Detroit Red Wings vs Chicago Blackhawks Series Recap

Chicago Blackhawks (1^st Seed) vs. Detroit Red Wings (7^th Seed)

Game 1 Thursday 5/15/13  Detroit-1  at  Chicago-4

Game One between the top seeded Chicago Blackhawks and the seventh seeded Detroit Red Wings took place in Chicago on Thursday 5/15.  The Wings had not beaten the Blackhawks during the regular season and that trend continued in this game.  The Hawks opened the scoring with a powerplay goal scored by Marion Hossa, his fourth of the playoffs Jonathon Toews and Patrick Sharp at 9:03 of the first period.  Detroit tied the score 1:54 later on a goal by Damien Brunner, his third of the post season, assisted by Gustav Nyquist and Jonathon Ericsson.  The Wings outshot the Hawks 7-6, while Chicago was 1-1 on the powerplay and Detroit was 0-2 with the man advantage in the period.  The second period was scoreless with Detroit getting one powerplay chance and Chicago, two.  The Blackhawks outshot Detroit 17-5 in the period as Chicago took control of play in the period.  The third period saw the Hawks score three goals, the first, scored by Johnny Oduya assisted by Patrick Kane and Patrick Sharp 8:02 into the period.  The second goal was scored by Marcus Kruger, his second of the post season, assisted by Daniel Carcillo and Nick Leddy making the score 3-1 Hawks.  The score stayed that way until the Red Wings pulled goalie Jimmy Howard for an extra attacker.  Patrick Sharp scored into the empty net, his sixth of the playoffs, assisted by Niklas Hjalmarsson at 19:11 to give the Blackhawks the 4-1 victory and the early 1-0 series lead.   

Game 2  Saturday 5/18/13  Detroit-4   at  Chicago-1

Game Two, again being played in Chicago saw the Hawks trying to seize a two game lead in the best of seven series.  The Wings were victorious to tie the series at one game apiece.  The first period saw Chicago score first on a goal by Patrick Kane, his first of the playoffs, assisted by Michal Handzus and Patrick Sharp.  The period ended with Chicago up 1-0, the Red Wings outshot the Blackhawks 12-8.  Detroit was 0-2 on the powerplay while Chicago did not get a powerplay opportunity.  The second period saw the Wings score two goals.  The first, scored by Damien Brunner, his fourth of the playoffs, assisted by Jakub Kindl and Joakim Andersson.  The second goal scored by Brendan Smith, his second of the post season, assisted by Henrik Zetterberg and Dan Cleary.  The period ended with Detroit ahead 2-1.  The Wings outshot the Hawks 8-5while each team was 0-1 on the powerplay.  The third period featured two more Detroit goals, the first scored by Johan Franzen, his fourth of the playoffs, assisted by Jonathon Ericsson and Niklas Kronwall.  The second goal was scored by Valtteri Filppula, his second of the playoffs, assisted by Henrik Zetterberg.  Detroit outshot Chicago 10-7 for a three period total of 30 for Detroit and 20 for the Hawks.  For the second period in a row Chicago did not get a powerplay but Detroit was 0-2 with the man advantage.  Chicago still has not given up a powerplay goal this season    

          

Game 3  Monday 5/20/13  Chicago-1  at  Detroit-3

Game 3 was played in a sold out Joe Louis Arena and with the series tied saw each team trying to earn a 2-1 series lead.  Detroit was able to prevail with a 3-1 score and take that 2-1 lead with game 4 in Detroit as well.  The first period was scoreless and featured three Detroit powerplays where Chicago was able to continue their penalty kill perfection.  Chicago outshot the Wings in the period 15-9.  The second period saw the Wings score two goals, the first scored by Gustav Nyquist, his second of the playoffs, assisted by Damien Brunner and Joakim Andersson at 7:49.  The second goal was scored 31 seconds later by Drew Miller, his first of the post season, assisted by Patrick Eaves and Corey Emmerton.  The only two penalties of the period were assessed to Brendan Smith but Detroit was able to kill both off.  Detroit outshot the Hawks 14-8 for the period.  The third period saw the teams exchange goals.  The first goal was scored by Patrick Kane, his second of the playoffs, assisted by Duncan Keith at 4:35 of the third bring the Hawks within one goal.  Detroit re-established their two goal lead on a goal by Pavel Datsyuk, his third of the playoffs, assisted by Johan Franzen and Brendan Smith.  The Wings had four powerplays in the period but were unable to convert as Chicago remained perfect in shorthanded situations. Game 4 is in Detroit on Thursday                                   

