SB Nation - Jason Williams

Cleary out for up to four weeks...great

MrNorrisTrophy — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 18:43:05 -0000

7 months ago: Detroit Red Wings' Dan Cleary celebrates his goal against the Columbus Blue Jackets during the first period of a first-round NHL hockey playoff game Thursday, April 23, 2009, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Paul Vernon)

Browse more photos »

As if those players already sitting in the stands weren't enough, add forward Dan Cleary to that group. Cleary will join Johan Franzen, Niklas Kronwall, Jason Williams, Valtteri Filppula, and Andreas Lilja on the injured list. Cleary separated his shoulder in last night's 1-0 loss to the Blues and is expected to miss a month at the most of the season.

Here's pretty much what this will mean for the Red Wings until either Cleary or Filppula returns:

1. No call ups will be made (according to Babcock) so everyone available will play
1a. An injury to a forward within that time span will likely result in a call up but don't expect one for insurance
1b. If there is another injury not only will I assuredly curse, we could POSSIBLY see Tomas Tatar called up. Unlikely but he has shown in a short amount of time that he is an explosive scorer. Don't bank on it but don't be surprised either.

2. Dan Cleary is invaluable to this team. Sure he doesn't put up the offensive numbers to warrant the same respect of a Marian Gaborik or Evgeni Malkin but he's a huge part of this offense by positioning himself very well, passing at the right times, and having a pretty good shot. Along with the offense, he is a crucial defender and is probably the third best defending forward that the Wings have.

3. Cleary's 7 goals and 16 points will surely be missed but it may mean that Ville Leino will have to produce in the absence and can improve his game while playing on the second line in Cleary's spot.

Hopefully Cleary will be back sooner rather than later but that void is going to be hard to fill with the lack of production from a lot of guys that were expected to be big time secondary players on this team.

Niklas Kronwall out 4-8 weeks

MrNorrisTrophy — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 22:27:40 -0000

More photos » by Carlos Osorio - ASSOCIATED PRESS

Browse more photos »

Following a leg to leg collision with Georges Laraque, a Montreal enforcer, Niklas Kronwall is expected to be out of the line up anywhere from four to eight weeks. The official word is that it is a strained ligament in his left knee. Detroit has already seen two leg injuries this year as Johan Franzen tore his ACL and Jason Williams broke his fibula.

The injury likely means that Derek Meech will come into the line up and play alongside Brett Lebda, with Jonathan Ericsson moving to Brad Stuart's side. My guess is Doug Janik will be called up again to serve as a 7th defenseman.

Kronwall, who usually dishes out the pain, went to the ice immediately following the collision. Earlier in the shift Laraque had high-sticked Darren Helm on a careless swing of his stick and then continued to play recklessly at the other end of the ice when he stuck his leg out in front of Kronwall.

To me, this is a dirty play by Laraque and he should be punished by the league for it. Before others argue that Kronwall constantly has questionable hits, his hits are legal and aren't with the intention of injuring another player. Laraque, however, has a history of gooning it up on the ice and hitting players high, high-sticking, or just flat out playing dirty. What makes this a dirty play in my mind is that Laraque makes NO ATTEMPT at using his stick to play the puck but just goes for a knee on knee.

I've posted the video below for your own viewing in case you missed it

Poll

Was Laraque's hit on Kronwall dirty and does he deserve a suspension?

Definitely! He deserves a suspension!

193 votes

Yes, but that's just hockey-no suspension

19 votes

No, a hockey play and that's it

5 votes

On the fence

4 votes

221 votes | Poll has closed

[Game Thread] Red Wings vs. Columbus Blue Jackets

joehass — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 23:15:23 -0000

The Red Wings head to Columbus to take on the Blue Jackets in their first meeting of the season tonight. The Red Wings come in off their 5-1 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs: a loss that saw the Wings also lose Jason Williams to a broken fibula.

Despite the fact the Wings have earned a point in eight of the last ten games (5-2-3), they still seem to not be firing on all cylinders (as evidenced by Saturday's contest). With a seriously depleted roster, the Wings sit 11th in the Western Conference. Meanwhile, Columbus is in a tie with Chicago for the lead in the Central division. The Blue Jackets defeated the Carolina Hurricanes on goals from Rick Nash, Nikita Filatov and Jared Boll, all coming within a 2:41 span in the third period.

