Stakes Are High For Red Wings Against Tampa Bay Lightning
By Tony Fischer
Two weeks ago after the 7-2 thumping at the hands of the Philadelphia Flyers, Red Wing Captain Henrick Zetterberg said the Red Wings have hit rock bottom. The Red Wings rallied to beat Pittsburgh that next day but have since lost 4 of their last five games.
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Apparently rock bottom was a little lower than previously thought.
The Red Wings downward spiral is both easy to explain and equally difficult to correct. The Wings poor play in front of the net has caused point-blank shots and odd man rushes making is impossible for the slumping Jimmy Howard to break out of his funk. But the poor play of Jimmy Howard in net has caused the Wings to play from behind and take more chances offensively causing a cycle of hockey horror.
Mike Babcock aims to stop that cycle with a change in goaltender.
After the first period 6-4 loss to the San Jose Sharks, Babcock pulled Howard in favor of Petr Mrazek. He didn’t fare much better but did look more alert managing to make a couple of tremendous saves in the remainder of the game.
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Although Petr Mrazek has been given the starting job for now, he says he is just keeping the seat warm for the real top net minder on the team.
"“He’s proven himself for so many years,” Mrazek said. “It’s how it is with goalies. Sometimes when nothing hits you, everything is going in. You have to just battle and come back.”Mrazek didn’t want to talk about who is No. 1: “I think that’s, for sure, Howie.”"
The hope is that the Wings can play with more energy in front of Mrazek and stop the slide that is in danger of causing the Red Wings to miss the playoffs. Mrazek has had a great season and the 22-year-old can only improve with playing time down the stretch. If he can beat the lightning then look for Babcock to ride Petr Mrazek into the playoffs. If he can’t help get the wings on the winning track then any talk of playoffs at this point is a waste of time.