Game 4  Thursday 5/23/13  Chicago-0   at  Detroit-2

Game four in this best of seven series saw the Blackhawks trying to tie the series at two games apiece.  The Red Wings were looking to take a commanding 3-1 lead, before the series shift back to Chicago for Game Five.  The first period was scoreless with Chicago getting the only powerplay, which they were unable to convert.  The Hawks outshot the Wings 14-10 in the period.  The second period saw the Wings get on the scoreboard on a powerplay goal scored by Jakub Kindl, his first of the post season, assisted by Carlo Coliaicovo and Johan Franzen.  This was the first powerplay Chicago had given up in eight games.  Detroit was 1-3 with the man advantage while Chicago was 0-1.  The third period saw the Blackhawks pressing hard to tie the score by Jimmy Howard was up to the task stopping every shot he faced. When Chicago pulled Corey Crawford for the extra attacker, Detroit was able to capitalize on the empty net with Dan Cleary scoring assisted by Valtteri Filppula with 39 seconds left in the game.  After the goal the focus shifted to securing the shutout for Howard, the Wings did, giving Howard his second career post season shutout and his first of these playoffs.  With the victory Detroit has a 3-1 lead in the best of seven series as the series shifts back to Chicago for game 5       

Game 5  Saturday 5/25/13  Detroit-1   at  Chicago-4

Game 5 played at the United Center on Saturday saw the Red Wings trying to end the series and upset the #1 seeded Blackhawks.  Chicago, on the other hand were playing for their playoff lives.  Chicago outclassed the Wings to earn a 4-1 victory and force a game six in Detroit Monday 5/27.  The first period saw the Hawks score first on a goal by Bryan Bickell, his fourth of the playoffs, assisted by Patrick Kane and Michal Handzus at the 14:08 mark.  That was the only goal of the period.  Chicago outshot Detroit12-11 and each team was 0-1 on the powerplay.  The second period had Detroit scoring once and Chicago getting two goals.  The Wings tied the game at the 9:37 mark of the period on a goal by Dan Cleary, his fourth of the post season, assisted by Henrik Zetterberg.  Chicago regained the lead 3:31 later on a powerplay goal by Andrew Shaw, his second of the playoffs, assisted by Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook.  Chicago added another powerplay goal 2:39 later when Jonathon Toews scored his first of the playoffs, assisted by Marian Hossa and Duncan Keith.  The period ended with Chicago leading 3-1, they outshot the Wings 16-11 in the period and were 2-3 with the man advantage while Detroit was 0-2.  The third period saw the Hawks increase their lead on a goal by Andrew Shaw, his second of the game and third of the playoffs, assisted by Victor Stalberg and Brandon Saad.  The victory for Chicago allowed them to stay alive in the series, now trailing the Wings3-2 in the best of seven series, with game six in Detroit.   

Game 6  Monday 5/27/13  Chicago-4   at Detroit-3

Game six played Monday 5/27 at a sold out Joe Louis Arena saw the Red Wings again trying to close out the series with a victory and Chicago playing to force a Game 7 in Chicago.  The first period had the teams trading goals, the first, scored by Chicago on a backhand shot by Marian Hossa, his fifth of the post season, assisted by Jonathon Toews and Duncan Keith at the 3:53 mark.  Detroit tied the score with 1:09 left in the period on a goal by Patrick Eaves, his first of the playoffs, assisted by Drew Miller and Brendan Smith.  Each team had ten shots in the period and both were 0-1 on the powerplay.  The second period saw the Wings take the lead on a goal by Joakim Andersson, his first of the season, assisted by Jakub Kindl at 10:11 of the period.  Detroit outshot the Hawks 18-10 in the period, while Chicago was 0-2 and Detroit0-1 on the powerplay.  The third period was the difference maker in this game with Chicago scoring three goals.  The first goal, scored by Michal Handzus, his first of the playoffs, assisted by Niklas Hjalmarsson was just 51 seconds into the period.  The second goal was scored by Bryan Bickell, his fifth of the season, assisted by Jonathon Toews and Marian Hossa.  The third goal was a controversial goal, on a breakaway after a blocked shot, Michael Frolik was being chased by Carlo Colaiacovo, Colaiacovo gave Frolik a sleight tap on the gloves with his stick and the Ref called a penalty shot.  Frolik scored on a backhand shot just over Jimmy Howard’s left pad.  It was Frolik’s third goal of the post season.  Detroit closed the gap at the 19:08 mark on a goal by Damien Brunner, his fifth of the playoffs, assisted by Pavel Datsyuk and Dan Cleary but were unable to tie the game even after pulling Howard for an extra attacker.  The win by Chicago sets up a pivotal Game 7 in Chicago Wednesday 5/29.  If Detroit loses they will be only the ninth team in NHL history to blow a 3-1 lead in a best of seven series.    

