By Michael Farber, SI.com
DETROIT -- Niklas Kronwall comes equipped with a booming shot, extrao
rdinary hockey sense and nimble feet, but if the Detroit Red Wings defenseman were completely tricked out, he would come with license plates.
Kronwall cranked Antti Miettinen so hard in the Red Wings' 4-1 victory in Game 1 of the Western Conference final Thursday, the stunned Stars winger lost two consonants and a vowel. The Stars' best chance of defeating Detroit involved throwing their weight around, getting in on the forecheck against the Red Wings defensemen like Nicklas Lidstrom, Brian Rafalski and Kronwall, bottling them up in their own zone.
And while Dallas coach Dave Tippett was underwhelmed by his team's effort, the Stars essentially did match the Red Wings in hits. Of course when measured on a seismic scale, of course, Kronwall tipped the balance in favor of Detroit. Kaboom. Kronwall hunts bodychecks all over the ice -- an impressive approach for a 6-foot, 190-pounder -- but only occasionally does he get as clean a kill as he did midway through the second period. With Miettinen cruising around in open ice, Kronwall stepped into forward and leveled him with a clean body shot, a hit that looked an awful lot like an old Scott Stevens check -- minus the concussion. "That one was hard to judge right off the bat," Kronwall said later. "Not one of the best ones, I think. Maybe it looked worse than the way I felt it. It felt like a good hit, but not that good."
The wonder is not that Kronwall is a cruiserweight who hits like a heavyweight, but that he is a big open-ice hitter at all. While there have been exceptions - notably former Red Wings defenseman Vladimir Konstantinov -- most European defenseman play positional rather than bulldozing hockey. On the larger international ice surfaces, 15 feet wider than NHL rinks, the geometry of the game changes radically. If a defenseman hunts the body, he does so at his peril because he winds up taking himself out of the play as often as he takes out his prey. But Kronwall, of the Stockholm Kronvalls, was raised on Stevens rock-em videos, training film for hard men.
While Dallas Drake is the best Detroit hitter along the boards, Kronwall is the undisputed master of open spaces. "His timing is unbelievable," Detroit checking center Kris Draper said. "[Those hits] really build some momentum for you. That's one of the things that we missed last year [when Kronwall was injured by a check by Dallas forward Joel Lundqvist late in the season]. He can turn on a dime, he's got small feet, and I really believe that makes him more agile, able to turn in the neutral zone and catch guys." "He's kinda a short guy who maybe sneaks up on you," said Johan Franzen, who scored his nightly goal for Detroit from his comfort zone, which means a three-foot tip-in. "He's got really good timing. He sneaks up on people right outside their vision and [is] delivering some highlight hits every night." Coach Mike Babcock credits Kronwall's intelligence, his ability to see the ice and read the play, which means Kronwall isn't giving up two-on-ones by taking himself out of position. "It's important for us that him and [defense partner Brad] Stuart are on the hunt because it makes [opponents] nervous," Babcock said. "You got to be aware of where they are."
On a night when so much occurred -- Franzen scoring his playoff-high 12th goal, the Red Wings throwing the puck around on the power play like the Harlem Globetrotters, Dallas goalie Marty Turco failing to win at Joe Louis Arena as a pro -- it is Detroit's eagerness to engage in battles that stood out. In the playoffs last year, the dandy Wings were the punching bag, surviving the second-round series against San Jose before being mauled by Anaheim. If the Red Wings are going to thrive, they can't be bystanders.
Kronwall -- who had a pair of assists, starting the play on the Red Wings' only even-strength goal by with a surgical pass to Mikael Samuelsson from his own zone -- is part of the solution. He is the big game hunter. After all, in the Stanley Cup playoffs, it's the law of the jungle.
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Comments (15)
No doubt, Kronwall was missed last year. But c'mon, "mauled by Anaheim"? Drake, Stuart and Kronwall are keys to what I think will be a Wings' Cup, but Detroit stood its ground against Anaheim last year. And, if it weren't for an unfortunate giveaway in the zone by Franzen, of all people, it would have gone seven, and that game seven would have been at the Joe. Stop trying to sensationalize.
Spkill | 05/09/08, 08:48 AM
Report Offensive CommentSince when is leaving your skates good open ice hitting. Kronwall has been guilty of 5 instances in the playoffs of leaving his skates and has not been penalized in any of them. Granted most of them happened at the Joe, but still I thought the league had a policy against this. Obviously, it does not apply to the treatment he gets as a member of the Red Wings.
pharaoh | 05/09/08, 08:55 AM
Report Offensive CommentWell, 1 of 2 things can be said of last night???s game. 1 - The Wings are just that much better than everyone else they face and the Stars will do no better this series than the previous teams or 2- The Stars were tired and flat which means they have better hockey in them to make this a fight.
