Grypho

You should have ended that with, "...in which case I'll take that as a sign that you want them to win, and that services will be held at the Joe that day."

If I had to sum up what I think most Sharks fans are feeling, I think it would be best described as confident, but mostly "nervously optimistic". For good reason, too, because our respective histories are very different. Even so, the Sharks are often described as Chokers, especially since what happened in 2004, but the physical reality is that it's not even the same Sharks team, for the most part. Literally speaking. The only two Sharks that remain from the 'choke' team of yore are Marleau and Nabokov, and they're doing fine. All the rest of the Sharks know that whatever they're supposedly living down has nothing whatsoever to do with them, individually. Before game 3, I wrote that I had no idea what to expect. With three moderately high scoring one goal games now tallied, that thought has changed very little. If the Wings had taken the last game, there would be no feeling on either team's part that momentum was theirs, and game 4 would just be another hard fought game in a playoff series. Because the Sharks did win, the Wings now have to be treated very much like a cornered, and therefore extremely dangerous, animal, even more dangerous potentially than in all the other games combined. While the Sharks won't be changing much in the way of strategy, I know that Babs will be trying some new things to shake things up for the Wings. That's risky, because I think the Wings already had a strategy that could have beaten the Sharks if the bounces (and yes, calls) had gone the other way. But desperate times call for desperate measures, and Babs won't take stupid risks; he'll only be concerned with what will give his team more confidence going in, even if it's an illusion. The Sharks are fully aware that they must give it their all to go for the kill tonight, while the series momentum, tally-wise anyway, is theirs. After getting to 3-0, they know that ANY momentum by the Wings, whether it's from a win tonight, or momentum attained later in the game, is the equivalent of an extreme burst of game-changing energy in the Wings favor. It will be hard as hell for either team to get a win tonight, but if the Sharks don't finish the job tonight, it will only get much, much harder after that. Fortunately for the Sharks, having a "finishing the job" mindset, like the Wings have become accustomed to as a franchise, is something McClellan has worked very hard to finally instill in the Sharks. The Wings are trying, with a win tonight, to plant a seed of hope to stage the ultimate history-making comeback, which would be like a vindication of what happened to the Wings back in 1942. A SINGLE WIN by the Wings will give them just as much energy as THREE wins by the Sharks, because in every game you're playing with a Freedom team ("nothing left to lose"). It's going to be more difficult for the Wings to stage such an ultimate comeback, because it also means the ultimate choke by the Sharks, of all the teams. No other teams in the NHL has more motivation to prevent such a thing, at all costs. My gut feeling, and not so much a prediction, is that the Sharks want this win more than any other win in their history, and will find a way to finish the job tonight. Another gut feeling I have is that because things can go either way very easily, it may get very, very ugly tonight. If that happens, and the Wings find a way to force a game 5, and then 6, and even 7, we may be looking at the birth of an epic, bona fide hatred rivalry between the two teams that will endure for years.

They should be able to redirect pucks with their faces if they choose -- unless, of course, there's a distinct nodding motion toward the net.

Hang in there, Matt. Hope you feel better soon.

Consider the following hypothetical - go with me on this for a sec: What if, hypothetically, the Wings hadn't even made the playoffs (and, as I recall, they weren't expected to this year)? Furthermore, what if the NHL had (magically) instituted a special wild card rule, one that allowed a single team, one that didn't make the playoffs, a single long shot attempt at getting into the race for the Cup? The hypothetical wild card rule works like this: one team is drawn at random from a lottery. That team gets to leap frog completely over the quarterfinals, and instead faces a single, top seeded, semifinal opponent. But there's a hitch. Each game is sudden death. If your team loses a game, the race is over. If they win, however, they get to play another. If a wild card team wins four times in a row, that team gets to take the place of the top seeded team that it beat, and they immediately advance to the conference finals. I cannot think of a single team that didn't make the playoffs this year that wouldn't JUMP FOR FRICKEN JOY at a chance like that. Even with the long shot odds -- even if it was to see their team compete for one game -- especially one that was connected to a viable path to the Stanley Cup. They wouldn't be moping about it, complaining about it. Their team was OUT anyway, and some shot is always better than no shot. ...and yet that's exactly where the Wings are now. With exactly that chance/opportunity. They do have a shot. A long shot to be sure, but it is still very much a viable path to the Cup, and what could be a very exciting game to watch (not to mention enjoy -- WIN OR LOSE). And almost nobody is excited about it! But with a little perspective, and a lot of love for hockey, it really shouldn't be that hard. Anyway, food for thought. It's a mind trick to be sure, a change in perspective, but one that I have used on myself in the past - one that helped me thoroughly enjoy a few must-win Sharks games in the past, win or lose.

Sometimes it's good to have a sacrificial goat. We throw coaches under the bus all the time, routinely recycling them, and it often invigorates. I just read an article that includes some updates on what's happening that might carry into game 4: If I had to bet, I'd say that Williams is more than likely going to miss game 4. I also wouldn't be surprised to see Lilja on the ice as well. Lots to prove, a lot of chances for everyone to make NHL history. Fresh blood to go along with a sacrificial Williams goat couldn't hurt.