        

Game 7  Wednesday 5/29/13  Detroit-1  at  Chicago-2 (OT)

Game seven was played in the United Center Wednesday night in front of 22,103 screaming fans.  The Chicago fans were hoping to see the Hawks completed a historic comeback and Detroit fans were hoping to see their underdog team advance to the Conference finals against the LA Kings.  There was no scoring in the first period, a tight checking period where players found little room to maneuver Chicago outshot Detroit 13-11 and neither team scored on the powerplay, with Chicago getting two chances and Detroit one.  The second period saw Chicago take the lead on a goal by Patrick Sharp, his seventh of the playoffs, assisted by Marian Hossa and Michel Handzus, just 1:08 into the period.  The rest of the period went by without a goal being scored as Chicago had 11 shots on Jimmy Howard and Detroit sent six at Corey Crawford.  The third period saw the Wings tie it up as the carried the play in the Chicago end.  The goal, scored by Henrik Zetterberg, his fourth of the playoffs, assisted by Gustav Nyquist and Dan Cleary.  The period ended with the score tied as each team had nine shots on goal.  Detroit was 0-1 and Chicago 0-2 on the powerplay in the period.  The overtime period did not last long with Brent Seabrook scoring 3:35 into the period, his first goal of the playoffs, assisted by Dave Bolland and Michael Frolik.  The goal sent the Chicago faithful into waves of frenzy as their team became only the ninth team in NHL history to comeback from a 3-1 series deficit to win in game seven.  As the Red Wings and the Blackhawks shook hands, a tradition only followed by the NHL, the Hawks were planning to face the defending Stanley Cup Champion Los Angeles Kings.  Detroit on the other hand were left wondering how a collapse of this magnitude could have happened to a team with the history of Detroit.

Cumulative Round Two Stats:

	G	A	P	S	H	+/-	PIM	TOI
Brendan Smith	1	2	3	10	9	EV	6	131:01
Jakub Kindl	1	2	3	17	11	+3	6	117:38
Justin Abdelkader	0	0	0	18	43	EV	16	116:16
Daniel Cleary	2	2	4	11	16	EV	0	118:36
Pavel Datsyuk	1	1	2	16	12	EV	2	144:50
Gustav Nyquist	1	2	3	15	4	+2	2	84:06
Patrick Eaves	1	1	2	8	13	+1	0	67:52
Drew Miller	1	1	2	4	13	+1	2	78:45
Damien Brunner	3	1	4	15	8	+3	0	88:45
Cory Emmerton	0	1	1	8	14	+2	2	68:03
Kyle Quincey	0	0	0	2	8	-1	4	132:28
Carlo Colaiacovo	0	1	1	4	8	+2	2	106:20
Henrik Zetterberg	1	1	2	25	9	+1	2	136:07
Todd Bertuzzi	0	0	0	0	1	EV	0	7:56
Valtteri Filppula	1	1	2	6	7	-3	0	106:29
Jonathan Ericsson	0	2	2	2	18	EV	2	161:46
Niklas Kronwall	0	1	1	7	4	+1	4	177:34
Joakim Andersson	1	1	2	8	2	+3	4	82:45
Johan Franzen	1	2	3	13	12	-2	0	133:02
Totals	15	22	35	189	212	+11	54
	W	L	SA	GA	SV	SV%
James Howard	3	4	236	16	252	.936
Totals	3	4	236	16	252	.936

Is It Time To Say Goodbye To Johan Franzen?

