betterREDthandead

I gotta say, Rod Allen might sound like a real bumpkin, but that man knows baseball better than 98% of commentators. He's got a real knack for calling things before they happen. And he's always got the little details for you, like "if the runner [who's stealing second] looks in at the plate as he's running, that's how you can tell the hit and run was on." He doesn't have the great voice that Kell and Kaline had, but damn if he ain't one of the smartest baseball men going.

That can't be true. Maybe for some positions, but if that were true like you say it is, 90% of players would shoot left-handed.

Welllll........I dunno if I'd go that far But I don't begrudge him his emotions. Tough series to lose. Better them than us, though.

Enjoy more during the game, or after it? To be perfectly fair, ask me again after the playoffs are over. Whether or not we win the Cup has an effect on my answer.

They're right here: http://www.letsgowings.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=57870

I hate Ohio. It's nothing but one big soybean field from end to end. It sucks.

I think this is the least important thing ever.

Again: You completely missed Datsyuk's penalty killing last night. You completely missed the defense he's been playing. You think maybe part of the reason people have been excusing him for not scoring is because he's doing pretty much everything else right? "Huge disappointment"....load of s*** is what I call that.

He still had those other guys backing him up though. I don't think he can do it by himself. I don't think there's anyone in the league where you can tell them that Pavel Datsyuk is their responsibility alone and have that work out real well.

Then why are you complaining that a bunch of Blackhawks fans won't give us any credit? Are you expecting them to?

If Hank had been the one making that pass over the net, I'd be more willing to give him credit for it.

Datsyuk personally killed 30 seconds worth of a 5-on-3 last night. And he made the play on the Sammy goal. He had twice as many assists as goals this year so why shouldn't he be considered valuable if he's picking up assists? Everything will be fine. The Ducks keyed in on Datsyuk and Zetterberg, hard. And they have the personnel to do it. Chicago has no Marchant, no Niederwhiner, no Pronger, none of that. Look up and down their roster, does anyone scare you defensively? Keith, maybe. Whether we like the Ducks or not, they had the horses to stop our best players but not the depth to deal with ours. Chicago doesn't have the top-notch defensive talent you need to stop our top three consistently over seven games.

Question, why is it such a bad thing to have a jersey of a player who's no longer on the team or who changed numbers? Would you stop wearing a Shanny jersey just cause he's on a different team? If you want a Helm jersey, what's wrong with #43? So what if he changes? Way I see it, it shows you were a Helm fan before he was a fixture on the team. Ahead of the curve. I'd wear a Holmstrom #15 jersey any day.

As opposed to tightening to us? Well, the Hawks have already knocked off a team on their home ice and exceeded seed expectations, not to mention exceeded expectations by being seeded as high as they are. It's their first playoff run in ages. Why shouldn't they feel like the season is a success even if they "loose"?

Not very awesome at all, actually. The jerseys should only ever have been a one-time thing. The Wings and Blackhawks have two of the very best uniforms ever to show up on an NHL rink, why not look the part?

I actually think just the opposite. I'm a little disappointed that, in the event we get past Chicago, we'll play someone we've already beaten in the Finals (during what I consider the "current" dynasty - '90s-'00s.) I sort of have this gotta-catch-em-all mentality about the Eastern Conference teams, which is why I wanted Boston instead.

Here's another way of looking at it: If the puck is behind Hiller's pad and Cleary had to push Hiller's pad backwards in order to put the puck in the net, then Hiller isn't playing the puck at all, he's just interfering with Cleary and should be whistled for a 2-minute interference minor.

Excellent take, but I'm biased because it's more or less exactly what I think. Take St. Louis. However much hate there is for the Wings in Chicago, it's double that in St. Louis, easy. Why? Because every time the Blues are any good - that is, good enough to have legitimate Cup aspirations - we've squashed them. This to me is fun. All these teams think we're their biggest rivals because we keep beating them and because they want to beat us more than any other team in the league. Nuttin' wrong wit' dat. Though, I dunno how the OP manages a soft spot for all Chicago teams. The Bulls and Hawk Harrelson calling games for the White Sox is enough to put them two teams down in my book. (Though I do kinda like da Bears and the Cubs.) Still, the Wings and Blackhawks really should have been a lively rivalry through the years and it never really worked out cause the teams were never good at the same time. (Mostly that's Chicago's fault.) That's why I'm really happy to see this series.

Be glad you're not a Bruins fan right now. Or a Canes fan. I sure am.

The Blackhawks have solid goaltending and they're that scary sort of team that's too young to know what the hell's going on and what they're doing and why all the fuss. But they also have no defense. I mean, their defense is on par with Columbus for scary-looking. I think Zetterberg and Datsyuk will once again be unleashed - the Blackhawks have nothing on the Ducks when it comes to defense. This pleases me and I think the Wings win before it has to come back to the Joe for a seventh game.

Detroit: Osgood/Franzen Chicago: Kane Pittsburgh: Crosby Boston: Thomas Carolina: Staal

The sort of guy it's easy to hate on the ice. Yaps a LOT. Damn if I wouldn't want him on the Wings in a quick minute though. Course, had we lost, this thread would be all f*** THAT GUY f*** HIM IN THE POOPER.

No way, Molson is s***. Between the two mass-produced Canadian beers, Labatt Blue all the way.

Yeah, the Ducks have that "it" that makes them extremely extremely extremely tough to play against in the playoffs. They know how to play playoff hockey. They don't make mistakes and play tough, tough defense. They might be the toughest challenge in all the NHL. (Hope I'm right.)