It will be interesting to see how Ville Leino does with increased ice time and responsibility after the Williams injury. He has only one point in the past 10 games. Henrik Zetterberg has 10 points in the last 10 games, including three goals the past five games. The Wings will play three times in four days (tomorrow night at home against Vancouver and Saturday night against Anaheim).

FS-Detroit and FS-Ohio have the game. I'll be commenting along below!

Red Wings claim Drew Miller

mpetrella — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:34:49 -0000

More photos » by Carlos Osorio - AP

7 months ago: Anaheim Ducks winger Drew Miller celebrates teammate center Todd Marchant's goal during the third overtime period of Game 2 of a second-round NHL hockey playoff series, Sunday, May 3, 2009 in Detroit. The Ducks defeated the Red Wings 4-3. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)

Browse more photos »

Today, the Red Wings claimed Drew Miller off of waivers from the Tampa Bay Lightning. Drew is the 25-year-old brother of Buffalo Sabres star goaltender Ryan Miller. Like Ryan, Drew Miller played at Michigan State, even serving a season as the Spartans captain.

He's played 67 NHL games over the past three seasons - most with the Ducks. He's entering the final season of a contract that pays him $525,000 at the NHL level (and $105,000 if he's demoted to the AHL). He will be a restricted free agent, giving the Red Wings the right to match any offer that he may receive in July.

On the surface, it seems like a great depth move, especially given the rash of injuries our boys in the Winged Wheel have endured lately. With Johan Franzen, Valtteri Filppula, and Jason Williams all on long-term IR, there's more than enough cap space - and the need for bodies was becoming somewhat comical.

He will be the 13th healthy forward when he joins the team tomorrow, in time for the game against the Canucks. Whether or not he plays remains to be seen, but NHL.com has him listed as #20 for the Red Wings. Take that, Robert Lang/Aaron Downey/Mickey Redmond/Brad May/Luc Robitaille!

Lots of Wings blogs have picked up the story - many with some great analysis of the move. Be sure to check them out:

Babcock's Death Stare

Bruce MacLeod

Motown Wings (who, by the way, called this waiver pick up yesterday)

Nightmare on Helm Street

Snapshots

The Production Line

Poll

Will Drew Miller take playing time away any of the fourth liners?

Yes, he'll replace Brad May from time to time

24 votes

Yes, they'll finally send Justin Abdelkader back to Grand Rapids

11 votes

No, he'll come in when someone needs a rest or is nursing an injury

29 votes

64 votes | Poll has closed

FUN WITH MATH! (Not really, though...)

mpetrella — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:37:29 -0000

More photos » by Gerry Broome - AP

2 months ago: Carolina Hurricanes' Scott Walker (24) is congratulated by Joe Corvo (77) and Tim Gleason (6) after Walkers' goal as Atlanta Thrashers goalie Manny Legace (29) falls to the ice at right during the first period of an NHL preseason hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Friday, Sept. 25, 2009. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

Browse more photos »

Yesterday, Manny Legace signed a contract with the Carolina Hurricanes, and will become the 17th former Red Wing (or Red Wing draft pick) to play for another NHL team this season.

The Canes are one of three teams to have TWO former Red Wings (Legace and Ray Whitney). The others are Chicago (Tomas Kopecky and Marian Hossa) and Vancouver (Mikael Samuelsson and Mathieu Schneider).

On the other hand, the Red Wings have two former players from each of the following teams:
ANAHEIM (Todd Bertuzzi and Brad May)
CALGARY (Bertuzzi and Brad Stuart)
CHICAGO (Dan Cleary and Jason Williams)
EDMONTON (Cleary and Kirk Maltby)
FLORIDA ( Bertuzzi and Andreas Lilja)
NEW YORK ISLANDERS (Bertuzzi and Chris Osgood)
PHOENIX (Cleary and May)
VANCOUVER (Bertuzzi and May)

The current Red Wings have played for all but FOUR teams. No current member of the squad has played for the Minnesota Wild, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, or Washington Capitals. (Sort of... Doug Janik played for the Stars, Canadiens, and Lightning. Andy Delmore played for the Predators and Flyers. Otherwise, these teams are not represented, either).

