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Dabura

2/1 TGIF GDT - Maple Leafs @ Red Wings - 7:30 PM ET

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Killer.. I had not thought of Dougie Gilmour in years. 

Sorry to say I think we'll lose this one... they have played very well, as usual. 

 

PS: surprise me, my Wings....

Edited by puckloo39

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Anybody else get the feeling we're going to be a really fun offensive team to watch in the next couple of seasons?  Really liking where this team is heading.  Our forward group is good, and going to get much better.  Our defense can only improve.  And we haven't even touched UFAs. 

 

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2 minutes ago, kipwinger said:

Anybody else get the feeling we're going to be a really fun offensive team to watch in the next couple of seasons?  Really liking where this team is heading.  Our forward group is good, and going to get much better.  Our defense can only improve.  And we haven't even touched UFAs. 

 

I have enjoyed watching this team pretty much every game, it has been just a bit frustrating when they play well enough to win, or better than the other team, and get no reward.  It will come, in time.

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11 minutes ago, puckloo39 said:

I have enjoyed watching this team pretty much every game, it has been just a bit frustrating when they play well enough to win, or better than the other team, and get no reward.  It will come, in time.

They just have no depth at all.  So unless Larkin or AA take over a game completely they're probably not going to win.  Wait until they've got 3 legit scoring lines, then those one games losses will turn into big wins.  Think about this, and this is purely a hypothetical, but it's entirely possible that over the next two seasons this team could add a high end draft pick like Dach, Cozens, Zegras, top prospects like Hronek, Zadina, Veleno, and UFAs like Duchene and Trouba.  And the only guy of any value we'll be losing is Nyquist.  Everyone else we lose will be old guys at the tail end of their careers.

Edited by kipwinger

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21 minutes ago, kipwinger said:

Pretty horrific that a defenseman with 1 goal on the season was out there twice in overtime though.  Game winner or otherwise.

Does that honestly surprise you anymore? We have the worst coach in the league 

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Just now, kylee said:

Does that honestly surprise you anymore? We have the worst coach in the league 

I actually don't agree with that, but I don't think he's currently got many options.  I've changed my tune on Blashill a lot.  I think he's better than we give him credit for.  His team is basically competing, and in each game, every night with 4 good forward and the league's worst defense.  Plus all of our kids are becoming legit stud NHL players.  I'll reserve my final judgement on Blashill once I see what he does with a competitive roster. 

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Well dang. This was a fun win and a wish I could've live-blogged it with y'all, but like I said my internet connection was being a dingus. Hopefully everything's sorted out with that and I can join in tonight. SUCK IT, LEAFS! SUCK IT, SENS!

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9 hours ago, kipwinger said:

Anybody else get the feeling we're going to be a really fun offensive team to watch in the next couple of seasons?  Really liking where this team is heading.  Our forward group is good, and going to get much better.  Our defense can only improve.  And we haven't even touched UFAs.

I think we're starting to see glimpses of what this team, with some hypothetical and/or imminent upgrades, could be capable of.

I haven't seen people talking about it, but lately this team is showing much better in the shot counts.

  • January 2 - SOG: DET 32, CGY 35
  • January 4 - SOG: NSH 30, DET 39
  • January 6 - SOG: WSH 34, DET 25
  • January 8 - SOG: MTL 25, DET 32
  • January 11 - SOG: DET 35, WPG 27
  • January 12 - SOG: DET 37, MIN 18
  • January 15 - SOG: ANA 24, DET 25
  • January 18 - SOG: DET 35, CGY 36
  • January 20 - SOG: DET 37, VAN 31
  • January 22 - SOG: DET 27, EDM 34
  • February 1 - SOG: TOR 21, DET 33

And that's with a patchwork D corps plus a power play that generally 1) doesn't see as much action as other teams' power plays do (i.e. we struggle to draw penalties), 2) doesn't put more than two shots on net, and 3) doesn't score much.

Defensively, we seem to be playing the "entrenched zone defense" pretty effectively, giving the opposition the perimeter but clogging the high-danger areas. Offensively, we seem to be doing a better job of pressuring on the forecheck and battling to regain and maintain possession of the puck in the O zone. We've seen how effective Gerard Gallant's ultra-aggressive forechecking system can be (with the Panthers and the Knights). While we're not quite playing that system, you can see how a speedy and tenacious future Wings forward group -- with some high-percentage shooters spread all throughout the top nine -- could be a handful for opposing defenses.

There were some sequences in last night's game where we came in really hard and fast on the forecheck and smoked the Leafs out of their own zone, sort of like a dog herding sheep. No matter how good a team's blue line is and no matter how precise a team tends to be in its breakouts, no one wants to be rushed when they're trying to move from defense to offense and no one wants dogs nipping at their heels when they're trying to move through the neutral zone. Apply pressure, create anxiety, force mistakes. It's good to see the Wings doing more of this and spending more time in the role of aggressor.

Edited by Dabura

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