January 2011
By George Malik, Abel to Yzerman, January 24th, 2011
Helene St. James asked Babcock about Henrik Zetterberg and he says that he can bounce ideas off Zetterberg to make sure that the drills in practice make sense.
Overall he feels that Zetterberg and the Wings must pick things up thanks to the team’s injury situation, and he feels that Zetterberg, again, thinks like a coach, sees the game well and organizes people, and he’s been determined and during the Wings’ injury-maligned stretch. The Wings have gone 2-1-and-2 over their last 5 games, given the team’s lineup, they un-Red Wing-like record belies the fact that the team’s battled hard to gain points;
All-Star Game Avoiders Deserve Discipline
By Ken Campbell, The Hockey News, January 17th, 2011
…But why, then, does the league choose this year to not adhere to the letter of the law and go after miscreants when it comes to the annual exercise of bowing out of the All-Star Game? It happened again last week when NHL executive Brendan Shanahan tweeted that, without naming names and teams (Henrik Zetterberg, Detroit Red Wings), there were players who, through their GMs, took a pass on the league’s annual no-hit festival.
Well, the league wasn’t exactly getting all technical when it came to having its best players in one of its premier events of the season. If you’re going to go after a team for handing an extra $600 of the coach’s money to a player, shouldn’t you also take to task those who clearly violate their standard player’s contract?
After all, it’s right there in black and white. One of the first things the SPC says is, “The Player agrees to give his services and to play hockey in all NHL Games, All-Star Games, International Hockey Games and Exhibition Games to the best of his ability under the direction and control of the Club in accordance with the provisions hereof.”
Now, we realize this is a tough one to enforce; the Ottawa Senators might want to think about getting out of Alex Kovalev’s contract on the grounds he isn’t playing to the best of his abilities. But it should be pretty simple when it comes to the All-Star Game. If you’re selected to play, you go and play. If you don’t and you’re not sitting out games due to injury, you’re in clear violation of the standard player’s contract.
It’s strange Zetterberg allegedly can’t play in the All-Star Game because of a nagging back injury, yet he’s playing some of his best hockey of the season. His back certainly doesn’t seem to be affecting him too much these days and really, is participating in a skills competition and a no-hitter really going make his back more wonky?
No. He knows it, the Red Wings know it and the league knows it, but everybody seems to think it’s fine. Even though this CBA was supposed to be all about growing the game and the players and the league being partners, this is another example where the alleged partnership is a complete sham.
“Zetterbergfan Worthy” Comments:
Mooseknucklesdaily- The guy who wrote this garbage should be embarrassed. Zetterberg and the rest of the Wings are just smart enough to know that a weekends rest is more valuable to themselves and their team than playing in some joke of a game in S Carolina. Im pretty confident Ken Holland never slipped a mandatory all star game clause in Datsyuk’s or Zetterberg’s contract. The NHL should still be apologizing for disrespecting the two classiest players in the league when they suspended Lidstrom and Datsyuk in 09, yet you’re suggesting they add Zetterberg to that list. Complete joke. Go Wings
Steve- I can't help but think that Zetterberg may have taken a game or two off for the Wings if they hadn't been hit by so many injuries.
Whistler719- Zetterberg is playing for the TEAM, and if it were not for the apocalyptic injuries already suffered by the Wings, he would have been taking time off. This article is nailing Zetterberg for something as inane as the All-Star Game? The writer needs another job. The All-Star Game has and always will be a farce. These guys show up to it when they're healthy, which is a stretch for any hockey player doing what Hank is has been doing this season. When the All-Star Game ceases to be about Ovie and Crosby, maybe more people will express interest.
Amanda- here's one small flaw with the "logic" of this article. Since Henrik Zetterberg wasn't actually picked for the ASG, him not going doesn't violate any rule.
Red Wings' MVP so far this season: Henrik Zetterberg
By Josh Huebner, Freep.com, January 16th, 2011
Despite the Red Wings’ success, this season has been very similar to last as the team has been decimated by injuries. Last year the team did its best to keep its head above water as the players healed, and the team eventually made a run to reach the playoffs.
