Welcome To The Hank Show

By John Hahn, Detroit Red Wing Director of Communications, Kukla’s Korner, October 30, 2007

Hockey hasn’t seen a 24-hour period of hype for one player since Fitzpatrick-gate.  Check the three Detroit Digger Dailies and what do you see? Zeta-fest.  The Edmonton Sun and Journal? All Hank.

Of course, it started in Toronto; as Canadian law dictates it had to. 

Eric Duhatschek wrote yesterday that Zetterberg “may” be the best in the league. James Mirtle agreed soon after, and not so tactfully reminded me via email that he predicted a better season for the future captain than I did.

What follows is a look at the morning in Hank’s World.

Remember, it was Duhatschek that got the ball rolling yesterday.

But there could be an argument made that right now, as October draws to a close that the league’s best player could be one that wasn’t chosen until the 210th overall pick of the 1999 entry draft; who stands a modest 5-foot-11; who just turned 27 earlier this month and has quietly averaged more than a point-a-game in the two-plus seasons of the post-lockout NHL.

Not so quietly anymore Eric.  If he (Zetterberg) keeps this up visiting diggers will have their hands forced.  No more Chelios The Ancient stories.  No more “if Hasek stays healthy” leads.  Helene St. James was astounded, shocked, perplexed yesterday in the visiting room when she saw real interest in a Red Wing from a large number of media.  Not the norm where she comes from, so we’ll cut her some slack.

There was a funny scene Monday afternoon in the visitors’ dressing room at Rexall Place, where tonight the Red Wings will pit their NHL-leading 19 points against the Oilers.

Pavel Datsyuk was attempting to clear a path to his dressing area but found it impossible because linemate and league-leading scorer Henrik Zetterberg was surrounded by reporters.

Perhaps Helene wouldn’t have found the scene so LOL-hilarious had she read James Mirtle’s blog from yesterday afternoon.  Of course, the Detroit diggers don’t read hockey blogs.  Their bosses in the Wing Communications Compound won’t allow it.  But if she had…

...he’s going to fall off that pace at some point, but the only challengers within four points of him at the moment are greybeards Mats Sundin and Rod Brind’Amour, who as much a threat to win a scoring title as Chris Osgood at this point.

There’s a bit of a cushion there, with Jarome Iginla and the fellows in Ottawa likely to play some catchup here in November, but when it’s all said and done, Zetterberg should finally finish among the top 10 scorers and get some consideration for the league MVP.

It doesn’t take a Hart to get the Oil media machine moving.  Just a nudge from the boys in Toronto.  John MacKinnon from the Edmonton Journal sounds like he’s got a poster of Hank on his bedroom wall, kinda like the one I had of Cheryl Tiegs that I threw away but sometimes still look at no not really but I know where it is in my garage in case I need to throw it away instead of keeping it which I have for twenty five years but only because it’s a piece of history not because she’s hot.

Detroit Red Wings high-scoring winger Henrik Zetterberg has the stylishly unruly blonde mop, well-tended facial scruff and laid-back manner of a surfer dude.

Read the article and you’ll see it isn’t entirely about MacKinnon’s man crush on Zetterberg, but focuses more on the chemistry of the Flying Circus.

“To me, that’s the best line in hockey right now,” said Draper, the 36-year-old two-way centre and three-time Stanley Cup champion with the Wings, who recently signed a three-year contract extension. “I’m very biased toward them, but they’re playing unbelievable hockey.”

Ted Kulfan, who can’t shy away from a story already covered by literally five other beat writers, clearly saw the commotion in the Wing room and maybe even took a note or two.

Zetterberg shied away from the individual attention and discussion. He preferred to concentrate on the success he and linemates Pavel Datsyuk and Holmstrom have had since being put together at the halfway point of last season.

“Good things can happen when you play with good players,” Zetterberg said.

Nearing the end of the first month of the season, there’s no question Zetterberg ranks among the better players in the league.

Maybe, the best.

