Darren Helm: Detroit Red Wings Impact Players

Red Wings Darren Helm is part of the stealth youth movement in Detroit; can they keep up with once rivals out of St. Louis? (Icon SMI)

 

Each day this week leading up to the start of the 2013 NHL season I will profile one returning Detroit Red Wings player who needs to elevate their game to ensure the Wings have a successful season and make the playoffs for a NHL best 22 straight seasons.

Darren Helm

As the beginning of the NHL season is upon us, fans are eager to see if the Wings can be successful in a post-Lidstrom era. Unfortunately one player we must wait to see elevate his game is Darren Helm. Helm is currently sidelined for a week with a sore back. This is a big blow to the Wings as Helm is a key component to the team and they need his speed in the line-up. Helm was slated to centre the third line between Todd Bertuzzi and Dan Cleary which has a nice mix of youth and experience and would be a difficult line for the opposition to match up against.

Helm is arguably one of the best, if not the best skaters in the NHL today. However for Helm to elevate his game and positively impact the Wings he needs to develop better finishing skills. This is in no way a knock on Helm's skills. At 25 Helm has already scored 32 goals in the NHL over the past three seasons including last year's injury riddled season where he scored 9 goals in 68 games.

Helm has a knack for burning the opposition with his blazing speed. He often creates turnovers at the defensive blue line and then it is off to the races – if you can even considered it a race (he’s just too fast). What Wings fans would like to see is Helm bury more of those breakaway chances. Would it not be a good idea to maybe ask Pavel Datsyuk about how to finish on a breakaway? He seems to make it look easy.

[Also: 2013 Detroit Red Wings Predictions: Will They Win it All?]

Helm is a well-rounded centre on the Wings that can contribute in all aspects of the game especially the defensive side. If he can increase his offensive upside this season then the Wings may just find themselves in the playoffs for a 22^nd straight year. My season expectation for Helm is to rack up between 22-25 points this season while maintaining his solid defensive play.

 

Author information

Damian LeachDamian is a passionate NHL fan who is relatively new to the writing scene. Born and raised in Toronto he has grown up surrounded by the hot bed media that exists there. Despite growing up in a hockey centric city, his heart belongs to hockeytown. Damian has been a life-long fan of one of the best franchises in NHL history the Detroit Red Wings. He is passionate about all sports but his number one sport is the NHL. Feel free to follow him @damianleach19

This article was originally published at: The Hockey Writers.