gcom007

No one has any right to hold anything against this guy this year. He shouldn't be here at all let alone having to be playing in the role he's in. I'm not about to start bitching about Abs of all people. I don't think it's too fair to ***** about Leino, but Abs, totally ridiculous.

Honestly...hysterical. Paraphrased: "You know Metallica?" "Not well............how do YOU know Metallica???"

No, he hasn't. He's not getting the bounces today and it's exploiting some of his weaknesses with his positioning. I think it's probably a blessing in disguise down the stretch as he's been playing well for the most part lately, but he's also had luck on his side quite a bit as well. Hopefully with games like this it'll keep him motivated to eliminate the need for luck by putting in simple hard work. He's got a lot going for him and even if he ends up having a rough stretch here, he's got a lot to be proud of so far this season. He's just got to keep working hard and he's going to be a good goalie. Again, let us not forget... ROOKIE!!!!!!!!

Loving that Datsyuk is looking great today and getting points. This is why I said I think Z going down is a huge blessing in disguise. And Bert...is there still any question on the matter? He's back.

I win.

Are you being sarcastic?

I'm FINE with this. No joke. To be honest, I think this will be a blessing in disguise because I've got a feeling we'll finally get Datsyuk going in the next two weeks. And hell, it's a couple extra weeks of chill-time for his back which worries me far more long-run than anything. If Datsyuk picks it up, this team won't suffer from this loss. We'll benefit from his return, but I don't think we are in dramatically worse shape at this point than we were before the injury. This team's building character like crazy this year. They'll find ways to win.

Turning points? Well, we started looking like a TEAM at the beginning of November as more and more guys were getting injured. We had some winning streaks then. We got derailed for awhile when Kronwall went down but have adapted at this point. It goes to show how important he's become to our offense though when you look at his numbers and our record following his injury. Our two worst stretches thus far this season: 1st) October when we were actually healthy 2nd) The week or so after Kronwall's injury I think that says a lot about many, many things...

I seem to remember this team playing rather horribly in October with a (mostly) full roster. And to be honest, I'm not convinced that we'll really be so much better once we get everyone back. In fact, I'm starting to worry about it a bit. Guys are stepping up and taking on roles that weren't being filled before because they weren't getting the ice time to make the point. I think to some extent, we have some guys that are redundant and unnecessary. Some will say I'm crazy, so be it. I would rather have Eaves in the lineup than Flip right now. I would rather have Miller in the lineup than Williams right now. Are Flip and Williams bad? No. But I think Flip is a bit redundant and ultimately not as skilled as Eaves. I think Williams is inconsistent. I think in Miller and Eaves you've got guys that are on the up. With Eaves in particular, you've got a guy with a lot of skill who's had a rough start of a career. He's looking better and better as this season goes on though and I don't think you want to toy with his progress at this point. The guy has a whole lot of upside. I'd gladly welcome back Franzen, Clearly, Kronwall and Ericsson. Oh, and obviously Z. But everyone else? At this point, I honestly like what I'm seeing from this team. I'm not convinced that a few of these other guys might not muck up some good things that are happening, not due to any real fault of their own other than they're just not necessarily the right pieces to the puzzle. Again, we had the full team in October. They weren't gelling. Something was off. There were plenty of good players but this team was an absolute mess on so many levels. Part of that is October, but I really think part of it was due to the makeup of this team which was just awkward and unbalanced. Again, I think we've got some guys that have stepped up and started filling the holes we weren't even paying attention to earlier on. Adding Franzen and Kronwall alone will help tremendously with the offense, but other than that, I really like this team. Hell, I'm not even accounting for Datsyuk getting things going which I have no doubt he will. The grass isn't always greener on the other side. After all, sometimes things that seemingly don't make sense work better than what makes sense. I think that's truly the overarching story of this season so far. I like this team.

Motion to close thread...

Nice! 1st shutout for Jimmy by the skin of his teeth! 300th win for Babcock...Bert, Eaves and Miller get goals...I'm starting to think these injuries are a blessing in disguise. We're learning to win games in new ways and guys are getting going who may've lived in the pressbox if not for injuries. I'm honestly starting to get a little worried that we'll lose a step as we get guys back. I think we've got good guys on this team that are good players but odd fits in the Red Wings system. I think we're finding out that new guys might have more to offer than originally thought. It'll be interesting to watch as guys start coming back.

Never again.

NOW MY BOY EAVES MAKING IT HAPPEN! LOVE IT X2!!!!!!!!! I can't say enough about how much I dig Eaves and Bertuzzi getting things going this year. Makes my day...

That was all Holmstrom making that play happen but if Bertuzzi wasn't feeling good, he wouldn't have been on the doorstep to finish a great play. LOVE IT!

I'm not surprised. I always thought the idea of the cap dropping so much was a little fishy. The earlier point was likely made in an effort to be cautious in a shaky economy where teams have started spending like crazy on huge, long contracts, and with that in mind it makes enough sense. Things could have and I suppose could still go really south, and the excessive contracts really needed to be given a reality check.

Absolutely! I mean, it's not that I'm arrogant when I say such things, it's just I constantly find myself on the opposing side of arguments against the majority of people around here yet when push comes to shove, what I'm saying or supporting almost always comes true. After so many years here, I really do find it kinda hilarious because it's always the same. I make a point, get blasted for it, wait and then 3 months later, I'm right again... But in the end, I know the score. Making a reasonable point is like hitting home runs in a little league field around here considering the way people freak out and try to ride every whimsical thought in their heads to the heavens...