There's a lot of talk going on now about the history of comebacks in best of sevens with a 3-0 deficit. I didn't know until this series that it's happened twice, and only in the NHL. I have talked about how the Wings, unlike fans, are only looking at a single upcoming game, and not a whole series and a bunch of daunting, seemingly insurmountable statistics. Consider this quote from Lids: "We're looking at it as what a great feeling it would be if we could be the team to do that again," Red Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom said Wednesday. "In doing that, you can only look at the next game and not the four games." ABSOLUTELY TRUE. Of any team, regardless of their position or standings. One thing I hadn't considered, however, which takes it a step further, came from an article I just read. By way of preface, the last team to come back trailing 3-0 to win a series was the 1975 Islanders. What I didn't know: Not just one game. One period at a time! Very wise. I also bolded what I thought was coolest about that excerpt. That tells me the Wings team hasn't given up. Some are asking, still grasping at hope and looking for ways to make it all happen. Obviously, I want the Sharks to win this series and finally vie for the Cup, but I also want to watch some magnificent hockey, and that won't happen with a deflated team, any more than it can happen with a team that is overconfident to the point of underestimating what is in front of them.

You missed one (highlighted):

After what a small horde of nasty Dallas Stars fans put my sister through (following a game in which the Sharks lost, no less, and she's small, sweet and wouldn't offend anyone, the cowardly f***s), they remain my most desired fanbase to personally tase. And tase. And tase.

I thought that the Sharks and Wings both outplayed each other solidly at various times thus far in the series. There was a palpable ebb and flow to it, and both teams seemed to have run out of gas at various times, especially later in the game, and found themselves in deep trouble because of it. Discipline was definitely a factor in that, not so much that it gave San Jose better scoring chances (they didn't convert on the man advantage), but because it exhausted so much of that badly need fuel for the Wings in the final stretch. But even then, the game winning goal was on the heals of a VERY out of gas Sharks who got caught on a bad line change -- one that just happened to leave Joe Thornton, like a man headed out of the penalty box after a PP, in the right place at just the right time. But just seconds before that the Sharks were in deep, deep trouble. I was sucking wind at the sight of Detroit's massive rush deep into the Shark's zone, and even the hard shot that came back out could easily have stayed deep and gone the other way. The thing that sticks constantly in my mind is the fact that there have been no shutouts or anything close to it thus far in this series. Both goalies have been solid in my opinion, but neither have been "legendary spectacular". As a result, all the games were moderately high scoring, with each decided by a single goal. Furthermore, EVERY single game had multiple major close-call-WHEW-dodged-a-bullet scoring chance shots by both sides that didn't go in the net. A few lucky bounces here and there, and ANY of these games could have been major blowouts -- by either team. That just blows me away. So, in other words, flip a coin. It could have gone the other way, all three games. If that had happened, Sharks fans would be micro-dissecting their team, raising up and crucifying their goats, with Wings fans barely noticing, and certainly not remembering, the mistakes made by their goats du jour, all the while feeling good about the superior depth, talent, whatever, over the Sharks. And had that happened, it still wouldn't change the fact that it all, hypothetically, could have gone just as easily the other way (which it did in this case). All that to say, I don't see any kind of massive superiority on either side. Any arguments about that for or against either team would just be propping up an illusion in my mind, one that I just couldn't accept.

Ugh...it would be the barf of all barfs for them (and me). They would never live it down, and they know it.

Hell, I eat Sharks in China. No superstitions here, and sharks are cannibalistic, after all! Don't believe me? Ask Dan Boyle, who took a bite out of his own team in the first series.

Obviously I don't want that to happen, if for no other reason than it would be, without a doubt, THE biggest choke in NHL history, one that the Sharks would never, ever live down. But it could happen. All three of the previous games were one goal wins. That means that ALL THREE could easily, EASILY have gone the other way. ALL of them.

The statistics are low for the entire league, but a bit higher for the Wings. Detroit has come back from a 3-1 series deficit (a position they could easily be in after Thursday's game) exactly twice. Once against Toronto in 1987, and once against Minnesota in 1992. - SOURCE Bad odds, but certainly not impossible. EDIT: Stop ******* thinking four games in a row. That's a loser mentality that I guarantee the team itself isn't taking on. They have ONLY Thursday's game ahead of them. If they win that, they have ONLY the game after that ahead of them. All this "IMPOSSIBLE" bulls*** is just that.

I can honestly say that I have absolutely no clue about what to expect tonight. Same with games one and two, actually, but only because it's Detroit we're facing. That wasn't true of the Avs. I was able to weigh that one out on the fly without any problems. Not this series. I talk about it, I write about it, but deep inside, my mind is a total, complete blank. No confidence (or lack thereof), no gut feeling that the momentum will flow more strongly one way or the other. Tons of hope as a fan, obviously, but really, nothing sure in my mind save the knowledge that two extremely talented teams are going to be playing with playoff intensity and desperation, and that anything is possible. AND I LOVE THAT FEELING! GO SHARKS!

