Yahoo Sports Young Red Wing Defenseman Finding NHL Sea Legs
After last night's 5–2 win over the Florida Panthers in Sunrise, rookie Red Wings defenseman Albert Johansson has now played in six straight games, his first six under new coach Todd McLellan. That opportunity came because of an injury to Jeff Petry, but it's a chance the young blue liner has run with.
Marc DesRosiers, Imagn Images
Take last night's game against Florida. Johansson played 18:02, a career high. He blocked two shots and he threw two hits. He was also a -1.
It wasn't a spectacular performance, nor was it a perfect one. He probably could have done better in angling with his stick and his skates on the goal against, instead allowing Panthers forward Mackie Samoskevich a lane to send a pass for Evan Rodrigues, who beat Cam Talbot.
However, that Johansson generally avoided calamitous errors against a team like Florida is a major marker of progress. Based on some of Johansson's early season struggles, I would've said that there would be no more difficult opponent for him to contend with than the Panthers, given their relentless forecheck. However, even if he wasn't perfect last night, Johansson looked very much as though he belonged.
In the featured video above, I discussed Johansson's performance in more detail, touching on the idea that he may very well have played his way into meriting a regular place in the lineup even once Petry returns to health.
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