Greatness=PavelDatsyuk

It is 5

and i quote from red wings corner Darren McCarty will be in the lineup tonight with Aaron Downey a healthy scratch. Mikael Samuelsson and Brad Stuart will both be in the lineup. Detroit's lines look like they will be ... Datsyuk-Zetterberg-Holmstrom Filppula-Franzen-Cleary Hudler-Draper-Samuelsson Drake-Hartigan-McCarty Lidstrom-Rafalski Kronwall-Stuart Lilja-Chelios Hasek (starts) Osgood Healthy scratches ... Downey Abdelkader Helm Lebda Meech Injuries ... Maltby (hamstring) Kopecky (knee)

i stated it, all you said he would play, and he isn't

For all who haven't heard, Downey isn't playing tonight, like i suggested

i told all of you, he wouldn't play

Not really, any 15 could take a 17 in a mental or physical challenge, and this has nothing to do with the thread

your only a couple of years older than me, so look who's talking

i agree, as it says in the title, this is about the first game, play mac then downey and so on

Age doesn't matter. I have been brought up on hockey, i first held a stick at age 2, have watched the wings win their past 3 Stanley cups, and been to who knows how many games. I have studied the game, play advently, and i know a problem player when i see one, and Downey will cause problems for the wings

So McCarty can give Downey some pointers, and the experience

The only way Downey should play is if McCarty is playing to, and not always then, but i agree, keep hudler out

And that also brings us back to the fact Downey has little playoff experience and would be playing more under the playoff pressure

The harm is in the ref's. If they think Downey started the fight alone, not both of them, thats instigation and is a penalty, and the wings don't get the best refs's

They haven't taken as many, or weren't chosen to fight If our saying everyone who has taken a penalty is a liability, then don't dress anyone tommorow

They aren't liabilities, Downey hasn't been put in a playoff situation and has been known to fight, so he is

So your saying because he didn't have any game losing penalties in the season, he won't have any in the playoffs and if thats the case, then why didn't the wings win the cup the seince 2002. They have had great seasons, so were are the cups?

Thats the season, this is the playoffs, there is a intensity difference

I agree with you About Hudler, he is one of the worse players on the wings, if not the worst, and if Babcock would play all 3 on one line, Drake, Downey, and McCarty, i would go for it. Downey can play ok, but if we have only one enforcer, and he takes a bad penalty, the other team is free to take shots at our key players. With Downey and McCarty, Downey would be able to play hot headed and McCarty could keep the level head

Are you saying put McCarty in for Hudler and leave Downey in?

McCarty, in his third game with the wings, were downey has had 3 point in 56 gp, McCarty has it both the enforcer and the play maker side

Then why do we have him?

I did not say don't play him at all, just sparingly, and if we got Downey for enforcment, why did we get McCarty

What the wings don't need is one of their Key players hurt, and Downey rushing in, taking a penalty, and the wings be down a man without a key player In Colorado, we got lucky, if it happens again we could lose eaisly, and thats not we need

He has very little playoff experience(5 Games), were McCarty has won 3 Cups with the wings and has played 157 games Im not saying don't play him at all, just play him carefully

Can you show me that he won't, but we don't need a bad start to the playoffs. Play Downey away, to even the field, and play McCarty at home, were we can control the lines