While the Red Wings have had to grind out games and are clearly better with Pavel Datsyuk, Dan Cleary, Tomas Holmstrom and Brad Stuart in the lineup, they keep on winning. One of the main reasons for the team’s success has been an outstanding season from Henrik Zetterberg.
Zetterberg hasn’t received the hardware or headlines that Datsyuk has, and the bulk of the leadership of this team is credited to Nick Lidstrom. But he’s been the team’s MVP so far this season.
From day one in his career, Zetterberg subscribed to the "Red Wing way" and has never looked back. He is on pace to match his career high in points from the 2007-08 season and is currently averaging more than a point a game.
The slew of injuries last season defused the Red Wings’ scoring attack, but this season Zetterberg has been there to answer with a goal or an assist whenever his team needed points.
Zetterberg doesn’t have the flashy moves of many of the elite players in the NHL, which has kept him off the radar, but his production and commitment to winning are on par with any player.
The Red Wings have been blessed with many great leaders over the years, most notably Steve Yzerman and Nicklas Lidstrom, and Zetterberg appears to be the captain-in-waiting whenever Lidstrom finally hangs up his skates. This season the Red Wings have gotten tremendous effort from their entire team, and many have been following the lead of Zetterberg.
Zetterberg Rescues Hurtin’ Wings
By Nicholas J. Cotsonika, Yahoo Sports, Jan 14, 2011
Before the NHL unveiled the roster for the 2011 All-Star Game, the Red Wings’ Henrik Zetterberg sent a text message to an old Detroit teammate. He told Brendan Shanahan, now the league’s vice-president of hockey and business development, that he probably wouldn’t be able to play Jan. 30 in Raleigh, N.C.
Zetterberg has been carrying the Wings while Pavel Datsyuk, Dan Cleary, and Mike Modano have been out with injuries, and he has been doing it with a sore back. Shanahan told Zetterberg that he wished he could come, but he understood.
“I think it’s best for our team. I think it’s best for me,” Zetterberg said. “If I was 100 percent, I would love to go. The situation is, with our injuries we have and the way it’s been going lately, I think it’s best for everyone.”
So the NHL hockey operations department didn’t select Zetterberg, who was tied for sixth in the league in scoring when the league’s all-stars were named on Tuesday. Zetterberg was the lone omission among the top 15 scorers at the time.
…this also tells you something about Zetterberg. He deserves to be an all-star, but he isn’t all about being a star, which is part of what makes him who he is as a person and what he is as a player.
The spotlight, Zetterberg said, is “something that always will be there. But I think once you reach it, you just want to kind of get away from it. It’s not that I need that spotlight or I need that attention. Once you’re off your work, it’s nice to be a normal guy.”
The spotlight didn’t shine on Zetterberg at first. He didn’t stand out as a kid, skating against the likes of Henrik and Daniel Sedin, who now play for the Vancouver Canucks and rank just ahead of him in scoring.
“He wasn’t the greatest player back then,” Henrik Sedin said. “He really came into his own when he was 18, 19.”
But once Zetterberg reached it, he reached it big-time. He became a top player in the Swedish Elite League and then a top player for the Wings, who were smart enough, and lucky enough, to draft him 210th overall in 1999. He became half of a Swedish glamour couple when he started dating Emma Andersson, a TV personality.
And then he just kind of wanted to get away from it. When Henrik and Emma wed last summer in Molle, on the southern shore of Sweden, it was a pop-culture media event, complete with paparazzi.
“Put it this way, he had to have guards put up in certain areas so he could try to keep it somewhat private,” said Wings defenseman Niklas Kronwall, one of the guests. “They were still standing there, right on the line, trying to get pictures and all that. That rarely happens in Sweden.”
In his home country, Zetterberg hardly can go anywhere without being recognized. But in most of the United States, no problem. And even in Detroit, a.k.a. Hockeytown, he can keep a low profile sometimes.
Zetterberg went to a Michigan football game in September. He walked across a main intersection, Stadium and Ann Arbor-Saline, surrounded by thousands of sports fans, at a venue that would draw 113,411 for an outdoor hockey game in December.
