Nightfall

Players I need to apologize to for being critical of them.... Chris Osgood - I didn't have a lot of faith in you at the beginning of the season. However, you have exceeded my expectations. I apologize for my attitude and I have renewed faith in you. Samuellson - You were in my doghouse for a while for your play. In game 1, you renewed my confidence in you. It was good to see you come out and have a VERY strong series. I apologize.

Sundin, but he may be too expensive. If he signed for 4m-5m for 2 years for a chance to win the cup, it would be a good match.

I will believe it when he signs for that much. I remember Rafalski asking for at least 6.5-7 million from the Devils. He comes to Detroit and takes a discount. Things change.

1997 - Without a doubt was the #1 moment for me. I really didn't pay attention to hockey until 1995 when the Devils swept them. Going through that heartbreak and then the Colorado heartbreak was tough. In 1997, it was their first cup win in 54 years. This has to be number one. 2002 - Seeing this team come together that was probably one of the best and highest paid in history was a fun run. 2008 - An amazing run with great stories at the end such as Drake winning his first cup. Gotta love it when the vets come back and win like this. 1998 - Believe was a great slogan, and while this ranks #4 for me, it was a great championship as well. I am sure we all agree they were all great championships.

There haven't been repeat champs since the Wings did it in 1997 and 1998. The stanley cup champions and the team that lost have struggled the next season every year after that for a reason. The season is a long one, and when it is all over in June, its very hard to get back on the horse and do it all over again. The offseason is an eternity for fans, but for the players, its short. Especially for the players who made it to the last series. By far, what we need is to retain our hunger from this season. The core is already in place for a run next season. The key will be how hungry will we be? Without that, it won't matter if we have a roster of all stars, we won't be going very far without the desire to repeat.

Uh, a report from a newspaper says he wants that much. Sundin or his agent didn't say that. Hrm, I wonder how much weight I am giving to the report in the Toronto Sun.

I thought they were booing Bettman.

Ovechkin scoring that game winning goal in game 1 and watching the home crowd go insane after he scored. It was amazing to watch on TV. Watching the game 7s. The best one by far was the Calgary/San Jose series, but the Habs/Bruins was exciting as well. I have to agree that game 5 of the Det/Pens series was awesome. Even though we didn't win, it was an insane game and I watched all of it. Hudler's backhand goal in Game 4 was crazy! I didn't think he could elevate the puck on that backhand, but he did. Wow! What a goal. Overall though, I enjoyed a lot of hockey series like I have in the previous few years. Now, with the Wings closing the book on another great season, I am happy but sad at the same time. I will miss hockey this summer. Training camps open in September, and thats 3 months away. By the time the puck drops for the season it will be close to 4 months. I may be a Wings fan, but I am a hockey fan as well.

Can someone post a link of the "roster tshirt" that I am hearing about? I would like to see it, but I haven't found it anywhere.

Yea, I should also apologize to Lilja too...I was critical of him and he did what any 3rd line dman should do. Make solid plays and do what he can with making as few mistakes as possible.

I believe that FSD will be televising the parade for those of us who can't make it. I am tempted to go because its my birthday, but man, its 2.5 hour drive away for me to go since I live in GR.

Fixed it for you. Seriously, it was a well reffed series. A few mistakes here and there. The interference call by Datsyuk in game 5. Malby sold a hell of a call in game 6 on that interference call on Malone I believe. Still, a vast majority of the calls were legit. My only complaint was that there were a lot of calls that were ignored in that OT game and in a few games in this series. The OT game I remember the most because I distinctly counted at least 6 in the second OT on both teams. It looked like the refs reverted back to the prelockout style of reffing. Otherwise, I am satisfied. The refs didn't factor into who won the series which is what needs to happen. The best team won and thats key. If the refs were the trump card and favored a team to win, it wouldn't be fun to watch.

This board is full of mature people with mature responses.

Yea, its a big conspiracy theory. The NHL, Bettman, and the refs were all against the wings this year.

Wow, what a game. I just got done watching the recording off my DVR. I am disappointed with the coverage on Grand Rapids WoodTV, as they didn't show much on NBC national TV either, but man what a rush. A few thoughts about the game. Detroit came out and played a solid game for 3 periods. Its amazing how well you can compete when you come out to dictate the play. The Pens fed off the home crowd and got back into the game. They never quit and that says so much about them as a team. My hat is off to them for a very strong effort. Its 12:37am so I have to get some sleep soon. I will write a full report in the morning. Congrats Red Wings! It was incredible to see Drake get the cup from Lindstrom. He worked hard for it and I loved what I saw. I hate to spend $200 at shop.nhl.com, but I may have to in the morning.

