DirtyD

Jason Williams REALLY needs to watch the playoffs from the press box. There is really nothing that he brings to the table at this point.

Is it just me, or are the Wings a lot less bitchy about the countless goals which Homer (or, Brad May on one specific occasion) gets legitimate goals called back? I know Babs will occasionally make little jabs at the league or officiating, but the Wings' players tend to keep their mouths' shut, do they not? I've already seen quotes from Commadore, Mason, Nash, and their nobody coach all pissing and moaning. Hell, with the way that they're complaining, you'd think they actually had a shot at making the playoffs. On top of that, I really thought that the contact with Bertuzzi's foot looked incidental. He was being bodied up, so I thought that his movement was very limited. I have, however, only seen it once or twice. What was the concensus around here? Did we get lucky?

I'd join in.

I'm thinking that its late enough in the season to start keeping a watchful eye on our Western contenders. Obviously most of us - myself included - are going to be watching the Wings (hopefully) crush the Oil tonight, but there are a couple of other interesting games going on elsewhere. The Kings v Preds game will have direct implications on us, while a couple of potential first round opponents (Canucks and Coyotes) are also in action. And of course, there is still the very distant chance that the Hawks continue to falter, allowing us to make a move on the Central Division title; a loss against the Blues tonight would certainly help. Anyways, lots of hockey to be played tonight, ladies and gents. Enjoy.

I can see that, but I feel like the possibility of us drawing San Jose in the first round are getting slimmer and slimmer. The Avalanche are slumping and, especially if Nashville wins tonight, we'll find ourselves locked in at #6 and destined to play Vancouver. Personally, I think that would be our least favourable match up. But, to each his own.

Pretty much. I'm hoping for big wins from the Kings and Blues, and for Luongo to start against the 'Yotes only to get thrashed. We may have to end up playing the Canucks in the first round, and I don't think we should have too much trouble with them if Luongo has no confidence and plays the way he has been recently.

In the immortal words of Sammy, himself: "They can go f*ck themselves."

Hey all. Just cooked up a little GDT graphic (I need to get some practice in with Photoshop for a class I'm in, so I'm a work in progress) for the important games going on tonight. Very winnable games for L.A. and Nashville, but here's to hoping that these two teams on the outside looking in can lend the Wings a hand tonight. Edit: Included standings

I'm thinkin that, provided we do our part and pick up two points, I'd rather see the Kings win it in regulation. That way we move back to being one behind Nashville with the two games in hand. Then again, I'd hate to see the Kings start to heat up after a huge win against Nashville....... Ah hell, I don't care. Just don't go to overtime!

Preds v Panthers game has been painfully boring from what I have seen thus far. I expected nothing less.

I'd say that Florida has a chance to win on any given night solely because of Vokoun. The only hope that I have for Minny is the fact that L.A. hasn't been playing particularly well lately and that could very well continue. Of course, if the Wings can continue to rack up wins at the torrid pace at which they have been, we should be more than capable of stealing the 5-spot before season's end.

Good thinkin'.

I would also like to point out that Jimmy (in a limited sampling size) really comes across as a rhythm goaltender. At the beginning of the season, the kid looked real shaky because he had not yet been able to get himself into a solid rhythm at game speed. He didn't start playing often enough to get into this rhythm until Ozzy caught the flu in November (???). At that point, he was able to get into a solid rhythm and it was not long before he was cruising at a stellar level...... .....Then came the Olympics..... If you were like me, you wondered what would become of the Wings' goaltending situation post-Olympics; would Babs start trying to prime Ozzy, our playoff beast, for another deep post-season run? Or would he keep riding the horse that had kept the team in playoff contention during a ridiculous rash of injuries? Well, he went straight back to Howard, and for a couple of games, it really looked like Howard was coming back down to earth (see: getting pulled against Vancouver). However, the fact is that Howie had been off for about three weeks and simply needed an opportunity to get back into that rhythm in which he feels comfortable. Now, it has clearly worked and he is back playing at the outstanding level to which we have all grown accustomed. This is the reason, I think, why Babs just keeps going back to him, even in a back-to-back scenario. He's still a young kid, so he obviously doesn't tire too easily. I can only hope and assume that there has been steady communication between Jimmy and Babs to ensure that he's feeling good and that he's not going to burn himself out before the end. I honestly don't think that we're going to be seeing a lot of Osgood in the coming weeks even though the playoffs appear an inevitability because the goal, now, is to keep Jimmy in rhythm and cruising along into the playoffs. If he keeps playing the way he has, we could go a long way. And you'd better believe that Ozzy is playing a pivotal role in the background making sure that Jimmy is able to stay tough mentally (by all accounts this seems to be the case). In the end, I really like our goaltending situation and I'm crazy excited to see what this team is capable of doing once the second-season kicks off in a couple weeks.

