The Wings rewarded my praise after the loss to the Sharks by thoroughly dominating the surging Ottawa Senators. For the second game in a row, the Red Wings played up to their potential. The Sens are 3rd in the East, but that didn't matter. For long stretches, the Wings controlled the game, peppering 40 shots on net.
The bad news is that Holmstrom left the game as his ailing knee started bothering him again. Franzen was chosen as Homer's replacement for the Swedish Olympic team.
The Olympic break comes at a good time for the Wings, as the young guns will get some much needed rest. The team's MVP to this point, Jimmy Howard, played almost every game since his ascension to the #1. Ailing players like Jason Williams, Maltby, and Andreas Lilja get some extended rehab time. And Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Filppula and the rest that were called to represent their country will learn that hockey can be fun again.
Datsyuk, by the way, was a man on fire Saturday night. It was one of the games where he was a danger to score every shift. Ottawa had no answer for his shifty moves - it was vintage '09 Datsyuk. He left a glimmer of hope that the rejuvenated Datsyuk will return after the Olympics. The team desperately needs him to keep it up. The Wings remain in the 10th spot in the West, and others are still gaining on them. It will no doubt come down to the wire.
Pistons
I watched a bit of the Rookie/Sophomore game on Friday night. Jerebko fared well, though he still needs to anticipate those alley-oops. They must never alley-oop in Europe, because I've seen Jerebko completely botch them three times this season. Jerebko and teammate X will rush down the court in a 2-on-1. Teammate X will pull up for a "jumper" to draw in the defender and then lob the alley-oop to Jerebko. Every time, Jerebko is in perfect position for the offensive board... which means the lob flies over his head and out of bounds.
No doubt Jerebko earned the respect of his teammates with his killer work-rate and confidence (check out Max to the left). With a little North American polish, he'll be ready for prime time.
For the record, the Rookies won the game for the first time in 8 years. I was fairly surprised since the Sophomores extra year of seasoning usually makes up for any lack of talent. Not this year.
Also worth noting is that the game featured three second round picks (Jerebko, Dejuan Blair - the MVP, Marc Gasol), two late first-rounders (Taj Gibson, Omri Casspi), and one undrafted player (Anthony Morrow). This lends credence to the belief that early draft picks no longer equal talent. The NBA draft is getting deeper, folks.
Earlier this season, mLive's Patrick Hayes wrote a superb piece on the benefits of early draft picks. All those fans that want to (continue to) tank this season for a higher draft position may want to rethink that strategy. The damage that continued losing does to a team's psyche may not be worth the higher pick. My belief is that winning begets winning. Shoot for the playoffs and worry about the draft on draft day. Last year, the Pistons unearthed Will Bynum in the playoff push. You never know what could happen.
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