is the Wings' fourth best forward; how do you rotate him out with Draper and Maltby while Helm and Kopecky are full-time? Better would be: Dats/Z/Homer Leino/Huds/Hossa Franzen/Filppula/Sammy Cleary/Draper/Kopecky/Helm/Maltby (any 3, Cleary plus 2 others) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
servo 15 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 GO LEINO! And we all knew Helm was in. I bet playoff lines (no cap constraints for playoffs, Leino will go back down and be a black ace) Dats-Z-Homer Franz-Filppula-Hossa Cleary-Helm-Sammy Leino/Kopecky/Maltby (rotation)-Draper-Hudler Lids-Raffi Kronner-Sammy Lebda-Lilja really? hudler with part time 4th line duty? yikes. i love helm, but i feel like you have to put huds with cleary and sammy. helm is a great checker, and i think we'll see him more in that role. my guess is that we'll have a few injuries to deal with during the playoffs (most teams do) and helm's and leino's places will really depend on that. with everyone healthy, it will probably be the normal top two lines plus cleary-huds-sammy as the third with some combination of leino/kopy/malts/drapes/helm as the fourth line. but say cleary, or sammy or god forbid dats, z, or hossa go down, we'll probably see helm and especially leino getting bumped up to the top six with our standard fourth liners getting their normal time. Yah I was thinking the same thing. I would put Hudler on the 2nd line and drop Filppula down to third or fourth line. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Heaton 1 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Hudler is the Wings' fourth best forward; how do you rotate him out with Draper and Maltby while Helm and Kopecky are full-time? Better would be: Dats/Z/Homer Leino/Huds/Hossa Franzen/Filppula/Sammy Cleary/Draper/Kopecky/Helm/Maltby (any 3, Cleary plus 2 others) No matter how many times you post it, Hudler is not a center in the NHL. Especially not in this system where centers are the most important position when it comes to defense. Hudler is an exceptional winger with good defensive skills on this team, but he'll never be a center. There's more to line combos than just getting the maximum scoring output. Datsyuk - Z - Holmstrom Franzen - Filppula - Hossa Hudler - Helm - Cleary Maltby/Leino/Kopecky - Draper - Samuelsson Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DuckSoup13 0 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Put in Leino and Helm for Kopecky and Maltby and we're good to go! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
P. Marlowe 748 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 (edited) Hudler is the Wings' fourth best forward; how do you rotate him out with Draper and Maltby while Helm and Kopecky are full-time? Better would be: Dats/Z/Homer Leino/Huds/Hossa Franzen/Filppula/Sammy Cleary/Draper/Kopecky/Helm/Maltby (any 3, Cleary plus 2 others) I don't think Hudler knows how to take a faceoff. My turn: Datsyuk / Zetterberg / Holmström Hudler / Franzén / Hossa Leino / Filppula / Sammy Cleary / Draper / Helm and when Franzén, Holmström and Zetterberg hurt themselves: 1. Maltby, 2. Kopecky, 3. Abdelkader Lidström / Kronwall Stuart / Rafalski Lilja / Lebda Spares: 1. Chelios, 2. Meech Funny thing is that in Ea Sports' NHL games Hudler is a center. Edited February 23, 2009 by P. Marlowe Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wombat 26 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 No matter how many times you post it, Hudler is not a center in the NHL. Especially not in this system where centers are the most important position when it comes to defense. Hudler is an exceptional winger with good defensive skills on this team, but he'll never be a center. There's more to line combos than just getting the maximum scoring output. Datsyuk - Z - Holmstrom Franzen - Filppula - Hossa Hudler - Helm - Cleary Maltby/Leino/Kopecky - Draper - Samuelsson Excellent post. Hudler is a very good winger on the team and is not suited for the center position. I agree that Maltby/Leino/Kopecky are probably going to be the 3 guys that rotate in and out depending on how well they are playing and the opponent match-ups. In a lot of ways, I think a Leino-Helm-Draper would be an excellent 4th line. Leino and Helm played together a lot in GR so they could have some good chemistry. Moving Draper to wing would free him up from some of the responsibilities of a center that he has been struggling with but still allow him to use his speed to forecheck (and he could still take the faceoffs). Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
servo 15 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 what ever way we look at it this is a great problem to have. I was really happy to see these guys get put into the lineup and I'm happier that they are staying! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
