Icesurfer

Wings will be able to sign quality players but that is really not the problem..... whether they sign the top free agents or not.
Everyone knows by now that defense and goaltending win championships. I hate to say it but without Lidstrom Wings will have to eventually upgrade their goaltending. Wings must now win like everyone else... with top notch goaltending. I was one of Howie's biggest supporters. Last year I was expecting Howie to improve his rebound control, but what I saw was that it actually got worse. The difference was the defense was so focused on getting to his rebounds first that they left the opposing skaters unchecked and open. You can't keep plugging holes. Either Howie improves his rebound control or Wings will have to upgrade. There is no Lidstrom to mend the mistakes and the shots will not be kept low like they have been in the past. Teams got very smart against Howie.... they learned to just throw the puck at the net and play for the rebound. So how the Wings do in 2012-2013 will not depend on which defensemen and forward they sign but rather rest on the shoulders of Jimmy Howard. And for Pete's sake spend some of that money to get a decent backup, one capable of assuming a number one role.

Wings will be able to sign quality players but that is really not the problem..... whether they sign the top free agents or not.
Everyone knows by now that defense and goaltending win championships. I hate to say it but without Lidstrom Wings will have to eventually upgrade their goaltending. Wings must now win like everyone else... with top notch goaltending. I was one of Howie's biggest supporters. Last year I was expecting Howie to improve his rebound control, but what I saw was that it actually got worse. The difference was the defense was so focused on getting to his rebounds first that they left the opposing skaters unchecked and open. You can't keep plugging holes. Either Howie improves his rebound control or Wings will have to upgrade. There is no Lidstrom to mend the mistakes and the shots will not be kept low like they have been in the past. Teams got very smart against Howie.... they learned to just throw the puck at the net and play for the rebound. So how the Wings do in 2012-2013 will not depend on which defensemen and forward they sign but rather rest on the shoulders of Jimmy Howard. And for Pete's sake spend some of that money to get a decent backup, one capable of assuming a number one role.

Wings will be able to sign quality players but that is really not the problem..... whether they sign the top free agents or not.
Everyone knows by now that defense and goaltending win championships. I hate to say it but without Lidstrom Wings will have to eventually upgrade their goaltending. Wings must now win like everyone else... with top notch goaltending. I was one of Howie's biggest supporters. Last year I was expecting Howie to improve his rebound control, but what I saw was that it actually got worse. The difference was the defense was so focused on getting to his rebounds first that they left the opposing skaters unchecked and open. You can't keep plugging holes. Either Howie improves his rebound control or Wings will have to upgrade. There is no Lidstrom to mend the mistakes and the shots will not be kept low like they have been in the past. Teams got very smart against Howie.... they learned to just throw the puck at the net and play for the rebound. So how the Wings do in 2012-2013 will not depend on which defensemen and forward they sign but rather rest on the shoulders of Jimmy Howard. And for Pete's sake spend some of that money to get a decent backup, one capable of assuming a number one role.

The Yotes are beating the Preds with their speed.....great speed on all 4 lines. Boedker is as fast as Helm. When you can roll 4 lines with speed you can activate the defense and because of the speed you don't have to worry about getting back on defense.... especially with Smith in goal. And everyone thought Nashville was fast. That just goes to show you how slow Detroit really is..... especially when the Yotes do it for 60 minutes.

It is not an accident that the young fast teams with great goaltending are leading the way. All GM's should have seen this coming when the hooking and holding was taken out of the game. It allowed the speedy players to have the biggest impact. Experience and skill are no longer hallmarks of the game. Goals scored are not mostly the pretty goals by skilled players in the playoffs. They are scrappy and rebound goals put in by great skaters who will go to the net. But it starts with great defense as well as goaltending and the defenders have to contribute to the scoring by picking up the rebounds. EVERY line on the team has to have speedy good skaters. Every skater, IMHO, has to be good enough to kill penalties if necessary, although, you can not expect your highly skilled 5 on 5 goal scorers to spend time on every penalty kill.

Well, I guess I was wrong. I said Wings would win 2 games in this series and they won only one. I'm sorry I will try to be more accurate next time.
They went down with a whimper.
No level of experience or skill can top great goaltending, excellent defense and speed, speed, speed in today's NHL. Howard and Detroit's defense have a lot of work to do before next year starts.