Still, out of context, wearing his red beard and street clothes and a Detroit Tigers ball cap, looking like just another 30-year-old fan at an unremarkable 5-feet-11 and 195 pounds, Zetterberg slipped through the crowd unnoticed.
“As long as one guy doesn’t see me (and attract attention),” Zetterberg said with a wink, “I’m good.”
Detroit provides Zetterberg with a good balance. In the community, hockey is important, but it’s not all-important, part of a much larger sports landscape. On the ice, he’s important, but not all-important, part of a longstanding team framework.
It dates back to Steve Yzerman and Sergei Fedorov, outstanding offensive talents who also won the Selke Trophy as the NHL’s best defensive forward. It continues with Datsyuk, a three-time winner of the Selke, and Zetterberg, who should be a Selke candidate.
The Wings’ best players go hard at both ends of the ice. Hoping to do that for 82 games and four playoff rounds, they have to sacrifice ice time, which means sacrificing offensive numbers.
“So you’re looking at the scoring race, and our best players play three to four minutes less per game than the top offensive players on other teams,” Wings general manager Ken Holland said. “You times that by 80 games, and you’ve got somewhere between 200 and 300 minutes that the other guys are on the ice. It’s obvious that those players from those other teams are going to get more points.”
Before Datsyuk suffered a broken hand Dec. 22, Zetterberg was averaging 19:40 per game. The Pittsburgh Penguins’ Sidney Crosby, the NHL’s scoring leader, is averaging 21:55. The Washington Capitals’ Alex Ovechkin, currently slumping but usually a top scorer, is averaging 21:29. (Other examples don’t fit the narrative so well, like the Sedins. Daniel is averaging 18:41, Henrik 19:15. But you get the Wings’ mindset.)
“That’s the way it is here, and I’m enjoying that,” Zetterberg said. “So I don’t really … I don’t say miss it, because I never had it. But it isn’t like I want to have that role that Crosby or Ovechkin have.”
Zetterberg can play that role, though.
The night Datsyuk went down, the Wings trailed the Canucks 3-2, but Zetterberg tied the game early in the third period. The Canucks took a 4-3 lead, but Zetterberg earned the primary assist on the tying goal by Lidstrom with 3:56 to go, then scored the game-winner in overtime. He had two goals and one assist in 23:01 of ice time. The Wings won 5-4.
Thus began an 11-game point streak for Zetterberg and a 7-3-1 run for the Wings. Six of those victories were on the road. All of the games were without Datsyuk and Modano, who is recovering from a wrist laceration. Eight of them were without Cleary, who has a broken ankle. Two of them were without Valtteri Filppula, who had a groin injury.
The Wings are deep. They have received contributions from grinders such as Patrick Eaves, Darren Helm, Kris Draper, Drew Miller, and Justin Abdelkader. They even got a goal apiece from short-term call-ups Jan Mursak and Tomas Tatar.
But it starts with top players like Zetterberg, who has played as much as 24:52 with Datsyuk out – defending top players, killing penalties and producing points, too. With six goals and 16 points during his streak, he has 16 goals and 49 points this season. He’s on pace for 93 points, which would be one more than the career high he set in 2007-08, when he capped the season with the Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoffs’ most valuable player.
“We are decimated a little bit up front, then all of a sudden Henrik starts to get the minutes up front that probably the top forwards get on the other teams, and the proof’s in the stats what he can do with more minutes,” Holland said. “He plays at a high level, but he has the sense to raise his game when he knows that we really, really need him. … When he’s challenged, he gets incredibly determined.”
Zetterberg said he hasn’t made plans yet for the all-star break. All he knows is he wants to rest his back for the really, really big games to come.
“In the end, it’s all about winning,” said Zetterberg, whom the Wings have locked up through 2020-21 at a relatively friendly cap hit of about $6 million per season. “That’s probably why I signed a 12-year deal here. I could have gone somewhere else where maybe I had a little more ice time, a little more spotlight. But this is where I want to be. I want to be here with a lot of good players.”
