Zetterberg 7th in DRW scoring all time

[Mount Suribachi]

Yeah he has skated much better and has been very energetic recently.

I wonder if it's just a coincidence that his improved play started around when mantha was put on his line. Probably.

Yeah, probably the same kind of coincidence as last year when Mantha got stuck on our aneamic PP last year and it suddenly started scoring goals.

Z is a possession beast when healthy. Mantha is a possession beast. Tatar still may not be scoring, but he's getting a crapton of chances, they're just not going in.

 

[Nauzhror]

Mantha is actually doing what Abdelkader/Bertuzzi/Glendening were allegedly doing on top lines for years: creating space.

Mantha attracts a ton of attention wherever he goes and yet he can actually come up with puck, retain the puck to make a play, or effectively use his body to clear a lane for a shot. He did it last night on Zetterberg's goal. Went to the net and was basically a brick wall - kept the defender from blocking the shot or covering Zetterberg. That alone should help Zetterberg's longevity.

I don't mind Abdelkader on the top 2 lines too much to be honest. I didn't mind Bertuzzi being on the top 2 lines at all, Glendening is another story, I'd tolerate Glendening on the 4th line, waive, Miller, and Ott, and go with top 12 forwards as:

Abdelkader
Athanasiu
Glendening
Helm
Larkin
Nielsen
Mantha
Nyquist
Sheahan
Tatar
Vanek
Zetterberg

Maybe even replace Glendening with Jurco. I'm not a huge fan of either, but both are superior to Miller/Ott IMO.

No question that Mantha should stay in the NHL. Ott was signed basically to be gritty, we don't need that kind of player IMO, Mantha's a potential top-tier power forward IMO, kids the tallest player on the team, and among the heaviest as well, and he can score.

 

[H3ckt1k]

My most favourite player of all time.

 

[Oddbob]

To think of all the beauty setups, that Tatar has wasted from Z this year, makes ya cry!

Henrik is still the smartest player on the Wings by a Country Mile! The passes he makes are extremely good, more than making up for the lost speed, that age and injuries have brought.

 

[TheOtherOne]

They have been on fire.

Ott+Miller = Toews+Kane

!

 

[avssuc]

Dude is a legend for more reasons than one. One of my favorite Wings of all time.


His sense of humor being a large part in that:

 

[Nauzhror]

Not honestly sure what the Danny Clearly Hockey School hat has to do with humor, he's advertising a hockey school a friend of his runs, I fail to see that it's a joke to him.

 

[Retire91]

Yeah that 07-08 season was incredible, definitely his peak as a player (playoffs included)

40 goals, on pace for 100+ points, conn smythe

And to think Datsyuk was putting up 97 pt seasons along with him.

Those late 000s teams were awesome.

Its crazy we got to see two of the best defensive forwards in the game that could also put up elite offense numbers at the same time. We were truly blessed as fans to have that. Putting them in front of one of the top defenseman of all time is almost unbelievable in hind sight. Its too bad the team isn't better put together these days so he can play a more well deserved back seat on the team. This guy would be a handful for other team's bottom 6 players.

For some reason makes me think back on Lidstrom too. What a storied career. Not only to be the best but made the playoffs every season and supported some of the greatest centers to play the game, Yzerman, Fedorov, Larionov, Zetterberg, Daytsuk. Holy cow.

Zetterberg has earned his way into that club.

Does anyone have a link to that playoff goal he scored on a backhand while falling, that was Ovechkin like

 

[The Zetterberg Era]

Its crazy we got to see two of the best defensive forwards in the game that could also put up elite offense numbers at the same time. We were truly blessed as fans to have that. Putting them in front of one of the top defenseman of all time is almost unbelievable in hind sight. Its too bad the team isn't better put together these days so he can play a more well deserved back seat on the team. This guy would be a handful for other team's bottom 6 players.

For some reason makes me think back on Lidstrom too. What a storied career. Not only to be the best but made the playoffs every season and supported some of the greatest centers to play the game, Yzerman, Fedorov, Larionov, Zetterberg, Daytsuk. Holy cow.

Zetterberg has earned his way into that club.

Does anyone have a link to that playoff goal he scored on a backhand while falling, that was Ovechkin like

I think you mean this one....

 

[Shaman464]

Z is my favorite post 2002 Wing by far. He's having a great run right now. I really hope it keeps up. The problem is that his body is really showing its age, and it's only going to be compounded by Bashill's less than judicious use of him. He should be playing third line minutes, hopefully against softer defensive match-ups.

 

[Retire91]

I think you mean this one....

That's it that goal was amazing.

 

[Henkka]

Does any swedish guy remember, was Zetterberg drafted as a winger at 1999?

How was Timrå IK lineup then as Sweden 2nd level?

