Ericsson to be paired by Lidstrom

[pucktividi 472]

Isn't the Ducks our first opponent ?

he can do the same to Perry...once again

[SouthernWingsFan 854]

I wouldn't sweat much about Kronwall being on the 3rd pairing. I would think the d-men would probably try to get equal time to start out given the ages of Lidstrom, Rafalski, Salei, etc.

[egroen 384]

Looks like Babs plans to go 20/20/20 with the D. Each pair should be capable of that.

I actually see this as a vote of confidence in the team... willing to experiment to get the younger guys some good experience.

Agreed... it appears Babcock will really try and spread the minutes around this year - both forwards and defenseman.

Should work great with the depth this year, provided injuries remain light.

Should help keep the star players fresh and give the youngsters the experience and playing time they need.

Many players were overplayed last year.

Edited October 6, 2010 by egroen

[Konnan511 1,736]

This is stupid. Why drag down our best offensive defensmen to babysit Big Rig? So instead of having Lidstrom contribute heavily to the offensive side of the puck, he's going to be focused primarily on all defense, all the time.

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

This is stupid. Why drag down our best offensive defensmen to babysit Big Rig? So instead of having Lidstrom contribute heavily to the offensive side of the puck, he's going to be focused primarily on all defense, all the time.

It pretty much explains why in the first paragraph of the article.

The Detroit Red Wings hope struggling defenseman Jonathan Ericsson will regain some poise and confidence by being paired with six-time Norris Trophy winner Nicklas Lidstrom.

Red Wings coach Mike Babcock made the switch in Tuesday’s practice. Ericsson had played with Ruslan Salei while Lidstrom had been paired with Niklas Kronwall during training camp and the preseason.

“I thought E played some of his best hockey when he played with Nick against Anaheim (second round of the 2009 playoffs),’’ Babcock said. “Their top unit with (Ryan) Getzlaf and (Corey) Perry really make it hard on the other team’s (defense). E’s a big body, we want him to play well.’’"

The opener is against the Ducks. It makes sense. Lids will still be on the power play with Raf. And this isn't necessarily permanent. If Ericsson gets his game together, he may move to a different pairing.

Edited October 6, 2010 by haroldsnepsts

[Z and D for the C 712]

Ericsson can obviously perform, but he just needs the confidence to do so. This is obviously a move to make him more confident, and thus a better player. It's not permanent, so I like the move.

Edited October 6, 2010 by Z and D for the C

[CenterIce 83]

Not quite sure if anyone actually read the article, but Babcock says this is mostly a matchup issue. He wants a bigger Ericsson going against Getzlaf and Perry. We will see how it goes from there.

Edited October 6, 2010 by CenterIce

[Crashnburnluder 385]

Since this is all about D what would be our power play combos...?

Lidstrom - Kronwall

Rafalski - ?

Or would ralfalski and lidstrom play together again...

[Buppy 1,720]

Since this is all about D what would be our power play combos...?

Lidstrom - Kronwall

Rafalski - ?

Or would ralfalski and lidstrom play together again...

Nick and Rafi

Kronwall and Modano

That much is pretty well set.

I like the move. Probably because I still like Ericsson. One thing though, while line combos do change often, Babs hasn't really shuffled the D pairs since Stuart was acquired, other than for injuries. Raises the magnitude of this move a bit in my mind.

[VM1138 1,921]

Look at it this way guys, Kronwall-Salei is going to be freaking murder.

Like people have said, we have to stop looking at this like it's a traditional lineup. There are three pairings of equal depth and talent (actually, the bottom two have much better balances) that will get almost identical playing time.

It's also early in the season, which is when you want to be experimenting with lines. It makes sense for many reasons already articulated. Again, time on ice will be virtually identical. Just look at those pairs. Other than Lidstrom being a god on skates, they're all about the same skill level.

As for egos, you could shuffle those lines and say either one of them can be top pairing. So I don't think ego will really come into play here. I know if I were a player and I'd be getting the same minutes (or more) as before I wouldn't really care which line I was penciled onto on paper.

Edited October 6, 2010 by VM1138

[titanium2 867]

I feel like this is all about matching up size with the Getzlaf line and trying to allow E to build confidence in himself. If the Wings played the Blackhawks, they'd probably send Kronwall out there with Nick so you have two guys that can move the puck really well.

[Detroit # 1 Fan 2,204]

I like it, Ericsson played his best hockey with Lidstrom in the 09 playoffs, against Anaheim go figure. Looking forward to friday night.

[titanium2 867]

I might be making mountains out of molehills but does this comment by Babs imply that the team would NOT have good puck movement if E was on the third pairing?