Windsor Star News Services, January 14, 2011
The NHL fined the Toronto Maple Leafs an undisclosed amount for head coach Ron Wilson of Windsor offering his players cash before Tuesday's 4-2 win over the San Jose Sharks.
The NHL contends a coach offering players incentives is a clear violation of the salary cap.
Players can offer incentives to each other without violating the rules.
The NHL's Collective Bargaining Agreement has a clause that doesn't allow a team official to offer anything of value outside of the standard player contract.
With Wilson drawing attention for putting money up for grabs, the Detroit Red Wings admitted such practices put some fun in the game.
"Absolutely," said Henrik Zetterberg on whether the practice is really that motivating for players. "You want to have that guy pay. You don't want to lose that game.
"First get the two points, but when there's money on the board, it's nice to see him pay."
Zetterberg admitted it seems odd that players who are making millions of dollars each season could get fired up about by a few hundred dollars pinned on the bulletin board in the dressing room.
However, past slights or rejections by former teams linger in players' and coaches' minds as well as it being another way to break up the monotony of a long season.
"It's a few hundred dollars here and there," Zetterberg said.
"In the end it makes up a nice little team fund. It's a fun thing that all teams have. We enjoy it."
As to whether he's concerned the Wings might run afoul of the CBA police, Zetterberg displayed a wit as quick as his stick.
"We're just putting monopoly money up there, we're OK," he said.
Zetterberg Steps Up for Injury-riddled Wings
By Dave Wadell, Windsor Star.com, January 13th, 2011
Looking every bit the Viking with a playoff-quality beard months before the post-season rolls around, Henrik Zetterberg has been pillaging opposing defences.
Though the Detroit Red Wings have been deprived of two of their top four scorers (Pavel Datsyuk, Dan Cleary) because of injuries for the past 11 games, Zetterberg has overcome the extra attention and has an 11-game scoring streak with six goals and 15 points heading into this weekend’s home-and-home series against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
“It seems like he’s taken it upon himself to step it up another notch in Pav’s absence,” said Wings captain Nick Lidstrom, who hasn’t been too shabby himself, with four goals and 15 points in the last 11 games. “He’s playing strong at both ends of the ice.
“He sets an example with his work ethic and making plays with the puck, getting it out or dumping it in.”
Zetterberg, who sat seventh in NHL scoring with 16 goals and 49 points in 43 games before Thursday’s games, said no one in the dressing room had to say anything about what was required with injuries to Datsyuk and Cleary.
Remarkably, the Wings’ league-leading offence has actually been producing above their season’s average. Detroit is up half a goal in the past 11 games, averaging four goals a game.
“I don’t think one player can take (Datysuk’s or Cleary’s) spot,” Zetterberg said. “Everyone has to fill in and chip in.
“I’m one of those guys that need to really play better if we want to win games.”
“Like all good players, they just step up — (Zetterberg) in particular,” coach Mike Babcock said. “None of us were good in Colorado (on Monday, a 5-4 loss to the Avalanche), I thought the three, four games before that showed great will and determination. Leadership is so key.
“It’s not about talking. It’s about modelling and he’s done a real good job in that area and so has Nick (Lidstrom). As you go through, the best players on your team have to lead the way. If they don’t, you’re not going to win.”
While one of the quietest stars in the league, the 30-year-old Zetterberg makes his noise on the ice. He dismisses the suggestion that his play is all the more impressive in the face of even tighter scrutiny from opposition checkers.
“I don’t think that way,” said Zetterberg, who begged off the All-Star Game because of a sore back. “I just go out and play.
“Whoever they put against us, we go out and play against them. We’re used to playing like that.”
Zetterberg Happy the NHL Granted Club's Request Not to Select Him
By Ansar Khan, Mlive.com, January 13th, 2011
Henrik Zetterberg is happy the NHL granted the club's request not to select him for the All-Star game, giving him an opportunity to rest his back, which has been bothering him for two weeks.
“I think it’s best for our team, I think it’s best for me,'' Zetterberg said. "If I was 100 percent, I would love to go. But now, the situation with the injuries we have and the way it’s been going lately, I think it’s best for everyone.’’
