Doc Holliday

Detroit allowed three shots on net in the first. Took the play to Minnesota and had two breakaways (Helm, Bertuzzi) that only Bert was able to capitalize on. Second period had the Wings keep up their good play but Minnesotta got a few more chances. Their goal came from a weird deflection that went high into the air, bounced off the Minnesota player and in the net. No chance for Howie. Third period had the Wings start off very strong by scoring two goals (Eaves, Miller). Unofortunately a rebound by Howard was slid in by the Wild and it turned into a one goal game. Then a point blank fivehole shot got past Howard and it was tied with only a few minutes left. Rest of the game was pretty uneventful until the shootout.

This is why I'm glad the Wings have Mike Babcock. Torts is effective and I like that he isn't afraid to speak his mind, but he is such a tool sometimes. Get over your obsession with hating Brooksy and just answer the ******* question. It was a legitimate one, too.

Gaborik can handle himself. He dropped them with Carcillo and Cillo did what any fighter would do: fight and give no quarter. Nothing wrong with that. I prefer this over the staged fighting.

Curses or not, you make your own breaks. Detroit just hasn't and that is irritating me.

Eva, Howard was not at fault for the overtime tonight, just like Osgood was not at fault for the loss to Washington last game. The team should have buried the chances they had in the first (three of them I can think of off the top of my head), and should have really been better at bearing down in the last ten minutes of the third. This team still doesn't know how to finish with the players they have and it has nothing to do with goaltending.

And look how many times they have been shorthanded! They are *gasp* tied at 12th in the league! IT'S A CONSPIRACY I TELLS YA!!

Flourish? NASCAR is able to survive because of the southern states that worship the sport. UFC is essentially a fringe sport which in my opinion doesn't overtake hockey in popularity. People tune in every so often because they are curious from the fight. Basketball has no violence yet is ranked 3rd. Football does not have speed (multiple stops in play) yet is ranked 1st. Baseball has neither violence or speed and is ranked 2nd. It is not going to take over those three sports no matter what market you put in. The rules are complicated, people cannot relate to the sport like they can baseball, basketball, and football, and there isn't enough tradition in the majority of the US for there to have a large increase in growth.

No he tried to avoid Price with the jump. At no point did he try to make contact with Price.

Yeah, it is.

Cam Ward is better than Howard.

I agree that a team cannot be above contempt, but at the same time as a fan it is the most entertaining when the team succeeds in some aspect. Winning is simply the coup de grace of successes. And I feel the same way. Personally though I don't feel any better after a loss if players are starting s*** with the opposing team when they are being destroyed. I would prefer them to bring in huge hits and just be mad in general. Not try to "scare" the team or act like physical domination means you are better than the team. If you lose the game you aren't the better team. Well it depends on what you mean by "any cost". Dive? No. Use multiple cheap shots to maim the opposition? No. Use gritty play and hard forechecking to create opportunities? Yes. Clog up the neutral zone to create offense off the transition? Yes. Use skill guys and implement a puck possession game? Yes. I like to see my team win and bring a quality product to the ice. This year it has been more quality in the grit department but less in the success department, and that displeases me. I would really have liked to see this team healthy during the regular season because I think the Wings had to force an adaptation in their game due to injury (swap skill with grit which is why Leino is useless to the team right now) and have been having trouble making that transition. And even if they took to a more gritty team in training camp there would have been a much better product on the ice now. Next year will bring more grit so we will probably see a 50-50 combination of puck possession and forechecking to force turnovers instead of virtually 100% PP. When is the last time Holmstrom skated end to end without stumbling, anyways?

Obligatory "America! f*** YEAH!" post.

Isn't Datsyuk going to be on the second line, though?

Correlation=/= causation. Bulletproof vests work because of the technology involved. There are tests done to make sure they work. Flame retarded suits work, because once again the technology allows them to work. They test them as well. There is no such thing as an enforcer test because of the psychology involved and numerous grey areas. It is like saying we should use Freud's views of psychology when treating all patients who need psychological help because it may work sometimes. They are not related. And your argument to the authority is kinda weak when the same authority contradicted himself a year ago. (look out I'm using debate-fu on you!) Which is right? Last year or this year?

Eh. The team doesn't participate in much cowardly stuff (though Sammy was one of the only guys who did that with such intensity), but I don't see a team that is inherently bigger. I think the fact there are so many role playing guys in higher roles (Eaves, Abdelkader, Miller, etc) that you see them much more often and you see more gritty plays than normal. Personally I think this is the biggest discrepancy between this year and the years past. I also don't consider Holmstrom a big body by any means. Also if you are up 45-0 on a team, I'm sorry but nobody is going to hurt my feelings with their bullying. Go ahead. Show me how pissed off you are. You are getting your taint handed to you so you might as well show me that you aren't completely worthless as a player, right? And they have no reason to laugh considering their team is getting spanked on the scoreboard. Suck it, *******.

That isn't the point he is trying to make. It has to do with Babcock's poor judgment regarding the goaltending.

Yes, because he would love to miss the playoffs. He doesn't strive on his playoff performance either. And I'm sure that Osgood was at fault for the offense being unable to finish. Can we have a post that deals with ALL the problems instead of using the typical scapegoat?

3-0 San Jose.

Really? Tonight he was playing like crap? For f***s sake, this game was similar to Howard's against Chicago when it cames to the goals he let in.

No, Keith will win it.

Babcock is a hardass. He can take a little jabbing in the media.

Try to use proper grammar if you want people to take you seriously.

The defense was great for chunks at a time, then they decided to forget what position they played in little segments in between and it really cost em.