“Kronner’s a real good puck mover,’’ Babcock said. “It allows us to have good puck movement through three sets.’’

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

I might be making mountains out of molehills but does this comment by Babs imply that the team would NOT have good puck movement if E was on the third pairing?

I think Ericsson is a decent puck mover. It's the brain farts and lack of physical play that kill him.

But he's definitely not at the level of a Kronwall, Lids or Raf when it comes to moving the puck up ice.

I'd take it more to mean that with these pairings the Wings have a great puck mover in each pairing.

Edited October 6, 2010 by haroldsnepsts

[Z and D for the C 712]

I might be making mountains out of molehills but does this comment by Babs imply that the team would NOT have good puck movement if E was on the third pairing?

When Ericsson and Salei are out on the ice, we wouldn't have very good puck movement. Being that it looks like all 3 lines will be getting similar ice time, this move makes sense from a puck movement perspective.

[titanium2 867]

I think Ericsson is a decent puck mover. It's the brain farts and lack of physical play that kill him.

But he's definitely not at the level of a Kronwall, Lids or Raf when it comes to moving the puck up ice.

I'd take it more to mean that with these pairings the Wings have a great puck mover in each pairing.

Pretty much. BTW, nice quick edit.

That's something E probably doesn't like to hear. I feel like he sees himself or would love to be a great puck mover. But maybe he needs to realize that his ceiling in terms of moving the puck is more like a Brad Stuart; a player that can move the puck well but in limited touches when they're not the main puck mover, which means he really needs to develop some confidence without the puck.

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

Pretty much. BTW, nice quick edit.

That's something E probably doesn't like to hear. I feel like he sees himself or would love to be a great puck mover. But maybe he needs to realize that his ceiling in terms of moving the puck is more like a Brad Stuart; a player that can move the puck well but in limited touches when they're not the main puck mover, which means he really needs to develop some confidence without the puck.

yeah, I realized I had posted Raf, Raf, and Lidstrom as the best puckmovers. Probably why I shouldn't drink scotch and post. If we had two rafalski's then there'd just be twice as much bitching about his contract...

Honestly he may become a good puck mover. As a converted forward I'm sure he has that sense, but he's got much larger issues to work on first. Like decision making. I'd be perfectly happy if he settled at the Stuart level of puck movement, as long as he also had Stuart's physical play.

[Broken 16 381]

I like the move only in that we will now get definitive proof as to whether or not Ericsson sucks.

[titanium2 867]

I like the move only in that we will now get definitive proof as to whether or not Ericsson sucks.

Lidstrom can't save everybody I guess. Depending on whom you ask, Lilja and Dandenault seem to be relatively recent cases of no Lidstrom effect.

[Lord Stanely 39]

My tin foil hat is picking up on this:

Put Big E in with Lids to make Big E look better early in the season. The coaches will know if he really is doing well. If not he will have inflated numbers with Lids so then he becomes trade bait. Some GM says: "Wow- Detroit is willing to give up their top D prospect -the next Lidstrom- the guy being trained by Lidstrom- and all they want is our number three D man and a pick or two. Lets do it."

Or not.

[esteef 2,679]

The mere mention of Perry's name in this thread pisses me off. Kill him Big Rig!!!!

esteef

[Drake_Marcus 890]

If Ericsson can't play well with Lidstrom then that's all the management needs to know.

Exactly. Lidstrom will really help him get his confidence back. E needs to feel like he did in 08-09 and stop overthinking/doubting himself. Someone described it as him acting like the puck was a grenade when he had it on his stick and that's an apt analogy. He's so unsure of himself he's desperate to get rid of the puck whenever he gets it.

The one thing people commented on the most when he was playing in the 09 playoffs was how poised and confident he was with the puck. That's a 100% mental thing. Right now he needs a frigging therapist or something. He looks like Leino did last season before they traded him. Just like Leino the talent is there, but the mental aspect if broken. I'd hate to see them have to dump him just to have him fix himself on another team. It's annoying enough hearing the people who ragged on Leino pretend like they didn't want to see him gone after his performance in the playoffs.

[Guest mindfly]

This will hurt Lidstroms production :/ I want him to get his 7th norris god dammit :/

[Hockeymom1960 5,107]

This will hurt Lidstroms production :/ I want him to get his 7th norris god dammit :/

OMG STOP YOUR WHINING

[titanium2 867]

How long did it take for us to like Fisher? Until the 2002 cup? And even after that he fell out of favor with us for a little bit then started to play like a true quality dman until his accident.

How about Kronwall? 2008 cup?

Unfortunately for Ericsson, he'll have to play a significant part in this year's 2011 cup if we are ever to like him, .