Dabura

Obviously losing the top two is a blow for any team. But some teams are deep enough that they can take it and really run with it, stay competitive despite it. When you look at the blue line we'll be icing tonight...I wouldn''t want to even risk having to go into postseason battle with it. I'd want another high-end veteran defenseman in the mix. If he gets injured along with Kronwall and Ericsson, well, then we're just cursed. Not to be overly pessimistic here, but I don't think tonight will reveal a lot either way, i.e. if we do well, that's nice, if we don't do well, that's nice. It's the playoffs I worry about (though, admittedly, not nearly as much as when we were in the truly *Big, Bad* West). It's not that I necessarily don't think or young guns will pan out. I think XO, Sproul, Almqvist, even Smith - these guys have fantastic potential, both individually and perhaps even more so as a future Red Wings unit. Actually, I think the future of our blue line is about as bright as it gets today, in the Salary Cap Era. It's just, well, Z and D. The clock is ticking. They're not getting any younger.

Anything goes when it's the Wings. We could win this one 7-0 then lose the next six.

This is what I'm hoping for. And XO is good enough that it's not outside the realm of possibility. Not that anything would come of it. "[Ouellet] will go down and learn to play the right way, learn to be hard on the puck, how to be an everydayer, then one day he'll get a chance to grab some Opportunity for himself. You gotta grab some Opportunity, because if you don't, someone else will. But certainly we feel he's gonna be a real good player for us down the road. But you gotta earn your ice like everyone else, that's how it's always been." (Khan does a write-up on Ouelett's bright future.)

Have I mentioned how badly we need to pick up a top defenseman? Looks like we'll be dropping to an ugly 6-4-0.

See: White, Ian.

Kronwall, Helm to play Wednesday !!!!!!

Kronwall, Helm to play Wednesday !!!!!!

If Holland had to literally stab Tootoo in the back in order to keep Samuelsson, he would do it. Without hesitation.

First of all, I think all of, like, one person has complained about Miller. Second, how many people have said, "I don't like Sammy and/or Miller because they're not scoring like madmen and fighting!"? I mean, I know you're using hyperbole or whatever, but still. People don't like Sammy because he's Sammy. Borderline useless. You can almost feel him dragging down the fourth line and second PP unit. Third, Tootoo. Tootoo is at his best when he's drawing penalties, and playing an energetic game with discipline and intelligence (i.e. not running around like a freight train off the rails). He's been doing that (like I said, he's had some really good shifts over these past few games). I think we could've really used his energy, his physicality, and his penalty-drawing abilities last night. He, Glendening and Miller had a pretty good thing going. Why kill it? I mean, I get the logic. Kindl goes to the first PP unit, and since we secretly have no faith in our other young defensemen, it's Sammy to the rescue! But man, we really needed a spark last night (we were incredibly slow, passive, and altogether uninspired for most of the game), and that makes sense, considering how many games we've played in how many nights. So you put in...an old, slow, mostly non-physical Sammy? Bad call, IMHO. But maybe this is all sort of moot, since Tootoo is almost certainly gone, what with Helm and Eaves coming back and Tatar and Nyquist needing spots. And hey, had it been my call, I would've played Tatar over Sammy and Tootoo.

Yeah, but you're being realistic, which is no fun. About Franzen - I'm almost positive he's had a very short stint or two in the bottom six.

This should be a huge, huge, huge boost for the team. And the sky is blue.

WHERE DOES HE SLOT IN? THIRD OR FOURTH LINE? omgomgomgomg

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG

See, but you're using logic. When we want to lose, nothing stands in our way - not even (or, especially not) logic. See: last night. Or, I dunno, maybe I'm just bitter/scarred from the whole Hossa thing (we beat Hossa and the Pens for the Cup. Hossa signs with us. The Pens beat us - and Hossa - for the Cup. Insanity.) I did browse through your HF boards. I won't patronize you and say, You guys will be fine, etc. But I WILL say this: your HF boards, in some places, read just like ours. Like, discipline problems? Too many stupid, lazy penalties? Too many shots on goal against? Wings have the same issue. Young guys who should be up on the Big Team but for whatever reasons aren't? You have yours, we have ours (Tatar, Nyquist). Lazy, uninspired play? We do that every few games, if not more often. (See: our losses, including last night. Digusting.) I like the Sens. They've always been #2 or 3 for me behind the Wings. Though obviously I don't follow them very closely. So I really do hope things turn around. And, honestly, I have faith they will (if only because I know MacLean is a great coach who won't settle for mediocrity). One thing I want to ask: What's the deal with Spezza? I think I'll leave the question open-ended like that.