I hope it is #2 but I'm afraid not. I love my Stars but I'm a realist and watching last night's game was like watching the movie The Miracle and seeing the Russians pound the Americans in the early games. The problem is that in Miracle the team only needed that ONE win at the right time over their nemesis to claim glory instead of the 4 wins that the Stars have to muster. In short, last night's game was a train wreck for the Stars in EVERY category. I was amazed at what I was seeing. Even at 5 on 5 I have to agree with others that the Wings looked as if they had a power play going with an extra man. Their speed and tenacity wasn???t even close to being matched by the Stars. Also, to the Stars??? CLEAR OUT THE CREASE! For God???s sake how can you let the other team camp a guy not only in front of the net but much of the time ON your goalie? The third goal should have been waved off. Detroit was clearly in the crease when the shot went in. He didn???t just have one foot in the crease but both AND was leaning on Turco. The announcers gave the stats of how many goalie interference calls were called in the first round, second and now and it is obvious they aren???t going to call it so you MUST help your goalie by not letting someone sit on him. This is one time I can???t hand the blame to Turco. If it wasn???t for Turco it would have been 8 or 10 to 1. Game two will show us whether or not the Stars are worthy to be on the same ice. If they don???t bounce back and look DRASTICALLY better then they can start cleaning out lockers. Sad to say this when I???m such a huge Stars fan. Ugh.
TheDude | 05/09/08, 09:05 AM
Report Offensive CommentYou can bet if that had been the Flyers' Hatcher there would have been a game misconduct and suspension....
Detroit does it and they are "hard-hitters", the Flyers do it and they're all thugs and goons that can't skate. Sheesh!
FlyGuy | 05/09/08, 09:21 AM
Report Offensive CommentIt was Lija who made the turnover, not Franzen.
Riffman | 05/09/08, 09:27 AM
Report Offensive CommentKronwall is the man. He had some great hits in the Avs series, too.
Miguel#94 | 05/09/08, 09:33 AM
Report Offensive CommentYou can bet if that had been the Flyers' Hatcher there would have been a game misconduct and suspension....
Detroit does it and they are "hard-hitters", the Flyers do it and they're all thugs and goons that can't skate. Sheesh!
FlyGuy | 05/09/08, 09:21 AM
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Yeah, I had the privilege of watching Hatcher erase MANY players while he was here in Dallas. One thing I don???t really see in Dallas at this point is a true enforcer. We have a lot of scrappy tough players but no huge enforcers that come to mind. Hatcher was one of the best (maybe still is but I haven???t seen him play in a long time). I guess it is a love hate thing but while he was in Big D everyone loved Hatcher. You have to admit that he alters the other teams play as they have to wonder whether they are going to get hammered by someone like him.
TheDude | 05/09/08, 09:40 AM
Report Offensive CommentPharaoh,
There is a difference between leaving your feet to go head hunting and your feet coming off the ice on a clean body check.
tigersrsweet2222 | 05/09/08, 09:51 AM
Report Offensive CommentOnly once this playoff season have I noticed Kronwall leaving his feet much before the actual hit. That one should have been penalized. However, he does leave his feet AS he hits the opponent which is not a penalty. It is uncanny how he lines up his victim.
RING | 05/09/08, 10:37 AM
Report Offensive CommentYou really aren't comparing the shots to the head by some of the Flyers at the beginning of this season to the hits by Kronwall, are you?
Even as a Wing fan, I do get worried that Kronner is getting close to being penalized for some of his hits, but as RING pointed out, he leaves his feet in the process of the hit, not before the hit. He's reminding me more and more of Vladdy.
The Winged Wolverine | 05/09/08, 11:30 AM
Report Offensive CommentEnjoyed the article...but, "mauled by Anaheim?"....You do not need to resort to sensationalism! Last year's series against Anaheim was about as evenly competitive as could be...and the "dandy" Red Wings pretty much matched Calgary, San Jose and Anaheim, check for check. The perception of the Wings as a finesse team is outdated. You cannot play for Mike Babcock and be soft. Tremendous skill and grit is evident throughout the roster.
UNBIASEDCFFAN | 05/09/08, 12:05 PM
Report Offensive CommentThis is ridiculous to gripe about that clean hit. He didnt leave his feet until after contact was made and he didnt target the head or intend to injure.
Besides, the rule was written by someone who doesnt understand that sometimes your target moves during the course of the approach which forces the checker to make adjustments in nanoseconds without the benefit of slow motion, instant replay, and idiots who've never played the sport to analyze the "intent" of the player.
Now if he went head-hunting or if the check was from behind (which is far, FAR more dangerous) you crybabies would have a point. As is... you're just whining to the wrong audience. Go watch soccer.
Parrothead34 | 05/09/08, 12:50 PM
Report Offensive CommentWasnt Hatcher the former Wings player who got caught napping in the playoffs in his defensive zone, in front of his net, and cost the Wings a game which sent them home from the playoffs... and resulted in his eventual release from the team?
Maybe its just me... but that thug fits in perfectly with the Flyers mentality.
Parrothead34 | 05/09/08, 12:59 PM
Report Offensive CommentHatcher was with Detroit but was too slow to play for the Wings. He fits in fine with the Flyers and should tell you something about their skating prowess. I wanted Hatcher to fit in when he was with Detroit but he turned out to be a liability. I like Brad S. a whole lot better as a physical D.
RING | 05/09/08, 03:19 PM
Report Offensive CommentI love the tired comment by Stars fans. They did have three days of rest. If they are so tired, wont it only be getting worse for them because the first four games are played every other night. Come on. The Stars just got outplayed, out coached and out classed. Here's toTurco and his success as a Wolverine at the Joe because it isnt happening as a Pro.
Trevor Mac | 05/09/08, 06:21 PM
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