Broken 16

The Sharks had a solid game plan. Exploit the worst refs in professional sports. It worked like a charm. Kudos to them.

So I have a soft spot for Brad May. Sue me.

Meh... I like Brad May. But I liked him a lot more in his prime. Aside from teaching Abby how to throw a few punches, he was never really given an opportunity to contribute. I am a little mad that he never saw the ice in the playoffs. I'm convinced he had another clutch goal or two left to give. Again... no real opinion though because he was never really given a full opportunity, imo. That kinda goes with the 'Babcock stubborness' though.

The fact that they are perennial chokers means that pressure sets in much earlier for them. They know that if they lose tonight, in front of their fans, they are in BIG TIME trouble. They may not have the full helping of pressure yet, but they have A LOT more on them than the Wings do.

We'll see how tightly the Sharks are gripping the stick. Pressure is firmly on them in a big way. All we need to do is sit back and enjoy. Hey... it's kinda nice to not have any expectations for once.

Not really. Not the end of the world if we lose. It was an amazing season to witness either way. The Wings have overcome things this season that would have destroyed most other teams. Everything after making the playoffs is pure gravy.

In retrospect... I would have preferred Kopecky over Leino. Cap hit aside, of course.

The point is, he was awful here. He didn't fit in at all. Just because he is doing well somewhere else (good for him btw) doesn't mean that anyone wishes he was back. Anyone that has watched him play for the Wings with any regularity in past knows that he doesn't fit on the Wings. So... in response to the original point of the thread. NO, I don't miss him in a Wings uniform or wish he was back. Do you? Honestly?

So what are we supposed to do in this thread? Agree with the OP and pine for a player that was awful for us, didn't fit under the cap and was generally disliked by almost every Wings fan? The only good thing Kopecky ever did for us was help lure Hossa in for a year. I'd rather entertain a discussion about having Sammy back.

Lol... I love the little windows Eva shows us from a players career when he wants to prove how he would be the most dominant player. Did you realize that if you snapshot Franzen's game from last night that he is on pace to average 6 points a night for the remainder of the playoffs?

Enjoy our scraps.

I haven't seen anyone directly blame Hossa for the loss (unless I missed it). The point that the 'haters', if you will, are trying to make is that he wasn't really a factor in the goal scoring department... which, in the end, wins games. When measuring performance against salary... it was a huge loss for the Wings. Yes, he played a good two-way game, but he didn't score goals. There are lots of two way players that don't score much in the NHL. They are called grinders. Grinders generally run in the price range from League Minimum to 2'ish million a year. Hossa played like a grinder in the playoffs last season, which is fine... just not for 7+. Still a great player. I wouldn't want him over Franzen.

It doesn't matter how he is doing on another team. He sucked when he was here. Therefore, he is gone.

This X2

The only beef I have with Babcock is the apparent lack of urgency his team is showing. Ultimately, it is his responsibility to fire up the players. I'm beginning to wonder (slightly) if the players are becoming a little less receptive. On the other hand, it would be hard to coach through the clusterf*** that is known as NHL officiating.

How is Sidney Crosby not winning this poll? Everyone knows that he is responsible for everything bad that has ever happened.

I like Lidstrom and all... but really? He deserves more than his warehouse full of trophys and his warehouse full of money? I have to disagree. No offense Nick.

That was this year.

What's Larry Murphy on? I want some.

Bleh...

So what's with the reputation points? Can you earn rewards like dinner for two at Sizzler? If not... who gives a s***?

Lidstrom is already on his way to Sweden.

Nabakov negated that icing because he is used to being on the powerplay so much.

Glad to see Lilja feels the same way we do. Awesome post.

The only reason we are losing this series is faceoffs. That's it.