Zetterberg, Datsyuk on Fire as they Hit their Prime

By John MacKinnon, The Edmonton Journal, October 30th, 2007

Detroit Red Wings high-scoring winger Henrik Zetterberg has the stylishly unruly blonde mop, well-tended facial scruff and laid-back manner of a surfer dude.

But superficialities are wildly deceiving in his case, which may explain why he was available to the Red Wings' renowned player personnel machine in the seventh round of the 1999 NHL entry draft, 210th overall.

Right now, Zetterberg is the hottest forward in the NHL with 21 points and nine goals.

He's leading the league's most potent line, which includes Pavel Datsyuk (two goals and 11 assists for 13 points) and Tomas Holmstrom (eight goals, 14 points).

What's it like to be the hottest scorer on the top line on the NHL's best team, Zetterberg was asked on Thursday.

"I don't know if we really are," Zetterberg said. "It has been working out pretty good.

"Our power play has been good all year and I think that has been one of the big keys. We're able to roll four lines pretty good and get some scoring from all the lines.

"I think the whole team has been going good. When you play with good players, it's easy to be good yourself."

If Zetterberg is self-effacing about his play and that of his line, his teammates certainly aren't shy about singing their praises.

"To me, that's the best line in hockey right now," said Draper, the 36-year-old two-way centre and three-time Stanley Cup champion with the Wings, who recently signed a three-year contract extension. "I'm very biased toward them, but they're playing unbelievable hockey."

Zetterberg, Datsyuk and Holmstrom played together a fair amount last season, until Zetterberg went down with an inflamed disc and missed the final 19 games of the season.

The chemistry has picked up this year where it left off.

"As good as they are and as well as they're playing, one reason is they have a lot of fun playing together," Draper continued. "Pav and Hank basically play keep-away with each other after practice and I think they really push each other, a very healthy type of competition.

"They try to push each other every night to be a great line, to be a dominant line. Right now, it's certainly working. For everyone in this dressing room, it's fun to watch them night-in, night-out."

The chemistry extends to the visionary defence pairing of Lidstrom and Rafalski, who often play with the top line as a five-man unit.

"Hank and Pavel are so good at reading off each other," Lidstrom said. "They both like to have the puck, but they're so good at reading off each other and finding each other on the ice.

"(Holmstrom) is creating a lot of room for them, whether it's going hard to the net, or going into the corners. He's doing a tremendous job just getting them the puck and creating space for them"

Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock reckons Zetterberg and Datsyuk are better together than they are apart, so it's fitting, perhaps, that they've taken a similar pathway to their team's No. 1 line.

Datsyuk was taken 171st overall in the 1998 draft, one season before his linemate was a seventh-rounder. They represented the next wave of incoming talent for the Wings at a time when the likes of Steve Yzerman, Brendan Shanahan and Brett Hull were beginning to wind down brilliant careers.

A little less than a decade later, Zetterberg and Datsyuk, who is in the first year of a seven-year deal, are emerging as leaders on a team whose youth movement now includes Hudler and Filppula, both 23.

Thus does a powerhouse continue to roll -- wave after wave of talent.

"They didn't bring me over here until I was ready," said Zetterberg, now an alternate captain on the Wings. "I was able to play in Sweden (Elite League) and play for the national team.

"I played in the Olympics before I played over here. When I got over here, it wasn't that big of a change for me. And I played with good players right away. I played with Pavel and Brett Hull my first year."

Now, it's Zetterberg and Datsyuk's time. Both 27, they are are just hitting their prime, too. Teams are paying them the ultimate compliment, as well, says Lidstrom -- they are keying on the Zetterberg line, trying to match up against it, night after night.

So far this season, at any rate, Zetterberg, Datsyuk and Holmstrom have been more than a match for most of their opponents.

Zetterberg Showing he is NHL's Best

By Ansar Khan, Mlive.com, October 30, 2007

Somebody asked Pavel Datsyuk on Monday if his linemate, Henrik Zetterberg, is the best player in the NHL right now.