The Red Wings have lost 43 man-games to injury. At this point last season, the Wings had lost 34 man-games to injury.

Nicklas Lidstrom leads the team with a +8 rating. Interestingly, his partner, Brian Rafalski, is -1. Funny how that works... Dan Cleary is the low plus/minus man at -7.

Brad Stuart leads the team with 2.9 hits per game. Justin Abdelkader (2.7), Brad May (2.6), Darren Helm (2.4), and Patrick Eaves (2.1) follow. Johan Franzen was averaging 3.7 hits before his knee injury. Ville Leino is at the bottom of this list, averaging 0.21 hits per game.

Brett Hull, Luc Robitaille, and Steve Yzerman became the 7th, 8th, and 9th Red Wings to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame this decade. The others are Igor Larionov (08), Paul Coffey (04), Larry Murphy (04), Mike Ilitch (03), Bernie Federko ('memba him?! 02), and Viacheslav Fetisov (01).

And now, onto the Fake Awards Updates:

GOODFELLAS AWARD
Darren Helm
Patrick Eaves
*named by Winging it in Motown's Mr. Norris Trophy, given to the Final Red Wing to be penalized this season. Award will be renamed in honor of one of these two gentlemen, whoever is the last man standing*

LAST RED WING TO SCORE A GOAL (name under advisement...feel free to suggest a name)
Brad May
Derek Meech

MIKAEL SAMUELSSON AWARD
1. Henrik Zetterberg (17)
2. Todd Bertuzzi (15)
3. Jason Williams (14)
4. Ville Leino (13)
5. Tomas Holmstrom (12)

*Given at the year’s end to the Red Wing forward with the most shots to miss the net*

DEREK MEECH AWARD:
1. Derek Meech (10)
2. Patrick Eaves (6)
3. Brad May (4)
4. Brett Lebda (3)
T5. Kirk Maltby (2)
T5. Justin Abdelkader (2)
*Give at the year's end to the Red Wing with the most games spent in the press box*

GREG STEFAN AWARD:
1. Jimmy Howard (1-2-1, 3.42 GAA, .879sv%)
2. Chris Osgood (6-3-2, 2.77 GAA, .902sv%)
*Give to the Red Wings goaltender that makes you question how they're in the NHL and you aren't*

CHRIS CHELIOS AWARD:
T1. Brad Stuart (1 goal, 15 games)
T1. Nicklas Lidstrom (1 goal, 15 games)
3. Brian Rafalski (1 goal, 14 games)
4. Brett Lebda (1 goal, 12 games)
5. Niklas Kronwall (2 goals, 15 games)
NOT QUALIFIED: Derek Meech (0 goals, 5 games)
*Given at the year's end to the Red Wings defenseman with the fewest goals scored in the most games played (at least 3/4 of team games played)*

DAN CLEARY "SACRAFICE YOUR FACE" AWARD:
1. Dan Cleary (9). Surprise, surprise
2. Pavel Datsyuk (7)
T3. Todd Bertuzzi (6)
T3. Henrik Zetterberg (6)
T5. Justin Abdelkader (5)
T5. Valtteri Filppula (5)
T5. Darren Helm (5)
*Given at the year's end to the Red Wings forward with the most blocked shots*

Monday Morning Fly By: Injuries around every corner

Travis Hughes — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:00:40 -0000

by Matt Slocum - AP

View full size photo »

Your daily dose of Philadelphia Flyers news...

