Hey, kids, guess what? Hockey's almost here. That means it's time for me to get back into this whole blogging thing that I've neglected during the off-season. Since I lack the creativity to come up with a new gimmick, I decided to continue the Player Profiles series I did last year leading up to the season. I'll be taking a look at a different player (almost) every day between now and when hockey starts. By my count, there are 28 days until the Wings open the regular season. Get excited. Today's subject:
Justin Abdelkader
2009-2010 Regular Season: 50 GP, 3-3-6, +/- -11, 35 PIM
2010 Playoffs: 11 GP, 1-1-2, +/- 1, 36 PIM
Season Highlight: Finishing third on the team in hits despite spending a third of the season in Grand Rapids.
Season Lowlight: Getting sent down to the minors to clear salary cap room.
Abby had a pretty good season last year. In addition to being Sara's BFF, he got to spend a lot more time up with the Wings than I had originally expected as he was forced to fill in during the injury plague. If I'm not mistaken, he got to center the second line a couple of nights when things were really sparse.
Abdelkader brings some much-needed physicality to the team and he led the Wings in hits for much of the season last year before getting sent down to Grand Rapids. He's shown a willingness to drop the gloves when the situation calls for it and is usually good for a jolt of energy when the team needs one. There's a reason fans were clamoring for him to be inserted into the lineup after a rocky Game One of the playoffs against Phoenix.
My little bro has a passionate hatred for Abby because he doesn't score a lot of goals, but that's not what he's out there to do. He's not going to put a lot of points on the board for the Wings, but he can make their opponents pay the price when he's called upon. He and Darren Helm are slated to make up the Grind Line 2.0, and I think the legacy's in good hands.
What he needs to do to make me smile: Keep crashing and banging.
Abby wasn't told to score, he was told to grind and make the other team's life difficult. I bet if Babbles tells him to focus on putting them in the net, he does it. I see a ton of potential in Abby. He scored a ton going back down to GR.
ReplyDeletein regards to what makes you smile- if he could stop playing practical jokes on his BFF... oh wait, reality. Right. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteTo keep me smiling? He needs to THROW THAT BIG BUTT AROUND *cue strange looks from the girls in front of me*