Dabura

Bettman's in the house tonight. We're playing very well overall.

Did Bert just try for a slew foot? I'm really liking this second line.

I hope this isn't gonna be one of those nights.

Jurco realizes his stick is broken, drops it, immediately plasters someone on the glass. GTFO SAMMY

PP #2 coming up. Good things happen when you move your feet.

We can't buy a goal. Lull the opposition into a false sense of security, then BAM! JURCO. Love Jurco.

Great looks by Jurco on the PP.

Rags have a lot of jump. Are the zebras setting picks or is it just me?

What three guys would you want on that rush? If you chose Samuelsson, DeKeyser, Emmerton....

Tip: when you have a chance to get the puck out of your zone, get it out of your zone.

I agree with his concerns about Jarnkrok. "Iron Hook" is the Wings prospect I'm most excited about, but he's fallen a bit short of expectations, IMHO. Mostly, I'd like to see him get bigger.

Cool! Thanks for pointing this out.

Callahan isn't a center.

Obviously Kenny's clearing space for Dustin Byfuglien. Andersson, Franzen, and Helm will be going the other way. NOW EVERYTHING MAKES SENSE.

The last time we played the Rangers weren't they horribly depleted and stuck in a losing streak?

Interesting angle. Might be something to it. This crap could go on for the rest of the season, especially with ten guys at the Olympics. Which is why I'll facepalm when Holland says, "We're standing pat. We feel we haven't really seen our team at full strength yet. Getting x and y and z back, that's several big acquisitions right there." Not that that isn't true - but, at this point, I think we sort of have to assume we'll always be without two or more key players for pretty much the rest of the way, including the playoffs. Assuming we'll be fully healthy would be a mistake, IMHO.

They seem to just be doing things the right way. No over-the-top, in-your-face goonery. Sick depth up front. Fantastic goaltending. No leaning on a Pronger or Niedermayer (with the latter one sitting out the whole frickin' regular season while he "ponders retirement"). They made a few really smart moves. Boudreau seems to have an excellent grasp on their strengths and limitations, and knows how to get through to them. It's easy to dislike them, because they're the Ducks. But, at the same time, it's kinda hard. (That's what she said.)

Now they're just trolling us. He's in Slovakia, funeral-related. It was decided before our last game that he'd be missing this one.

I would say the biggest positive for us is that we've done reasonably well for ourselves despite the injuries and slumps and HBO/WC distractions and not being able to win shootouts and facing a number of teams that are as good as or better than us and Kyle Quincey and Dan Cleary and Mikael Samuelsson and Todd Bertuzzi and sucking at home etc. We keep finding ways to lose, yet we're still very much in this thing. Imagine what might happen if we actually string some wins together.

Detroit Red Wings Trade Chatter: Dustin Byfuglien a Potential Target (Red Wings 101) Just some guy speculating. But at least people are talking about the possibilities. Here's a question: if we were to land "Big Buff," would you want him playing as a forward (RW) or as a defenseman? I feel we need a top-four defenseman more than we need a top-six forward, but Byfuglien might be that right-handed power forward we've wanted for so very, very long. Of course, it'd largely depend on who we'd be giving up. (For example, if Franzen goes the other way, we'd be breathtakingly small up front.) And, not to beat the dead horse here, but who would we give up?

No one back from injury. No Tatar. Rangers are hot lately. We gon die.

Sucks to be the 'nucks. It's funny, cuz I read an Edmonton Journal interview with Craig MacTavish yesterday and he took a swipe at the Canucks, saying they go to LA and Anaheim and allow 50 shots against each, but then destroy a good Eastern team. Or something along those lines. I expect the Ducks to add a top defenseman. Word on the street is they have their hearts set on Girardi. Even without adding anyone, I think they're good enough to win it all this year. The one thing that might work in the East's favor: whichever team comes out of the West will have probably played one or two or maybe even three (if that would even be possible) of the other powerhouses. I don't care how good you are, that's gonna take a toll. And it'll be pretty ironic if it ends up giving, say, the Bruins a definite edge. Anyway, good for the Ducks, I guess. And maybe it should make us feel better about ourselves? Considering we just barely lost to them in their barn.

Also: http://www.freep.com/article/20140115/SPORTS05/301150120/detroit-red-wings-injuries

I'm pretty high on our prospect pool. Why? Becase the talent, yes, but mostly because we're good at picking and developing. I get that we don't have any obvious SUPERSTARS!!! in the immediate pipeline, but...when was the last time we really did? I mean guys that we KNEW were going to be HUGE. Franzen has been a consistent top-six producer and was a force to be reckoned with earlier in his NHL career. Was anyone jumping for joy when we drafted him? Kid SUPERSTARS!!! are exceedingly rare. And they haven't been our bread and butter for awhile now. We try to get a number of solid players and one or two gems. That's doable. Hell, Tatar's already making a case for himself as a future 40-goal scorer. As a point of comparison, Franzen had 16 points in his first season with the Wings (12 goals, 4 assists). About Pulkkinen, because everyone seems to hate him - he's Nyquist-quick, is a pure sniper (something we absolutely, positively do not have on the current roster), and competes very, very hard (e.g. can take a lot of abuse and just keep on going). Small? You bet. Facing a real uphill battle at the NHL level? Without a doubt. But every player starts as a prospect. (Terrible argument, I know.) What's wrong with Glendening? I like what he's brought to the team. Hasn't scored, but he's not going to be a scorer at the NHL level. He's going to be a bottom-six grinder. There's a bit of Helm in him.

You really think so? Eh, you're probably right. But, I mean, he's already got a couple goals already, and he's looked surprisingly good.