Jeff Blashill: ‘Ton of respect’ for Red Wings’ Robby Fabbri
Detroit Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill, March 18, 2021.
Helene St. James, Detroit Free Press
The player Detroit The Red Wings could at least lose by skating off the ice with one leg, aided by two teammates.
Robby Fabbri had a natural hat-trick on Thursday against Dallas Stars, but the game was hampered by the departure of Jonathan Bernier at the end of the second period, after a collision in his crease. This robbed the Wings of the goalkeeper who consistently sustained them during this challenging season.
They resisted a late challenge to win, 3-2. It is only the second time this season that the Wings have won two consecutive games; the win gave them a 3-1-1 record in their last five games and a 10-17-4 overall score.
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Bernier was trying to pick up a loose record when Patrik Nemeth crashed into it. It is the second time this season that Bernier has left a game after being hit by a teammate; he left on January 28, also against Stars, after Mantha hit the net. Bernier favored his right leg by being helped off the ice by Dylan Larkin and Vladislav Namestnikov. An update on Bernier was not available immediately, but it didn’t look good. The last time Bernier was injured, the Wings went 1-5-1 without him.
Two Fabbri goals gave a pretty advantage when Thomas Greiss took over. Greiss has been striving to provide consistency; he had a defensive percentage of 0.883 and an average of 3.41 goals scored entering the game. Fabbri rocked the net again in the middle of the third period to win his second hat-trick in his career. Roope Hintz scored 25 seconds later and Jason Dickinson scored after Stars withdrew their goalkeeper for an extra striker, with 1:20 left. The final shots favored the stars, 40-21.
Bobby Ryan (upper body) lost a second game in a row, but the hope is that he will be available for Saturday’s rematch.
One in four
Bernier had his hands – and legs and torso – early, making defense after defense. The Wings had no trouble winning the Dallas zone, but they had a hard time finding clues to place discs on Jake Oettinger. The advantage of the shot was 10-2, Stars, when compensating the penalties for Vladislav Namestnikov (garnish) and Ty Dellandrea (interference), was called in the 13th minute. A minute later, Fabbri scored his seventh goal of the season. The Wings were defeated by 14-4 in the first period.
Five in four
In the first period, Anthony Mantha entered the Dallas area and passed the record on to Fabbri. That was Mantha’s fifth point in four games (two goals, three assists). This is the type of hockey that the Wings need to see from Mantha, where he is moving his feet and using his size to pull back opponents. Mantha skated much better and is visibly more active with the puck in the last few games, after a lethargic first half. Mantha did not record his first multipoint performance until his 26th game of the season.
One in two
Fabbri doubled at 6:36 of the second period. Taking a pass from Marc Staal, Fabbri kicked from the top of the right circle, sending a faltering puck to Oettinger in what was the Wings’ second shot in the net of the period. It was the first game of several Fabbri goals of the season; he scored two goals twice last season, including 8 November, when he made his debut with the Wings after an exchange with St. Louis.
Contact Helene St. James at [email protected]. Follow her on twitter @helenestjames. Read more about the Detroit Red Wings and subscribe to our Red Wings newsletter. His book, The Big 50: The Detroit Red Wings, is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Triumph Books. Personalized copies available in your email.