BlueMonk

Filppula has to go. Too much money, bad contract. Hudler needs to stay; letting him go would be disastrous. In fact, I propose the relatively radical idea that Hudler QB the 2nd PP unit. He's a great playmaker and makes better decisions with the puck than Sammy. Hossa will cost too much money. If you take today's roster and add Zetterber's raise that takes effect next year, they're already f**ked. Franzen might take a discount to stay, but Hossa is impossible to fit under the cap unless he goes nuts like Kariya and Selanne did to sign with Colorado that one season. Which won't happen.

Average. He overplayed some shots, I thought.

Hehehe.

Nice goal by Sammy! Wings have awakened again.

This is exactly right. He's got no place on this team. He's a solid two way forward, but the Wings have a glut of those in the organization. If he brought some toughness or hitting, that would be one thing, but he doesn't. He's just a waste of a roster spot on this squad. There are plenty of teams that could use a guy like him. He should go play for one of them.

I have memories of MacTavish's annoying arrogance during the 2006 playoffs that make moments like these a lot of fun still.

Beauty!

Man, Edmonton is stinking the joint up. I like the way the Red Wings are playing but they're getting a ton of help from the Oilers. Yikes.

I balked at the Lilja extension and I was pleased to be proven wrong about that decision. But this seems absurd on the surface.

Love the 3-0 lead, but concerned about Edmonton gooning it up if the score doesn't tighten up.

Hahaha. You stole my thunder. I was about to say the same thing.

Exactly. Nobody likes being fired and I don't want to see it happen to anybody. But man, you gotta toughen up if you're going to compete at the highest level in professional athletics.

The league needs villains. Guys you want to see get the crap beaten out of them. Fighting and big hits in hockey are more fun when there are players you hate and enjoy seeing on the receiving end of those things. Bloodlust. Crimes on the ice met by violent retribution. It's why I love this game. If they ever take it out, I'll probably watch something else instead.

The league won't do anything. Of more concern is that his teammates just stood there and watched 3 guys rough up their star forward who just signed a 12 year contract without any response at all. It's a bad omen to see so little emotion from the team.

The complaints about Gretzky being pissed off are just homerism. When Babcock starts lipping the refs after one of the brutal, late game calls that have killed the Wings this season, I've never read any complaints that he was crying. The Coyotes are desperate for points and got hosed, just like the Wings have been. It's all the same thing. If anything, I'm glad to see Wayne lighting up the refs. We're all on the same side on the subject of bad officiating.

Good to see another team f**ked by the refs for a change.

Yeah! It's not even paranoid to say that there's no sense of security in the lead at this point. I honestly still have no idea how the game will end.

This PK is horrific.

Yeah, complete tragedy. Now we've got only Ram's Horn, which is a really poor substitute. There isn't a Denny's for many miles around here now.

He's embarrassing. That an elite organization like this would keep that clown on the payroll is hard to understand. When the Tigers went to the WS in 2006, Keating was in the lockerroom for the celebrations after they clinched the wild card and won their two playoff rounds. In each case, the Tigers players left all the media types alone when it came to spraying champagne. All except Keating, who they ganged up on and doused with delight. You may choose to believe that's because they affectionately love the good natured goofball. I prefer to believe it's because they can't stand him.

Man, I've missed Helm. He contributed so much to the playoff run last year. That they're dressing Kopecky while Helm is in GR is incomprehensible.

I don't know about you guys, but I find goals that go in off the pipe more satisfying. There's something emphatic about hearing that ring as the puck goes in.

Like last game, goals on both sides that should not have gone in.

Nice!