Dabura

Regular Season "The Wings are too old, slow, and soft." Wings win the West and just miss the Presidents' Trophy by a hair. Playoffs - First Round "The Wings are too old, slow, and soft. The Flames are bigger, stronger, younger, and faster." Wings outhit and outhustle the Flames, win in 6. Playoffs - Second Round "The Wings are too old, slow, and soft. The Sharks are the biggest, strongest, youngest, and fastest." Wings outhit and outhustle the Sharks, win in 6. Playoffs - Third Round "The Wings are too old, slow, and soft. The Ducks are bigger, stronger, younger, and faster." Wings outhit and outhustle the Ducks, win in 6.

Ducks in 2, IMO.

Additionally, the parts about soft Euros and "old time hockey" don't help your credibility.

I really don't see how someone can justify the claim that the Ducks will easily take this series. Let's look at some of the more popular arguments: "The Ducks are bigger, younger, and more physical" That may be true, but you know what? So were the Flames and Sharks. Some Ducks fans will respond, "Yeah, but we're tougher," to which I say, "Bulls***." The Ducks have, IMO, done nothing to elevate their physical game above that of those two clubs. The Sharks play a meaner game and they're the biggest, youngest team in the NHL. And what happened? The Wings threw that kind of fast, hard-hitting game right back in the Sharks' collective face, just as they did with the Flames. More than not backing down, this Wings team will take the fight to you. "Detroit's blueline is battered" True enough, but so far the team has been able to compensate. The proof? Holding the Sharks' "overwhelming" offense to one goal in the final two games. Go figure. "The Ducks are deep" Again, that may very well be true, but the Wings can match it. On D, the Ducks have two studs, one good anchor, and...some other guys. Lidstrom, Markov, Chelios, and co. may not strike fear into the hearts of opposition the way Chrissy and Scott do, but the Wings' blueline is, I think, stronger overall. Plus, we've seen a great team commitment to D in recent games, and I don't imagine that will let up. On offense, the Ducks have some guys who can put the puck in the net, particularly Selanne, who will undoubtedly cause problems for us because he always does. Beyond the top three or four forwards, though, I don't see much in the way of overwhelming depth, especially if everyone's all excited about getting Marchant back so they can ice four whole lines!!! Getting significant contributions from all four lines has been the Wings' bread and butter for a long time, and these playoffs are no exception; our primary goal-scorers have delivered, and when they've faltered, we've been able to get production from the other lines. With the rise of Daniel Cleary, the checking line is arguably the most dangerous it's been in years, and with young guys like Franzen and Filpulla stepping up in a big way and playing like they've been Wings for a decade, there's no reason why the Ducks shouldn't be fearing our depth, rather than the other way around. As for the goalie situation -- Giggy is great, no doubt, but Hasek has been playing out of his mind. Understandably, it's tempting to look at Hasek's age and scoff. But really, if I had watched the last two games of the Sharks series without knowing his age, I would think he's still in his prime years. Bottom line: Wings have shown they can overcome any challenge, and the Ducks haven't. Overbearing physicality? Flames and Sharks -- Wngs triumphed. Solid team D? Flames and Sharks -- Wings triumphed. Speed? Flames and Sharks -- Wings triumphed. Big-time goal-scorers? Iginla, Thornton, and Cheechoo -- Wings triumphed. The 'nucks and Wild? Not exactly daunting opposition. This is to say, it's the Ducks who have something to prove in this series. All of the talk about how the Wings need to respond to the Ducks' ____ is the result of looking at the matchup on paper and doing some half-assed armchair analysis. I'm very much looking forward to a tightly-played, but surprisingly short series in the Wings' favor.

I'm happy they've made it this far, but anything short of the Cup will be a disappointment for me personally.

Are you for real?

And eats it. You know, for good measure.

It's not a matter of interpretation, it's just stating what I see. You've called faint-hearted fans cowards, shown a fondness for making a distinction between "true fans" and "untrue fans," and are generally very keen on calling people out based on the ways in which they show their support -- whether that's your intention or not. I keep harping on this point because I see non-Wings fans praising these boards, and it makes me realize how great this community really is, and that if it has one downside it would be this whole "Well, you're not a true fan! / Shame on you! / Ha! Eat it!" elitist rhetoric that gets thrown around quite often. Let the fans support the team in the ways in which they choose to do so. The chastising is unnecessary -- and I'll leave this argument at that to avoid being hypocritical.

Half of your posts are devoted to calling fans out, as in, "I hope this finally proves..." or "Where are the doubters now?" or "Time for people to wake up." It's grating, and I wish you'd ease off -- especially if you're going to talk about how we need to be a unified fanbase. Just my two cents -- take it or leave it. (I'm guessing the latter.)

(Do we introduce them to Bernie yet? Yes/No?)

Hasek is incredibly clutch. Please, enough with the condescension.

*his nose

Not to start a bitchfest or anything, but a weak defensive unit doesn't shut out the Sharks.

Looking around the web, it looks like Sharks fans and the odd Flames fan are Wings fans' only friends right now; everyone and his mom is picking the Ducks in 6 or 7. Taking this series is going to be oh-so-sweet.

Well, any insight he can offer certainly wouldn't hurt. I'm sure he knows a few well-guarded secrets and intangibles that could come in handy.

Sharks fans are generally great folks -- I've found this both here at LGW and in the Bay Area. Great to have you along for the ride!

Those Ducks and their overwhelming offensive corps.

I'm torn; on the one hand, I have no problem with the Wings being the underdogs -- on the other hand, it always irks me that these analysts get paid to be jackasses.

Rest assured: We'll be considered the underdogs again.

That would be me. We've been talking a lot about who will fill the void Schneider left behind. How about Dom?! Glorious game for him.

It's almost cliche at this point, but if we can beat the Sharks, we can take any team. We stack up much better against the Ducks, and we beat the Sharks in 6. Do the math.

OVER BABY!!!

SHUT UP

It was an especially loud and especially disgruntled fan near the booth. They seem to have told him to shut up.