I agree with this 100% I think what a lot of people are missing is that Babs stated, "as good as we've been" NOT "the best we've been". In my opinion, he is saying that Jimmy right now is playing as good as the Ozzie/Hasek duo of '08, albeit under drastically different circumstances. Those two guys put up ridiculous numbers backstopping a damn-near-unstoppable squad on both sides of the puck. Jimmy has had to play under significantly more duress and has still put up incredible numbers and, more importantly, has been leading us to wins. This was simply a subtle compliment to our rookie goaltender through the media that is getting way over blown. I don't think that it was in any way a shot to Ozzy, nor do I think Ozzy would construe it as such. I certainly hope (and have no reason to believe otherwise) that Ozzy would be able to admit that what Jimmy has done for us this season has been absolutely outstanding.

I just can't see any justification for removing Miller from the line up to make room for Abby, and I am a big Abby fan. For me, Miller's PK ability alone makes him valuable enough to keep around for Rd1 Gm1, and that is completely disregarding the fact that he is incredibly defensively responsible and is able to chip in with some offense. At this point in time, I see no reason to assume that the lines will be any different then they are right now. After all, they seem to be working.

This. This. And a thousand times This.

Gotta love Eavesy. Makes an embarrassment of himself and still gets up with a smile from ear to ear.

Wow. I had no idea. Far be it from me to complain about professional athletes having to cough over a little salary, but does this not seem ridiculous to anyone else? Putting aside the issue that they charge a flat rate rather than a graduated scale based on salary (which is ridiculous), the fact that individual states are able to impose extra taxes on visiting sports teams (except, of course, for football) seems pretty fishy to me. Hopefully this doesn't set a dangerous precedent among other US (or Canadian) states going forward, as I would hate to see what would happen to the league minimum salary if other states and provinces started to adapt this "privelege tax". After all, having to wave goodbye to approximately $7500 (for division rivals) annually is one thing, but that number could conceivably grow til it becomes a serious issue. Hopefully that doesn't happen. Anyways, good on Raffi - resident accountant - for crunching the numbers. I'm sure Miller, Eaves, Jimmy, and co. will be getting a free meal or two out of the deal.

Longest. Breakaway. Ever.

Not bad for a guy who can't shoot, skate, or stick handle

I'm in the same boat. Any help would be much appreciated.

Much appreciated. Thanks Vladifan.

I`ll take your word for it. I might just be thinking of the top lie I rolled all year in NHL 09. That line did some work. I remember going to a preseason game (Wings v Leafs) at the Joe prior to last season and Franzen-Dats-Homer were the top line. Even then the line showed some streaks of greatness. I remember them just ripping the Leafs apart that game and thinking that could be a legitimate scoring line for a long time. I`m confident that they`ll break this mini-scoring slump any day now.

I'm not sure that was the case. I could be wrong but I thought that Babs had Datsyuk and Hossa (with Homer) pretty much attached at the hip for most of last season. I digress. Although Franzen is capable of playing a "Homer" type game (not as effectively, mind you), but he is at his best when he is working the cycle and using his skill to make plays. He also gives Datsyuk a consistent, deadly sniper while Holmstrom continues to do his thing. I am hoping to see that line get on the scoreboard tonight. Although I agree that they have been playing well, I`d obviously like to see the top two lines firing on all cylinders. Of course, the win is all that really matters.

Certainly, Lids has been the heartbeat - ticking like clockwork - of this team for over a decade now. Moreover, despite his drop in production, very few could deny that he is still playing at an incredibly high level and is, no doubt, still a top-5 D-man in this league. IMO, what would be best for the Wings is to have Lids stick around for a couple more seasons (on one-year contracts) so that the team can slowly begin to acclimate to his reduced role. When you've been paced by possibly the best all around D-man of all time for a decade and a half, you've got to rip the band-aid off slowly. I think that it would be incredibly beneficial for our current second-tier D-men (Kronwall, Stuart, et al) to ease into a role of greater responsibility while Lids is still around to a) lend us his incredible skills and smarts and b) continue to mentor the young guys (*cough* Ericsson *cough*). Hell, maybe I'm just grasping at justification for the fact that I NEVER want Lidstrom to retire. Not Ever. Nonetheless, Lids doesn't owe this franchise anything and, in the end, he deserves to go out on whichever terms seem best to him. .....O ya. And to answer the question: C - Zetterberg A - Datsyuk A - Kronwall