Travis

Haha, nice. I just call it the best rotation since the mid-90's Braves.

Haha, it made Puck Daddy. http://sports.yahoo.com/nhl/blog/puck_daddy/post/Video-Blues-Colaiacovo-face-plants-glass-make?urn=nhl-296675

This... At this point, I appreciate his 'swagger' so to speak. I love that - towards the end of the video - you seem him bobbing his head a little while telling off the Bruin whose trying to fight him over the hit. I'd love to have some audio of that so I can hear what Subban is telling him to stick where. ... and this. Agreed. 100%

Beautiful hit. Just beautiful. I know he catches some flack around the league, but I like Subban. Be cocky all you want if you're gonna throw those.

This. The whole thing is actually up [in sections] on YouTube. Great watch.

I am so jacked about this, I don't even care that I'm replying to myself. 1. CF Jackson 2. 2B Rhymes 3. RF Ordonez 4. 1B Cabrera 5. C Martinez 6. DH Guillen 7. LF Boesch 8. SS Peralta 9. 3B Inge I'm sorry, but that batting order is as stacked as the Tigers have ever been. Peralta was a 4-5 slot guy in Cleveland and he's 7-8 in this order. Obviously, it will change on days that Guillen is at 2B or when Avila catches, but I am thrilled about this line-up.

The Tigers just announced their signing of RF Magglio Ordonez to a 1-year deal. LINK.

You'd think they'd just give him one. I really do think he's on something for 78% of the telecasts, though.

I couldn't imagine a scenario where I would have taken that personally, but cheers! I'm not saying it's anything for the fans to get worked up about, but if I were a fan of a team that did that I'd feel a little put out. I understand where they're coming from, but it does come across a little desperate of them. Having said that, they aren't breaking a facade or dropping a bombshell. Everyone knows they aren't selling tickets. Personally, I think there are more creative ways of trying to nudge people into the seats than flat out saying 'SUPPORT US!'. The reason the Red Wings offer packages by way of banner ads and don't shoot full on ad campaigns isn't for lack of creativity, it's simply because they don't need to. So, to that end, it's easy for us to look down at the Thrashers for this marketing strategy; but they also have to do whatever they feel works. Doesn't change how I feel about the ads, but I understand their point of view. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for the mascot stealing the Zamboni and taking it in a low-speed chase, but does it need the 'COME TO OUR GAMES' [or whatever it said] banner on it? They could imply it throughout the course of the commercial(s) through 'news' commentary or something of the sort. I was also a little turned off when the SVP or whoever it was said that he 'didn't condone Thrash's actions, but agreed with his motive' or whatever. All that said, it really doesn't matter what I - or we - think about the ads, because we aren't going anyway. Haha.

He's great here in GR. He plays that quarterbacking offensive defenseman role and he fills it well, in my opinion. Obviously, he's got a long way to go as far as being NHL caliber goes, but I'd hate to see the Wings part with him.

While I agree about Leino, I think Hudler is a bigger question mark than that. Sure, he has the potential to be a top 6 forward, but he hasn't shown any of it this season; and at what point does the 'adjustment' excuse run out? Obviously, he's wildly underachieved on expectations and I feel like he's still a gamble for any team to give up a worthwhile player on. To me the question at this point would be: How much is his past worth on the market?

To that end, Kindl is back in Grand Rapids. It's nice to see him continue to get playing time and helping the Griffins, but I'd like to see him get some experience on the Wings' D. That's off-topic, though. Like I said before, I doubt that Kenny realistically does anything at the deadline. Hopefully, Modano recovers in time for a playoff run, but if he doesn't - who do we move? If we do move Hudler I imagine it ends up a Leino/Flyers type deal where we get little in return and Hudler means more to this team, even with his lack of production, than Leino ever did.

Evilzyme does make a good point, it's never a good idea to bash the consumers whose dollars you're trying to get. It doesn't come across as tongue-in-cheek as I think the Thrashers hoped it would, but I think one can see where they're coming from. Clever campaign, but it had legs without the whole, 'buy our tickets already!' aspect.

