Detroit Red Wings change their lines and their luck in 6-2 rout of Edmonton Oilers
There are many ways to send a message to a struggling team in the National Hockey League. One method involves making changes to the lines in an attempt to generate more offence.
Detroit Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock made some changes to his lines, and it proved to be the difference as the Red Wings routed the visiting Edmonton Oilers 6-2.
How it happened
Detroit got the game off to a strong start in the first period when Valtteri Filppula scored his fourth goal of the season at 7:29. Tomas Holmstrom tallied exactly six minutes later when
he beat Nikolai Khabibulin of the Oilers with a backhander. Danny Cleary closed out the opening frame with a snap shot at 17:39.
The second period saw the home team continue their dominance over the visiting Oilers. Cleary notched his second goal of the game at 2:18 with a powerful wrist shot. Johan Franzen added
a power play marker at 17:03 to give the Red Wings a 5-0 lead.
Jimmy Howard’s bid for a shutout came to an end 58 second into the third period when Dustin Penner scored a power play goal for Edmonton. Holmstrom replied for Detroit at 16:40 with his
second tally of the game. Theo Peckham added a second goal for the visitors at 18:45, but it was too little, too late for the Oilers, who dropped a 6-2 decision to the home team.
What they’re saying
Johan Franzen, who scored a goal for the Wings in the second period, says that creating the right amount of chemistry can often pay dividends for a team. The coach may have changed the
lines, but the chemistry was not lost in the process.
“Everyone knows each other; we’ve been playing together for a long time. Huds (Jiri Hudler) was away for a year but we know how he plays,” Franzen told
nhl.com after the game.
“Usually when you change the line combinations up a little bit, it gives the team a little bit of a spark, (and) everyone goes a little bit harder.”
Veteran Mike Modano also supported the changes to the forward lines, stating that they came at a perfect time.
“The timing of the changes came at a good time. Everybody just rolled with the changes, (and) didn’t think much of it.” Modano said. “Just go out there and play. I think everybody here
at one time or another has played with everybody (else), so it’s pretty interchangeable, a luxury that Mike has.”
Detroit returns to action on Saturday 13 November, when they will host the Colorado Avalanche. Edmonton will play their next game on Friday 12 November against the New Jersey Devils.
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