Red Wings Update: Zetterberg’s Milestone & Balanced Scoring

by
Gustav Nyquist, Red Wings, Detroit, Jerome Miron, Hockey, NHL
Gustav Nyquist could be the reason for the Wings’ turn around. (Jerome Miron-US PRESSWIRE)

Don’t look now, but the Detroit Red Wings have won two out of their last three meetings. Although it’s not exactly a winning streak, the team has certainly taken steps toward turning the page on their extended losing streak.

Nyquist, Franzen and the Scoring Touch

After Gustav Nyquist returned to the lineup against the Carolina Hurricanes on Thursday and potted two goals to help the Wings to their first win in just over two weeks, it would seem the team has found a way to spread out the scoring.

On Sunday, it was Johan Franzen who led the way for the Red Wings. The big forward scored a power-play goal and assisted on Daniel Alfredsson’s empty net goal to help his team secure the win against Buffalo.

In fact, with the first line combination of Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk broken apart thanks to injuries, they only accounted for a single point. This is a good sign for a team that needs contributions from other lines. But that one point was a big one.

Zetterberg’s Milestone

Henrik Zetterberg’s pass over to Franzen on his third period powerplay goal was much bigger than just an assist on Sunday’s game winning goal. It was the 700th career NHL point for the Wings’ captain.

He currently ranks ninth on the team’s all-time points list. With his assist on Sunday, he moves only 28 points back of Red Wings’ legend Ted Lindsay for eighth on that list.

Injury Updates

Pavel Datsyuk didn’t travel with the Wings for Sunday’s game thanks to an elbow he took in Saturday’s game. The hit left the Wings’ star with a possible concussion.

Defenseman Jakub Kindl (hip) and forward Todd Bertuzzi (upper body) also sat, while right winger Daniel Alfredsson made his return to the lineup after missing five games with a groin injury. Danny DeKeyser remained out of the lineup with a dislocated shoulder and is out for the next 3-6 weeks.

 

For questions or comments, follow Andrew on Twitter @AndrewGForbes

Comments are closed.