Well, quietly, yes...until you said it just loudly enough for everyone to hear.

Very good tempo, but also very quiet, which I interpreted as 'focused'.

For the record, only two of them can call penalties, and it's my understanding that they can only call penalties that they personally see, and not penalties that they missed, but the linesmen might have seen.

Well, Eeyore's lovable in his own right, I guess. go wings, if you can, which i doubt

You mean in 20/20 retrospect? Non-calls not seen by the refs? I can't answer to that, as non-calls that fans see are sooooo bloody subjective, and how would you know for sure that the refs saw but simply refused to call it? And then there's the question of whether or not you actually believe that the penalties -- all of them, called and non-called -- were "about even". I wouldn't even engage someone on that point, as that's where subjectivity is often on crack. Even so, as I already said in another thread, and I could be wrong, I believed that Detroit came in flying well above the radar, in a way that seemed, to me at least, like they fully expected the refs to put the whistles away. That, I believe, contributed to more scrutiny of Wings over the Sharks.

I'm going to paint with a broad brush right now. I could be wrong, but for as much as Detroit and San Jose have similar playing styles overall, I think each of our teams essentially brought the playing style that worked for them in the last series into Round 2. The Wings/Yotes series was hard hitting and intensely physical, with the superior talent and depth of the Wings winning out in the end. The Sharks/Avs series centered around speed and control, especially in the neutral zone, with the Avs schooling us very early on, and the Sharks adjusting accordingly, also early on. Now comes Game 3. Bad officiating notwithstanding, what adjustments do you think each team will make? Regardless of actual success or outcomes, what changes do you expect each team to implement or attempt going into that game? SHARKS The Sharks know that they're heading into extremely hostile territory, facing a crowd loaded with angry fans who feel robbed, and a hungry team that will be playing with extraordinary intensity and desperation. They will NOT want, above all else, for the Wings to get on the board first, or to establish any momentum early on, especially given the very real power of that "sixth player", the crowd, whom they will want very much to take out of the game early on. It would be simplistic to say that they'll be sprinting out of the gate, as both teams will try to do that. The Sharks know that despite more puck time, and more shots on net, the Wings' have a way of making their scoring chances count. PENALTY FACTOR: Bettman said that the refs are to call the games exactly as they are called in the regular season, and bad calls/non-calls aside, it should be clear by now to both teams that they aren't putting their whistles away any time soon, and I don't expect that to start at the Joe. But I also don't expect that the penalty-drawing-minded Sharks will let up on that count. I do believe they will be strictly warned by McLellan not to embellish, because I do foresee at least one diving call (against EITHER team) this time -- just to make an example of someone and to establish that it won't be tolerated. But I don't think it will be a close call. They'll be looking for a real bona fide diving stunt that is obvious to the casual observer, and not just a move that a homer fan would cry foul over. It is a Shark signature M.O. to try to draw as many real penalties as possible, by creating enough frenzy, confusion and danger close to the net, as almost a target to the other team's less disciplined players, to get them to lose their composure and make more mistakes. That will continue, I am sure. WINGS Despite the bad reffing and non-calls, the Wings took at least twice as many penalties as the Sharks (of the ones that nobody here found controversial). Watching Game 2, I did NOT expect that. I DO expect the discipline factor from Detroit to be tightened up considerably going into Game 3, and if that happens, watch out Sharks. Likewise, if the Wings manage to get San Jose firmly on the frenzied defensive, the penalty-drawing tables could turn, because the Sharks are not without players that lose their composure as well. I also expect the Wings to be playing much less defense, with far more chance taking offensively. They will chase down, challenge and pressure more players with pucks, regardless of immediate possession, than they did in either of the first two games. And that's going to require hundreds of short bursts of increased speed -- which the Wings do have in their arsenal. In short, I see the same SPEED adjustment for the Wings that the Sharks had to make against the Avs. I also foresee a wide open neutral zone if that happens, given that I believe both teams will be crashing right through it, not trying to control or establish presence in the neutral so much as making it a crash-through-with-quick-passes non-factor, so that they can get the puck deep and fight for possession in the other team's zone. ...and that, I think, if it happens, should make for some spectacular, fast motion, back and forth highlight reel playoff hockey. Realistically, all fantasies and wishful thinking aside (as well as outcomes, this is not for scoring predictions), how do you foresee the tempo, style, adjustments, etc., for Game 3?

Oops, my bad! From the way you were downing the Wings, and calling with certainty their ultimate demise, I thought you were a misguided Sharks fan. Carry on!

Come on, mindfly, I have to school you about being a more courteous Sharks fan. You can't just go onto an opposing team's boards and openly assume defeat for other fans' team. It takes the fun out of the game for everyone!

Hehehe, good eye!