Before Datsyuk could answer, Zetterberg chimed in with an enticement: "There's a lunch in it for you, Pav."

Zetterberg doesn't need to resort to bribery. Anybody who's watched the Detroit Red Wings the first 12 games of the season can make an airtight case that Zetterberg is the most dominant player in the league. Yes, even better than the NHL's savior, Pittsburgh's Sidney Crosby.

"People in Detroit know how good Hank and Pav are, but it seems around the league they don't get as much credit as they deserve," Red Wings goaltender Chris Osgood said. "They're among the top five players in the league, easily. They're great at both-ends of the rink and they create unbelievable offense for us.

"Those two and Crosby maybe are the top three players in the league. Hank, you can arguably say, he's the best player in the league right now."

Zetterberg is the NHL's leading scorer with 21 points. He's riding a 19-game points streak, dating back to last season. Over his last 32 regular season games, he has collected 25 goals and 34 assists. His line, with Datsyuk and Tomas Holmstrom, has been virtually unstoppable since they started playing together in December of last season.

"In the (three) years that I've been in Detroit, he's really come of age," coach Mike Babcock said. "Last year I thought he was the best player in the league from January to whenever he got injured (Feb. 24 with an inflamed disc). He's picked up right where he left off. He's a great two-way player, he's unbelievable without the puck and he's very dynamic with the puck.

"(With) his sidekick, Pavel, the two of them together are better than they are apart. They push one another and they obviously push our team to be better."

The Red Wings take a five-game winning streak into tonight's contest in Edmonton. The Oilers, like every Detroit opponent before them, will be keying on Zetterberg.

"I don't why he hasn't gotten the recognition, but he is getting it now, especially from opponents," Red Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom said. "They know what he can do and try to match up against him all the time."

What's been the difference in Zetterberg? Not much, except that he is shooting a lot more. He leads the league with 65 shots on goal, an average of 5.41 shots per game. Last season, he averaged 3.55 shots per game. During his first two NHL seasons, he averaged a mere 1.94 shots per game.

"Even when he's coming out of the corners he's taking more shots," Lidstrom said. "I think (coaches) have been on him a little bit, in the past as well, just to get more shots through."

If he stays healthy, Zetterberg is not only a good bet to surpass his career highs in goals (39) and points (85), but he might just become the first Red Wing to win the league's scoring race since Gordie Howe did it for the sixth and final time during the 1962-63 season.

"It's been going good, but I think the whole team is playing good," Zetterberg said. "When you play with good players it's easy to be good yourself. I play a lot of minutes, get a lot of opportunity on the power play, it's been clicking. Pavel and Homer do a tremendous job for me, and it's easy for me to go out and play good."

Is Zetterberg the NHL's best?

By Eric Duhatschek, Globe and Mail, October 29, 2007

Trying to determine the NHL's best — player, Swede, coach, Zamboni driver - is usually an exercise in imprecision. So much of the analysis is subjective, for starters. Can a player be any good if his team isn't? How much does offence enter into the equation? Is preventing a goal as important as scoring one?

In the end, the correct answer usually is that things can change from month-to-month, or week-to-week, and sometimes even from day-to-day, which is why the NHL has its player-of-the-week program.

But there could be an argument made that right now, as October draws to a close that the league's best player could be one that wasn't chosen until the 210th overall pick of the 1999 entry draft; who stands a modest 5-foot-11; who just turned 27 earlier this month and has quietly averaged more than a point-a-game in the two-plus seasons of the post-lockout NHL.

That would be the Detroit Red Wings' Henrik Zetterberg who, after most of Canada went to sleep Sunday night, set up a goal by Tomas Holmstrom in what would eventually be a 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks. It was the Red Wings 12th game of the season and the 12th in which Zetterberg has picked up at least a point.