      The Detroit Red Wings are having an off year and Johan Franzen is no exception, although his point totals are comparable to past seasons the timeliness of his goals just doesn't seem to be there.  He is a defensive liability and is only good for one thing.  It just might be time to say goodbye to the Mule and move on.  He will be 34 in December and has played for the Wings since 2005.  He has scored 164 goals, 142 assists for 306 points in 513 games.  He is +99, has 329 penalty minutes, scored 58 powerplay goals and 37 game winning goals.  It isn't his regular season production I'm worried about it is his performance in the playoffs.
      In the playoffs he has scored 42 goals, 37 assists for 79 points, 14 powerplay goals and 12 game winners.  Franzen has amassed 76 PIM and is +29 in 100 playoff games.  In the 2008 and 2009 playoffs he was unstoppable, scoring 25 of his 42 goals in those years.  Recently he has become human and the aura surrounding him has disappeared.  So far in the 2013 playoffs he has four goals, two assists for six points.  He is -6, has six PIM, scored three powerplay goals and no game winners.  In the 2010 playoffs he played the same number of games scored 2 more goals, ten more assists, he was +8 with 16 PIM, one powerplay goal and one game winner.  In past years if the Wings needed a goal to tie it up late in a game or another goal to pad a lead Franzen was the man but the last three years he has scored a total of seven goals compared to 31 in the three years before that.       
      Franzen just isn't the same player he was in 2009-10, the fear he used to instill in opposing goalies is gone and defenseman seem to be able to push him around unlike previous years.  In past seasons whenever he got the puck Detroit fans would expect him to score, especially if it was the playoffs.  Now, their happy if he doesn't turn it over in their zone.  The Mule has always been a one trick pony, he scores goals, has never been great defensively but now he is a liability.  I'm sure he thinks he has some good years left but I wonder if those years should be with us.  Unfortunately for the Wings they signed Franzen to a long term deal in 2009.  That deal make him a Red Wing until 2020 when he will be 41.  He made $5.2 million this year and is scheduled to make 5 million the next three seasons before it drops to 3.5 million in 2016-17, 2 million in 17-18 and 1 million the last two years of the contract.  I think Detroit will be hard pressed to find a team to take on a contract that size, especially for a one dimensional player with a declining impact.
      This year has shown the Wings have a strong cadre of young players in the minors ready, or nearly so, to step up to the big club.  Tomas Tatar, for one, is ready to join the big club.  He scored 23 goals and 49 points in 61 games with the Griffins this season.  He played 18 games with the Wings this year and scored four goals and three assists.  Tatar has been one of the last cuts in training camp the last three years and looks more then ready to make the jump, the only thing standing in his way is the lack of roster spots.  If Franzen is moved then the Wings would have room for a player of the future.
      Don't get me wrong, I love Franzen and harbor him no ill will.  In 2009-10 he was one of my favorite players but if this year has shown us anything it is the NHL is a league for the young and Franzen isn't young any more.  I believe our fond feelings and memories of the Mule are clouding our judgement and not allowing us to see that Franzen's time has passed and that the Wings and Franzen would be better served to move on. 

Chicago Blackhawks vs. Detroit Red Wings Games 3 and 4 Recaps

Game 3  Monday 5/20/13  Chicago-1  at  Detroit-3

Game 3 was played in Detroit at a sold out Joe Louis Arena and with the series tied saw each team trying to earn a 2-1 series lead.  Detroit was able to prevail with a 3-1 score and take that 2-1 lead with game 4 in Detroit as well. 

      The first period was scoreless and featured three Detroit powerplays where Chicago was able to continue their penalty kill perfection.  Chicago outshot the Wings in the period 15-9.  The second period saw the Wings score two goals, the first scored by Gustav Nyquist, his second of the playoffs, assisted by Damien Brunner and Joakim Andersson at 7:49.  The second goal was scored 31 seconds later by Drew Miller, his first of the post season, assisted by Patrick Eaves and Corey Emmerton.  The only two penalties of the period were assessed to Brendan Smith but Detroit was able to kill both off.  Detroit outshot the Hawks 14-8 for the period.

      The third period saw the teams exchange goals.  The first goal was scored by Patrick Kane, his second of the playoffs, assisted by Duncan Keith at 4:35 of the third bring the Hawks within one goal.  Detroit re-established their two goal lead on a goal by Pavel Datsyuk, his third of the playoffs, assisted by Johan Franzen and Brendan Smith.  The Wings had four powerplays in the period but were unable to convert as Chicago remained perfect in shorthanded situations. Game 4 is in Detroit on Thursday.                                           

Game 4  Thursday 5/23/13  Chicago-0   at  Detroit-2

Game four in this best of seven series saw the Blackhawks trying to tie the series at two games apiece.  The Red Wings were looking to take a commanding 3-1 lead, before the series shifts back to Chicago for game 5. 

      The first period was scoreless with Chicago getting the only powerplay, which they were unable to convert.  The Hawks outshot the Wings 14-10 in the period.  The second period saw the Wings get on the scoreboard on a powerplay goal scored by Jakub Kindl, his first of the post season, assisted by Carlo Coliaicovo and Johan Franzen.  This was the first powerplay Chicago had given up in eight games.  Detroit was 1-3 with the man advantage while Chicago was 0-1.