But srsly. They do have some good talent on that team, beyond the young guys who are surely off-limits. Fleischmann and Matthias both started as Wings...and we know how much we love bringing alumni back....Not that we really need a centerman (Matthias) or another probably-bottom-six winger (Fleischmann). Maybe we can send Gusty somewhere. Oilers? Penguins? DO SOMETHING, KENNY. ENTERTAIN ME

What we really need is for Lids to sit him down and punch him in the face, repeatedly.

Zetterberg Datsyuk Vanek The rest doesn't matter. We could ride that line to the Cup.

Which is ridiculous because Smith is actually somewhat known as a diver (which is impressive, considering he's a goalie and all). I think it's pretty clear that karma is biting us in our collective ass. What am I talking about? Well, if memory serves, it became sort of a Big Thing back in The Glory Days that we, The Yankees of Hockey, were always in the refs' ears, always pleading our case, always whining, yapping, "Aw, c'mon!"-ing. (The Captain himself was, one could argue, a big sinner in this respect.) And there was the whole everyone-in-the-league-respects-but-ultimately-hates-Tomas-Holmstrom thing, which I think kinda got the ball rolling on the "Rein in the Spoiled Yankees" zebra campaign.

SCOTT GOMEZ, BABY [/Holland]

We are extraordinarily good at killing our own momentum.

Ultimately, it doesn't matter who gets the nod in net last night - either way, we lose. But I think we had something kinda good going with Monster. If you read some of the press from the games we won with him in net, especialy the Avs game, he's refered to a number of times - directly and indirectly - as One of Those Hot Goalies, the kind who comes out of nowhere and plays out of his mind. That's something pretty special, especially when you consider how much hand-wringing was happening re: our once-non-existent "tandem." And maybe it was just me, but I thought we sort of elevated our d-game (e.g. blocking shots) and maybe even our o-game to sort of help the hot backup goalie out. I think we have a bit of a tendency to fall asleep in front of Jimmy, because he's Jimmy.

Panthers ready to trade just about anyone

http://www.freep.com/article/20131020/SPORTS05/310200095/Brendan-Smith-has-rough-night-returning-Wings-lineup Babs nailed it. Smith is erratic.

Sorrry to hear that. But I can easily see your guys getting ultra-pumped for Wednesday's tilt and slaughtering us. It feels almost inevitable to me.

- I'm totally ready for B.Smith to be traded - before his stock crashes through the basement floor - The other, better Smith was giving his team a timeout. There was no "stinger." I realize we don't score there if he's not lying motionless on the ice, but he should've at least gotten a penalty. I mean, what's to stop anyone from saying, "You know what, eff this, I'm tired. AAARGGGH MY SPLEEEEEEN!!!" And we care about jersey tucking? Only in the NHL - God Almighty, I hate that game with all of my heart and soul. I hope Babs put(s) the fear of God into each and every one of the guys who very cleary had been boozing the night before, and then all the guys who hadn't, just because. And then himself, because you don't fix what's not broken, and if you do, Nyquist and/or Tatar had better be in - Bright side: Glendening looked mostly great, considering he's, like, twelve. And we're in first place in the Atlantic. And it's not like we've been losing every - or even every other - game. A four-game winning streak is actually pretty good for us. We were (over)due for an appearance from the Detroit Hyde Wings - Bright side #2: The 'hawks recently lost to the Lightning. And the Pens recently lost to the Panthers. We've lost to the Bruins and a very competitive Coyotes team that thinks the only thing separating it from the Cup is the Red Wings (its "arch-rival")