Zetterberg Has Never Played in All-Star Game
By Chris Turner, Zetterbergfan.com, January 11, 2011
When Henrik Zetterberg was not selected as one of 36 additional players chosen by the NHL hockey operations department to play in the NHL All-Star game on Jan. 30, 2011 in Raleigh, N.C., people immediately began to declare that he was the biggest omission. Z currently has an 11-game points streak, including six goals and ten assists. He is tied for sixth in the NHL with 49points, and is fourth in assists (33).
Shortly thereafter, it was speculated (based on tweet’s by Pierre LeBrun and Darren Dreger) that Red Wings General Manager Ken Holland asked the league not to select Zetterberg because he is still nursing a sore back.
@DarrenDreger: “I'm sure Zetterberg or the Red Wings asked the NHL to excuse the star from the ASG for health reasons.”
Brendan Shanahan of the NHL hockey operations department confirmed later that indeed some teams and players had requested to be left out.
Whether or not the Red Wings contacted the NHL or Zetterberg was simply snubbed, I am sure that General Manager Ken Holland doesn’t mind that Hank is going to get the time off to rest his back. That sentiment is shared by most Detroit fans as well.
While, the All-Star game has lost virtually all credibility with its ever changing method of selecting “All-stars”, ballot stuffing, as well as numerous players being selected over clearly more deserving choices, most players would still consider it a great honor to be selected.
I am sure Zetterberg feels the same way, and would love to play in the All-Star game if not for his sore back. However, this is not the first time Henrik has been playing through injury this time of year. Zetterberg has missed the opportunity to play in an All-star game several times with a few persistent injuries and various other reasons. Here is the history of Zetterberg NOT playing in an All-star game in his eight season career…
First, he wasn’t considered a star player on a veteran team laden with future Hall-of-Famers in his first two seasons (2002-03 and 2003-04)
The NHL didn’t hold an All-Star game due to the 2004-2005 NHL lock-out, and again the next year because of the 2006 Winter Olympics, in which Zetterberg won the gold medal with Sweden.
In 2007, his 4th NHL season, Z was selected as a reserve for his first career All-Star Game (in Dallas) by Western Conference coaches; Randy Carlyle of the Anaheim Ducks and Barry Trotz of the Nashville.
"I found out this morning…kind of surprised. It's an honor,” said the humble Zetterberg at the time.
However, after consulting with team officials and physicians, he decided to withdraw from the 2007 game in Dallas, citing a nagging wrist injury. Instead, he would have a cortisone shot to alleviate inflammation in his left wrist.
Zetterberg had been bothered by tendinitis in the wrist for nearly two years. The problem had flared up again the previous off-season, forcing Z to fly to Detroit from his offseason home in Sweden to have the wrist examined by a hand specialist at Detroit Medical Center.
"He just feels that he needs to give his wrist a rest," General Manager Ken Holland said at the time. "He wants to take the opportunity to do that now rather than to continue beating on it.”
In 2008, Henrik Zetterberg was is seventh in NHL scoring with 26 goals and 28 assists for 54 total points in 39 games, led all Western Conference forwards with 326,244 total votes from fans around the world, and was named a starter at the All-Star game at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, joining fellow Red Wings Niklas Lidstrom and Pavel Datsyuk.
Zetterberg was genuinely excited and had this to say that year, “It’s going to be exciting! It’s always nice to have (Datsyuk) with me, it makes it a lot easier for me out on the ice. I’m proud to go, and I’m glad the fans appreciate what I do. I don't think there's a whole lot of pressure to go down there. Just be yourself and have a lot of fun and enjoy those days. You have enough pressure when you're playing in the regular-season, so those few days, go down there and just relax and enjoy your stay."
But, Zetterberg had recently missed five games with back spasms and had missed 19 games the season before for the same reason. When they flared up again, Hank withdrew himself from the 2008 game.
“Of course I’m disappointed,” Zetterberg said after having to pull out of the All-Star Game for a second straight year (last year it was because of a sore wrist). “Especially this year, I got voted in by fans, and I was really looking forward to going. We decided it was probably best not to go and get this squared away and get healthy for the rest of the year.”