 

[Winger98]

Does any swedish guy remember, was Zetterberg drafted as a winger at 1999?

How was Timrå IK lineup then as Sweden 2nd level?

not a swedish guy, but from what I remember Detroit always talked about him being a center. He started on the wing here, but I thought it was always seen as a way of easing him into the lineup before moving him to the middle.

 

[Flowah]

I think you mean this one....

Jesus he had decent speed back then. Look at him rev up those engines after he passed it to Datsyuk.

If he still had that speed he'd be a dominant player. sigh.

 

[Henkka]

not a swedish guy, but from what I remember Detroit always talked about him being a center. He started on the wing here, but I thought it was always seen as a way of easing him into the lineup before moving him to the middle.

That's what I remember too. He was a 1st line center at Timrå, but was that also a case on his draft year?

 

[Reddwit]

not a swedish guy, but from what I remember Detroit always talked about him being a center. He started on the wing here, but I thought it was always seen as a way of easing him into the lineup before moving him to the middle.

I don't think it was a way of easing him in at all. Not like I would consider the Wings "easing" Larkin into center.

I'm also not Swedish, and I'm not old enough to remember pure draft talk of the late 90s, but I do remember talk about the imminent arrival of Zetterberg, and he was, IIRC, seen as a hybrid offensive player - one who would really excel at C in the North American mould of the early 00s but could also be a skilled winger - his size being a holdback.

 

[Reddwit]

That's what I remember too. He was a 1st line center at Timrå, but was that also a case on his draft year?

He was definitely LW on his draft year.

Edit: Here's something interesting I found while I was trying to verify my previous post:

Zetterberg caught the attention of the Red Wings' Assistant General Manager Jim Nill and Director of European Scouting HÃ¥kan Andersson during a tournament in Finland. While Andersson was trying to point out Mattias Weinhandl, Nill could not help noticing "this little Zetterberg guy who always seemed to have the puck."[5]

Always thought Z was Hakan's home-run....

 

[Henkka]

That tournament in Finland was U20 games and that doesn't prove the point. Weinhandl was always RW if I remember right. So Zetts could have been C or LW. More interested what he was at Tmrå. National team lineups always could have extra centers pushed temoporarily on wing.

 

[Birko19]

Been around hfboards before Zetterberg was in the NHL, I remember how excited we were at the time, he was a star in Sweden, he had just played on the Swedish Olympic team in 2002, there was some serious hype behind him, specially since he was being compared to Forsberg, it was a great time because most at the time did not believe we had a good prospect pool.

Almost 14 years later, it's amazing to actually see Z have the career he has had. Won a cup, Smythe, in his peak he was one of the top defensive forwards in the league, an absolute playoff stud and a great leader.

 

[Retire91]

Been around hfboards before Zetterberg was in the NHL, I remember how excited we were at the time, he was a star in Sweden, he had just played on the Swedish Olympic team in 2002, there was some serious hype behind him, specially since he was being compared to Forsberg, it was a great time because most at the time did not believe we had a good prospect pool.

Almost 14 years later, it's amazing to actually see Z have the career he has had. Won a cup, Smythe, in his peak he was one of the top defensive forwards in the league, an absolute playoff stud and a great leader.

I'm curious during the lockout was there a lot of hype around his play in SWE-1? When Jarnkrok was putting up those crazy numbers along with him.

 

[Henkka]

My god this is a weird feeling seeing game after game the best Henrik Zetterberg for a while, but the rest of the team just sucks.

Hank is pure dynamite at the moment.

 

[Birko19]

I'm curious during the lockout was there a lot of hype around his play in SWE-1? When Jarnkrok was putting up those crazy numbers along with him.

During the lockout he was still hyped and very highly touted, but I think there was a lot more hype before he came to the NHL because he was doing so good in Europe and it was unknown how good he was going to be in NA, at the same time many compared his style to Forsberg and that got everyone excited. Once he played in the NHL everyone saw that he was really good, not Forsberg good but certainly a young player with a lot of potential.

 

[14ari13]

During the lockout he was still hyped and very highly touted, but I think there was a lot more hype before he came to the NHL because he was doing so good in Europe and it was unknown how good he was going to be in NA, at the same time many compared his style to Forsberg and that got everyone excited. Once he played in the NHL everyone saw that he was really good, not Forsberg good but certainly a young player with a lot of potential.

Has he passed forsberg in points?

 

[TheMule93]

Has he passed forsberg in points?

Z has roughly 100 more points than Forsberg in 180 more games

 

[Reddwit]

He was so bad for so much of last year and the beginning of this year. I'm so happy to see his revival. Hopefully playing with Mantha will extend his career a bit since Mantha actually does create legitimate space for his linemates. Hoping he hits 60 points this year.