Red Wings 2021 final grades: Progress due to defensive improvement
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Playing in a nearly empty Little Caesars Arena during this COVID-affected season exemplified how strange 2021 was for the NHL and the Red Wings. (Mike Mulholland | MLive.com)Mike Mulholland | MLive.com
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Nobody scored more than 11 goals in games played with the Red Wings.
Their goals per game was marginally better at 2.23 (from 2.00) but the power play worse.
They still improved in points percentage, from .275 to .429, due to better team defense and solid goaltending.
The Red Wings (19-27-10) finished with nine more points (48) in 15 fewer games than in 2019-20 (17-49-5), despite a rash of injuries and COVID-related absences to key players.
Red Wings’ Steve Yzerman has long to-do list this offseason
Posted May 10, 2021
Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman has a lot of players to sign this offseason. (Ansar Khan/MLive)
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Now that Steve Yzerman’s second season as Detroit Red Wings general manager is over, the bulk of his work begins.
Yzerman has many items to cross off his checklist before players gather for training camp in mid-to-late September, in preparation for an NHL regular season that will start a week later than usual, on Oct. 12.
One task, figures to be completed quickly, as Yzerman indicated last month he will speak with coach Jeff Blashill immediately after the season to discuss his future.
Bayreuther, Gerbe score but Columbus sees point streak come to an end by Jeff Svoboda @JacketsInsider / BlueJackets.com
The Blue Jackets lost a 5-2 final to Detroit on Friday night at Nationwide Arena in the penultimate game of the 2021 season.
Game in a Paragraph
Columbus played a solid first 30 minutes to take a 2-0 lead then watched the Red Wings score three times in just over three minutes late in the second to take a 3-2 lead into the second intermission. The Blue Jackets couldn t find the equalizer from there in the third, with Detroit adding two late empty-net goals to end the CBJ point streak at five games.
Second-period surge carries Red Wings past Blue Jackets
Field Level Media
08 May 2021, 11:55 GMT+10
The visiting Detroit Red Wings erased a two-goal deficit by scoring three in the second period to beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 5-2 on Friday night.
The two teams will conclude their 2020-21 seasons Saturday night in Columbus.
Last place in the Central Division could be on the line, as Detroit (19-27-9, 47 points) dropped the Blue Jackets (17-26-12, 46) into the division cellar with the victory.
Both teams could end up tied in points, however, if Columbus was to win Saturday s game in overtime or a shootout.
The Wings were behind 2-0 when Veleno scored at 13:50 of the second period. Gavin Bayreuther scored for the Blue Jackets less than two minutes in when his shot hit Michael Rasmussen and bounced past goalie Thomas Greiss, and Nathan Gerbe stuffed a backhand in on a breakaway at 7:48 of the second period.
Danny DeKeyser scored less than a minute after Veleno did. Mathias Brome fired a shot that deflected around the back of the net and out to DeKeyser, whose shot knuckled behind Columbus goalie Matiss Kivlenieks. Vrana then scored on a one-timer at 16:52. We stayed with it, that’s the biggest thing, coach Jeff Blashill said. We’ve got a good character group. We didn’t seem to have our game going early, and we got better as it went along. Scoring changes momentum, and so it was big to score.