Nightfall

I took a -8 for saying that in Game 1 and 2.

For the second time in history, we are in complete agreement.

I got lambasted for saying it once, but I am saying it again. First period, the Wings played great. Same with the second period. This period, they are coasting. If the Wings want to win consistently then they need to play for a full 60 minutes. They haven't done that since game 7 of the Phoenix series.

Even Ozzy could do no good the last two years. There is no pleasing these people. I agree then.

Not good = weak goal Or Not good = lousy defense and blown faceoff?

Why was Thornton allowed to just go around the net and get an open chance? Two defensemen just watched it happen. Deflection off Dats.

You watching a taped game or something? It looks pretty even to me.

You obviously don't know much about goaltending.

Wings came out with a great effort. Hard work? Check Intensity? High Determination? Check Hustle? Check Wings need to keep this up! Nice job Wings!

When I first saw this, I was a little shocked. Course, Don Cherry has always spoken his mind and I can see how he would think that reading emails from moronic fans would be a waste of time.

Take a look at the stats here. http://www.whowins.com/tables/up20.html Overall, the odds are always with the team up 2-0. That being said, its not slam dunk. Ask Vancouver back in 2002. You can also ask Washington who were up 3-1 in the series and lost 3 straight. The chance of that happening is even worse than coming back from a 0-2 deficit.

Coming from a refs standpoint, I can tell you that this kind of thing happens every now and again. There are some players that will look for a change and try to throw the puck up to the players bench to get someone to play it or for it to go off a skate. It happens in USA hockey and it happens in the NHL. That being said, the rule is correct. You don't see it called all the time if it goes off a skate of someone jumping on the ice while the other guy is coming off. At the same time though, if it hits a skate and redirects to one of their own players, then it is called almost every time. This is a risk you take if you happen to change while the other player is still on the ice. Some coaches like to stretch things a bit and send someone out while the player is about 3-4 strides away from coming back. Others don't cut it as close.

Very true. You are correct, I do have a problem with people throwing the team under the bus so to speak. Its not just with saying "season over" but with people saying "The Wings are s***" or "The Wings suck! I will never watch them again." by so called fans on this forum. In short, I put it this way. Say "seasons over"? You are right, this is just someone speaking negatively. Say "Red Wings are s***"? Typically something said by a bandwagon fan who easily jumps ship. At the same time though, the bandwagon effect really has not been felt here. For a vast majority of people who are Red Wings fans, we have been fans for years. Not decades though. It wasn't until the early 90s when the Wings started to become a contender. They have never experienced a dropoff. Give the team about 2 poor seasons and these fans that are throwing the team under the bus and saying "season over" when they are down 0-2 will be moving to other teams. The bandwagon effect happens all over the place, and it will happen here in due time. Just my .02 cents.

Nope. This is why you play a 7 game series though. In a best of 7 games, the best team moves on. Sure, the refs may call things your way one game, and the bounces go against you the next. In the end though, the best team moves on. I saw 4 bad calls last night. Three against the Wings. If I saw that in half the games I watched, I would feel as you do. Still, after a single game or a handful of games you are disenchanted with the league? Here is a news flash for you, there are a lot of other fans who feel the same way as you do. If there is anything that I have learned since I started reffing, its that the the team that wins NEVER complains about the officiating. The team that loses almost always complains about it. I believe the NHL has some of the best officials in all major sports. For as fast as the game is moving, they do an excellent job. If the Wings won last night and the Sharks were screwed with penalties, how many complaints would you see here? Very very little, if any. Yea, I know. I was being a smart ass.

Same with going down 3-1 in a series, but Montreal did it.

Thats incorrect. I throw out the "bandwagon fan" to those who bail on the team for no reason other than they are facing adversity. There are a lot of people here saying "season is over" and other crap like that. A true fan doesn't give up on their team. If you can't grasp that concept, then I don't know what to say. Prime example of a bandwagon fan Easy to throw the towel in. They will be rooting for the Sharks next week.

You might want to stop saying things like this while you can. The overall conspiracy theorists and people blaming the refs gives a lot of LGW nation a certain comfort zone. See, the Wings can come out with a crap effort then, and its easy to point the finger at something else. Bettman is a great target for criticism too, even though the Wings are not playing for a full 60 minutes without intense passion or hunger. Good to hear from true Wings fans out there such as yourself that have a grasp of the obvious and actually know hockey.

I believe the games outcome is decided by the players. So far, in this series, we have not seen the Wings team that came to play in game 7 of the Phoenix series. No desperation. No hunger. No passion. Where are these qualities? Did the refs take these qualities from them? I seriously think they took a flight back to detroit while the team went to San Jose. San Jose is getting more chances because they are the hungrier team. Until Detroit comes out and matches that effort for a full 60 minutes, they are not going to beat this team or any other team in the playoffs on a consistent basis. So you tell me, who is more high here? The guy bitching about the refs saying the games outcome was seriously affected by the refs or the guy saying that the Wings need a strong consistent effort for a full 60 minutes? Ah well, I am heading to bed. As much as I am disappointed with the 4 obvious crap calls I saw in the game (3 against the Wings and 1 against the Sharks), what tires me more are the Wings fans that are jumping off the bandwagon like lemmings off a cliff.

I did. You just need to be a little more clear I suppose.

Thank you captain obvious. Seriously, I have been saying that for a while now. Pavelski has been a demon out there for San Jose. LGW was cheering him on when he was playing for team USA, and even I said that he was going to be trouble if Detroit and San Jose met. Now, they are seeing just how good this guy is. What a clutch player.

Vancouver 2002.

So the refs destroyed Lidstrom's stick too?

I have to agree here. San Jose has had far more opportunities. The scoring chances in the game at one point were 14-12 San Jose according to Versus. I was going to wait before putting that stat out there until I saw the official stats. Still, San Jose had a +10 shot advantage so it seems plausible. Wings have to come out with a stronger effort. So far, the effort they showed in Game 7 in Phoenix has not been around. It must be sitting in Detroit or on the San Jose tarmac waiting for the late arrival fine to be paid because its not with the team right now.

If you want to lower your blood pressure while watching hockey, play hockey sometime. In fact, the more you play, the better fan of the game you will become. After you play for a while, take up refereeing hockey. Its not easy, but it will give you a whole new appreciation for reffing the game and what goes on in a refs mind. IMHO, a bulk majority of the people here bitching and complaining about the Wings losing or the refs screwing the Wings have not played hockey for a long period of time or reffed it. Bank on it.

Quoted for Truth In the 3rd period, I saw only 2 bulls*** calls. One was on Bert for the trip (or hold), and the other was on Heatley for the goalie interference call which was a joke. You have a 4-3 lead, and you tank it in the 3rd? Blame the refs! Thats a great excuse. If anything the LGW forum is already spinning this to be a referee excuse if the Sharks win the series. Just like when the Wings lost the final two games last playoffs to the Pens by identical scores of 2-1. Ignore the fact that the Wings only scored one goal per game. Ignore the fact that the pens played more desperate. Its the refs fault. What a bullcrap excuse. Here is an idea Red Wings.....play your game. So far, two games down, and I haven't seen the level of intensity that they brought to game 7 in Phoenix. Where is that game? Did they forget to play it? Oh, thats right, its the refs fault they aren't bringing that level of a game?