Well, I guess I was wrong. I said Wings would win 2 games in this series and they won only one. I'm sorry I will try to be more accurate next time.
They went down with a whimper.
No level of experience or skill can top great goaltending, excellent defense and speed, speed, speed in today's NHL. Howard and Detroit's defense have a lot of work to do before next year starts.

The Blues will win the West. It is hard to beat excellent defense and goaltending. They will skate all over LA, then Nashville.
When Howie learns to control his rebounds he will be as good as Halak, Elliott or Rinne.

The Blues will win the West. It is hard to beat excellent defense and goaltending. They will skate all over LA, then Nashville.
When Howie learns to control his rebounds he will be as good as Halak, Elliott or Rinne.

The Blues will win the West. It is hard to beat excellent defense and goaltending. They will skate all over LA, then Nashville.
When Howie learns to control his rebounds he will be as good as Halak, Elliott or Rinne.

It is early golfing season for the boys in red and white.
Price might have been too high for a top 6 forward at the trade deadline but that is exactly what the Wings needed and Holland sad he liked the team he had. Oh well.
6 weeks ago I wrote the "Blues are in the driver's seat". 3 weeks ago I wrote the Preds were in the passenger seat and the Wings were sleeping in the back seat.
Now you can throw the red and white jerseys in the trunk because they are packing for early vacation. Wings will win 2 games in the playoffs.... maybe 3 if their power play starts to work and if they are lucky. So that means they will exit in the first round.
It was all downhill after the 23 game win streak. Too many mental mistakes on a team that is not clicking.
This year had to be one of the most significant collapses in Red Wings history. On February 20th Detroit was number one in the NHL, Howie was in the running for the Vezina trophy, Datsyuk was in the running for MVP and Selke trophy, Lidstrom was in the running for another Norris trophy and Detroit had just set a record for the most consecutive home victories ever. Things couldn't have looked any sweeter. Then in a flash, as if a tornado hit Joe Louis Arena, almost all of that vanished in a hurry. The 23 game win streak remains but everything else is gone. A first round exit wound be the topping on a humble pie.

It is early golfing season for the boys in red and white.
Price might have been too high for a top 6 forward at the trade deadline but that is exactly what the Wings needed and Holland sad he liked the team he had. Oh well.
6 weeks ago I wrote the "Blues are in the driver's seat". 3 weeks ago I wrote the Preds were in the passenger seat and the Wings were sleeping in the back seat.
Now you can throw the red and white jerseys in the trunk because they are packing for early vacation. Wings will win 2 games in the playoffs.... maybe 3 if their power play starts to work and if they are lucky. So that means they will exit in the first round.
It was all downhill after the 23 game win streak. Too many mental mistakes on a team that is not clicking.
This year had to be one of the most significant collapses in Red Wings history. On February 20th Detroit was number one in the NHL, Howie was in the running for the Vezina trophy, Datsyuk was in the running for MVP and Selke trophy, Lidstrom was in the running for another Norris trophy and Detroit had just set a record for the most consecutive home victories ever. Things couldn't have looked any sweeter. Then in a flash, as if a tornado hit Joe Louis Arena, almost all of that vanished in a hurry. The 23 game win streak remains but everything else is gone. A first round exit wound be the topping on a humble pie.

It is early golfing season for the boys in red and white.
Price might have been too high for a top 6 forward at the trade deadline but that is exactly what the Wings needed and Holland sad he liked the team he had. Oh well.
6 weeks ago I wrote the "Blues are in the driver's seat". 3 weeks ago I wrote the Preds were in the passenger seat and the Wings were sleeping in the back seat.
Now you can throw the red and white jerseys in the trunk because they are packing for early vacation. Wings will win 2 games in the playoffs.... maybe 3 if their power play starts to work and if they are lucky. So that means they will exit in the first round.
It was all downhill after the 23 game win streak. Too many mental mistakes on a team that is not clicking.
This year had to be one of the most significant collapses in Red Wings history. On February 20th Detroit was number one in the NHL, Howie was in the running for the Vezina trophy, Datsyuk was in the running for MVP and Selke trophy, Lidstrom was in the running for another Norris trophy and Detroit had just set a record for the most consecutive home victories ever. Things couldn't have looked any sweeter. Then in a flash, as if a tornado hit Joe Louis Arena, almost all of that vanished in a hurry. The 23 game win streak remains but everything else is gone. A first round exit wound be the topping on a humble pie.