In 2009, Zetterberg was outright snubbed when he was not voted in or selected as a reserve for the All-star game in Montreal. Zetterberg’s slight dip in statistics might have been sighted as a reason why he was overlooked. With “only” 16 goals, 23 assists, and 39 points in as many games, he was off his pace of the previous season’s career highs of 43 goals and 49 assists. He was “only” 13th among Western Conference forwards in overall points.
But in 2009, Hank established himself as a top-five player in the NHL and deserved a selection based on the entire year when he lead the team in goal-scoring and play-off points, winning the Conn Smythe trophy as the play-offs MVP and leading his team to a Stanley Cup Championship while out-playing the league’s wonderboy Sidney Crosby.
When asked how he felt about not being named to the All-star team, Hank was as modest as he usually is, having this to say, “I'm not sad or mad, or anything. I haven't played like I did last year, a lot of guys have played a lot better. I'm not real surprised I didn't get picked. I have to be better next year to have a chance."
However, most hockey experts and other NHL players had another opinion. Two other star forwards who were omitted from the line-ups that year thought Zetterberg should have been there too:
"They have to pick one guy from each team. You look at other teams that had other guys that maybe should be there. You don't have someone like Zetterberg in the all-star game, a guy that won the Cup and had success, and he's having a great season again. And, just because they're allowed to take so many guys and every team has to be represented. Not always the best players are there," said Patrik Elias of the New Jersey Devils, who did not represent the Eastern Conference regardless of his 19 goals and 29 assists for 48 points in 41 games, good for 5th best in the East at the time.
The most glaring mistake in the Western Conference team that year might have been Patrick Marleau of the San Jose Sharks who had 23 goals and 23 assists, 46 total points in 41 games, which is also 5th place in the West.
Marleau said, “It’s just one of those things. I looked around the league, there’s some other guys like Zetterberg and Hossa who aren’t going. That’s good company!”
Marleau, Hossa, and Zetterberg, three of the top forwards on the conferences two best teams didn’t skate in the league’s exhibition featuring its’ finest players, but the following “stand-outs” did: Jonathan Toews, Chicago Black Hawks (11 goals, 21 assists, 32 points, 29th in the conference, +5), Milan Hejduk, Colorado Avalanche (13 goals, 18 assists, 31 points, 30th in the Conference, -5), Keith Tkachuk, St. Louis Blues (14 goals, 15 assists, 29 points, 37th in the Conference, -11), Dustin Brown, Los Angeles Kings (14 goals, 14 assists, 28 points, 40th in the conference, -7), and Mike Modano, Dallas Stars.13 goals, 13 assists, 26 points, 46th in the conference, +1). They weren’t even the leading scorers on their own teams early that season.
In 2010, there was no NHL All-star game because of the Vancouver Winter Olympics, in which Zetterberg once again played with team Sweden.
If he keeps up his better than point-per-game pace for another year, maybe in 2012, Zetterberg’s 9th NHL season, at age 31, he can play in his first All-star game, barring injury or snubbing, or the NHL scrapping the thing all-together.
Determined Henrik Zetterberg Fills Gaps for Red Wings
By Helene St. James, Free Press, January 11, 2011
The change in Henrik Zetterberg was noticeable right away, as he scored two goals and set up another and led the Red Wings to victory.
As good a season as he was having before Pavel Datsyuk was injured Dec. 22, Zetterberg has shown his resolve in the aftermath. He extended his scoring streak to 11 straight games with a goal and an assist in Monday night's 5-4 loss to the Avalanche at the Pepsi Center.
"He thrives on this, when Pav is missing," teammate Johan Franzen said. "He gets a lot of ice time and the team is depending on him, and he loves that challenge."
Saturday night at Vancouver, on the second night of a back-to-back, Zetterberg didn't do much through the first two periods, then showed how deep his reserves run with a great third period that included setting up a huge tying goal by Franzen.
"It's called will," coach Mike Babcock said. "It's just determination. He took it upon himself to step up. To me, he's always a determined guy. He's been really determined now. For a few games there his back was sore, but he seems to be healthy, and when he's healthy, he's a good player. The determined guys' wills really come out when the game is on the line."
