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Photo: AP

The Rangers are in action tonight against the Detroit Red Wings in a “Wednesday Night Rivalry” game on NBCSN. I use that phrase loosely, as there is no real rivalry between the Rangers and Red Wings. It’s one of those Original Six matchups that people still think is a rivalry. But I digress.

Kevin Klein returns tonight, taking Dylan McIlrath’s spot in the lineup (let’s keep the outrage over this isolated to the lineup decisions post, please). This is a good game for him to return, as Detroit isn’t exactly a powerhouse this year. It’s a good chance for him to get his legs back under him…..or to showcase himself.

Red Wings Systems

For those that don’t follow Prashanth Iyer, you should. He does a great job breaking down everything Detroit.

The Wings run a 1-2-2 forecheck, which is fairly standard. But Blashill is very aggressive, and encourages the first defenseman to get involved at the blue line, instead of the red line. That means more pressure on the Rangers blue liners to make proper decisions with the puck. The Rangers deploy a similar forecheck, but are less aggressive with their defensemen, preferring to pressure at the red line, instead of the blue line. The risk of Blashill’s scheme is that quick passing can lead to odd-man rushes with that aggressive defenseman.

In the defensive zone, the Wings play a hybrid overload/low zone collapse. They overload the strong side, much like the Rangers. When the puck gets below the goal line, the forwards collapse into low zone coverage. That’s where the Rangers differ, as they switch to man coverage when the puck gets below the goal line. Although it was admittedly hard to see what kind of scheme the Rangers ran early in the year, they’ve been significantly better at their switches lately.

The Wings run a variety of breakouts, all detailed here. This is common for a lot of teams, and the way Prashanth breaks it down is very relevant, as the Rangers play a 1-2-2 forecheck. The Rangers have had a strong forecheck the last few games, so expect them to pressure those first two passes on the breakouts. For more breakout plays, see this post from Suit.

On special teams, the Wings run a 1-3-1 powerplay. This has been standard for multiple teams since the Bolts started using it a few years ago. The Wings don’t have that one sniper they try to feed, so they rely on quick passes to breakdown the penalty kill. Considering how amazing the Rangers’ PK has been, the best bet is to stay out of the box.

On the PK, the Wings are one of the few teams that don’t run some form of hybrid system.They run a straight wedge+1, which is similar to the diamond force the Rangers use. Both have a “roamer” designed to force the play, while the remaining three defenders take out the high percentage shots. The difference is that the Wings will only use their forwards as the “+1” whereas the Rangers will rotate out based on puck location, including defensemen. The wedge is simpler to execute and more conservative, but the diamond force creates more turnovers.

For more on these systems, check out our Hockey Systems page.

Red Wings Lines

 

Justin Abdelkader-Frans Nielsen-Riley Sheahan
Tomas Tatar-Dylan Larkin-Henrik Zetterberg
Gustav Nyquist-Darren Helm-Thomas Vanek
Andreas Athanasiou-Luke Glendening-Drew Miller

Danny Dekeyser-Mike Green
Brendan Smith-Xavier Oullet
Jonathan Ericsson-Alexey Marchenko

PP1: Tatar-Nielsen-Zetterberg-Vanek-Green
PP2: Nyquist-Larkin-Sheahan-Abdelkader-Smith

Jimmy Howard gets the start.

Rangers Lines:

Chris KreiderMika ZIbanejadRick Nash
Jimmy VeseyDerek StepanMats Zuccarello
Jesper FastKevin Hayes-J.T.Miller
Michael GrabnerJosh JoorisBrandon Pirri.

Ryan McDonaghNick Holden
Marc Staal-Kevin Klein
Brady SkjeiAdam Clendening

PP1: Pirri-Nash-Zibanejad-Kreider-McDonagh
PP2: Vesey-Stepan-Miller-Zuccarello-Staal

Henrik Lundqvist gets the start.

Injuries/Scratches: Oscar Lindberg (hip), Dan Girardi (hip), Pavel Buchnevich (back), Dylan McIlrath (healthy)

Crazy Prediction: Less than 10 Royal Road passes allowed.

Game time is 8pm. Gifs will be on my Twitter (@blueseatblogs). Don’t forget to follow our Snapchat (blueseatblogs) too!

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