BlueMonk

I'd love to get back the 20 seconds of my life I spent reading this post.

The Wings have fared poorly against a bunch of West teams, though, so I don't think it's a crazy statement at all. I mean, what team would you rather face? I don't think Nashville presents any particular problems for Detroit.

Tremendous comeback effort. They shouldn't have ever been down 3 goals but couldn't get any calls or breaks. But the Wings really persevered and got the 2 points. Amazing physical effort, finally refusing to take any s*** from the Predators. This is all most of us who like physical hockey and fighting have been asking for. Not a goon-fest, just the guys answering the rough stuff from the other team. Notice how they stopped getting pushed around by Nashville after they started sticking up for themselves? The hits from Abby and Bert's two scraps were huge. It sets a tone and then the teams can settle into playing hockey. But until that bell is answered, the cheap shots will continue to come and the team will get pushed around. Today, Detroit showed the kind of jam needed to go deep into the playoffs. It's about time. Oh, and Jimmy Howard was a freakin' wall after that last Nashville goal.

I'm pleased with the Wings' take-no-s*** attitude on the ice today. Come on and tie it up, boys.

In 2006, I watched the NBA become a joke as the Miami Heat were handed the title over Dallas by the officials. I haven't taken the outcome of an NBA game seriously since, and that was long before the Tim Donaghy scandal broke. As I've said before, I'm beginning to feel the same way about the NHL. The league clearly mindf***s officiating to death. They seem to overreact to criticism and legislate "corrective" action that swings the pendulum too far the other way. Holmstrom plays on the edge in front of the goalie? Send a video to the officials and tell them to watch him extra-closely. Stats on prominent internet hockey forums show Detroit gets an edge in penalties for/against at home? Start "evening things out" at the Joe, even if the disparity is a reflection of Detroit outplaying its opponents and forcing opponents to take more penalties.

The elbow they just showed against Homer looked pretty legit so that call may not have been as bad as it first looked. Homer's delay-of-game was awful, though. That's a rookie mistake.

An effort like this isn't just disrespectful to Joey and McCollum, it's a slap in the face of the fans, who continue to sell out the arena despite watching horses*** like this. I know regular season games aren't what the season will be judged by, but the team owes it to its fanbase to at least work hard enough not to be embarrassed in their own rink. People are spending their hard-earned money to see lazy millionaires phone it in. Nice.

It was officiating like this that caused me to stop taking results of NBA games seriously. I'd rather not have to feel that way about the NHL. I'd really rather not.

I'm speechless. In all seriousness, there needs to be disciplinary action taken against these officials by the league. For chrissakes, they're trying to market the game and get a new TV contract, and this is how they showcase the game on national TV?

Hudler "just misses" way too much.

My feelings exactly. It really does look like they're reaction times are too slow for the NHL.

Yes, but I see this in every major sport. It's even worse in the NBA.

I don't get the big problem officials have with Holmstrom. The guy pays a brutal price to set up shop where he does. He takes a ton of abuse and has to work as hard as anyone to score goals. In a league that's so desperate to come up with new rules to increase offense, they crack down on one of the guys who gets his the hard way. What a f**ked up garage league this is.

Is this crew part of some enrichment program to get the sight-impaired jobs as NHL officials? This is bad even by NHL standards.

Kronwall patrols the blueline like a drunken cab driver. The Wings have plenty of puck-moving talented D-men but this is the least defensively responsible bunch in recent memory.

Friggin' Draper AGAIN with a defensive turnover with all the time in the world to not make a stupid play like that. RETIREMENT.

This game was like the 8th year anniversary of the infamous Don Van(couver) Massenhoven game at the Joe in 2003, right? I've watched Van Mass closely since then but I haven't seen him pull another job like that since until tonight. Maybe it's something about the Canucks that brings it out in him.

Draper, Jesus, what kind of calm, veteran presence was that? Jesus Christ.

Caught me by surprise, too. Good for Kenny.

Eddie is a character. He's also a fine PBP guy. The fact that some people on this board think he's anti-Detroit is... well, not flattering to our board. Let's just leave it at that.

Not to me. Shootout losses aren't real losses, they're silly. The main thing is, Detroit earned a point after being down 4-0 and looking dreadful.

The Pens look really tired. The back-to-backs caught up with them. Time to finish them off now.

Man, you gotta give credit to Johnson. He's not choking, he's playing great.

Incredibly stupid penalty.

Beauty goal! Two goals against the league's top PK, nice. The power of switching goalies. It's amazing how often it fires up the team.