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Motown4013

The Leaders HAVE to step up

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I think this team has been so blessed with having Zetterberg down the stretch and in the playoffs that some of the guys who have been with this organization for a while haven't had to. Someone needs to take the reigns and find their inner Zetterbeast and lead this team.

Let's face it, The kid line has been awesome. I have nothing but amazing things to say about Tats, Gus and Sheahan as well as Jerks. Four guys who weren't on the roster when the drop dropped at the start of the season have led but we need some veteran experience down the stretch if we have a prayer of watching hockey in Motown in late April.

Hey Franzen, Alfredsson, Ericsson and Kronwall.....I'm looking right at you.

When mule returned, the dude was on fire. You could see the passion, the energy....the guy who could have won the Conn Smythe in 08. The last 4 games, there is Franzenfloat that we all love to hate- taking 12 seconds to get back to t he bench, standing with his feet not moving, growing roots. C'me on buddy....do you want to look back at your career with an asterik of " Wow, he could have been a superstar if his heart wasn't the size of a grinch"

Now we have Alfie. The guy is destined for the Hall. He led an organization for 18 years....he knows how to lead but since the Olympics, the guy has been a ghost. I understand that he has the albatross line but he has looked like he's invisible on the power play as well. Cant hold the line, making blind passes a 6 year old would make. Whats going on? He wears the A....and if you wear the A, you need to bring it buddy.

Let's talk Ericsson. I have always been a supporter of this guy but WHAT WHAT WHAT the F is going on with the big rig? Worst hockey of the year could not come at a worse time. The guy is in a terrible slide and it's beyond me what has happened. I hate to rail on the guy but right now, Smitty looks better. Again, you're not a kid anymore and if you are playing 1st line, you need to step it up. it would be nice if Ericsson showed that he belongs on the first line.

Lastly, I love Kronner. He hasn't been terrible but I really expected that down the stretch he would be a rock...and he's been more of a pebble. He's a proud guy and I think the last 2 games he has been a bit better but I would love to see 55 be the veteran #1 guy that he can be.

Leggy, Weiss and Grandpa Bert get a pass....lack of experience and lack of well...youth kinda get a pass but it would be nice for one of these three guys started playing a dominant role. We need it now, more than ever.

We are in 9th. We need some luck from other playoff race teams but most of all, we need our leaders to be LEADERS!

LET'S GO RED WINGS!!!! Keep the streak alive boys!

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Don't worry, this is exactly why we signed Dan "The Hammer" Cleary when we had no space for him.

His irreplaceable leadership qualties should really shine through in this situation and then everybody will quit bitching (or quitching hehe) and finally see why it would have been stupid not to resign him. :bye:

Edited by roboturner

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Unfortunately Dan the Hammer Cleary is also out with a knee injury.

I say we ice Micky Redmond, did you see that pass to Sergei during the Alumni game? He looked great out there...he took charge of the team and was the defacto leader.

This new top line would probably contribute more:

Al Sobotka / Micky Redmond / Gordie Howe

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Don't worry, this is exactly why we signed Dan "The Hammer" Cleary when we had no space for him.

His irreplaceable leadership qualties should really shine through in this situation and then everybody will quit bitching (or quitching hehe) and finally see why it would have been stupid not to resign him. :bye:

Lol. Cleary out of our line up drastically increases our chances Tao MADE the playoffs.....if that's leadership, I'm all about that

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Our leaders put the team in jeopardy by playing hurt in the Olympics.

These other leaders you refer to are veterans, but they're not in the same league in terms of talent. We're not making the playoffs without Datsyuk and Zetterberg, no matter how many other old players we have.

Edited by GMRwings1983

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I think Alfie needs to step up. We're missing our two best players, our two biggest leaders - but, as luck would have it, we've got Daniel Alfredsson.

Jimmy Howard has to step up, for sure.

Franzen has stepped it up this season, no doubt. When he's been healthy, he's carried the team. He just needs to keep it up. Kronwall's been about as good as he's capable of being. If there's a level he's not hitting, I attribute it to Ericsson really not being all that great and DeKeyser being a rookie paired with Kyle Quincey.

I guess I'd like to see Abdelkader step it up, set the tone.

Edited by Dabura

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I think Alfie needs to step up. We're missing our two best players, our two biggest leaders - but, as luck would have it, we've got Daniel Alfredsson.

Jimmy Howard has to step up, for sure.

Franzen has stepped it up this season, no doubt. When he's been healthy, he's carried the team. He just needs to keep it up. Kronwall's been about as good as he's capable of being. If there's a level he's not hitting, I attribute it to Ericsson really not being all that great and DeKeyser being a rookie paired with Kyle Quincey.

I guess I'd like to see Abdelkader step it up, set the tone.

I agree, but for Alfie to step up Babs has to move him away from the black hole that is our third line. I would also move him away from the point on the PP and have him take shots down low.

Howie though is the key, he finally found it but then the Olympic break came and he lost it again. My theory on Howard is that when he got the starting spot he was ultra aggressive and sometimes that aggressiveness had him taking shots at players crashing his crease; but the coaching staff got him to tone down the feistiness in net which I think hurt him. This year he's been more passive and reluctant in the net, sometimes he just looks lost. He's also had a boatload of injuries which makes me wonder whether his knee is bothering him more then we know.

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Last game, Babs moved Aflie on a line with Nyquist and Legwand... Frankly that is the best way to get Alfie going again.

Nyquist- Legwand- Alfie

Tatar- Sheahan- Franzen

Also, one thing that has been bothering me is the way the Wings are playing the PP. They are not setting up Alfie to shoot from the point nearly enough (he has a far better shot then Kronners from the Point). Simply put, I want to see Alfie firing on all cylinders, when he is shooting the puck from anywhere, that is when he is on his game.