Zetterberg's ability to dominate has become crucial for the Wings in light of injuries to significant skaters. Datsyuk (hand) and Danny Cleary (ankle) won't return until next month, and Mike Modano (wrist) and Brad Stuart (jaw) are gone through mid-March.
"I think we all know we're short a few guys, and everyone has to chip in, and I'm one of those," Zetterberg said. "I don't know if I like the spotlight, but you get some more minutes and it's fun to play. Maybe when there's a little bit more at stake, it's more fun to play.
"I just know that I have to play well and will be given more opportunity, and I have to make the best of it. Everyone has got to chip in."
Zetterberg, though, has never been just an offensive guy. Even as he has put himself on pace for a 90-point season, Zetterberg is out against opposing top forwards, too, and killing penalties.
"He's been stepping it up and playing well at both ends of the ice," captain Nicklas Lidstrom said. "He's out there killing penalties, he's out there 5-on-3 killing penalties; he's on the power play. He's doing everything for us, taking face-offs. I think he just took it upon himself to step it up to another level."
Name Me a Better 2-Way Player Today than Henrik Zetterberg…
By Puckgenius, Registered User, hfboards.com, January 8th, 2011
Arguments for Zetterberg vs Datsyuk, Kesler, Richards, Toews, Eriksson,
and Crosby (WTF?) here.
Crosby Would Build His Team Around Zetterberg or Parise.
Interview on Versus, Youtube.com, January 8th, 2011
When asked “What one player would you like to build a team around?” Sidney Crosby grins and admits, “I’d say either Zetterberg or Parise. I like their games. I like how they are two-way players. I think consistancy is a big thing for any player. It’s really tough. I think every night you play those guys you know that they are going to come to work and compete. I think anyone you wanna build your team around has that trait. Those to guys are guys I always reckognize as being that.”
Watch here: Skip to 1:50
Resilient Red Wings Past Red-hot Canucks in Shootout
By Ansar Khan, Milve.com, January 09, 2011
The Detroit Red Wings showed tremendous resolve Saturday night against the team with the best record in the NHL, edging the red-hot Vancouver Canucks 2-1 in a shootout at Rogers Arena for their sixth consecutive road victory.
Johan Franzen scored his 18th goal of the season, on the power play, 42 seconds into the third period to tie it 1-1. Henrik Zetterberg made a nice saucer pass between two defensemen to spring Franzen free and he flipped a shot past Roberto Luongo.
The assist extended Zetterberg’s point streak to 10 games (five goals, nine assists). Zetterberg has 12 points (five goals, seven assists) in his last seven games vs. Vancouver.
Zetterberg now has 15 goals and 32 assists (4th in the league) for a team-leading 47 points (7th in the league) in 42 games played.
Henrik Zetterberg: The overlooked superstar
By Tony Gallagher, The Province, January 8, 2011
With Pavel Datsyuk hurt, Henrik Zetterberg has switched on another gear to keep the Detroit Red Wings rolling along with their customary dominance.
Photograph by: Chris Lee, MCT files
This constant banter about how Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin are the two best players in the game these days is really nothing more than inexcusable hype.
It leaves out a lot of players but the one that really sticks in your craw is Henrik Zetterberg.
This guy might well have a dial on his body and when more is needed, he simply adjusts the switch and he gives the Detroit Red Wings more.
Look what happened the moment Pavel Datsyuk went down the last time the Canucks played the Wings in Detroit Dec. 22. From that moment on Zetterberg immediately picked things up and the Wings scarcely missed a beat.
They went into last night's game a point behind a team that's won everything there is to win over the last 20 games and they're doing it without one of the best players in the game. And the great Swede who battled against the Sedin twins as a youngster has done it all with a sore back.
Has there ever been a better performance than the one Zetterberg produced on the way to the Wings' Cup in '08. The guy made a mockery of the Smythe Trophy balloting that year with a show that included goals, points, game winners and a couple of 5-on-3 individual penalty-killing performances the likes of which this agent hasn't seen in 40 years of watching the game. He was breathtakingly good.