He is currently the NHL's point leader (with 21); is tied for first in assists (with 12); and is second in goals (with nine) on a Red Wings team that is first in the Western Conference (again), despite a slow start from goaltender Dominik Hasek (he is currently nursing a hip injury) and an early-season injury to Zetterberg's fellow Swede Johan Franzen that forced coach Mike Babcock to deviate from his pre-season plan of balancing his scoring lines. Instead, he loaded up his No. 1 unit and right now, you'd be hard-pressed to say whether Zetterberg, Holmstrom and Pavel Datsyuk or the Ottawa Senators' trio of Jason Spezza, Dany Heatley and Daniel Alfredsson is the most effective line in hockey.

It demonstrates too the value of occasionally putting all a team's scoring eggs in one basket.

"For us here, unfortunately, both Mikael Samuelsson and Johan Franzen got hurt," said Zetterberg, in a telephone interview prior to the start of their three-game Western Canada road swing that continues Tuesday night in Edmonton. "That's why they put me and Pav and Homer back together and ever since then, we've been working good together. It's going to be fun to see, now that Sammy's back and the Mule (Franzen) is coming back too, what coach Babcock does."

What separates the Red Wings' top line from the others in the NHL is that all three players were chosen in the nether regions of the draft (Datsyuk 171st in 1998; Holmstrom 257th in 1994). Sometimes, a line such as the Tampa Bay Lightnings' Vincent Lecavalier, Vaclav Prospal and Martin St. Louis can have a couple of long shots deliver at the highest level, but Lecavalier at least was a No. 1 overall draft choice. Spezza and Heatley were selected second overall in their respective draft years. Rarely does it happen that three players, all of whom were long shots to play, not only made it, but made it at an elite level.

You could call it luck — and luck is an element of the equation to be sure — but it also demonstrates the value of developing players within a winning organization. None were overnight sensations. All took time to get to where they are now — and you could argue that Zetterberg was already on top of his game last February, when his back started to act up and he missed the final six weeks of the regular season. He came back in the playoffs and put on a credible performance, but never really found his stride or comfort level. It took most of the summer, working with a trainer for the first time, to get his health back again.

"It was tough there at the end of the regular season," he said. "I missed 19 games and came back for playoffs. The summer came at a good time. I did my rehab. I worked hard and I was able to do that. I feel healthy now. No complaints at all."

This isn't the first time Zetterberg has had a chance win a scoring title. Playing for Timra in Sweden during the lockout, he overhauled the Calgary Flames' Kristian Huselius on the final day of the regular season to win the Eliteserien scoring title.

Sidney Crosby may have something to say about the NHL scoring race before all is said and done, as will Joe Thornton and Jarome Iginla and others, but if Zetterberg can continue at or near this pace, he has a chance to become the first Red Wings' player since Gordie Howe (in 1962-63) to lead the league in scoring.

"It would be nice for anyone to have a chance to do that, but it's early," said Zetterberg. "If I'm in the same spot in 65 games, I'll be a little nervous, but right now, I don't think about that. I'm just happy to be going well. We're playing good. We've had a good start. I can't say anything more than that."

Two Goals, Two More Points for Zetterberg

By Chris Turner, Zetterbergfan.com, October 26, 2007

Henrik Zetterberg was credited with scoring two goals, and had a third one disallowed in the Detroit Red Wings 5-1 victory against the San Jose Sharks at Joe Louis Arena tonight. Zetterberg was given a goal on what was originally scored by line-mate and fellow Swede Tomas Holmstrom just 39 seconds into the third period. The puck apparently glanced off of Henrik on its way past Shark’s goaltender Evgeni Nabokov, making it a 3-0 game.

Zetterberg added another goal 7:27 later when Pavel Datsyuk danced around a San Jose defender and slipped the puck to Henrik just in front of Nabokov’s crease. He had what would have been a third goal for his second career hat-trick disallowed when Holmstrom was called for interference on the goalie, outside of the crease. This is the third time in eleven games that a goal by Zetterberg has been waved-off due to a highly questionable goaltender interference call on Holmstrom.

