Esquire

Including blocking a slapshot on the PK with his foot. About time we see some self-sacrifice on the PK! I was supposed to go to this today but I had a job interview scheduled at 2:30 and couldn't make it, only to get home and discover the interview was cancelled because the interviewer had come down with...SWINE FLU!!! If the interviewer had worked for the Leafs, this situation could have been avoided.

+43

What an absolute awesome game! Crowd was into it, Ozzie was into it, and Pav and Hank both showed up to the shootout! I don't wanna get ahead of myself here, but the looks on Hank and Pav's faces after their shots were pretty much "Yeah, incase you forgot, we're the Red Wings and we're kind of a big deal" Leafs next on Induction Weekend! GO WINGS GO!!!

WIN!!!!

HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANK!!!!

Personally, I'm glad the Leafs got the vaccine. A few people in my office had lunch at a burger place in the city today where Kaberle and Mayers were also eating. Pheww!

Z has been pure Z so far.

Agreed.

...with Ericsson out of the lineup. I'd like to hear everyone's thoughts on this. I'm not looking to bash Ericsson but it's pretty clear that he's had some struggles on the defensive side of things and I'd like to hear some thoughts on what will change when he gets back.

Says the guy throwing the insults my way. I'm sure there are more significant reasons, which is what all the other contributors have done. However, it doesn't seem that you can give me any but rather enter the thread with the sole intention of trashing it.

It was intended to stir up discussion/debate. Imagine that. On a MESSAGE BOARD none the less. The horror! I've got no motives other than to pick peoples brains. I gain nothing by flaming/trolling.

Because this makes a bit more sense. If you're out there for more time, chances are you're going to rack up more +/- stats. Good or bad. If you play minimal ice time yet rack up a "-" then why wouldn't you look into their play? Show me a single time I implied that the Wings current winning trend was based upon Ericsson being out. Can't do that? Oh that's right. That's because I never did. Stop putting words in my mouth and again, read the thread title. Hey look! A contribution to the discussion! At last! These "hundreds" of causes were so plentiful you just decided to hold out for suspense this entire time I guess? Those explanations were all I was looking for. Thank you. Finally.

And maybe tack on another test for handle names.

Hey, just trying to express to you that maybe if you've got nothing to contribute then maybe boosting your post count can take place in someone elses topics. Anyway... You say "middle", I say "tied for 2nd last". Fancy it up all ya want, but there's no way he's been strong defensively this year which was...wait for it...here it comes...the ENTIRE point of this discussion. I'll concede that using the +/- after two games that he's been gone is a bit unfair, but you can't ignore the fact that for a guy who still leads our defensemen in points, he's still the worst +/- of the blueliners on the Wings and was 3rd worst at the time of his injury. So, for a guy who only plays the "5th most ice time" among defensemen as you put it, to have a +/- that he does even with his point totals, should at least be a cause for discussion.

The title of this thread is "2 Games, 1 Goal Against" and is not "2 Wins, No Ericsson/Filppula" Again, discussing the defensive end of this and NOT Filppula either.

The point of my topic was to invite discussion about Ericsson, not Filppula. Stay on topic or don't bother posting self-serving, condescending drivel. Moving along, you conveniently forgot to mention another Ericsson stat: -3. Which puts him last among Red Wing defenseman. Maybe if he was doing less scoring and looking after his own end more he wouldn't need big offensive stats to mask some of his brutal turnovers. I never once implied that Ericsson was the entire reason for the Wings last two low goals against games but merely asked for people to discuss how perhaps Ericsson may be having problems and how those problems may be addressed and fixed upon his return. Again, your sarcasm is refreshing and riveting here on LGW, but if you don't contribute anything at least stay away from my topics.

Apparently not!!! Such a great game last night too. The "Afterburner" line was outstanding and I thought that their speed simply could not be contained and it appeared that they logged a good deal of ice time as well. The best part of last night was that I watched the game on a single tv in a bar packed with Leaf fans watching their game on the rest of the 15 tv's in the bar. So I ate all you can eat wings, drank beer, watched our Wings handle a defending conference champion, and watched the Leafs lose yet again. Life. Is. Good.

Here's hoping our defensemen spread the germ to the Bruins, then, the Bruins take that germ and head into their November 10th game against the Pens and it decimates their team! FLY GERMS FLY!!!! Muwahahahaha!!!

BIRTHDAY GAME!!!!! All you can eat wing night and the local wing spot + Wings game + beers = Great Birthday!!! Wings 4 (Dats, Bert, Helm, Homer) Bruins 1 (Lebda) GO WINGS GO!!!

Rene Bourque

Honestly, I think he's been terrific for what he was brought in for. Even if he's hitting the posts most nights, he's still been one of our most consistently visible players on the ice. Sure he's had turnovers, but that's to be expected when you're one of the most active players with the puck who actually is out there trying to make things happen. He's got 5pts in 11 games so far, putting him around 35-40pts projected for the season at a price of $1.5 million dollars. Oh, and the "goon who takes needless, moronic penalties" has a whopping 6 PIM as well.

There was an entire thread devoted to this yesterday. It appears to have been removed so you can probably guess what ensued. Tread carefully here.

Except when he scored the GWG aginst the Canucks and posted 7pts putting him 5th on the team in points.

http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=296381 Thanks Bert!?