Zetterberg Paired Up With Brunner In Swiss Hockey League

 

Since the NHL is more than likely not going to have a season, Detroit Red Wing Henrik Zetterberg has been playing overseas for a team called Zug in Switzerland. Over the summer, the Red Wings signed a player named Damien Brunner, with the intention of playing him alongside good old Hank. Recently, Zetterberg called Brunner from Switzerland and asked him to come play for Zug during the lockout, and Brunner went. "Detroit said they were going to put (Brunner) on a line with Zetterberg, so I got to do it first," Zug coach Doug Shedden said Wednesday in an interview. "I texted (Red Wings GM) Kenny Holland and said: 'It works."'

Clearly it has been working for the Swiss team because Zetterberg is putting up crazy numbers. He has seven goals and eleven points in just five games, and is currently sitting three points back from first place in points. Ahead of him are second place Evgeni Malkin with 12 points and first place Alex Radulov with 14 points.

 "A number of NHL teams showed interest in the 26-year-old Brunner over the summer after he was named Swiss league MVP last season. Highly skilled and lightning fast — "He ends up getting a lot of breakaways," said Shedden — he signed with the Red Wings on July 1 and stayed at Zetterberg's house when he visited Detroit"(Johnston, 2012)

Hopefully we will get the chance to see them play together here in Detroit soon enough. The lockout needs to end and we need to see some Datsyukian deaks and people being Kronwalled. The re-runs on FSN are getting old now. Until then, best of luck to Z and Brunner while playing overseas.

(Sources and photos: Chris Johnston, Montreal Gazette)