After the game was over, it was merely a passing thought and nothing more. If you thought of the refs at fault in Game 1 and still think about it today.....all I can say is "So one instance disproves my point?" I said a vast majority. I have to agree with your assessment of how the OT periods went though. Seems that we slipped back into the clutch and grab style of hockey and the refs put the whistles away. I distinctly remember a few interference calls on both teams in the first period, a interference call on Hank when a Penguins defender pushed him offside. Yet no calls on those. That concerned me a lot because Detroit doesn't play that style of game. The NHL needs to tell the refs to call a tighter game this time around, especially in the OT periods. I don't get any impression that they are giving more credence to the Penguins. To reference this, I went back to the Dallas series when Tippet was complaining about the lack of calls against Detroit. A total of 34 minor penalties were called against Detroit in the 6 game series. So far, after the equivalent of 6 games if you count the OT periods, there are 31. What does this prove? Its not like the refs are calling more against Detroit thats for sure. Even with Tippet and Therien bitching.

Haha! You might be able to say that.

QFT For 75+ years, the NHL has been in operation and discussions about the reffing have probably taken place throughout that time. The NHL has taken the time to hire the best hockey refs out there. They receive continuous training and work. They are shown tapes of what and what not to call. They are tested and tested again. While they may be great refs, it all comes down to two things. 1. Human perception 2. Speed of the game I am willing to bet that 98% of the users on this board have never reffed a hockey game before. The higher you go up in level of reffing, the harder it gets. There are refs that I know that work at the college level and the AHL level, and even they say its not an easy job. They spend time reviewing tape of the games they call. They try to call a 100% accurate game. However, at the speed the game is played, its impossible to get every call right. Especially when you consider players dive and try to draw penalties. Also, there are times where something looks worse than it actually is resulting in a call that isn't warranted. Lastly, you have calls that are missed because the ref doesn't see them. There is no way I can fault the refs in this series so far. Sure, there have been missed calls. There have been calls on both sides that shouldn't have been made. There have been players diving to get calls. In the end, the refs haven't decided the series. The Wings outplayed the Pens in the first 2 games hands down. The Wings came out flat in the first 2 periods and lost game 3. The Wings worked hard in game 4 and it came down to a few fortunate bounces and a nice backhand shot by Hudler. The Wings came out flat in game 5, played the first 2 periods like crap, and still almost came back to win. The refs didn't do anything to the Wings in the 2 losses they had. The Wings played like crap for 2 periods in both games they lost, and you aren't going to win many games playing like utter crap for more than 1/2 the game. I have worked for an ESPN affiliate doing coverage for college hockey for many years, and in all those years I have learned that the losing team and their fans complain about the reffing 99% of the time. The winning team doesn't say anything about it. Thats a pretty good telling sign isn't it? The only time that the "refs suck" posts come out on this forum is after a loss. Just my .02 cents.

Yea, cause we all know the penalty on Hudler was bull.

Well, I remember when I used to feel that way back in the 1995 season when they were beat by the Devils. I was a new fan then, and I felt ill when the Devils trashed them. I felt ill when Colorado did the same thing to them in 1996. Even in 1997 when they lost tight games, I felt sick. When I started playing hockey in 1998 for the first time is when everything changed. You start to understand what those players go through out on the ice. When a bounce goes against you and goes for you. I play goalie, and I have been on the side of thrilling victories and demoralizing defeats. When I lifted my first rec league hockey trophy, I felt like I was on cloud 9. Nothing made me feel more sick than being up on a team 5-3 in a title game and then having 3 goals scored on me in the final 5 minutes to lose in regulation. After the game on Monday night, I just went to bed. I didn't feel sick nor was I worried. Just another game. If it was game 7, I probably would be a little sad, but it wasn't. You just have a whole new appreciation for the sport when you play it.

I don't make pregame predictions, but I think this is the Wings time to shine. I certainly hope the Wings come out strong and win this game. Best of luck tonight Wings! Don't be your own worst enemy. Come out, dominate, and lift the cup! I wish I could watch the game, but I have 2 hours of hockey to play myself, and I will only get to watch them if they go into OT.

No kidding.

If you haven't gotten what I have been trying to say by now, there is no sense of trying to explain myself. Go back and re-read. As for me being a fan, well, I am. Just not a homer fan that you will find around here drinking the kool-aid and the rosecolored glasses, but a fan nonetheless. Not that I have to answer to you anyway, but the instant that I come out and support a call that goes against the homer team, the flames just come out easy from members such as yourself. Remember, when you assume, you make an ass out of u and me....so try not to do that. As for Icteria, I made my edit and you posted at the same time. Give me a break. When you are ready to discuss this without leveraging names, let me know. You are right, I have to rise above others when they cast stones at me, so I apologize.

Beggars can't be choosers thats for sure.