I hear you. Story of my posting life on here. Funny thing is, in the end, I'm usually right, but no one remembers that. And in regards to the bolded, I definitely agree that it is a little troublesome especially in light of the fact that he has had enough time to develop those areas. While an emphasis on fundamentals is critical no matter what stage you're at, it's definitely notable that this area of his game is quite sloppy still. He's gotten the breaks so far this season, but like I said earlier, sooner or later he's not going to be so lucky. That's what I'm a bit worried about and a good reason why I wouldn't be playing him as much as Babcock has been lately. I think he's played enough to prove that he might have what it takes, but I think he needs more time to earn games for cleaning up all aspects of his game and furthermore, more so really, I'd rather him get less good starts than more starts and a quicker approach to a cold streak. I'd rather him feel confident on the bench and working all the harder in practice to compete than for him to get lucky for awhile and then start getting shelled and then lose that confidence.

I think generally Osgood's still looked better than Howard this season. Stats don't tell the whole story. People keep trying to compare this season to last season for him when there's little that's similar at all. You go back and watch the games and for the most part, Osgood's been solid, even great at times. Earlier on he was the victim of a team that was an utter and complete mess. There were numerous games that he played great in that we ended up losing because the team stopped playing as a whole. Go look up how many games Osgood was letting in 4-5, hell even 6 or 7 goals last year and compare it to this year. It's not a matter of Osgood playing bad right now so much as Howard playing better than he has in his career and this is his rookie year. They need to see if he can really make it happen and they've got to do everything to get him going after so many years of development in the AHL and continually lowered expectations. They know Osgood will be fine down the stretch. They even as of now can't say that about Jimmy Howard. Now that's not to take away from anything Howards done this year though. He's definitely been solid and I'm not complaining or trying to rip on him at all, but as many have pointed out, he is scrambling quite a bit out there at times. I think thus far he's been solid but also pretty lucky with a lot of saves he's made or defensemen have made when he's got sloppy positioning going on. I think he'll improve it though as time goes on, and again, I'm not trying to knock him. I just don't see this as a situation of Howard's playing great and saving us because Osgood sucks at all. If Osgood was getting more starts lately, his stats would absolutely be up because the defense finally got their s*** together after one of the ugliest Octobers I can remember.

I had relatively high hopes for Eaves going in, and by relatively I meant realistic. I wanted to think of this year for him as a second chance at a rookie season as he's just 25. There's a lot of grace there for inconsistency and slow starts, not to mention expectations that account for his cap hit of $500k... However... Once guys got injured and he became a regular in the lineup, he dashed my hopes and rewrote new ones. I really love what I'm seeing from this guy. As much as I hate all these injuries, it's really giving a lot of guys who might've just been shadows a chance to step up and prove something. Eaves is doing just that. This guy can play, no doubt, and he's going to keep getting better. He's got real skill, dedication and a boatload of work ethic. That tends to do guys well. I'm a big fan of hard work. You study guys that are successful and it's common to see that the success doesn't always hit right away. It takes time to develop and sort things out, but once you do, you end up a lot more successful than the "flash in the pan" guys who burn out fast. I think Eaves is begging Holland to sign him to an extension. Holland better do it quick though before Eaves drives up his price even further! Jury's out on Williams yet, but as far as Bert and Eaves go, I say so long as the price is right, get them signed sooner rather than later...but Eaves for sure...the guy has got a Red Wing heart.

ROOKIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Nothing happened to Leino. You're just failing to account for varying factors that affect play. Coming up in the middle of the season when guys are injured is a totally different mental approach to being a regular member of a pro team. I am not shocked at all that he's struggled this year. I've been saying it for awhile too, warning y'all when you scoffed at our scoring issues when everyone left over the summer. Leino still has a lot of skill, but he needs time to develop in the NHL. Don't give up on him yet. Again... ROOKIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You know, I really feel for Bert in a lot of ways. I can't help but think that he's a pretty good guy when it all really shakes down. Sure, he made a mistake and it ended ugly, but the way the media ends up exploiting the situation by turning these guys into such villains is just sad and pathetic. I think Bert really is sincere when he talks about Detroit and the ownership because I'm sure after all he's been through, he can really understand and appreciate how great it is to have management like we have that really cares about the players.

Howard's played really well lately, but he's also gotten pretty lucky quite a few times this season. He definitely needs to keep working on his positioning so he doesn't end up scrambling so much as there's no guarantee he'll stay so lucky. It'll come though if he keeps working on it and stays confident.

Way too much dinking around on the power-play tonight. 2nd gratuitous example of pass-around right there...maybe if we put a bit more pressure on and took some shots and made them clear it they don't get a rush and draw a penalty either...ugly...

3 goals and 7 assists for 10 points. Ain't bad for a rookie defensemen. There's no upside to this injury. Even if you're not incredibly happy with his play this year which has had it's rough moments defensively, all the injury does is slow his development which sucks long term. Ericsson will improve more and more as he plays. He's a rookie. You can't compare him (as someone else did) to a Lebda who has proven through the years to just not be a very good player.

Wow.....KNUCKLEPUCK!!!!!!