Octopus's Garden

I don't have issue with the Penguins playing in this game again necessarily ... if the NHL wanted Detroit to play at Michigan Stadium or Ford Field on Jan. 1 in the next couple years, we'd all be thrilled. I DO have a problem with the NHL going out of its way, yet again, to ram the Caps and Pens down everyone's throat. The league's actually got some momentum right now and is getting good TV ratings. This would be a perfect time to roll out two teams with good history and talent that people don't see a lot of: Kings at Colorado? Just one possibility that I think would've been fun.

Thanks, troll.

Sorry ... I just never root for a rival team to win anything, period. I don't care what sport it is. I will never root for the Blackhawks, Twins, White Sox, Indians, Bulls, Cavs, Bears, Packers, Vikings or Ohio State to win anything.

I completely agree. I hope Philadelphia mops the floor with them, I could care less about Pronger winning it compared to the Hawks winning it.

Much like Ovechkin ... I feel it's only a matter of time before Crosby gets his. And they'll both deserve it.

Did the preseason start yet? Stupid offseason. But in all seriousness ... if Lidstrom comes back and says it's his last year, I can't imagine any way that doesn't motivate the team throughout the season.

Let the unending stream of Penguins power plays begin!

Lots of good options so far ... That win at Vancouver -- wasn't that the game they also scored twice in five seconds? I think either game 82 at Chicago or the home win against the Pens gets my vote. I might lean to the latter since I was at that one.

Barely watched any of this game ... not feeling in a very "Hockey" place right now. Happy to see Chicago lose though. I agree with the post above ... no way I could ever cheer for the Hawks -- even if it was a Chicago-Pittsburgh final, I would have a hard time.

You know what's awesome? That the Sharks have such a pathetic history that instead of spending this time celebrating their team's win or talking with Sharks fans about the next round, their fans have to find a Red Wings forum to hang out in.

YES! That pretty much summed it up for me.

You might be alone on that one.

Anyone but Pittsburgh but I'm going to have a hard time watching the rest of the way.

If I had to choose, I'd rather have Maltby in the lineup next year, because at least he's an annoying personality for the opposition and isn't afraid to mix it up. Drapes just doesn't have anything left -- he gets thrown out of every faceoff, he can't score, he's lost a decent amount of his speed, etc.

OK, my last vent for the night ... and last ref bitching until next season. ... On the Murray no-call, if it's not roughing or elbowing or douchebaggery ... isn't it at least interference? Franzen had passed the puck and was driving the net, was wiped out and it started a 3-on-2 the other way. I mean ... WTF?

I mean ... what do you want from this team? To say that they didn't play with enough heart is absurd. They lost FOUR games by ONE goal each against the top-seeded team in the West, three of them away from home, and in all of those losses had more penalties called against them -- the majority of which came at EXTREMELY crucial parts of the game. Did the refs decide this series? No. But it's not like SJ steamrolled Detroit. This was about as even as a 4-1 series can get and the Wings had plenty of chances to swing it the other way.

I'm having trouble separating the two. In my mind, SJ played well enough to be in position to win four of five games ... and in at least three of those, had a substantial amount of help. What if they make that call on Murray? What if there's not a ridiculous 5-on-3 for the Sharks in game 1? I mean, the list goes on and on. When the refs have the ability to play as big of a role as they do in the NHL, it's worthless to try and remove them from the equation. The Sharks had the benefit of the officiating for almost the entire series, and when it did lean their way, it did so at EXTREMELY important moments.

I don't even know what to say. Once again, this game was there for the taking, and once again an incompetent combo of officiating and stupid plays killed the Wings. Did they even have a legitimately good scoring chance in the last two periods? I don't remember many. Certainly nothing in front of the net off rebounds -- maybe that one play where Cleary got tackled going for a rebound, but that's it. Such a disappointing end to the season. Hopefully Kenny and the brass take some looks at this roster. Is it good enough to win if 100% healthy? I don't know ... it didn't look like it. San Jose, Chicago, Phoenix/Winnipeg, Nashville, etc. aren't going anywhere. Dammit.

Series was lost in the 3rd period of game 2.

I agree with this wholeheartedly. How could this league ever be mainstream? The refs decide the majority of games at this point. 1-1 tie in a potential series-deciding game and SJ ends up with a penalty shot, then a crucial offensive zone faceoff after a blatant penalty that leads to a goal. Thanks for the penalty with 40 seconds left, ****** f***s.

Four one-goal losses. Just sickening. And all four with critical moments determined by the refs. I mean ... San Jose is a real good team, but it's hard to feel sportsmanlike about this.

It's pretty fitting that this series is going to be clinched on a bulls*** piece of officiating. I would expect nothing else.

Nice tackle on Bertuzzi. I hate the NHL.

f***. This. Officiating.

Kill this power play and then start skating. WAY too little pressure on Nabokov in that period. No traffic at all.