Detroit Red Wings are once again thin on Defense

The loss of Mike Green is a devastating blow to a defense group that has been snake bitten by injuries.  The Detroit Red Wings top defender is expected to be out for a few weeks with a lower-body injury.

The Detroit Red Wings are already minus DeKeyser; now Green is sidelined for 3-5 weeks.  Maybe not top four defenders on a lot of teams but they are here, and what we’ve got to work with, that becomes extremely challenging to overcome in its own right.

Though to many teams Green would be a fourth or fifth defender he has impacted the Wings in a positive way this season playing as their top defender.  During his 23 games played he’s been a guy that anchors the teams top power-play, yes they’ve struggled down the stretch.  They’ve only achieved 3 goals on the PP over the last 15 games.

He’s also averaged 22 minutes a night, that’s a pretty high number for a guy who doesn’t play on the penalty kill.  Remember, the Wings started the season 0-7-2 with Grenner sidelined with a liver issue.

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The Wings have a record of 13-8-2 with Green in the lineup, and he is a surprisingly plus 10 this season.  He’s been able to record 16 points although only scoring 3 times.  He has been better than many people expected or shall I say better than most will give him credit for.

The offseason resigning of Mike Green forced many Detroit Red Wings fans to raise their eyebrows.  I get it; we want to get younger.  He hasn’t been the worst signing; they have many ugly contracts within this roster and Greener isn’t one of them.

We should be asking why Kenny wanted to bring Thomas Vanek back and skate him 10-12 minutes on the fourth line. It’s a lousy day to talk about Vanek after his 3-point performance on Long Island but the Wings could fill in a vacant winger position easier than replacing Green’s talent and ice-time.

Green struggles with defensive zone exits, he struggles in his own end handling bigger powerful wingers and at times can be a turnover machine.  We all see it, but is he worth a million per more than Jonathan Ericsson? Yes, all day long.  His offensive upside and skating ability outweighs his defensive zone flaws.

The Wings brought up Filip Hronek to help fill the void of losing Mike Green.  Hronek was paired with Jonathan Ericsson which doesn’t bode well for him, but at least Jonny serves as a veteran presence for the young defender who’s searching to find his way.

The knock on Hronek was his slow starts in games.  For a young kid that becomes a disadvantage.  A youngster needs to start strong to gain his coaches confidence, allowing his shoulder to be tapped for another shift.

In New York, Hronek and Ericsson like many of the other Wings defenders found themselves hemmed in their own zone.  Hronek looked quite tentative and struggled to make crisp exit passes.

He needs to be better, or the Wings will elect to bring someone else up from Grand Rapids.  The main reason he has gotten the call is for his power-play ability, but that won’t be enough to keep him unless he gains some confidence quickly.