Last night's NHL scores... ATL 3, STL 2 (OT) - EDM 5, COL 3
It was a weekend of injuries around the NHL, and brutal ones at that. Most notably, Carolina goaltender Cam Ward suffered a horrifying laceration to his upper left leg on Saturday night when Columbus' Rick Nash's skate came up and caught him. He'll miss at least three weeks, a devastating blow to an already suffering Hurricanes team. [Canes Country]
In Detroit, winger Jason Williams will miss at least two months after breaking his right fibula -- that's his leg, for the uninitiated. [Winging It In Motown]
Alex Ovechkin has been sidelined for about a week now, and in an interview with Puck Daddy, he said that he'll be out about four-to-five weeks. Not so fast, AO. [Japers']
In Pittsburgh, they entered Saturday night's game in San Jose without Evgeni Malkin, Sergei Gonchar, Tyler Kennedy, or Maxime Talbot. Add Kris Letang to the list, as he fell with a shoulder problem. He could be out a while, too. [Pensburgh]
Of course, the Flyers weren't exempt on the injury front this weekend. With Simon Gagne, Danny Briere, and Ryan Parent already out, James van Riemsdyk and Ole-Kristian Tollefsen didn't complete Saturday's game. OKT has a concussion and JVR has a fractured pinky finger. Each are listed as day-to-day. [CSN Philly]
As if it were some kind of foreshadowing, Puck Daddy published a list of the top 10 most brutal NHL injuries of the last decade on Saturday afternoon. Randy Jones' hit on Patrice Bergeron and Patrick Thoresen's "potentially ruptured testicle" each make the cut. [PD]
While Danny Syvret has been less than impressive as a Flyer this season, the guy he was traded for, Ryan Potulny, is getting a chance with the Oilers. Until now, he has only played in eight NHL games since the June 2008 trade. [Oilers]
Spectrum seats go on sale today at 10 AM. [BSH]
The Phantoms played once this weekend and fell to archrival Albany 3-1. [Post-Star]
If you don't venture past the main column of this site, you a) have tunnel vision and b) missed out on some good discussion of the current standings system, started by mikefive over the weekend. [BSH FanPosts]
Ron Hextall selling Canada Dry ginger ale, just because. [YouTube]

Jason Williams breaks right fibula

MrNorrisTrophy — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 16:21:14 -0000

More photos » by Jerry S. Mendoza - AP

Browse more photos »

As if a 5-1 loss wasn't bad enough, the Wings will now be without Jason Williams for at least two months. Williams had his right leg buckle underneath him in the second period and it was caught underneath the weight of his body as he fell. The injury is apparently to the lower part of the fibula which probably means the "at least two months" part will be closer to 4 months before he can fully recover. Here's what Babcock had to say following the game:

"Losing Willy was a blow to us," Detroit coach Mike Babcock said. "He's playing more minutes and in more situations than we anticipated. But that's just the way it's gone."

Williams was indeed playing more minutes and starting to adjust to the system again during his second stint with the team and was on one of the power-play units with his rocket of a shot. Detroit has already lost Johan Franzen and Valtteri Filppula to injury and the depth that was the strong point of the team last year is starting to show as the weakness in this season's team. When the Red Wings announce a call-up replacement for Willy, we'll be sure to fill you in.

	GP	G	A	P	+/-	PIM	PPG	SHG	GWG	GTG	SOG	PCT
2009 - Jason Williams	15	2	5	7	-5	4	2	0	1	0	36	5.6

Maple Leafs demolish Red Wings 5-1

MrNorrisTrophy — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 03:37:56 -0000

More photos » by NATHAN DENETTE - AP

Browse more photos »

On "Hall of Fame night" in Toronto, in which Brett Hull, Luc Robataille, and Steve Yzerman stepped onto the ice to be acknowledged, not much was Hall of Fame worthy from the Detroit end of things.

Phil Kessel had a big game for the Maple Leafs with a goal and an assist while goalie Jonas Gustavsson stopped 35 of 36 shots for his second consecutive win. Chris Osgood gave up five goals on 28 shots as Detroit's three game win streak came to a close and Toronto won only their third game of the year.

Toronto's Wayne Primeau opened the scoring at 10:34 on a shot from the faceoff circle to the left of Chris Osgood. Primeau gained the zone following a failed pinch by Jonathan Ericsson and Kris Draper lost his edge to give Primeau a two-on-one against Brett Lebda. Colton Orr and Jeff Finger were credited with the assists on Primeau's goal, his first of the season. Phil Kessel added a goal with 26 seconds left to play in the first period to increase the Maple Leafs lead to 2-0. Ian White fired on net from the blue line and Jason Blake's rebound shot had originally beat Chris Osgood before Kessel tapped it in for insurance. Swedish goalie phenom Jonas "The Monster" Gustavsson stopped all 13 of the Detroit shots in the first period with several great saves on quality chances.

