Gameday Updates
The Red Wings need a spark in their lineup and hopefully they will have Dylan Larkin back for tonight’s game…
#RedWings Blashill said Larkin’s status for tomorrow’s game against Tampa Bay will be determined after warmups.
— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) March 8, 2021
Larkin probable tonight, game-time decision. Stecher is out tonight, hopeful for Thursday.
— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) March 9, 2021
And, it looks like Jeff Blashill continues to throw names in a hat and randomly pick them out one-by-one to determine who will dress and who will sit for each game…
Blashill says hasn’t made a decision on tomorrow’s lineup RE: Svechnikov, still waiting on some health/availability info.
“Svech is doing a good job, and he tries hard every shift … he’s doing a solid job. So when he gets in there, he’s just gotta keep doing a solid job.”
— Max Bultman (@m_bultman) March 8, 2021
UPDATE: Forward Michael Rasmussen and defenseman Alex Biega have been recalled from the #RedWings taxi squad.
Additionally, forward Valtteri Filppula has been assigned to the taxi squad. pic.twitter.com/YHCKtSeZbm
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) March 9, 2021
#tblightning Jon Cooper said Erik Cernak looks like he’ll be okay and play tonight. Still waiting on Rutta. Said Murphy hit looked worse live than it did on tape.
— Joe Smith (@JoeSmithTB) March 9, 2021
Projected Lineups
Detroit Red Wings
#RedWings practice lines/D same as yesterday:
Fabbri-Larkin-Mantha
Ryan-Namestnikov-Zadina
Brome-Rasmussen-Gagner
Helm-Glendening-Erne
Nielsen-Filppula-Svechnikov
(Xtras)
Bertuzzi not skating
DeKeyser-Hronek
Staal-Merrill
Nemeth-Djoos
Stecher-Biega (Xtra)
Bernier
Greiss
Pickard pic.twitter.com/56X3wiBS4T— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) March 8, 2021
#RedWings power-play:
1. Rasmussen (net front), Erne (bumper), Larkin-Zadina (flanks), Hronek (point). Svechnikov took a couple reps for Larkin, whose status for tomorrow apparently isn’t certain.
2. Fabbri (net front), Gagner (bumper), Mantha-Ryan (flanks), Djoos (point). pic.twitter.com/euWfpPcYCB— Ansar Khan (@AnsarKhanMLive) March 8, 2021
Tampa Bay Lightning
Forwards
Ondrej Palat — Brayden Point — Anthony Cirelli
Alex Killorn — Yanni Gourde — Steven Stamkos
Barclay Goodrow — Tyler Johnson — Blake Coleman
Patrick Maroon — Mathieu Joseph — Alexander Volkov
Defense
Victor Hedman — Eric Cernak
Ryan McDonagh — Andreas Borgman
Mikhail Sergachev — Callan Foote
Goalies
Andrei Vasilevskiy
Curtis McElhinney
Keys to the Game
A Spark
It’s likely that Dylan Larkin returns to the lineup after missing the last four games and this team misses his leadership and competitive spirit. Larkin is still second on the team in scoring with 11 points and would provide a much needed boost in the top six. If the Wings want a chance to beat the Lightning, they will need all hands on deck offensively. Considering the Bolts play a fast-paced tempo, Larkin’s speed and skill will be welcomed back with open arms.
Powerplay Success
The Wings scored powerplay goals in back-to-back games thanks to Anthony Mantha and Filip Zadina, finally breaking through after a 40-attempt draught. Remarkably, the Lightning are one of the most penalized teams in the league with 240 PIM’s (T-5th). But, what’s more impressive is their ability to kill those penalties with an 87.7 PK% (T-2nd). When the Wings get their chance, they will have to capitalize — not many teams have been able to do so — as goals will be at a premium in this matchup.
Sustained Pressure
The Lightning are one of the better teams at 5-on-5 this season, thanks in large part to the fact that they’ve been able to minimize the number of high-danger chances against them. They have a 51.69 HDCF% (9th), but as a testament to Andrei Vasilevskiy’s stellar play this season, the team leads the league with an 87.86 HDSV% per Natural Stat Trick. The Wings certainly need to generate more pressure in the offensive zone and create more high-danger chances having just 164 on the year (T-24th).