Red Wings general manager Ken Holland said Thursday that defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom should be ready to play in Game 1 of the Stanley Cup finals on Saturday. He said the status of Pavel Datsyuk, Jonathan Ericsson and Kris Draper will be determined on game day. Of the three, Draper seems the least likely to be ready for Game 1.
Lidstrom, who has missed two games with a lower-body injury, skated on his own the last two days. Datsyuk (bruised foot) skated again on Thursday. Ericsson, who had an appendectomy on Wednesday, might skate Friday.
"I certainly expect Lidstrom to play,'' Holland said. "He hold me he's planning on playing Saturday.''
almost 3 years ago
Hooks Orpik
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I expected all these guys to fight through their injuries. You don’t play an entire season and postseason to sit out the Finals because you’re a little banged up.
However I did hear some speculation last week on NHL Live that suggested Draper may be done for the playoffs.
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personally
i would much rather have every swinging @#$% for the wings out there so there are no excuses. the pens are on fire right now and when they skate there isnt a team (offensive, defensive, or balnced) that can hang with them.
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by oldtimehockey09 on May 28, 2009 3:38 PM EDT up reply actions
no way
The Pens biggest stars were banged up in the finals last year, but no one cared about that. The wings won the cup, fair and square. I want the Pens to do that this year, and if Lidstrom is less than 100% and Datsyuk and Draper are out, the Pens will have a better shot of taking it home.
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I AGREE
With OldTime.
IF the Pens play like they have and Detroit plays like they did last night, I see the Pens winning in 5
Or less.
Eh, Huet really kept the Hawks in it, much to my delight. Osgood made several big, important stops, especially in the second, but the Wings really carried the play for most of the night. The lone goal was a magnificent individual effort courtesy of Pat Kane.
Helm and Cleary were both outstanding and they won an overtime game playing with essentially 4.5 d-men dressed. If they play like that and the Pens play at the level they have been, it’s going to be a long, highly entertaining series.
by Knee high to a duck on May 28, 2009 5:56 PM EDT up reply actions
I agree Knee high…Detroit impressed me, especially given that their Norris and Hart nominees were out of the lineup.
That’d be like if the Penguins played without Malkin and Gonchar for a couple games and didn’t miss a single beat, just kept on chugging along.
I think the series ought to be a 6 or 7 gamer if the Penguins can hang in there with Detroit’s unique puck possession style better than they did in Games 1-2 last season.
That’s the big question going forward, how well is each team going to be able to control the puck? The Pens have had the best forecheck in the playoffs so far, but if Detroit’s blueliners are healthy they have the best corps of defenders in the league and several of them move the puck extremely well. As the announcers wax poetic about, Detroit supports all over the the ice, so it’s going to be an interesting battle.
The other question is which Fleury shows up? The shaky one that appeared against the Caps for the first six games, or the goaltender making sparkling stops during Game 7 and all of the ‘Canes series? If Mr. Hyde shows up, they’re in trouble, Detroit has too many weapons for a goaltender who isn’t at the absolute top of their game to stop.
On the other hand Osgood is what, 38? He’s looked fantastic so far during the playoffs, but if regular season Osgood shows up, the Wings are toast. The Pens have way too much playmaking talent in Crosby and Malkin and their wingers are finishing far too well for anything less than an absolutely solid Osgood to show up and the Wings to have a shot.
by Knee high to a duck on May 28, 2009 7:49 PM EDT up reply actions
C'mon People. It's the PP!
Wanna hear an interesting stat? Detroit is 14th in the postseason for penalty kill, and the Pens powerplay has been humming. The Pens PP kill is in the top 5, and Detroit has the 2nd best PP in the league. I might be a little off on my stats, but they’re close.
Both teams play a similar style puck possession game, have stars and depth, experience, etc. There’s more than enough reason to believe that the Pens and Detroit will be pretty evenly matched 5 on 5. Maybe even give a slight edge to Detroit. But when special teams come into play, this series could be over a lot quicker than people think. If the Pens start filling the net on the PP, and can tone down Detroit’s PP, this series seriously tips in the Pens favor.
I would be wary of any and all information the Red Wings organization appears to be volunteering when it comes to injured players, particularly the high-end status players like Lidstrom and Datsyuk. Ken Holland is strictly old school, so any information relating to injuries he reveals is most likely disingenuous at best. He wouldn’t be the first general manager to tell the press a player with a seperated shoulder was suffering from a sprained ankle, esepecially not during the playoffs. I know the league supposedly banned clubs from lying to the media about injuries, but I don’t doubt that there are some clever GMs out there who are smart enough to work around the rules and get away with it. So unless a Red Wing or a Penguin suffers a season-ending injury during the Cup Final, I wouldn’t expect either team to be particularly forthcoming about it for obvious reasons.
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