It is early golfing season for the boys in red and white.
Price might have been too high for a top 6 forward at the trade deadline but that is exactly what the Wings needed and Holland sad he liked the team he had. Oh well.
6 weeks ago I wrote the "Blues are in the driver's seat". 3 weeks ago I wrote the Preds were in the passenger seat and the Wings were sleeping in the back seat.
Now you can throw the red and white jerseys in the trunk because they are packing for early vacation. Wings will win 2 games in the playoffs.... maybe 3 if their power play starts to work and if they are lucky. So that means they will exit in the first round.
It was all downhill after the 23 game win streak. Too many mental mistakes on a team that is not clicking.
This year had to be one of the most significant collapses in Red Wings history. On February 20th Detroit was number one in the NHL, Howie was in the running for the Vezina trophy, Datsyuk was in the running for MVP and Selke trophy, Lidstrom was in the running for another Norris trophy and Detroit had just set a record for the most consecutive home victories ever. Things couldn't have looked any sweeter. Then in a flash, as if a tornado hit Joe Louis Arena, almost all of that vanished in a hurry. The 23 game win streak remains but everything else is gone. A first round exit wound be the topping on a humble pie.

That is why I stated "if healthy" and "if ready to play". But what Babcock said is that even if he is healthy he will not play against Nashville.
NEWS FLASH..... ANY player at ANY time can get hurt. You don't have to be playing a good team to get injured. In fact, players get injured in practice.... players get injured even when they are not on the ice. Not playing a player because you are afraid they will get hurt in asinine. There is that "fear" again. If you are afraid then pack your bags and go golfing because you won't be playing hockey in May. The playoffs ARE a war of attrition. It is usually the healthiest team hoisting the cup at the end... not necessarily the best. A team can be the healthiest team going into the playoffs and all it takes is facing a team like San Jose or St. Louis at this point and they can hit and punish you into oblivion and there is no way you make it to the finals. IMHO, it is mostly luck.... the luck of having the "easiest road". And right now the easiest road starts by having home ice advantage over Nashville.... so you have to do whatever it takes right now to achieve that.

Babcock is making a montrous mistake by not playing Howie against Nashville if he is ready to play. First of all, if Howie can't be thrown into the fire and be expected to perform then he is not a number one playoff goalie. Secondly, there are 4 games left after Friday.... with one of them a back-to-back. Third, players are known to hit that "proverbial wall" about 3 - 6 games after returning from an injury.... Detroit has too many in that category at the start of the playoffs. Fourth, Conklin will lose to the Predators giving the Predators a great chance to finish fourth. Fifth, the defense needs to wake up... they were absolutely horrible in the last Columbus game and all were a MINUS except for Ericsson.... maybe if the defense knows they have to put up a wall in front of Howie that just may wake them up. Sixth, Howie needs to get as many games as possible against a skilled team.... expecially one he will be facing in the playoffs.... correct the mistakes now. Otherwise, everything is pointing to a first round exit by the Wings if Conklin is in goal on Friday and the Wings lose.
What kind of message are you sending to the team when you are afraid of your number one goalie facing a competitor, even if he is not in top game condition? It is a team game and if the team is playing like a team they will give Howie all the protection he needs. Showing fear is a recipe for failure.

That is why I stated "if healthy" and "if ready to play". But what Babcock said is that even if he is healthy he will not play against Nashville.
NEWS FLASH..... ANY player at ANY time can get hurt. You don't have to be playing a good team to get injured. In fact, players get injured in practice.... players get injured even when they are not on the ice. Not playing a player because you are afraid they will get hurt in asinine. There is that "fear" again. If you are afraid then pack your bags and go golfing because you won't be playing hockey in May. The playoffs ARE a war of attrition. It is usually the healthiest team hoisting the cup at the end... not necessarily the best. A team can be the healthiest team going into the playoffs and all it takes is facing a team like San Jose or St. Louis at this point and they can hit and punish you into oblivion and there is no way you make it to the finals. IMHO, it is mostly luck.... the luck of having the "easiest road". And right now the easiest road starts by having home ice advantage over Nashville.... so you have to do whatever it takes right now to achieve that.

