Red Wings Open Against Boston Bruins
DETROIT - The Detroit Red Wings battled through a plethora of injuries to qualify for their 23rd consecutive postseason, but they didn't prove to be much of a match for the Presidents' Trophy-winning Boston Bruins in the first round.
This season could be Detroit's toughest test yet to extend its playoff streak with health already an issue.
Pavel Datsyuk begins 2014-15 nursing an injury as the Red Wings host the Bruins in their opener Thursday night.
Detroit was the final Eastern Conference team to make the playoffs last season after finishing 39-28-15. It lost a franchise-record 421 combined games to injury - second to Pittsburgh - and had to make a late-season charge to get into the postseason.
Henrik Zetterberg missed two months because of back surgery after the Olympics, and Datsyuk missed 30 games with a knee problem and another seven with a concussion.
Datsyuk suffered a separated shoulder in the Red Wings' preseason opener, and he's expected to miss another two weeks recovering. Coach Mike Babcock and company will have to rely on veterans like Zetterberg and Johan Franzen as well as up-and-coming youngsters Gustav Nyquist and Tomas Tatar to extend Detroit's playoff streak.
The Red Wings are hoping to close the gap with the top teams in the East after falling in five games to Atlantic Division rival Boston in the first round.
''If you just look at the kids that came up last year and what they did, they basically carried us in the playoffs," Zetterberg said. "We'll be a fast team this year with a really good mix of old guys and young kids.''
Babcock's future is uncertain as he enters the final year of his contract after extension talks broke down. Still, he's prepared to get this Red Wings team on track for a successful season.
"It's an exciting time of the year every year," Babcock told the team's official website. "There's lots of optimism at the start of the year and we have to get out there and show that we're good."
Jimmy Howard is back in net after posting a 2.66 goals-against average following two consecutive seasons with a 2.13 mark. He beat Boston in Game 1 of the playoffs, then dropped the next two before sitting out the final two with the flu.
He's hoping to put last season's up-and-down performance behind him.
"I want to be back to where I was a couple of seasons ago," Howard said. "It's simple as that. It's not about reinventing the wheel or splitting atoms. It's just going out there and stopping pucks."
Howard doesn't believe there will be any extra motivation for the Red Wings in the season opener simply because it's a rematch with the Bruins. Detroit will face Anaheim on Saturday before Boston visits Joe Louis Arena again Wednesday.
"Last year is last year and right now everyone is starting with zeros across the board," Howard said. "We're just excited to get back out there. I don't think it would matter who our opponent would be. It would be the exact same thing no matter what."
Boston got its season off to a solid start Wednesday, beating Philadelphia 2-1 after Chris Kelly broke a tie with 1:51 remaining into the third period. Reilly Smith also scored, and Tuukka Rask made 19 saves.
''I just wanted to go out there and feel good and enjoy it,'' said Kelly, who missed last season's playoffs because of a herniated disk. ''Last year was taken away from me and made me realize how much I missed the game and want to be out there playing. I just tried to enjoy the whole night and tried to play my game."
The Bruins are without David Krejci, who is out until at least Monday with an undisclosed injury.
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