Ville Leino

Photo By Dave Sandford/Getty Images Some of the players returned to Detroit last week, skating at City Sports Arena earlier in the week before the ice was ready at Joe Louis Arena. With the appearance of about half of the roster, the number of articles in the local media outlets has certainly increased over the past week. While discussions have varied, two Swedish defensemen got some coverage. Captain Nicklas Lidstrom spoke with reporters about his summer, rehabbing his elbow , Sweden’s Olympic meeting, and his plans (or lack of) in the future with his contract up after this season. Andreas Lilja told MLive.com that ... Read Full Story

Mike Babcock redrew the lines, starting by benching slumping Ville Leino for tonight’s game against the Flames. “Ville’s having a day to watch,” Babcock said. “He’s not playing hard enough here, so he’s going to watch and the other guys are going to play.” Leino has one point in his last seven games. “He’s getting snuffed out, not involved,” Babcock said. “If you are a scorer and you are not going to the net, you’re going to be in for a long year.” Read Full Story

Will the Wings return to the Stanley Cup Finals? No — After winning in 2008 and getting back to the finals last season, it's too much to expect the Wings to do it three years in a row. Besides, some of the Wings will have already won hardware in the Olympics (I think the Swedes will win again). The Wings will take a step backward in the hope that Darren Helm, Jonathan Ericsson and Ville Leino can become the wave of core players. Who is the Wings' MVP? GOALIE CHRIS OSGOOD — The Wings have to be a better club defensively after losing 80-plus ... Read Full Story

Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images Team Canada’s Executive Director Steve Yzerman has kept busy this offseason — inking a deal with Upper Deck, preparing for Canada’s Olympic orientation camp starting today, and urging Ottawa forward Dany Heatley to speak to the media prior to camp. Yzerman talked to NHL.com about his expectations for orientation camp. In Other News If you haven’t already purchased tickets to HockeyFest , you can head over to Ticketmaster to make sure you’re a part of a special day at the Joe. The event includes player appearances (captain Nicklas Lidstrom, Kris Draper, Tomas Holmstrom, Dan Cleary, and Jason Williams), a ... Read Full Story

What happened: Jay McClement scored 7:54 into the first period. Jonathan Ericsson tipped Kris Draper's shot at 10:42, then left with an ankle injury shortly afterward. Kirk Maltby scored shorthanded at 14:01 to give the Wings a 2-1 lead after the first period. Ville Leino put the Wings ahead, 3-1, on a power play at 7:17 of the second period, but Paul Kariya sandwiched a power-play goal and a breakaway goal around B.J. Crombeen's goal in a span of 5:05 in the second period. The Wings were 1-for-5 with 8:05 of power-play time. Related posts: Red Wings drop season opener to Blues, 4-3 Blues ... Read Full Story