Notes: Babcock concentrating on playoffs, not next coaching gig
DETROIT -- Any thought that this might be some kind of last-roundup in Detroit for Red Wings coach Mike Babcock and his players heading into these Stanley Cup playoffs is, well, not any thought at all.
"We're playing Tampa. That's what I'm dealing with 100 percent," the coach said after Tuesday's practice. "I'm not spending any time thinking about that."
Babcock is concluding his 10th season in Detroit and his contract is expiring, making him free to sign with any club he chooses after the season. And expectations are he'll have his choice of offers.
"I'm not concerned about that one bit," he said. "I like winning. I really like winning. So we're going to do everything we can to prepare and focus on the task at hand: Play Tampa. It's a nice place. Nice weather. Let's go."
Same goes for the players.
"It's not really an issue," forward Drew Miller said. "It's his decision. We're not worried about that. Right now, we're worried about the guys in the locker room."
Captain Henrik Zetterberg agreed.
"In this room, we're focusing on winning games," he said.
HAIL THE UNDERDOG
To describe the Red Wings as monumental underdogs in this series against the Tampa Bay Lightning is something of an understatement -- and Babcock is having a bit of fun with it.
"I've been hearing a lot today that we're the underdog," he said, "but I was hearing a lot at the beginning of the year that we weren't supposed to even make the playoff, so. . . I'm not worried about that."
Truth be told, Babcock knows how wrong those so-called experts in the media can be. Or rather, how bad his teams can make them look.
In 2003, he was a young coach in the NHL with Anaheim when nobody -- but NOBODY -- gave his team a chance against the defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings, who finished that season under first-year coach Dave Lewis with a 48-20-10-4 record and 110 points to lead the old Central Division of the Western Conference.
The result: The Mighty Ducks -- that's what they were called then -- swept the Wings right out of the playoffs, four games to none.
"I've been in a lot of these series, coached a lot of teams," Babcock said. "I like our team."
So while Babcock might snicker at all these gloom-and-doom predictions for this year's Wings, his players just disregard them.
"We don't care that much," Zetterberg said. "The experts, they get paid to have their opinions. We believe in ourselves here. We know we have a great team. If we do the right things out there, we'll be good."
INJURY UPDATE
Babcock provided no update on the injured players, though winger Justin Abdelkader (hand) and goalie Jonas Gustavsson participated in practice Tuesday. Abdelkader is questionable the series-opener at Tampa. Gustavsson is the third goalie on the depth chart -- for now.
"Who's ever available, health-wise, we're going to play them," Babcock said. "We're well on our way in the preparation department. We've had two good practices. We'll have a good practice tomorrow and get ready to play. The energy will be there. Now we have to execute."
