Thoughts after the Red Wings victory over Columbus

Some thoughts after a hard-earned win over Columbus.
1) The injury siuation is getting ridiculous. Defenseman Carlo Colaiacovo is gone for “weeks” after sustaining a shoulder injury in the third period. Coach Mike Babcock didn’t feel Colaiacovo was going to be available for a good while after the game.
The Wings knew Colaiacovo was injury-prone when they signed him. Unfortunately he’s proven that label correct pretty quick.
2) But that might create, at least in the short term, an opportunity for Brian Lashoff.
A spare defenseman with the Red Wings in training camp, Lashoff impressed Babcock in Grand Rapids during the lockout.
Lashoff handled himself nicely against the Blue Jackets and will remain in the lineup for the forseeable future.
Lashoff has good size, is ahead of the game offensively more than defensively at this point, but looked capable of playing in the NHL doing a nice job on the penalty kill.
3) You have to wonder whether Damien Brunner’s shootout goal will loosen him up. Brunner was credited with a game-high six shots on goal against Columbus and had a couple of great chances on goalie Sergei Bobrovsky – but didn’t convert.
The shootout goal might help his confidence just enough to prevent him from playing tight and gripping the stick.
4) He didn’t play much but Jordin Tootoo made an impact with his fight off the faceoff. Coach Mike Babcock feels Tootoo will be a valuable member of this team, having compared Tootoo to Dallas Drake.
No question Tootoo does offer that similar grit that Drake did.