That is why I stated "if healthy" and "if ready to play". But what Babcock said is that even if he is healthy he will not play against Nashville.
NEWS FLASH..... ANY player at ANY time can get hurt. You don't have to be playing a good team to get injured. In fact, players get injured in practice.... players get injured even when they are not on the ice. Not playing a player because you are afraid they will get hurt in asinine. There is that "fear" again. If you are afraid then pack your bags and go golfing because you won't be playing hockey in May. The playoffs ARE a war of attrition. It is usually the healthiest team hoisting the cup at the end... not necessarily the best. A team can be the healthiest team going into the playoffs and all it takes is facing a team like San Jose or St. Louis at this point and they can hit and punish you into oblivion and there is no way you make it to the finals. IMHO, it is mostly luck.... the luck of having the "easiest road". And right now the easiest road starts by having home ice advantage over Nashville.... so you have to do whatever it takes right now to achieve that.

That is why I stated "if healthy" and "if ready to play". But what Babcock said is that even if he is healthy he will not play against Nashville.
NEWS FLASH..... ANY player at ANY time can get hurt. You don't have to be playing a good team to get injured. In fact, players get injured in practice.... players get injured even when they are not on the ice. Not playing a player because you are afraid they will get hurt in asinine. There is that "fear" again. If you are afraid then pack your bags and go golfing because you won't be playing hockey in May. The playoffs ARE a war of attrition. It is usually the healthiest team hoisting the cup at the end... not necessarily the best. A team can be the healthiest team going into the playoffs and all it takes is facing a team like San Jose or St. Louis at this point and they can hit and punish you into oblivion and there is no way you make it to the finals. IMHO, it is mostly luck.... the luck of having the "easiest road". And right now the easiest road starts by having home ice advantage over Nashville.... so you have to do whatever it takes right now to achieve that.

Babcock is making a montrous mistake by not playing Howie against Nashville if he is ready to play. First of all, if Howie can't be thrown into the fire and be expected to perform then he is not a number one playoff goalie. Secondly, there are 4 games left after Friday.... with one of them a back-to-back. Third, players are known to hit that "proverbial wall" about 3 - 6 games after returning from an injury.... Detroit has too many in that category at the start of the playoffs. Fourth, Conklin will lose to the Predators giving the Predators a great chance to finish fourth. Fifth, the defense needs to wake up... they were absolutely horrible in the last Columbus game and all were a MINUS except for Ericsson.... maybe if the defense knows they have to put up a wall in front of Howie that just may wake them up. Sixth, Howie needs to get as many games as possible against a skilled team.... expecially one he will be facing in the playoffs.... correct the mistakes now. Otherwise, everything is pointing to a first round exit by the Wings if Conklin is in goal on Friday and the Wings lose.
What kind of message are you sending to the team when you are afraid of your number one goalie facing a competitor, even if he is not in top game condition? It is a team game and if the team is playing like a team they will give Howie all the protection he needs. Showing fear is a recipe for failure.

Babcock is making a montrous mistake by not playing Howie against Nashville if he is ready to play. First of all, if Howie can't be thrown into the fire and be expected to perform then he is not a number one playoff goalie. Secondly, there are 4 games left after Friday.... with one of them a back-to-back. Third, players are known to hit that "proverbial wall" about 3 - 6 games after returning from an injury.... Detroit has too many in that category at the start of the playoffs. Fourth, Conklin will lose to the Predators giving the Predators a great chance to finish fourth. Fifth, the defense needs to wake up... they were absolutely horrible in the last Columbus game and all were a MINUS except for Ericsson.... maybe if the defense knows they have to put up a wall in front of Howie that just may wake them up. Sixth, Howie needs to get as many games as possible against a skilled team.... expecially one he will be facing in the playoffs.... correct the mistakes now. Otherwise, everything is pointing to a first round exit by the Wings if Conklin is in goal on Friday and the Wings lose.
What kind of message are you sending to the team when you are afraid of your number one goalie facing a competitor, even if he is not in top game condition? It is a team game and if the team is playing like a team they will give Howie all the protection he needs. Showing fear is a recipe for failure.

