By Michael Caples –
When the Red Wings start the 2013 NHL playoffs tonight against Anaheim, it will mark 22nd consecutive season for the Winged Wheel to be on display during the postseason.
Yet the Detroit roster will look a whole lot different than it did during the previous 21 appearances.
Gone is former captain Nicklas Lidstrom. The Wings sure would have liked to have him around, as three defensemen will experience their first playoff action tonight.
When Jimmy Howard was asked how he felt about the lack of experience on the blue line, he was short and to the point about not being concerned. His coach echoed similar thoughts on the subject.
“We’ve really improved drastically in that area, probably the most improved part of our team,” Detroit coach Mike Babcock said before boarding a plane for California. “With Howie playing the way he and the D able to get the puck going, we’re spending a lot less time in our zone. That allows you to be much better up front.”
Captain Henrik Zetterberg said the pressure to win in the final weeks of the season has him feeling more confident about the defensive corps.
“Well I think we learned a lot,” Zetterberg said. “We have a lot of new guys that haven’t played in these types of situations. I think we worked hard all year. I think the ‘d’ just every game got better and better, and the way we played the last six or seven games was really…it impressed me the most. I think we needed to win games, needed to get points, and we did.”
Brendan Smith – the Wings’ first-round pick in 2007 – joins Jakub Kindl and Clay Township native Dan DeKeyser as first-time playoff players.
“You have to learn on the go and I think we’ve been doing that this year,” Smith said. “I think we heard a lot about our defense, about people not having faith in us, but I think we’ve done pretty well. I think our goals-against average is top 10 in the league so it’s something we’re going to keep doing. We’re going to keep playing hard like that, keep blocking shots and keep playing the same way we have of late and I think it’ll pay off for us.”
DeKeyser, fresh off his junior season with Western Michigan, is the youngest of the three new blueliners at just 23 years old. Yet the former Bronco has impressed in his 11 NHL games this year.
“I’m really impressed,” Zetterberg said. “Didn’t know much about him before he arrived, going from college hockey to playing at this level, and the way he’s playing, it’s impressive. We’re happy for him.”
Kindl matched his career-high for points (13) and set a new personal-best for goals with four in 14 less games than he played in last year.
Zetterberg said that by having to compete for a playoff spot down the stretch, his team is more than ready for the playoffs to begin.
“Well I think it was playoff mode,” Zetterberg said. “That’s what we enjoy the most. You want to play those games, that are really important and mean a lot, and we got a taste of it before the playoffs started. I think it was good for our group to go through that, and I think it will help us going into the postseason.”