      The third period saw the Blackhawks pressing hard to tie the score by Jimmy Howard was up to the task stopping every shot he faced. When Chicago pulled Corey Crawford for the extra attacker, Detroit was able to capitalize on the empty net with Dan Cleary scoring assisted by Valtteri Filppula with 39 seconds left in the game.  After the goal the focus shifted to securing the shutout for Howard, the Wings did, giving Howard his second career post season shutout and his first of this playoffs.  With the victory Detroit has a 3-1 lead in the best of seven series as the series shifts back to Chicago for game 5

I'm Sorry Torii Hunter.

      Earlier this year I wrote a post saying I thought the signing of Torii Hunter was a big mistake, Mr. Hunter has proven me wrong and I owe him a apology.  Torii Hunter, I'm sorry I doubted you and your abilities, you have proven yourself worthy of wearing the Old English D and I hope this season is a big success for you and the Tigers.
      In that post I said that Hunter's stats weren't that much better then Brennan Boesch's and since Boesch is much younger I thought it would be more prudent to sign the younger player rather then risk signing the older one and finding out his best years are behind him and being stuck with a big contract.  So far this season Hunter is hitting .310 with 12 doubles, one triple, one homerun and 21 RBI's.  He is slugging .409 with 8 walks and 29 strikeouts.  His lack of walks and the large amount of strikeouts were also reasons I gave to oppose the signing but his production has outweighed those concerns.  Hunter is sixth on the Tigers in batting average, tied for first in doubles, third in RBI's and fifth in slugging percentage, pretty good for a guy who will be 38 in July and is playing for his third team.  I knew his defense would be better but I had no idea his offensive contributions would be this big.  Sure he won't hit as many homeruns as he has in the past but with Detroit that is not his job.  In a spring training interview he said that the key to hitting second is moving the lead off guy up and trying to get on base for the big guns behind him.  He said that not having to provide all the production will make his life easier and reduce stress for him.     
      Brennan Boesch on the other hand has been optioned to AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after hitting .209 with one double, one triple, two homeruns and five RBI's.  He was slugging .419 with two walks and six strikeouts in 43 at bats for the Yankees.  This, for a team with twelve men on the DL.  Obviously the Yankees didn't think too highly of Boesch's work and his biggest knock while with the Tigers, his lack of hitting, is still an issue.  So it seems that the Tigers made the right choice in letting Boesch go. 
      Apparently I'm still in Randy Smith (Detroit GM from 1996-2002) mode and assume that every trade or signing the Tigers make will fail.  I have to remember that Smith is long gone and Dave Dombrowski is a much better GM.  The trades to pick up Miguel Cabrera, Doug Fister and Austin Jackson and the signing of Hunter and Prince Fielder prove this.  No the Tigers just have to find the missing piece and finally win that elusive World Series Championship, the first since 1984.

Detroit Red Wings vs. Chicago Blackhawks games 1 and 2 Recaps

Second Round Playoff Recap Games 1 and 2  

Chicago Blackhawks (1^st Seed) vs. Detroit Red Wings (7^th Seed)

Game 1 Thursday 5/15/13  Detroit-1  at  Chicago-4

Game One between the top seeded Chicago Blackhawks and the seventh seeded Detroit Red Wings took place in Chicago on Thursday 5/15.  The Wings had not beaten the Blackhawks during the regular season and that trend continued in this game.  The Hawks opened the scoring with a powerplay goal scored by Marion Hossa, his fourth of the playoffs Jonathon Toews and Patrick Sharp at 9:03 of the first period.  Detroit tied the score 1:54 later on a goal by Damien Brunner, his third of the post season, assisted by Gustav Nyquist and Jonathon Ericsson.  The Wings outshot the Hawks 7-6, while Chicago was 1-1 on the powerplay and Detroit was 0-2 with the man advantage in the period. 

      The second period was scoreless with Detroit getting one powerplay chance and Chicago, two.  The Blackhawks outshot Detroit 17-5 in the period as Chicago took control of play in the period.  The third period saw the Hawks score three goals, the first, scored by Johnny Oduya assisted by Patrick Kane and Patrick Sharp 8:02 into the period.  The second goal was scored by Marcus Kruger, his second of the post season, assisted by Daniel Carcillo and Nick Leddy making the score 3-1 Hawks.  The score stayed that way until the Red Wings pulled goalie Jimmy Howard for an extra attacker.  Patrick Sharp scored into the empty net, his sixth of the playoffs, assisted by Niklas Hjalmarsson at 19:11 to give the Blackhawks the 4-1 victory and the early 1-0 series lead.   