Even without the 3 disallowed goals, Henrik now has 9 goals and total of 20 points in the first 11 games of the season, tops in the NHL. With at least one point in every game so far this season, Zetterberg is riding an 18 game points streak dating back to February 11^th, 2007 at home versus the Calgary Flames. He also has a point in each of the last 22 home games.

His two goals tonight are the 117^th and 118^th of his career, bringing his NHL points total to 260 in 291 games. He passed Bob Probert’s 259 points to become 36^th on the .

Hank Gets Assist against Vancouver, Extends Points Streaks

By Chris Turner, Zetterbergfan.com, October 24, 2007

Henrik Zetterberg got an assist on Tomas Holmstrom’s game-winning goal and recorded his league-leading 18^th point in 10 games this season, in the Detroit Red Wings 3-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks tonight at the Joe Louis Arena.

Holmstrom scored the eventual game-winner, his second goal of the night, with 4:20 left in the second period. Canuck’s defenseman Willie Mitchell handled the puck behind his own net and tried to clear it with a back-hander with Wing’s forward Pavel Datsyuk applying pressure at the goal line. The puck hit the skate of Vancouver’s Aaron Miller and deflected out to the left face-off circle where Zetterberg knocked it to Holmstrom at the crease. Holmstrom one-timed it into a wide-open net behind goalie Roberto Luongo.

With the assist on the play, Henrik extended his point streak to 10 straight games to open the 2007-08 season, 17 straight games into last season, and at least one point in each of the last 21 home games dating back to December 7^th, 2006 against the St. Louis Blues.

Zetterberg’s 6 game goal scoring streak ended with no goal tonight against the Canucks.

Zetterberg on Pace for his Best Season Ever

John Kreiser, NHL.com, Oct 24, 2007

The Detroit Red Wings were counting on Henrik Zetterberg to take a step forward this season and become an elite player. So far, so good.

Zetterberg has done everything the Wings could have asked so far, scoring a league-leading 17 points to help Detroit get off to a 6-2-1 start that includes a 3-1 record on its just-concluded Western trip. Zetterberg has at least one point in all nine games, and going back to last season, has a 16-game points streak. He’s had six multiple-point games this season and is third in goals and second in assists. Zetterberg is also one of the NHL’s best faceoff men. He’s won 55.9 percent of his draws and had only one game in which he didn’t win at least half of his faceoffs.

No one expects Zetterberg to keep scoring at this kind of pace, but he’s on target for his first 100-point season and he’s in position to give Sidney Crosby a challenge for the NHL scoring title, if he can stay healthy – he’s missed 15 or more games in two of the last three seasons.

 Zetterberg Takes Shot at the Top

By David Goricki, Detroit News, October 24, 2007

Move over Sidney Crosby, Henrik Zetterberg is playing like he's ready to take over your scoring title.

Zetterberg is a threat to score every time he gets on the ice.

"It's a lot of fun," Zetterberg said. "It's still early in the season. We have a long way to go, but a lot of people didn't expect me to have this type of start."

Zetterberg, 27, is having fun because he's healthy again, fully recovered from a back injury (inflamed disc) that forced him to miss the final 19 games of 2006-07 regular season.

Zetterberg's excellent speed allows him to get open ice. His outstanding vision and passing gives his teammates quality scoring chances. He also takes a lot of shots, and only good things come from shooting the puck, just ask Wings coach Mike Babcock.

"It's not by accident, Zetterberg leads the team in shots, he also leads us in goals," Babcock said after practice Monday. "(Former Red Wing Brendan) Shanahan shot from the corner, he shot from behind the net, and that generated second and third chances."

Shanahan, now with the New York Rangers, leads the NHL in shots (44) with Zetterberg right behind with 42.

Zetterberg started the season on a line with Mikael Samuelsson and Jiri Hudler, but was reunited with Pavel Datsyuk and Tomas Holmstrom during the third game of the season. They have played together since.

"I think we like playing with each other," Zetterberg said. "It's easy to find each other. Pav's a great skater, sees the ice well and can really pass the puck. Homer gives us extra space and does a great job of getting in front of the goal."

