Chunkylover

Yay. Thanks for the work you put in to keep this going. It was fun to the end. Then it sucked.

The Wings had Mike Babcock all season and played loosey-goosey during the regular season and couldn't win the Cup in two tries. A team can have a great coach and struggle. It's tough to repeat.

Not to completely break from what appears to be consensus, but I don't think Hossa looks lost, I think he's trying to do too much. He's got a reputation for being a big-time goal-scorer and defenders know that and challenge him aggressively. He has shown he can score and set up other players. He knows how important this opportunity is and I'm certain he feels every bit of pressure that the collective Red Wings fan base is mentally forcing on him. I think, if he's guilty of anything it's that he's trying to do too much, not that he's trying to coast.

If the owner and author of that sign asked Guerin to pose for the picture and refused he'd be just another arrogant athlete. He probably didn't put that sign up and was more than likely trying to encourage a Penguins fan to get excited about the series. Good on him, and good for the fan. Besides if that's what Guerin's opinions of the economic situation are, he's far from ignorant, and since this discussion has nothing to do with sexual relations calling him a **** seems rather of topic. I'm just glad no one has accused him of being racist since he's tacitly opposing Obama's economic endeavors.

I get the feeling that he's a great locker room presence as well. He sounds very intelligent and passionate when interviewed and is probably a steadying voice behind the scenes. He did indeed improve this year. Hope he can at least finish out his contract. What an unfortunate coincidence. Although it sounds terrible I hope this holds true this year. Do it for Lils!

I'm a fan of every player wearing the Winged Wheel and hate seeing anyone have to leave the team. As frustrating as Robert Lang was to watch, he seemed like a nice guy during interviews and I always cheered for his success so he could win over some of his detractors. It's the same with Chelios. I wish that he could contribute to this team the way he thinks he can. Whenever he's in the lineup I'm pulling for him to get a goal or something (like game five against Chicago!). Hudler has a lot of heart. I don't know how he is in the locker room but when I watch him drive the net to assist on Franzen's game winner against Columbus, or see him competing in the corners (despite his size disadvantage) I really respect his competitiveness. Samuelsson fits well with this team. When he's playing on the third or fourth line he is a perfect fit: good defensive awareness, good puck-handling, and he can cycle well. He's sort of like another Cleary-esque reclamation project, although I doubt anyone expected great things out of Sammy, he's a quality depth player. In retrospect he's another example of the Wings savvy management. Conks and Hoss need to do everything they can to spur their team to victory because they may never have this opportunity. Conklin, however, has done a lot during the regular season to help his career after Detroit. Let's go out with a bang boys!

I remember watching a game, maybe the Winter Classic, with Dave Strader and Ed Olczyk. Edzo kept saying "Spades", for like the whole first period. Then in the second one could clearly hear him saying "Strades". They've both been in the business for a while and they've both been at VS for a while, strange that he'd have no clue.

Playing off that recent Star Wars comparison:

Yeah, adding a "Y" to the end of someone's name is standard practice in environments where a bunch of guys are working closely. Pierre can be annoying but he doesn't own the "Y". I'd just like him to make a comment for once without stating it in the form of a question to Olczyk.

I agree with this. Law of unintended consequences comes into affect. I don't agree with getting rid of stuff and for no real good reason other than the fact that it's been that way for as long as I can remember.

Joe Beninati says it a lot too. It seems like that word just has to be used in every sport: baseball has the line-drive; football uses it to describe their running game; basketball players drive to the net; NASCAR and golf are obvious. It's an aggressive, powerful sounding word. I'd prefer they just say "shot" or any of it's variations.

The more I watch in these playoffs, the more I want to keep Hudler and Samuelsson. Game four against CBJ epitomizes the value of a guy like Happy, he takes the puck from the corner and just crashes the crease. By that point the BJ's were getting more physical and he's only 5'8'' or something like that. That's grit. Samuelsson, if used properly, is an expert puck-handler. I remember in '08 he, Fil, and Huds were just embarrassing the Coyotes with their puck possession. If you can re-watch the second period of Game Five, Sammy has good hands and can really out-maneuver opposing defensemen. With that said, he belongs no higher than the third line. If played appropriately he's extremely valuable. Plus he's rarely injured and can agitate pretty well. Other players of interest are Leino and Downey. McCarty won't be re-signed so we'll need Downey. It would be stupid to lose Leino. I hope Hossa can get his cup and go play for the Leafs or something so we won't have to see him too often. Although with the way our FA's have gone the last few years he'll end up in Chicago or St. Louis.