Babcock is making a montrous mistake by not playing Howie against Nashville if he is ready to play. First of all, if Howie can't be thrown into the fire and be expected to perform then he is not a number one playoff goalie. Secondly, there are 4 games left after Friday.... with one of them a back-to-back. Third, players are known to hit that "proverbial wall" about 3 - 6 games after returning from an injury.... Detroit has too many in that category at the start of the playoffs. Fourth, Conklin will lose to the Predators giving the Predators a great chance to finish fourth. Fifth, the defense needs to wake up... they were absolutely horrible in the last Columbus game and all were a MINUS except for Ericsson.... maybe if the defense knows they have to put up a wall in front of Howie that just may wake them up. Sixth, Howie needs to get as many games as possible against a skilled team.... expecially one he will be facing in the playoffs.... correct the mistakes now. Otherwise, everything is pointing to a first round exit by the Wings if Conklin is in goal on Friday and the Wings lose.
What kind of message are you sending to the team when you are afraid of your number one goalie facing a competitor, even if he is not in top game condition? It is a team game and if the team is playing like a team they will give Howie all the protection he needs. Showing fear is a recipe for failure.

Babcock is making a montrous mistake by not playing Howie against Nashville if he is ready to play. First of all, if Howie can't be thrown into the fire and be expected to perform then he is not a number one playoff goalie. Secondly, there are 4 games left after Friday.... with one of them a back-to-back. Third, players are known to hit that "proverbial wall" about 3 - 6 games after returning from an injury.... Detroit has too many in that category at the start of the playoffs. Fourth, Conklin will lose to the Predators giving the Predators a great chance to finish fourth. Fifth, the defense needs to wake up... they were absolutely horrible in the last Columbus game and all were a MINUS except for Ericsson.... maybe if the defense knows they have to put up a wall in front of Howie that just may wake them up. Sixth, Howie needs to get as many games as possible against a skilled team.... expecially one he will be facing in the playoffs.... correct the mistakes now. Otherwise, everything is pointing to a first round exit by the Wings if Conklin is in goal on Friday and the Wings lose.
What kind of message are you sending to the team when you are afraid of your number one goalie facing a competitor, even if he is not in top game condition? It is a team game and if the team is playing like a team they will give Howie all the protection he needs. Showing fear is a recipe for failure.

That is why I stated "if healthy" and "if ready to play". But what Babcock said is that even if he is healthy he will not play against Nashville.
NEWS FLASH..... ANY player at ANY time can get hurt. You don't have to be playing a good team to get injured. In fact, players get injured in practice.... players get injured even when they are not on the ice. Not playing a player because you are afraid they will get hurt in asinine. There is that "fear" again. If you are afraid then pack your bags and go golfing because you won't be playing hockey in May. The playoffs ARE a war of attrition. It is usually the healthiest team hoisting the cup at the end... not necessarily the best. A team can be the healthiest team going into the playoffs and all it takes is facing a team like San Jose or St. Louis at this point and they can hit and punish you into oblivion and there is no way you make it to the finals. IMHO, it is mostly luck.... the luck of having the "easiest road". And right now the easiest road starts by having home ice advantage over Nashville.... so you have to do whatever it takes right now to achieve that.

That is why I stated "if healthy" and "if ready to play". But what Babcock said is that even if he is healthy he will not play against Nashville.
NEWS FLASH..... ANY player at ANY time can get hurt. You don't have to be playing a good team to get injured. In fact, players get injured in practice.... players get injured even when they are not on the ice. Not playing a player because you are afraid they will get hurt in asinine. There is that "fear" again. If you are afraid then pack your bags and go golfing because you won't be playing hockey in May. The playoffs ARE a war of attrition. It is usually the healthiest team hoisting the cup at the end... not necessarily the best. A team can be the healthiest team going into the playoffs and all it takes is facing a team like San Jose or St. Louis at this point and they can hit and punish you into oblivion and there is no way you make it to the finals. IMHO, it is mostly luck.... the luck of having the "easiest road". And right now the easiest road starts by having home ice advantage over Nashville.... so you have to do whatever it takes right now to achieve that.