Jeff Finger put a shot over Chris Osgood's shoulder on a 3-on-2 for a 3-0 Toronto lead 5:21 into the 2nd period. Finger, the trail man on the break out, received a pass from Lee Stempniak and was able to score his first goal of the year. The Wings were caught in a line change at the tail end of their power play and it resulted in the odd-man rush and a goal for Toronto. As if the 3-0 Toronto lead wasn't enough to deal with for Detroit, Jason Williams fell behind the Toronto net and left the game with an injury to his right leg. Early reports indicate a broken right leg.

Detroit finally got on the board in the third period. Although they didn't score on a five-on-three power play chance, they had several great opportunities. Soon after the power play ended, Dan Cleary received a pass from Brian Rafalski as both teams were changing and had only Gustavsson to beat. Cleary did just that as he scored his 100th career goal at 5:59 of the third, providing the only high point of the night for Detroit. The 3-1 Toronto lead quickly ballooned to 5-1 as John Mitchell deflected a Phil Kessel shot past Osgood at 9:22 and Alexei Ponikarovsky beat Osgood with a weak backhand at 12:44. Gustavsson was solid all game and allowed kept the puck out his own net and allowed his teammates to get chances at the other end.

Detroit returns to action on Wednesday against the Columbus Blue Jackets.

MrNorrisTrophy's Wing of the Game: No question about it, Dan Cleary. Cleary's goal was the lone high point in the game and a huge weight is off his shoulders after finally getting his 100th career goal. Goal 100 below.

Dan Cleary

#11 / Right Wing / Detroit Red Wings

Height: 6-0

Weight: 205

Born: Dec 18, 1978

Red Wings vs Maple Leafs coverage

Post Game Musings: Capitals/Wings Edition

MrNorrisTrophy — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 16:00:37 -0000

More photos » by Gary Malerba - AP

Gotta love the look on Leino's face as he scores his second of the year (AP Photo/Gary Malerba)

Browse more photos »

Wings got the second win of the year, this time against a very good Capitals team. Here are a few of the things I've noticed in the game last night:

Osgood played pretty awesome last night. Sure, the first goal was kind of weak but Oz clamped down after that and had some incredible saves. Two huge saves during powerplay chances were probably the difference in the game, including the incredible desperation toe save on Ovechkin. The second goal was hard to put on Oz as Kronwall was screening him on the shot. Something must have switched his game to the "on" position since returning from Sweden and hopefully it continues at this level.
Since when does Valtteri Filppula hit like he did last night? Although not credited with any hits in the box score, Fil had at least two big hits. The first was against Tyler Sloan and Fil put him on his butt with a solid and clean hit. The second wasn't as big but any time you put a skater like Alex Ovechkin when you're the target is impressive. I remember two or three impressive hits in the Chicago game too, and I like it. Oh and he had two assists, no biggie.
Many of you may have seen that Brad May was wearing a different number last night. What number? 24. Gasp! Apparently, Chelios didn't care when May asked him though so my mood of "what in the crap?" went to "oh okay, well that's cool." I thought it was respectful of May to ask Cheli before assuming the number on the jersey. Also liked how May was the leader in hits last night with 5, second in the game to Ovechkin who had 10.
Derek Meech has been a solid fill in for Brett Lebda. The only real blunder I've noticed so far is a dangerous hit he put on Capitals Quintin Laing that resulted in a boarding penalty. Otherwise, Meech has played a smart, well positioned two games thus far. Meech and Ericsson seem to work well together and have a good sense for what the other is going to do defensively. Although on the ice for the Bradley goal last night, Meech played the puck well and forced the shot to the near post, something you often aim for, but it somehow squeaked through Oz. I'm starting to really like this switch on defense.
The more I see Jason Williams' powerplay goal, the more and more I like it. Although Theodore was screened, the shot was perfectly placed in the top corner of the net, no chance for a butterfly goalie on a shot that fast.
Hmmm...Kind of odd that we've scored 3 goals in all four games thus far. Oh well, I'll take it.
This is the one where I get tomatoes thrown and the big prop hook to pull me off stage. I like the way Todd Bertuzzi is playing so far. I don't think he's the same player he was during his first stay in Motown...he's better. He hasn't had all too many quality chances to prove that he still has the scoring touch but I like the game he is playing. He is hard skater and crashes the net often looking for rebounds. I liked the pairing with Zetterberg and Datsyuk last night because i think he gives them better protection than Holmstrom while still doing a similar job. I may change my mind in the future but I think he is doing a solid job so far in his second stint with the team.

