Detroit drops a 6-3 decision to the Philadelphia Flyers tonight. Jim Howard takes the loss in net. Johan Franzen with one goal and Tomas Tatar with two are your scorers on the evening. Frustration is prevalent here, given that the Wings seemed to be rolling right early on. They were applying pressure with a fast and great start and the effort carried strong throughout the course of the first period and into the second. And then, the Flyers found that they were able to impose their will on Detroit and really asserted themselves back into the game. The Red Wings were showing signs of play that was reminiscent of the 2008 and 2009 seasons. And then, their specialty teams let them down in what could have been a romp over the Flyers given the powerplay opportunities afforded to Detroit. Detroit very much missed Pavel Datsyuk, if only for his Datsyukian entries into the offensive zone. The entry to a powerplay is so important because it is the first step to setting up zone time and strategy. If there is no entry, there is no set-up, and going 1-for-6 was quite evident of that. The attention to detail was also lacking in the third period; this was a facet of the game that reigned so supreme in Detroits recent four-game win streak. Sean Couturiers go-ahead goal was a result of that loss of focus. And finally, the key to all of this was Jim Howard having the opportunity to string together some outings of consistency, and today, he got cleanly beat for the first time since a game against Calgary in the 2012 season. Obviously, to nitpick Howard on one goal is unfair, but it is safe to say that Howard has been human thus far this season, unlike his MVP-caliber season last year. The saves that we are accustomed to seeing him make are not happening with as much regularity. But what is important to note that this is only one game. The way that the loss was earned was frustrating, but in the absence of three key contributors, players are gaining learning experiences by default. And to see them come out to a two goal lead shows a great start, but they need to learn more about closing out the efforts and maintaining that consistency themselves. Lets move on. Look forward to visiting the New Jersey Devils this Friday. Hoping for good news on the injury front as time goes on. LGRW
Posted on: Thu, 05 Dec 2013 04:41:08 +0000
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