I can see the Bobby Orr Trophy happening. That way they can recognize the success of a guy like Mike Green without having to perform the mental gymnastics required to argue that he's actually a defenseman. We probably won't see a Lidstrom trophy. Doesn't it sort of diminish Nick's contributions to name a trophy reserved for only defensive defensemen? I know that's not your intention but 50 years down the road people will equate low-scoring stay-at-home types with the most dynamic all-around defensemen since Orr. I know Messier is considered THE CAPTAIN by most Canadians and hockey writers, and he already has his little corporate sponsored leadership award, but I think Steve Yzerman really epitomized heart and leadership in the latter part of his career. Maybe an award for the best captain voted on by the other captains in the league? One potential negative is that the more awards there are, the less prestigious they all become.

I was just watching the highlights at NHL.com from the Columbus series last night. Now those seem like forever ago. Back when everyone questioned whether Ozzie and the rest of the Wings had that switch. I remember Ken and Mick even mentioning that. Then we have Melrose saying Detroit plays it's best hockey in the post-season which blows my mind considering how much that has changed over the last few years. Yep, it's been a long grind, and I'm just watching the games!

This one must go! No duh. I have a submission that needs expanded usage: subtle-little-interference: exclusively used to describe a situation wherein a Detroit player competes with an opposing player for the same piece of ice, especially when neither has the puck. Frequently occurs after face-offs or preceeding goals. Recommend applying to the remaining 29 teams in the NHL who all practice this legal form of interference.

I was just watching some clips from the Columbus series and I had a question and a thought: Question: What the heck happened to Osgood in the second period of game four? He's playing lights-out for ten straight periods, lets in some stinkers, then goes back to being awesome-playoff-goalie. There was concern he might have an injury but to bounce back the way he did, and to have no recurrences is pretty exceptional. If it was just loss of focus, again to go 17 additional games and not have that kind of mental lapse is rare. Any thoughts? Comment: Are we judging Hossa by a standard foreign to the Red Wings philosophy, i.e. personal sacrifice for team success? He's not having a terrible playoff, 15 points in 21 games isn't bad. He's not blowing anyone away, but should we expect someone playing for Detroit to light the lamp like he plays for an Eastern Conference team? Zetterberg and Franzen have 24 and 23 respectively: does this throw my idea out the window, or can we say that Hossa is at a disadvantage having not developed in the Red Wings system? Just some things to bridge the gap between here and game six. Thanks for responding.

Is anyone else a little weirded-out by this picture? No matter where I go Pavel's watching me. How does he just happen to look straight at a camera man at the precise instant he's taking a picture? It's like the planets aligning.... Dude, that's hilarious. At first glance it's like, "Yeah, all the Wings are laughing at Maxi, but at least the ref is there to protect him right?" Nope!

According to Babcock, Abdelkader isn't comfortable on the wing. Draper is a better center, hence Abby is scratched.

Unless Datsyuk's return can inspire the team to perform at a level we've not yet seen from them, I don't believe they'll have enough energy to win game five. However the extra break between games 5 and 6, and 6 and 7 should help and I think they take 6 and the Cup in 7. They need rest like I need oxygen.

Getting a healthy Pavel is the one thing that can help because the Wings aren't going to get a weeks vacation for everyone to catch their breath, which is what the boys need most. The physical and mental fatigue is palpable just watching them play. Full marks to Pittsburgh taking advantage.

Do they miss Hextall that much?

Uncanny! I don't remember Pierre speaking with such a distinct accent.

Nah, that's just what defense looks like. Not something Eastern Conference teams are acquainted with.

Whoa there condescending, I asked a question, I didn't make a statement. I disagree with the non-call, and it's obvious you disagree with the premise I proposed. I would have preferred you directly answered my question but I can interpret your response just as well. Actually I'm not dead wrong at all. I wasn't equating the two admittedly very different scenarios but was asking if they could be equated. Again you obviously disagree with that premise. Thanks for your response. The video on TSN only showed the guy standing by the linesman at the blue line. To all you guys, I agree with you, and if you'd read my posts you'd know that. I just don't believe in a conspiracy and was trying to find a way that the refs might have used to justify their mistake. Another Pittsburgh fan acting like a punk. There is a huge difference between the Zetterberg non-calls and the too-many-men non-call: the referees could not clearly see whether Z's hand was on the puck or not, and the only reason you think it was is because you had the benefit of the announcers pointing your attention to it during the replay, which the refs are not privy to. Pittsburgh really got away with this too-many-men call because two officials were looking directly at him while he stood in the zone and skated to his bench. That is a huge difference. No one is failing to point out the inconsistency, but this non-call was far more egregious than a hook, a slash, or a hold.