Ovechkin hasn't won dick, his team has underachieved this year largely because he hasn't shown up yet, and HBO is all over the guy. No slight to the outstanding Caps star, but enough.
How about that game in Detroit last month? Datsyuk goes down, so Zetterberg decides to get the tying and winning goals that very night. And he hasn't stopped carrying this team the way Ryan Kesler did the Canucks for a couple of weeks a while back. He does it all the time.
“Basically he just decides we're going to win,” is the way his coach Mike Babcock put it recently when talking to the Detroit media.
“I don't really know whether I have a switch on me,” Zetterberg chuckles. “Every season over the course of the games you have your ups and downs. But when you see what's going on and guys go down, you kind of see a need. You begin to play more so you're out there more and when you have so few guys, I think you just kind of naturally respond to that need.”
“Hank always does that,” Chris Osgood recently told the Detroit News. “He's one of those players that when we need him the most he's always there. He's an all-around player, a team leader. When Pavel goes down, he's always stepped up his game. He's our leader. Nick's our captain but Hank is one of our leaders too.”
At the outset of the season, he said he wanted to put up more points this season. As a result he's on pace for 90-plus, which would pretty much equal his career best 92 in '07-'08. But look at the goofy playoff numbers: How about 91 points in 97 games to go along with a plus-35 over that span.
Zetterberg Records 300th Career Assist, Extends Points Streak to Nine Games
By Chris Turner, Zetterbergfan.com, January 7th, 2011
Henrik Zetterberg recorded his 300th career assist and extended his current points streak to nine games as the Detroit Red Wings beat the Flames 5-4 in a shoot-out tonight in Calgary.
Zetterberg’s milestone assist was on defenseman Brian Rafalski’s 2nd goal, which tied the game at 4-4, 8:16 into the third period. Z took a pass from Darren Helm and fired a slap shot that missed the net and went around the end boards. Rafalski kept the puck in the zone at the blue line and then wristed a short-side shot past goalie Miikka Kiprusoff.
The assist gives Hank 13 points (5 goals and 8 assists) and a plus seven rating in the last nine games.
Zetterberg now has 15 goals and 31 assists (4th in the league) for a team-leading 46 points (7th in the league) at the half way point of the season.
Pavel Datsyuk Injury: 3 Red Wings Who've Stepped It Up
By Matt Hutter, Bleacherreport.com, January 6, 2011
On December 22, Red Wings fans everywhere got what was the equivalent of a lump of coal in their stocking for Christmas.
Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit's leading scorer, and theretofore team MVP, fell awkwardly to the ice in a game against the Vancouver Canucks and in so doing, fractured his right hand.
The loss of such an important and irreplaceable player as Datsyuk (for what, optimistically, could be a little over a month) put a damper on the spirits of fans and teammates alike, and for good reason.
No team recovers from the loss of a player of his caliber, they simply try to live through it.
At the time, I suggested that, though losing Datsyuk was a serious blow, the Red Wings may actually benefit from other players stepping up to pick up the slack.
Seven games into the saga known as "Life Without Pav," we have indeed seen a few players elevate their games in the absence of Datsyuk, helping to shoulder the considerable load the Russian superstar routinely carries with ease.
Thanks to these extra efforts, the Wings have been able to sustain a respectable 4-2-1 record without Datsyuk.
Henrik Zetterberg: 12 Points In 8 Games, Eight Game Point Streak
(Corrected by Zetterbergfan.com)
Though Henrik Zetterberg was already part of one of the NHL's best 1-2 Punches, losing the other part of that duo in Datsyuk meant Zetterberg needed to make an even bigger impact for his team.
He hasn't disappointed.
Zetterberg has at least a point in every game since Datsyuk's been gone and has also kept up on his defensive responsibilities, maintaining a plus-six rating during the same stretch.
The fans, and certainly Zetterberg himself, would much prefer Hank do his thing alongside his best-buddy Pavel. Still, he's doing just fine carrying the extra mail until he can once again activate those famous "Euro Twin" powers.
