As the Red Wings picked up speed towards the end of the season and it became apparent that they were gonna make the playoffs, the games between teams playing for top sees in the West became more of a contest to see who would avoid playing the seasoned Wings in the first round than anything else. If thereâs any team that didnât deserve to get Detroit, it was Phoenix, but thatâs the way it shook out, and the Coyotes arenât a team that has made excuses for themselves all year, so donât expect them to start now.
Offense: The Red Wings were without key players like Johan Franzen, Tomas Holmstrom and Valtteri Filppula at different points this season, but theyâre all healthy right now. With Datsyuk and Zetterberg, the Red Wings have most of the pieces in place that theyâve had so much success in the last two post seasons. Phoenix got a late-season boost from Lee Stempniak, who didnât do jack as a Leaf, but came on strong with 14 goals and 18 points in 18 games with the âYotes. Shane Doan has been this teamâs leader as long as heâs been with the club, and heâs one of the few guys (maybe the only one) that was with the club when they last made the playoffs in 2002. Advantage: Detroit
Defense: With the ageless Nicklas Lidstrom leading the way, the vets on Detroitâs blueline have seen it all and done it all before. They have a great mix of puck-moving ability and physicality, as both Niklas Kronwall and Brad Stuart can flat out punish people. The Coyotes have a very solid blueline of their own, led by veteran Ed Jovanoski (anyone else remember when he used to be called âJovocopâ?) Keith Yandle and Adrian Aucoin can both chip in offensively, as well.
Advantage: Detroit
Goaltending: Jimmy Howard has been lights out for the Wings this year, and if it wasnât for Tyler Myers, Iâd be picking Howard to win the Calder Trophy. A rookie goalie that was allowed to bake to perfection in the minors, Howard won 37 games this year while putting up a miniscule 2.26 GAA. The X-factor in this series will be Ilya Bryzgalov. Picked up off waivers, Bryzgalov is probably the biggest reason Phoenix is in the playoffs. Only Martin Brodeur had more shutouts than Bryzzie this season, and if he can keep the Coyotes close, theyâll have a shot to knock off the Wings. Advantage: Phoenix
Special Teams: Phoenix had one of the worst regular season powerplays, but their penalty kill was just about on par with the Wingsâ. Since this is going up after Game 1, I gotta point out that Phoenix scored all 3 goals against Detroit on the powerplay, so the Wings will have to buckle down the rest of the way. Still, Detroitâs powerplay is like something out of a coachâs playbook, with puckmovers like Brian Rafalski, Datsyuk and Zetterberg toying with the puck while big bodies like Holmstrom, Franzen and Todd Bertuzzi plant themselves in front and draw tons of attention. Advantage: Detroit
My heart wants the Coyotes to win this one. Theyâve accomplished so much already this year, despite the off-ice debacle that has gone on regarding the teamâs ownership. Itâs unfortunate that they drew the Red Wings, since I canât see the two-time defending Western Conference champs getting knocked out in the first round. My pick: Detroit in 7