That line has been one of the best in the league. Zetterberg, Datsyuk and Holmstrom have great chemistry and displayed it on the final goal during the Red Wings' 5-2 victory at Phoenix on Saturday.

With 5:23 left in the game, Datsyuk, from behind the net, found Holmstrom at the left crease. Holmstrom's goal-mouth pass found Zetterberg, who scored on a wrist shot from the right crease to put the game away.

Zetterberg had a goal and an assist against the Coyotes, who are coached by his childhood idol, Wayne Gretzky.

Can Zetterberg become the first Red Wing since Gordie Howe 45 years ago to win the Art Ross Trophy? Not even former Wings Steve Yzerman and Sergei Fedorov, with all their offensive brilliance, won the Art Ross, which is awarded to the NHL scoring leader.

If Zetterberg wins the Art Ross this season, he might have to do it while playing on another line.

"We'll go away from it," Babcock said of the Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Holmstrom line. "We're better and deeper (this season) and we want to spread it out.

"We didn't have other options after (Johan) Franzen and Samuelsson got hurt. That's why we put them back together."

Zetterberg had five points, including a goal, while playing the first two games with Samuelsson and Hudler.

Red Wings enforcer Aaron Downey, who knows a little bit about stirring up trouble, says Zetterberg is an unflappable presence on the ice.

"The more you try to get under his skin the better he performs," Downey said. "He's a terrific worker, a great competitor."

Zetterberg's great start has not come by accident. He works hard on his conditioning. He felt confident coming into the season that his back would hold up.

"It was tough last year," Zetterberg said of his injury. "I was pretty confident I'd be fine after I came back to play in the playoffs last season.

"I just made sure I strengthened up the muscles by my spine. I worked on different core exercises to strengthen it."

Without much fanfare, these Zetterberg-led Wings have accumulated 13 points, third best in the league, following their 3-1 road trip.

"It was real important for us to play well on the road," Zetterberg said. "But we haven't reached the top yet. We can still play better."

Zetterberg’s Scoring Streak Continues

By Chris Turner, Zetterbergfan.com, October 20, 2007

Detroit Red Wing’s star center Henrik Zetterberg remains a top the NHL scoring leaders list after extending his scoring streak to a career-best 16 regular season games dating back to February 11^th, 2007 at home versus the Calgary Flames. With another goal and assist in the Wing’s 5-2 victory over the Coyotes tonight in Phoenix, Zetterberg has 7 goals and 10 assists in the first 9 games of the 2007-08 season. His 17 points are a league best. Paul Stastny of the Colorado Avalanche has 14 points in seven games.

Henrik assisted on Kirk Maltby’s second goal of the game, the game-winner, with just 26 seconds left in the second period.

Zetterberg added a goal of his own at 14:37 of the third period making it a 5-2 Detroit lead and putting the game out of reach for the Coyotes. It was Zetterberg’s 6^th goal in 6 straight games, a career high goal scoring streak.

The goal and the assist give Hank career totals of 116 goals and 141 assists in 289 games with the franchise. He has now passed Walt McKehnie for 37^th on the list with 257 points.

With two points in the game, Henrik now has 12 goals and 11 assists for 23 points in 17 career games against Phoenix. His is his best average against any Western Conference opponent. Zetterberg got his first career hat-trick against Phoenix and goalie Mikael Tellqvist on February 17, 2007.

“He doesn't get enough credit for being the elite player that he is. He's definitely in that group of players.”

-Wayne Gretzky, Phoenix Coyotes Head Coach (Feb. 2007)

Henrik Zetterberg, by the way, was sporting a black left eye and a stitched-up scar after practice at HP Pavilion, the result of a nasty incident Thursday involving ... himself and Chris Osgood.

"I got cross-checked," he said. "No, actually it was in the warm-ups, I got a puck there. I shot the puck and it hit Ozzie and then hit me back. But you can say it was a cross-check or high stick or something."