Zetterberg Not Happy With How He Has Played, Says He Is Not Living Up To His Standard
By Ashley Dunkak
@AshleyDunkak
CBS DETROIT - Star forward Henrik Zetterberg leads the Detroit Red Wings with 62 points this season, but he has not scored since March 15 and has recorded only three points in the last 11 games.
As the Red Wings labor under pressure to make the playoffs, Zetterberg feels some pressure individually as well.
"This time of year, I'm supposed to be there, supposed to score goals, put up points for our team and haven't done it lately," Zetterberg said Tuesday after the team's morning skate. "Obviously something that I'm not happy about, and hopefully I can change that tonight."
Zetterberg would not talk about how healthy he is, saying he would not blame injuries.
"This time of year you're very seldom 100 percent," Zetterberg said, "but you should be able to do more than I have done.
"There are some games where I think I'm playing close to my standard," Zetterberg added, "but too many games here lately I haven't."
Head coach Mike Babcock found Zetterberg's disappointment understandable, but he did not want the player to dwell on it.
"That's great, but if I was Z, I wouldn't carry the weight of the world around on my back," Babcock said. "I'd just get out there and be loose and driving and play real well tonight.
"[Pavel Datsyuk] was injured for a while," Babcock added. "If you go back - injuries are just an excuse. You have to find a way to win. That's the bottom line. But lots of nights, we had no way to move Z around or do anything. He's had some heavy lifting with Pav not being available, and then obviously without [Riley] Sheahan ... so those things happen. But you get on with it, and we just need him to play well tonight."
The coach also noted that Zetterberg has still been solid for the Red Wings this season.
"I think any time you're proud, you want to score, you want to help the team," Babcock said. "We don't just look at the goals. We look at the scoring chances, for and against, that we do, that no one else does, that we actually get to see, and his production's still been at a high rate."