It's definitely working as far as a marketing ploy goes. It's on my Yahoo! homepage right now. When my girlfriend and I relocated after I graduate, I sometimes quietly hope that we'll move to a major city with a budding sports team that no one supports so the tickets will be cheap, haha. I understand that it's got to be hard for them to immediately gain relevancy in a city where hockey is the last sport anyone cares about, but you would expect them to be doing pretty well in a large metropolitan area and an exciting young team.

I voted 'Unlikely'. As has been said, we seem pretty set at this point and we don't really have any pieces that we're willing to part with that would get us anything.

Yeah, it's back to Curly Fries. In the fan vote the Curly Fries absolutely crushed the JR. Roast Beef. I never go to Arby's, but still voted for the Curly Fries.

In keeping with the tradition of taking photos of our jerseys on the backs of chairs, here is my early Christmas gift from my girlfriend.

It's a tradition of the Wings. Exactly for the reasons stated by the OP. Win as a team, lose as individuals. Not sure when it started, but I believe it's been going on for awhile. I want to say that the story I heard said it started with an equipment manager, but I'm foggy on the details.

They'll be gone come mid-January, I'm sure. It's quite obvious that it's just a temporary location. I noticed a Wings jersey that had the EDGE-style NHL crest at the base of the neck but also had - what appeared to be - a straight stripe at the bottom. It was hard to tell, though, because of the way it was hanging. It got moved and became really blatantly obvious. It made me take a second look at the other jerseys they had and they too became much more obvious. I've never set foot inside, but can notice from the windows that the collars are billowy, the lettering on the Hawks jerseys isn't centered, and the numbers are cheap looking twill. The 'Hawks jerseys are cut properly, though, and there are some Wings jerseys that are as well. Maybe they'll display the back of one of the Wings jerseys which, we all know, would prove whether or not it was a knock-off since the lettering on knock-off Wings jerseys is always wrong. I've also entertained the idea that maybe their wholesaler sent them knock offs and real Reebok jerseys. Or maybe they just don't know any better. You'd hate to think they were intentionally selling knock-offs, but it'd definitely be unfortunate to see them getting unknowingly screwed themselves.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=546302&cmpid=nhl-rxl-twt Seriously? Kris Letang? Article says Marc-Andre Fleury is second at the goaltender position, too. I know it's just a popularity contest, but damn. I didn't realize Eddie Olczyk had enough time on his hands to vote this much.

Right? Lou really s*** the bed on the Kovy deal. How Kovalchuk taking the blame for their situation is news is beyond me. Of course you're the problem, Ilya, you've handcuffed this team for the entirety of your deal.

Also accompanied by an article that asks, 'Is Nicklas Lidstrom [the] greatest defenseman of all time?' Full article on ESPN.com

You mean these beauties? Wasn't there a story about the throwback jerseys Montreal wore last year and how Babcock was visibly laughing at them on the bench? Also, the Mooterus will forever have it's place in history as the jersey Marty Turco was wearing when Datsyuk absolutely schooled him. I refuse to believe anyone is nostalgic about those.

I totally agree. I went the knock-off route and regretted it. I ended up spending tons of time trying to find a 'better' knock off or a more passable one at least. I never wore it outside of my apartment and ended up selling it. I lucked into someone selling blank aways on Craigslist and got it customized at SportsK, now I am content. In the long run, I think anyone would be a lot happier just saving up a little more and buying a legit one. - On a completely unrelated note, a sports memorabilia shop opened up in the Mall where I work for the holidays. They've got a lot of Blackhawks and Red Wings jerseys so I'll look as I walk by. Last week I realized that they were all knock offs. They even had a blank knock off professionally customized into an Yzerman jersey. Sigh.

That sounds really awesome. I work Saturday night, but I hope you guys have a great turnout (as I'm sure you will). That's awesome that you're in the 501st, too. I've gotta couple of friends that were thinking strongly about joining after the Motor City Comic Con.