That's it for me for today. Enjoy your Sunday and see you back here Monday for a Sabres preview!

Detroit Powerplay Fuels 3-2 Win Over Capitals

MrNorrisTrophy — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 01:57:00 -0000

More photos » by Gary Malerba - AP

2 months ago: The Detroit Red Wings' Jason Williams, right, is congratulated by teammates Niklas Kronwall (55) center, and Valtteri Filppula (51), left, after scoring a goal on the Washington Capitals during the second period at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit Saturday, Oct. 10, 2009. (AP Photo/Gary Malerba)

Browse more photos »

On a night in which all eyes were looking for Johan Franzen, the Red Wings got great help from the powerplay and two secondary scorers. Chris Osgood played a sharp game in net for the second straight night to allow his teammates to stay in this game against the high powered Caps offense.

Matt Bradley opened the game's scoring early in the first period with a hard slap shot from the face-off circle that squirted underneath Chris Osgood's left arm and gave the Capitals the lead with only 3:58 played. Detroit played better defensively and was able to draw two consecutive powerplays. Although unable to convert on the two chances, the Wings eventually scored soon afterwards. Ville Leino buried a puck in the crease at 15:49 after several chances by other Wings players were stopped by Jose Theodore. Dan Cleary and Valtteri Filppula were credited with the assists on the Leino goal, his second of the season.

Osgood stonewalled Alex Ovechkin in the low slot on a give-and-go as the Capitals had a powerplay following a bad penalty to Niklas Kronwall. With under a minute to play, Osgood's toe save was huge in getting the Wings to the locker room with a tie after one period. The Caps were unable to score on the remainder of the powerplay to start the second period following some good defensive play by the Wings in the defensive zone.

Alexander Semin took his second penalty of the second period to put the Red Wings on the powerplay. If you've wondered why Jason Williams is on the point for the powerplay, cue the video replay of the goal he scored at 16:26 of the second period. Williams received a pass from Kronwall and absolutely ripped a shot over Theodore's and under the crossbar for a 2-1 Detroit lead. Nicklas Lidstrom took a hooking call as the second period came to a close as Osgood over pursued a pass to Semin and Lidstrom had no choice but to hook him to prevent a wrap-around goal. The Capitals took advantage of the powerplay in the third period as Brendan Morrison fired a slapshot past Osgood for a tied game, 1:25 into the fresh period.

Washington defenseman Mike Green took a hooking call to put the Wings on the man advantage again. Tomas Holmstrom scored about 30 seconds into the powerplay on a one-time shot in the slot from a Pavel Datsyuk pass for a 3-2 Detroit lead at 13:07. With the game winding down, Datsyuk/Zetterberg/Bertuzzi put on a clinic in puck possession and offensive pressure--limiting the ability for the Capitals to get anything going offensively as the seconds ticked off the clock. Following a brief, high intensity flurry at the end of the game, the Red Wings were able to give the home crowd something to smile about as they closed the game out with a 3-2 victory.

The Red Wings scored twice on five powerplay chances and used the bad penalties by the Caps to keep the pressure in the offensive zone. Detroit outshot Washington 37-24 including an 11-4 third period count. The next game is on Tuesday, October 13 at Buffalo.

MrNorrisTrophy's Player of the Game: Pavel Datsyuk. Could pick Fil (2 A) or Ozzie (22 saves) but Datsyuk was the key to this game. He won 50% of face-offs, had 3 takeaways, 5 shots on goal, primary assist on the winning goal, 22 minutes of ice-time and was a nightmare to defend for the Caps.

Pavel Datsyuk

#13 / Center / Detroit Red Wings

Height: 5-11

Weight: 194

Born: Jul 20, 1978