Miss Wing Queen

Well, I wouldn't put it past Gary to lockout this season and the WC and next year pick two new teams for the WC just to screw us over.

I've been thinking a lot about the anniversary too, and hope some healing has come to the families of the team. I will also be proudly wearing my "Love for Lokomotiv" bracelet tomorrow in remembrance. I hope that if a lockout forces any of our guys or any other players to the KHL that they remain safe in their travels.

I think the prospect camp was cancelled mostly because of the other teams participating this year. It was not all Holland's decision, but the collective vote of 5 or six teams. From a planning perspective, many are traveling long distance by plane and have to consider the cost of travel, hotels, etc and booking all that, whereas Detroit just has to drive up north. It's a bummer, but it is understandable.

There is no way in hell I blowing any goddamn whistle for this little rat. WTF, Kenny!!

A friend and I are sharing season tickets, and he was able to buy our tickets on Monday. Actually, prices aren't that bad. For me, it's double the amount I would spend for really good tickets at the Joe, and that's counting both the Winter Classic and GLI ticket. Our seats are pretty good too, I think, considering I've never been to the Big House before.

What about Doan? He hits anything that moves. I think both Z and Kronner are about 50-75% the same for locker room leadership styles and personalities, at least from hearing the other guys talk and hearing the post-game interviews. The other 25% that separates them doesn't put one above the other in my eyes, just different ways of showing how they take responsibility and address adversity. I'd almost like to see a co-captaincy. It seems that Z is the heir-apparent, but to me, Kronner is the dark horse. I've thought that since before he received his "A" this year, and his growth this year has solidified that for me.

I think Nick was this team and this organization's security blanket. We were Linus, and as long as he was around, we felt safe and secure. To save myself from a complete meltdown, I'm focusing on the silver lining in that the possible good aspect out of this is that it will allow further growth of this team and allow a new generation of leaders to emerge. While I wish that game had been much different for his sake, I was there too, and that is something I will be very thankful for. Last night I was also thinking about the number of times I've been privileged to meet Nick in person. Very fittingly, it's seven. I am so humbled to have been a fan of this team and gotten to watch him for the last twenty years, to grow up with and in this era of Yzerman, Lidstrom, Holmstrom, the Grind Line, the Russian Five, and more. Today, I am grieving over a loss that is so deep because this man has touched all of the fans' lives, impacted the Wings' organization and team, the NHL, and the sport of hockey in such a profound way that it feels as if a hockey god has truly walked amongst us mere mortals. And yet he remains as unselfish as ever, thinking foremost about the high standards he sets for himself and his dedication to the Wings and humbly deciding now is the right time. Thank you, Nick, for an incredible career. Life will go on, but I am very thankful to have shared a bit of your remarkable journey, and so grateful for what you have taught me and brought into my life as a Red Wings fan! Varmaste lyckönskningar, my Captain!

A friend of a friend ran into Kronwall at Patridge Creek Mall this weekend, and I was surprised to see him back on this side of the pond. Deep inside I hoped it was not related to this, but sadly it seems it may have been. This is heartbreaking to hear, but for a man that is thisclose to hockey sainthood and well deserving of the title "The Perfect Human Being," all my respect for him says he has earned the right to decide when it's time to bow humbly and with dignity out of the spotlight. Thank you for all of my great memories, Nick, from watching you play to seeing your handsome blue eyes in person. You are my captain, and I'll be there the day they raise your number! Go Wings and Go #5!

That may come Sunday.

Okay, Kronner really needs to lay Malkin out. NOW.

Not good. Franzen helped off the ice by Z after getting cross-checked in the face. Hopefully, he'll return like normal with a few more stitches and lots of gauze shoved in places to stop the bleeding.

How did Malkin not get a penalty out of that? And now we're tied! s***. Got to stay out of the box, Sweden, even though the Russians are starting to look like the Sharks.

