VM1138

I still kind of hold out hope that next season or the year after he comes back to Detroit.

Does it matter? If Holmstrom were not playing those goals would not have scored. He's the only reason they can shoot at a goalie's chest and still score. Without Holmstrom, you see the goals dry up pretty quick the way things have been going this season. Holmstrom has done nothing to invite criticism this year.

Always awesome!

I wonder how long it will take before Babs puts Abdelkader into the top line rotation. He's the only player that I think could actually not only benefit from playing with Pavs development-wise, but also fills the need on the top line. He's earned it more than Leino has, that's for sure. And I'm excited for Kindl to come up, never saw him play before.

Love it, even hockey photographers are tough. Crazy, freak accident, kind of funny, but Miller just cemented himself as my favorite non-Wing goalie. Someday he'll play for the Wings...Drew Miller's signing was just the bait.

All the great coaches have been hated. Hated, but respected.

The article makes sure to note he got voted there because of his first-half decade accomplishments. Trying to be as detached as possible, I see Babcock as going down as one of the great coaches ever. He reminds me more of someone like Bowman than any of the other clowns in the league right now. Three Finals appearances in 7 years, 4 Conference Finals, only missing playoffs once with a s***ty team and only failing to pass the first round once is a huge accomplishment. And to those who say he had stacked teams: Detroit was accustomed to failure despite being loaded with talent. He created a system, forced superstars to buy into it, and relies on it all along his years of success. I can't think of anyone with greater accomplishments in the 2000s. Scott Bowman only coached for three years to start the decade and only met with real success once. But he's still the greatest coach in history.

I have yet to see this kid play but I can't remember any prospect being as highly touted as him since Zetterberg. Could he be The Future for the Wings? Let's hope.

The best thing about Lids, though is that he was so far ahead of everyone else, he has a long way to fall before he becomes even average.

I'm almost ready to eat crow for being so hard on Howard, but remember, he is notoriously inconsistent. So I think it might be a bit too early to say he's the real deal, especially because his rebound issues might re-emerge.

Team looked great tonight. And I have to say, as one of Howard's fiercest critics on here, I think he's been better with each and every game. Now, we know he's really easily shaken, so we'll see how long it lasts, but for now, I feel comfortable with Howard starting games. If he can keep the rebounds under control and take some mental training from Ozzie, he'll be a solid backup. And I'm excited for Bert, let's hope it means he's back on track! Oh, and I saw someone mention Williams a few posts up, which is funny, because I've forgotten he played for this team when I think about players returning from injuries. That's how nonessential he is.

That's beyond retarded. But how did it make Vokoun bleed? Did Ballard's stick hit some tiny opening by some freak occurrenc?

You didn't ask which country made hockey more popular, you asked which country is the number 1 hockey country. That, no argument anywhere in the world except you apparently, is Canada. Hockey is part of a Canadian's every day life. It's popular in parts of the USA, but you can't say it's a national sport. I'd say Russia and the US are tied for second.

All my jerseys have been CCM except for my Winter Classic. I recently walked into a store to look at their jerseys for the first time in a long time and was really not happy with them. They were RBK, naturally, but they had a very spongy, soft, smooth fabric. It looked like the numbers were glued on and then sewn and the name was sewn onto a nameplate and really poorly glued on. Please tell me these are some cheap version of the jerseys and not what is widely available? I was going to ask my fiancee for a Datsyuk jersey this year, but not if the jersey's are like this now. I assume there's some ridiculous 300 dollar authentic version out there, but with CCM there was always a good quality replica available for abotu 150. Do these mid-range jersey's exist for RBK?

Maybe we're using Drew Miller as bait for another MSU Miller next year...

Just addressing effectiveness and the teams needs, I don't expect these players to return, barring some collossal resurgence later this season: Bertuzzi, Williams, Maltby (Retired), Lebda, May (retires?), Meech. Abdelkader, Helm, Larsson, Lidstrom are locks. Homer will probably return because for all the crap people have given him he's still playing his style of hockey and scoring goals (team leader). He'l be back unless he feels physically incapable of it. Eaves could be back as well, he hasn't been hurting the team and could be a good player to resign and see how he develops with more time. Miller is another 50/50. Could be good filler, unless he has a monster playoff run and then he would be a lock to return. So that frees up 6 roster spots to be replaced with impact players. EDIT: I also have a feeling that Hudler will return sometime next year.

Considering Homer is the leading scorer, you're right. I'm tired of the Homer bashing. He's not the weak link on that line. He does what he's always does. He's not costing this team games or missing scoring opportunities. He and Datsyuk just need a capable third player.

I agree.

I wish!

Me, too. I haven't been this happy about a win since...well...a long time ago. It wasn't pretty but the team got it done!

Maybe we can hope this is the beginning of hsi wakeup.

But the actual TV feed is so crappy it looks like a replay of an '80s game.

I love seeing Abdelkader Datsyuk and Leino together. I really wanted to see Datsyuk and Abdelkader and I hope Babs keeps them together. Leino has yet to make me feel any sort of confidence in him, but Abdelkader and Datsyuk could be great.

Howard will never be a legit NHL backup until he starts controlling those damn rebounds. I know it seems like he's playing well but every single shot bounces back out twenty feet, no matter how soft the shot.

Homer sucks and should be traded. He's not doing anything out there. What the hell is 10 goals? We need more fighters, trade him! ARG!