eva unit zero 271 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 I don't think Hudler knows how to take a faceoff. Hudler / Franzén / Hossa Funny thing is that in Ea Sports' NHL games Hudler is a center. Hudler has played center since his youth at every level except the NHL. So he obviously knows how to take a faceoff. By contrast, Franzen had not played a shift of center until his draft year, when he was converted from wing to center on his Swedish league team because of his size and defensive play. Hudler's faceoff percentage this season is 55%, fourth best among Detroit regulars. Hossa, who has take approximately the same number of faceoffs, is 23%, which is last among Detroit regulars. Are you still sure that Hudler doesn't know how to take a faceoff and therefore should not play center at the NHL level? Hudler is the second best playmaking forward the Wings have. He should be centering Hossa and another scorer on the second line. Leino fits perfectly here. Filppula should be centering the third line, whose primary role should be defensive but which should also be a capable scoring threat. Franzen and Samuelsson fit perfectly with this role. And then a fourth line made up of any three of Cleary, Helm, Kopecky, Draper, and Maltby is a capable checking line with speed, grit, and physical presence. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
taxijim 11 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 I would like to see Helm center two snipers....say Leino & Hudler. Helm not being a natural goal scorer is an intense puckhound who can dig the puck out to these kinds of guys who can score from impossible angles. He's had success with both of these guys in the past & with improving faceoff skills can set these guys up frequently each shift......notice how a lot of Wing PPs lately have been caused by Helm's intensity & speed? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
P. Marlowe 748 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Hudler has played center since his youth at every level except the NHL. So he obviously knows how to take a faceoff. By contrast, Franzen had not played a shift of center until his draft year, when he was converted from wing to center on his Swedish league team because of his size and defensive play. Hudler's faceoff percentage this season is 55%, fourth best among Detroit regulars. Hossa, who has take approximately the same number of faceoffs, is 23%, which is last among Detroit regulars. Are you still sure that Hudler doesn't know how to take a faceoff and therefore should not play center at the NHL level? Hudler is the second best playmaking forward the Wings have. He should be centering Hossa and another scorer on the second line. Leino fits perfectly here. Filppula should be centering the third line, whose primary role should be defensive but which should also be a capable scoring threat. Franzen and Samuelsson fit perfectly with this role. And then a fourth line made up of any three of Cleary, Helm, Kopecky, Draper, and Maltby is a capable checking line with speed, grit, and physical presence. I see your point and I didn't know about those stats. Still, as you wrote, Hudler hasn't played constantly as a center in NHL. This season he has taken only 20 faceoffs. Even Cleary and Kopecky have taken more. There's propably a reason why Babcock doesn't play him as a center. I think Franzén or Filppula fit better to center the second line. Even if Franzén hadn't played center before coming to the league I think he has proved that he can handle that job well. Sometimes a line work wells if one player is more concentrated on defense so those kind of players can be spread over the line-up. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
russianswede919293 95 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 I was saying that Leino, Maltby and Kopecky would rotate while Draper and Hudler remained constant. I could flip Sammy with Hudler, and put Hudler on the third line though, it could go either way. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dawings1905 2 Report post Posted February 23, 2009 Hudler has played center since his youth at every level except the NHL. So he obviously knows how to take a faceoff. By contrast, Franzen had not played a shift of center until his draft year, when he was converted from wing to center on his Swedish league team because of his size and defensive play. Hudler's faceoff percentage this season is 55%, fourth best among Detroit regulars. Hossa, who has take approximately the same number of faceoffs, is 23%, which is last among Detroit regulars. Are you still sure that Hudler doesn't know how to take a faceoff and therefore should not play center at the NHL level? Hudler is the second best playmaking forward the Wings have. He should be centering Hossa and another scorer on the second line. Leino fits perfectly here. Filppula should be centering the third line, whose primary role should be defensive but which should also be a capable scoring threat. Franzen and Samuelsson fit perfectly with this role. And then a fourth line made up of any three of Cleary, Helm, Kopecky, Draper, and Maltby is a capable checking line with speed, grit, and physical presence. Hudler should definately be centering the second line, because we on this board.... Know more than wings management and coaches. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