For a moment there the Russians were taking the "mule" thing literally, and treating 93 like a pinata. Nice goal by Zata!

Pat, try this link. When games are scheduled the day of, they are usually listed on the site. I've been able to watch some of the Swedish games using it.

Kronner's goal was pretty sweet, especially from that angle along the goal line. Way to go Sweden, 4-1! And US!

Here is a link for the Sweden game. Feed is a little fuzzy, but at least you can see the game! It's 1st intermission now.

Finland is 7 hours ahead of us in Detroit and Sweden is 6 hours ahead of us. So 19:00 Finnish time is 12 noon here.

Nik is wearing #7 and his brother Steffan is wearing #4. They are playing on the same line together. Z and Franzen are together too. I missed the 1st and 2nd period too so didn't know Big E had left. I wondered why I wasn't seeing #52. Also, only seeing the 3rd, did it seem like Franzen was his lack-luster self as usual?

Found a stream that works for me here for the Sweden game. Announcers are Norwegian though and kinda fuzzy video, but I'll take it over nothing!

Definitely interested in the Swedish game, if you have a link. Thank you!

Just found this link on the IIHF site for free streams for all the games, some live and some archived on a special YouTube channel. EDIT: Never mind . . . US is one of the blocked countries. The networks over here are only going to show the US and Canadian games so why not let us see the rest?

:thumbup::thumbup: Definitely the best. Love the "D" on the shoulders and the tie at the neck! What about the stripes on the socks?

Happy Birthday to the Perfect Human! You know you want to come back for another ring so you have one for each finger of your right hand!

TSN is going to have exclusive coverage. Anyone know if streams are available for this. Was looking forward to seeing some of the guys still playing, plus getting to see the Kronwall brothers play together.

Although quite a few things bothered me about this early of an exit, this is what bothered me the most. First I will say that as a dedicated fan, I understand how lucky I am to have a team that has made the playoffs for the last 21 years and especially those since the lockout. However, at what point does quantity take the place of quality? To me (as I stated in another post), this year felt like the team just wanted to add another consecutive year in the playoffs to the tally and after that, nobody cared. There are excuses that can be made--injuries or half-healed injuries, lack of depth, the refs, etc--but every team has to deal with that in the playoffs. What disturbed me was that this team showed absolutely no pride in the logo they wore on their chests. They played with no heart, no drive. To me it seemed like the team had used any that they had during the 23 game streak. I can live with the Wings being eliminated in the playoffs but why even get there if you play like you are in a game in early October? I was really upset by the mentality of the team as well. --Babcock saying after game 4 that Mickey Redmond's comments were way off, that the team was getting really good shots on Rinne, and that he wouldn't be changing a thing (one of his worst faults). --The team showing no hustle on the ice. Letting pucks just sit in front of them, allowing the Predators to come to them. --Most of the team displaying an uncharacteristic amount of laziness. Franzen big time--I've never seen him coast so much in games. He needs to spend some time on the third line. Hudler--Yes, he got two goals (which his part was just finishing the shots), but he could not catch any passes and was a severe disadvantage to his line and the endless opportunities they got early in the series. Filppula--Where did the career-high forward disappear to after 4/11? Even Datsyuk--where was the faceoff king, the magician that could hang on to the puck with five guys on him? I could say more about all the guys on the team too. --A team of one, maybe three. Zetterberg was the only one who looked like an NHL player out there. Cleary's 50% sure looked 100 times better than many of his teammates supposed 100%. And Jimmy was very good considering the team in front of him. I can only have issue with him for Game 4 goal 2. I liked that at some point the lack of heart and pride was acknowledged: "Right now, your thoughts aren't really there," defenseman Niklas Kronwall said. "Right now it's just an empty feeling. Very disappointed, not only myself but the way our team started the game. We have to be a lot better than that, show a lot more pride than that.'' Let's hope this offseason brings a retooling in personnel but also in the pride and respect one should possess as a Red Wing.