OT: Flames vs Wings the Battle for 8th place Tonight at the Joe

Submitted by the_big_house 500th on
Tonight the Wings are at home in Joe Louis Arena for their northwestern matchup against the Calgary Flames who are currently only one point below Detroit in the Western Conference playoff picture. Detroit can leap one point ahead of Nashville and take 2nd in the Central and put a little bit of distance between them and the Flames with a victory at home tonight and have a 3 game winning streak. The Flames are also coming off of a two game streak coming into Detroit tonight so this should be an exciting game to watch! Detroit needs these two points because every game played are points to get them into the playoffs. Wear your red and white because tonight's going to be great hockey to watch! NOTE: Todd Bertuzzi is listed as uncertain for tonight's roster.

Blue In NC

March 9th, 2010 at 11:00 AM ^

Interesting Stat from DetNews today http://www.detnews.com/article/20100309/OPINION03/3090341/1004/SPORTS/T… Rookie goaltender comparison  In 2005-06, Buffalo's Ryan Miller was 25 years old and played in his first full NHL season.  This season, Jimmy Howard is 25 (26 on March 26) and playing in his first full NHL season. Goaltender Record Save % GAA Height Weight Ryan Miller (2005-06) 30-14-3 .914 2.60 6-2 175 Jimmy Howard 24-14-8 .924 2.37 6-0 210 Not sure why Height and Weight are included but let's hope that Howard can develop the same way.

Hannibal.

March 9th, 2010 at 11:04 AM ^

If the Wings are truly going to make a stretch run then this is exactly the type of game that they need to win. They can't keep laying a massive egg once or twice a week like they did against Vancouver Wednesday.

Blue In NC

March 9th, 2010 at 11:15 AM ^

Yes and no. They also won the other four games and against some pretty good teams (Chi, Nash). Eggs are OK if they motivate you to win the next 2 or 3. While VAN hurt, at least it was not against a team they are battling for playoff position. And winning in CHI was a big boost. I will gladly take 4 out of 5 the rest of the way. But you are right that the CGY game is exactly the type they need to win.

the_big_house 500th

March 9th, 2010 at 11:10 AM ^

1.Maintain puck possession. Put the pressure on Calgary and generate good scoring chances. 2. Early goal. Get the crowd going and momentum flowing with an early strike on Kipprusoff. Score early and often. 3. Shut down Calgary's big guns. 4. Keep playing smart hockey. I was very impressed with Detroit's discipline in the Chicago game. 5. Hold on to big leads. Do not let a great 5-2 lead slip away as the period or game draws to a close. This always can come back to haunt you. 6. Howard doing what he does best, stopping the puck. If Detroit sets the tone and just plays their game they will skate away with a victory.

Red_Lee

March 9th, 2010 at 7:28 PM ^

This game has a very good pace to it so far. Chances given up on both sides of the puck but solid goaltending both ways has kept it tied at 0.