Dabura

Yapping is not goonish behavior. Otherwise Kirk Maltby would be the second-biggest goon in the league, right behind Crosby.

Wanted to drive home another point: Our stars will have MUCH more breathing room in this series compared to what they had against the Ducks. People are talking up Dats' disappearing act. Make no mistake: that owes largely to what he was up against -- that is, an utterly stifling D. I expect him and Hossa to really pick it up in this series.

My brother writes like a lefties but bats and holds his hockey stick like a righty. He says it feels perfectly natural. I've never been able to get my mind around that.

I have this image in my head of Cleary scoring, Murray rising out of his seat while roaring and flailing his arms (like the Hulk), picking up a chair and cross-checking some four-foot-tall woman in the face with it, jumping through a window, landing on the street below (making a a crater on impact), and being chased by military helicopters.

If ever there was a time to say, "That's just crazy enough to work!"

Again, while the 'hawks may be pound-for-pound the better team, the Ducks are built as the anti-Wings. I saw someone knocking the notion that playing style makes a difference. Well, it absolutely does. The Ducks play a big, mean, nasty, physical, defensively smothering game. They can neutralize the Wings like no other team can. They can physically punish the Wings like no other team can. They can get in the Wings' heads like no other team can. They have hands-down the most dominant forward line in hockey and one of the best snipers in the league playing on the second line. They arguably have the best top defensive pairing in the league. Their goalie -- though overrated -- showed he could singlehandedly steal games. The 'hawks are a good young team with a bright future. But in terms of being able to really dish it out to the Wings, they're not on the same level as the Ducks.

I generally hold good defensive play as a prerequisite for "best forward in the league" status. But Getzlaf's ability to singlehandedly take over a game against any team in the league -- that counts for something. I think he's even more dominant and imposing than Crosby and Ovechkin. And the defensive awareness will come with age. I wouldn't be surprised if he's the all-around best player in the league a few seasons down the road.

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,...e-inline-bottom

Keeping Hossa =/necessarily= Destroying the team I don't know why this is so difficult to understand. You'd think we were talking about drowning a thousand kittens.

This can't be stated enough.

I could say, "Oh goodie, I don't recognize some of these names." But I didn't know anything about Watson before he screwed us over. ANYONE CAN BE AN AGENT

'canes wanted it more.

They absolutely do. But it's not going to be enough. For all the depth the Ducks lacked at forward, they made up for it with the most dominating line in hockey. Carlyle was relentless with that line, and that line was, in turn, relentless against the Wings. It took a monumental team effort to neutralize and overcome those three forwards. This, naturally, disrupted the Wings' standard system of negation. What do I mean by this? Basically, they typically count on their first line being better than the opposition's first line, and their second line being better than theirs (and in a lot of cases, the second line being better than the opposition's first), and so on. Being confronted with such a monstrous, utterly dominating first line meant that things had to be shaken up, juggled around. And that threw the Wings for a loop. The 'hawks, while deeper up front than the Ducks, shouldn't rattle the Wings' system in that way. I like our first line against yours, our second against yours, our third against yours, our fourth against yours. Moreover, our grinders and role players were fantastic throughout the entire second round, so I expect them to be able to go toe-to-toe with your higher-ups when necessary. As for D, I maintain that the Ducks' is second only to the Wings'. While, yes, many people may be underestimating the 'hawks' D, that doesn't necessarily mean it can hang with the Ducks'. Even if the 'hawks' D is pound-for-pound better than the Ducks', the thing you have to understand about the Ducks is that they're built as the anti-Wings; big, mean, nasty, smothering. If the Wings can overcome that D, nothing the 'hawks' D can offer should scare them. 'bulin shouldn't scare them either.

Nothing an octopus can't solve.

I lost a lot of respect for the guy on this "play." I had thought he was above garbage like this. As for the hit itself, what's interesting is that, if memory serves, the puck came right back their way as Stuart was making contact. He had committed to the hit before the puck came back -- so in that moment it was interference. But I think it became somewhat questionable when the puck came back. I dunno. I'd have to watch it again, I guess.

If a Ducks fan tells you that goal wasn't legit, tell him/her to drop on the ground and pretend he/she is injured. Because that seemed to work for the Ducks.

Except Getzlaf delivers the goods when it counts.

He brings home the bacon for the league. In that sense, I can't knock the guy. He does his job, and I appreciate that. What I don't appreciate is all the garbage that happens under his watch but gets written off as coming with the territory of the overall financial viability that he secures for the league. Granted, half of the crap that's blamed on him isn't his fault. But to know that he's watching a series like this and to know that, despite this, no changes will be made to the officiating system in the way of a challenge system, or new forms of replay, or clearer standards -- it's just bush league. Do I think he actually has it out for the Wings? You know what, I do. He wants change, progress, expansion, "parity." The perpetual motion machine that is the Red Wings organization makes it difficult. 2 + 2...

Ducks' D >>> 'hawks' D

He's got a pretty tenacious team this time, whereas last season, for example, he definitely didn't. Still, the Wings absolutely have his number. It's kind of sad, really.

Really, I'm expecting this series to be easier on every Wing -- the one possible exception being Ozzie. I'm thinking first and foremost about the Wings who were charged with containing the Ducks' first line. That line is, without a doubt, the most dominant, imposing line in hockey. Nothing the 'hawks can put together can match it, and if they try, they'll hurt their depth. So right off the bat, that's going to give Z some breathing room and save the first D pairing from the wear and tear that had obviously started to break it down by the end of the series (see Nick looking human in tonight's game). Going to back to Dats and Hossa -- and, like you said, the crease crashers -- the Ducks' D is second only to the Wings'. And that's both along the blue line and in reference to team D. That kind of stifling, smothering utterly suffocating D is something these 'hawks simply are not capable of throwing at the Wings. And they have no interest in that style of play anyway; they play an explosive, North-South, freewheeling game. I think that's to the Wings' benefit. That's basically exactly the kind of style that the Wings' puck-possession game is supposed to stifle. I see the Wings controlling the puck and the 'hawks spending a lot of time running after and consequently racking up a lot of penalties -- fueled also by their inexperience.

Nah, I'd say they're right in line with the league's standards. And therein lies the problem.

I went back and watched it a few times. I'm pretty sure you're right.

I'm expecting good things from Dats and Hossa. They should have MUCH more room to work in this series.

"The series was 3-3, but in my opinion, we outplayed them in every game and their goalie stood on his head" - Babs Strong words.