That top 6 obviously is not the best, but it can hang in there with teams and can for sure win us a game against the Leafs, the Habs, and Edmonton. I have taken a look at Philly's schedule going forward, and they DO NOT have it very easy. The Wings just need to stay the course for a couple more weeks here and we will hopefully get Pavs back (I know wishful thinking) and once that happens, this team can secure its way into the playoffs.

Call me crazy, but I think the Wings will make the playoffs. We play Edmonton, Chicago (i already count this as a loss), Toronto (I think we will take it to them and win), Pens (they have injuries of their own so toss up), Minnesota twice, Columbus, Montreal, Toronto again and Tampa Bay to close out the month. Call me crazy, but besides the Hawks game, I think the Wings have a chance to compete in every game and get some wins in there because we play very well against the Habs, Tampa Bay is falling, Edmonton is Edmonton, and you never know with Toronto. By the end of the month, Pav will be back, if not before then, at which point we will have a couple more weeks of games until the playoffs.

I trust in our players to get the job done until then. I trust Kronners, Alfie, Franzen, Nyquist, Tatar, and that Howard will find his game. Most importantly, I trust Mike Babcock. Even given all of these injuries, Babs has this team playing with solid structure. Even last night in Columbus, the Wings were playing well up until that last little bit. I say we fight through this and we get into the playoffs and become the worst nightmare for whoever we play against.

Lets stop turning on our players that are still playing and not injured, and lets stop questioning the coaches. Lets come together as fans and believe in our team.

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Our leaders right now: Franzen, Alfredsson (I can't decide which is lazier at the moment)

I would say Legwand, but he's too new to the locker room.

I wish wish wish Weiss was healthy right now. He seems to be more comfortable on a team with a depleted roster. Joking aside, this would have been a great time for him to step in, find his groove, and lead.

Edit: I forgot Kronwall obviously. Do we have Swedish refs in the NHL yet?

Edited by number9

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I agree, but for Alfie to step up Babs has to move him away from the black hole that is our third line. I would also move him away from the point on the PP and have him take shots down low.

Howie though is the key, he finally found it but then the Olympic break came and he lost it again. My theory on Howard is that when he got the starting spot he was ultra aggressive and sometimes that aggressiveness had him taking shots at players crashing his crease; but the coaching staff got him to tone down the feistiness in net which I think hurt him. This year he's been more passive and reluctant in the net, sometimes he just looks lost. He's also had a boatload of injuries which makes me wonder whether his knee is bothering him more then we know.

Alfie really has no chemistry with Glendening, or Andersson. You're right - at this point, Alfie's gotta be in the top six. We only had him in the bottom six because we were so deep.

I think part of Howard's problem might be that he's largely new to the East, whereas Gustavsson isn't. It might not make a big difference for skaters, but for goalies, they really like to know everyone's tendencies and such. That might explain the shootout issues, at least partially.

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While I agree that we could get better play out of Alfredsson, Ericsson, and maybe Kronwall, I feel like asking these guys to step up and lead the Wings into the playoffs would be sort of like expecting the captain of the Titanic to make it to Newfoundland.

Didn't the captain of the Titanic kill himself? Or was that just the movie? Was that even the captain? These are serious questions and I need serious answers.

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So what would our iceberg be? I suppose it would have to be a team that beat us 3-4 times and basically stole 2-3 points from us, because we suck, and now those points are going to come back to haunt us, like the gashes along the side of the Titanic.

So, basically, f*** Tampa Bay.

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So what would our iceberg be? I suppose it would have to be a team that beat us 3-4 times and basically stole 2-3 points from us, because we suck, and now those points are going to come back to haunt us, like the gashes along the side of the Titanic.

So, basically, f*** Tampa Bay.

I would go with the Islanders as our iceberg.

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If you're using the analogy of the Titanic then the iceberg is "injuries" itself. No team in league has "cost us the playoffs" by themselves.

Injuries have completely derailed this season and may completely sink us.

I'm concerned that in the offseason Holland will use the injuries as an excuse and will ignore the fact that the team struggled early even when they were healthy. Our best players are getting older and our young players are good but are inexperienced, our biggest issue is in that middle group between the stars and the youngsters and that middle group needs a makeover badly.

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Lastly, I love Kronner. He hasn't been terrible but I really expected that down the stretch he would be a rock...and he's been more of a pebble. He's a proud guy and I think the last 2 games he has been a bit better but I would love to see 55 be the veteran #1 guy that he can be.

My frustration with Kronner is very limited, but growing non-the-less. I think his play this year has been average, but confident he'll bounce back. My biggest frustration is that he doesn't Kronwall anyone unless it's the playoffs. I get that players save an "extra gear" for the playoffs, but I think he needs to start kicking that gear in before we MISS the playoffs. Start now Kronner!!

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I think Ken and Mike should hold the team meeting and tell the players that the pressure to make the Playoffs is off with all those injuries.

Then,they could actually start to play as they should and make it.

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Have we sucked in the shootout because of injuries? Have we sucked at home because of injuries? Have we been unable to hold a lead because of injuries? Has Quincey singlehandedly cost us 20 goals because of injuries? Was Nyquist held off the roster for the oh-so-valuable Cleary because of injuries? Have we failed to play more than a couple 60-minute games this season because of injuries? Howard hasn't been anything close to what we need him to be, but is that simply because of his injuries and injuries to the guys in front of him?

Injuries have hurt us. (Pun.) But there's more than that to our struggles.

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