titanium2

Or kicking out some Wings fans behind his bench. Remember that s***? "Oohh look at me, I can point my finger!"

Wha...? Why taunt them? They're already 10th? in their conference isn't that punishment enough? Just forget about them.

So I just got back in time for the Hossa and Zetterberg goals. What have the lines been? What do people think of the lines? That Pav and Z goal really makes me think that they should never ever be apart.

Seriously, a line of Leino-Z-Hossa theoretically looks really good right now. I guess we'll just have to wait until Saturday. Though, 4? Maltby, maybe Kopy, after those two I'm out. EDIT: Actually, if Helm is in between Hudler and Samuelsson, that means Filppula will be Z's left wing. Maybe he's trying to get Fil some scoring line minutes. I guess it's not so bad then. Good news for you at least, right?

He leads all Red Wings forwards in hits and is second on the team overall. Absolutely useless is a bit extreme.

What the...? Man, I was really looking forward to seeing a line of Leino-Z-Hossa. I thought, "Finally, Babs pairs Z with someone who be a substitute Datsyuk." And Z actually declared that he was looking forward to playing with him. But no. Whatever. Doesn't make any sense from my end. I guess he really wants to get Kopy some confidence. Either that or he's showcasing him for a trade.

I agree that something just isn't there with Hossa. While he's partly responsible for his part, I think some of the Wings contribute to this as well. Z is my favorite player, so I tend to really watch what he does out there. On numerous occasions I've seen him have the opportunity to start a give and go with Hossa; only he doesn't make the first pass and just takes it himself. He just doesn't seem to be on his list of "great chemistry," which is understandable a little bit when you consider that Hossa more often than not plays with Datsyuk.

Little kid in what looks like a Red Wings jersey. It looks like a camera commercial. I hope it's really not a commercial for some crazy medication.

Leino's first goal - Washington Z - Anaheim Pav - Carolina Filppula - St. Louis Not that it matters too much, but does anyone remember anymore?

Why is it that some the YT clips of Leino with the most views are either of him embellishing contact, flat out diving or flicking people off? Is he like the Crosby of Finnish players in the sense that people just want to highlight his not so nice moments?

Oh God... Hah. You just reinforced many people's criticisms of Kopy. In fact, they might say that's an insult to Knuble.

I wonder why we don't see many Russian prospects anymore. Did the whole, "Draft skill, worry about size later" mentality happen relatively recently?

Goooood Lord, you are correct sir! Man... Yeah, can't say I remember much about those two.

It's kind of hard to forget anyone who was on a cup-winning roster. Even if they are Uwe Krupp. Anyone remember when Wendel Clark was a red wing? It was only for a couple of months though in 1999 I believe.

He has quite the insane contract but I'd love to see him on Pav's wing. I'd like to think that I will during the Olympics next year but I doubt it. Everyone wants to see the #1 and #2 on the same line.

Mule-Pav-Homer *I thought this line was better defensively than with Hossa on the wing. Offensively, instead of the net-front presence it allows Mule to be more of a shooter during 5-on-5 situations, which is really good for him. Leino/Huds-Z-Hoss *Offensively, Z needs someone who can handle the puck and make plays so that Z and Hossa (or whomever) can be scorers. Defensively, they got Z and Hoss as the strong skaters to compensate for Leino/Hudler. Though sometimes I do worry about Hossa's defensive patience and positioning. Leino/Hudler-Fil-Bear *It's still as good as any third line that any other team would put out there. Though, Fil needs to be skating well. When he's flying, he's an absolute steal for his contract. Sammy-Drapes-Helm *I like Sammy as a "grinder." He's much better at it than Kopy. Helm has been hitting people a lot harder this year in GR. So that would be good line physically. **Hoss/Mule are interchangeable for the PP and maybe even some shifts on even strength if they need an adjustment offensively. **Bear can take the place of Leino/Hudler in case they want to defend a lead. **Bear can also switch with Sammy in case the 4th line needs more of an offensive punch. If Pav and Z are together, then my guess would be: Z-Pav-Homer Mule-Fil-Hoss Sammy-Drapes-Bear Hudler-Helm-Leino

Yeah, haha. MacLean has been with Babcock ever since they both came into the NHL. He was the one in charge of the defense last year. Maybe they should switch or something.

What are his responsibilities? Run drills? Design schemes? I'm just not sure if firing him would make things better.

Just trying to collect evidence so that they can tell him, "We've given you multiple opportunities and we've assessed that you are best with X number of minutes within Y and Z situations." It's the professional way to do it. It's frustrating as all hell, but it's better than not giving him a chance at all.

Not that this absolves him of anything but he is averaging a little more than two minutes in comparison to last year. 07-08 - 21:06 TOI/G. 08-09 - 23:09 TOI/G. That can definitely wear on you over time. It's kind of like why some wonder why Zetterberg isn't scoring as much. One, he hasn't been with his usual linemates, Pav and Homer; and two, his main duty more often than not is to shut down the top-scoring line; and last but certainly not least, he's averaging over two minutes less than last year. 07-08 - 22:04 TOI/G. 08-09 - 19:48 TOI/G.

He skated well enough and battled pretty hard. He looked like he belonged on a scoring line. It makes you wonder what the playoff roster is going to look like. Helm will be there for sure. Leino fit well enough for you to say that it is likely he could be a regular.

2 games? Are you sure it's not 3? I thought they could do LTIR retroactively. He got injured at PHX and then they had CBJ, DAL and today Warshington. I know it sounds nitpicky but the sooner they get him back the better.

What does Steve Ott look like?

I love it when Finns on the Red Wings score their first goal:

Incredible. Good work. Leino a favorite of yours?