Game 2  Saturday 5/18/13  Detroit-4   at  Chicago-1

Game Two, again being played in Chicago saw the Hawks trying to seize a two game lead in the best of seven series.  The Wings were victorious to tie the series at one game apiece.  The first period saw Chicago score first on a goal by Patrick Kane, his first of the playoffs, assisted by Michal Handzus and Patrick Sharp.  The period ended with Chicago up 1-0, the Red Wings outshot the Blackhawks 12-8.  Detroit was 0-2 on the powerplay while Chicago did not get a powerplay opportunity. 

      The second period saw the Wings score two goals.  The first, scored by Damien Brunner, his fourth of the playoffs, assisted by Jakub Kindl and Joakim Andersson.  The second goal scored by Brendan Smith, his second of the post season, assisted by Henrik Zetterberg and Dan Cleary.  The period ended with Detroit ahead 2-1.  The Wings outshot the Hawks 8-5while each team was 0-1 on the powerplay. 

      The third period featured two more Detroit goals, the first scored by Johan Franzen, his fourth of the playoffs, assisted by Jonathon Ericsson and Niklas Kronwall.  The second goal was scored by Valtteri Filppula, his second of the playoffs, assisted by Henrik Zetterberg.  Detroit outshot Chicago 10-7 for a three period total of 30 for Detroit and 20 for the Hawks.  For the second period in a row Chicago did not get a powerplay but Detroit was 0-2 with the man advantage.  Chicago still has not given up a powerplay goal this season.

What Is Wrong With Justin Verlander?

      For the last seven years, every fifth day, Detroit Tigers fans knew, no matter how bad the team was playing they had a chance to win, because Tigers Ace Justin Verlander was on the mound.  This year seems to be different Verlander is 4-4 with a 3.17 ERA.  In his last outing, Thursday 5/16 against the Texas Rangers, he lasted only 2-2/3 innings while giving up eight runs on six hits and two walks.  This is the shortest outing and the most runs he has surrendered this season.  In fact in his other eight starts he has given up only 13 runs over 51-1/3 innings of work. 
      Where is the Verlander who went 24-5 and won both the Cy Young Award and the American League MVP in 2011?  As with every player in every sport, Verlander is human and has had ups and downs in his career.  In 2008, as the Tigers went 74-88, Verlander was 11-17 with a 4.84 ERA.  The next season he was 19-9 with a 3.45 ERA, so all is not lost, besides in 2008 he didn't have any help on the pitching staff, the other starters were Armando Galarraga, Nate Robertson, Kenny Rogers and other starters like Jeremy Bonderman and Dontrelle Willis, not the best of company if you're having a down year.  This season the starting rotation is much better with Doug Fister, Max Scherzer, Rick Porcello and Anibal Sanchez so they should be able to pick up Verlander if his season doesn't improve.  Even with all his struggles this season Verlander is still 6th in strikeouts, 14th in wins, 15th in innings pitched, 21st in ERA and 31st in WHIP.  I think most pitchers in the league would be happy to have those stats. 
      After the game on Thursday Verlander was asked why he had such problems this year, he said the control on his fastball is not up to par.  He's not saying he is walking a lot of batters because he only has 20, which is only 2.2 per start, but he is referring to the fact that he isn't able to locate his fastball where he wants to, meaning it is getting hit more often.  There has also been talk this year about the loss of velocity with his fastball.  In past seasons Verlander has reached 100+ MPH routinely and late in games he is averaging 97 to 99.  This year he has only touched 100 a few times and is averaging 93-95, this doesn't seem like a big change but it takes him from one of the fastest fastballs to a high average pitch.  One of Verlander's big weapons, besides his pitches themselves, is the intimidation factor, if hitters realize his fastball is slower then normal, they will dig in more and won't worry about that 100+ MPH fastball coming across the plate.  Consequently he has given up more hits and more runs. 
      In resent interviews both manager Jim Leyland and pitching coach Jeff Jones have said they are not worried about Verlander's struggles, they are confident that his performance will improve and are assuring fans to relax and not panic.  If they aren't worried why should we be, of course would they say if they were worried?  I doubt it, so it is something to watch.  If the past is anything to judge the future by, Verlander will be fine and the Tigers will make another deep run in the playoffs.