Back in the summer, when the Detroit Red Wings signed Stephen Weiss to a $24.5 million contract, the plan was to have him center the second line, thus allowing stars Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg to be paired together on the top line.
Unfortunately for Weiss and the Wings, that plan hasn’t worked out as hoped; in 11 games, the 30-year-old former Panther has just two goals, with no assists. As a result, head coach Mike Babcock has been forced to split up Datsyuk and Zetterberg ahead of Saturday’s home game versus the Rangers.
“I told them I wasn’t going to split ’em up; I told you guys I wasn’t going to split ’em up,” Babcock said, per the Detroit Free Press. “Here we are 11 games in, I’m splitting them up.”
The Wings are winless in three after starting 6-2-0. On Wednesday, they were embarrassed 6-1 by the Ottawa Senators -- a game that saw Weiss play a season-low 12:45.
“This falls on me,’’ he said, per MLive.com. “You have to realize you’re a good hockey player and you’re here for a reason.’’
Related: Stephen Weiss is Under Pressure