Detroit Red Wings center Pavel Datsyuk dazzles opponents with his slick array of moves. His tremendous vision, quick hands and remarkable hockey sense have enabled him to rack up 700 points in his career.
But it's Datsyuk's play without the puck that had coach Mike Babcock raving this week.
"He's the best two-way player in hockey, bar none," Babcock said. "That's because of his commitment without the puck and his faceoffs and his strength and his battle level and all the intangible things he has beside his skill set and his vision. Those things are God-gifted, the other stuff he's earned."
Datsyuk started poorly by his standards?he had just 10 points in his first 16 games?but he has been one of the hottest players in the league the past two months, with 39 points (11 goals, 28 assists) in his past 29 games heading into Thursday's contest at Phoenix.
Datsyuk was held scoreless in Tuesday's 3-2 shootout win in Dallas, but his comeback from a slow start has fueled the Wings' success, enabling them to leap-frog Chicago and St. Louis for first place in the Central Division.
At this rate, he could end up being a finalist for the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP. He certainly will be a candidate to reclaim the Selke Trophy as the top defensive forward, an award he has won three times.
"Sometimes you go through slumps and you work your way through them," Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom said. "He's always been one of the hardest workers on our team. You look at takeaways, he's always one of the tops in the league and that's just hard work."
Source: http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?r5768722969
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