jpfalcon09

I dunno what's up with Dom, but I'm hoping he retires through mid-season to save himself the embarrassment. I'm tired of him and his gig.

It's complete bulls***. In my mind, the NHLN should be included with Center Ice, plain and simple. The people at Time Warner had no clue with what was going on, and didn't even know the NHLN was launched yet. I'm so tired of this retarded league screwing up things for it's die hard fans.

Sopcast isn't going to have this one on either guys, doesn't look like anyone is picking it up. It's gonna be a long night for us who are without the NHLN.

For those of us w/ Center Ice, the game is being broadcast on NHL Network. I'm screwed here because Time Warner doesn't pick it up. So, if any of you were still wondering as to why CI didn't have it on, that's why. If anyone knows of an online stream for the game though, this young lad would be greatly appreciative.

If it is indeed an injury that requires a decent amount of time on the shelf, I'll be curious to see if the Wings give Grigs a shot at the start of the season to see what he can do. I gotta think he will take this as an opportunity to make a push for a roster spot.

A weak division coupled with over-priced players going to teams desperately needing them makes Kenny look very smart right now. He will carefully pick and choose who he wants to bring in, and who will fit into the system that Babcock brings. Big names don't need to be brought in every year to make this team better. Zetterberg is Holland's #1 priority next year, and Nick's decision as well will factor in what happens after this coming year. Kenny wants to be sure that he doesn't tie up too much money in a big name, leaving him strapped to not bring back Zetterberg for long-term or a Lidstrom who still wants to play. There is a lot of young talent on this team that needs to be evaluated, and I believe this year will be a perfect year to measure that talent and see who can crack it. And don't worry, Ken will bring in the right guys to make this team successful. Schneider and Bert leaving will not be a big lose to this team next year. A weak division coupled with over-priced players going to teams desperately needing them makes Kenny look very smart right now. He will carefully pick and choose who he wants to bring in, and who will fit into the system that Babcock brings. Big names don't need to be brought in every year to make this team better. Zetterberg is Holland's #1 priority next year, and Nick's decision as well will factor in what happens after this coming year. Kenny wants to be sure that he doesn't tie up too much money in a big name, leaving him strapped to not bring back Zetterberg for long-term or a Lidstrom who still wants to play. There is a lot of young talent on this team that needs to be evaluated, and I believe this year will be a perfect year to measure that talent and see who can crack it. And don't worry, Ken will bring in the right guys to make this team successful. Schneider and Bert leaving will not be a big lose to this team next year.

Sounds like a good idea.

Wings just look fatigued, guys. All the credit to Anaheim, they seem fresh. Wings are just making tired mental mistakes and it's been the difference. I'm going to enjoy this last period no matter what happens, it's the last period of hockey until October.

Regular season games render meaningless when playoff time comes. Each game is it's own entity in a 7-game series, and no stats from the regular season can be used to justify anything this time of year. As far as overconfidence, any knowledgeable hockey fan knows that many things can change from game to game, regardless of scores or plays. Any Wings fan who feels that this series is over is crazy, if the Wings continue to play the way they did Tuesday night, it will certainly make it a shorter series, but that remains to be seen. Many of the long time Wings fans know that a series can change on a dime at any moment. The Pronger situation helps the Wings, but will serve as motivation for Anaheim to play better as a team, which is what I expect to see tonight. This will be the most hard fought game of the series, bank on that.

Man, what can you say about Dom? The man was gigantic tonight. That's about 2 games in a row that he's stolen, the man is just rock solid when it counts. Babs needs to split up Langer and Bertuzzi, just awful together defensively. Lang at least had some good scoring chances. With a bit more intensity and urgency, the Wings can win this series. I liked what I saw tonight from a strategic standpoint, the Wings owned much of the puck and Anaheim elected to trap. Also, I'm sick of Versus' love affair with these west coast teams. It's been the most biased coverage I've ever seen from a non-biased outlet. Being the #1 seed means jack s*** I guess in the league then. Jones and Engblom can go suck on big fat ones.

As mentioned numerous times before on the site, this song was made back in the early 80s during the bleak years of the Wings, years that many of you on here either don't know about or weren't following the team to know about. It was basically the feel good song for fans at the time. I'm glad they use it after each home win, incorporate a little past into the present. If you hate the song, tough beans, at least it's being used during times of prosperity and not times of 60 loss seasons.

Finland wins in a shootout, 1-0. Jere Lehtonen scored in the 5th round, the Fins win the game 5-4 overall.

USA/Finland are tied 4-4 right now in OT.

Wow, this is my first time on the board since the win last night and this thread already has 9 pages to it!? I don't feel like reading 9 pages of mostly mindless dribble, but I'm sur emost of it includes "lolz chelios is old and slow" and "we're bigger, stronger and faster and oh yeah you guyz are old and dom's gonna pull his groin". Hearing most of the pundits already giving this series to Anaheim, stating the same reasons why the Wings would lose to San Jose just makes me more and more happy that Anaheim is the favorite in this series. This Wings team this year thrives on being the underdog. Finishing #1 in the West must hold little merit to the Wings only, because it certainly seems like a death curse on this team to eventually lose. I also love the fact that the Wings have home ice in this series. Anaheim was God awful in Detroit this year, scoring only 1 goal in both games, losing them both. The Wings proved last series they can win out west, a much tougher feat for a team in the eastern time zone to do than a pacific time zone team winning in the east. Another thing I love about this series is coaching. Mike Babcock's experiences go well beyond those of Rick Carlyle's, regardless of how far the Ducks went last year. Babs has shown the ability to change things up during games, where watching most of Carlyle's games have been tight affairs and it seems coaching adjustments are rarely made. Babcock has made this Wings team able to play any style at any time, and I love that going into this series. So, Duck fans, prepare for a hard fought series with a team that has the heart, passion and grit to compensate for all the teams already eliminated. Think what you want about Detroit being old, slow, depleted on defense. This team will come to battle, win or lose every night. I feel good about Detroit's chances. Guys like Bertuzzi, Cleary, Maltby, Franzen and Holmstrom will be in your face every game. The Wings know what it takes to get Chris Pronger off his game, ask him how many times barring last year against Edmonton that he's beaten Detroit. I want to see how Anaheim reacts to strong backchecking, tight boardwork and a defense core and goaltender who make goals seem more rare than finding cheap gas. Friday will begin the Wings final march to the Cup. They will be not be denied this year. A force is coming that no one wants to reckon with. It's time for the stretch run to a 11th Stanley Cup banner at Joe Louis Arena. Let's go Red Wings Red Wings in 6

Um, the Wings beat San Jose in the 1995 playoffs in a sweep, winning every game 6-2 I believe. Justice was served, so there is no justification for "payback" this year. Calgary, yes, San Jose, no.

Sacrificing my sleep for this s***. Pathetic. This team disgusts me right now. They were satisfied in beating Calgary and advancing, and that's it. Another good regular season but more playoff failure. Time for more changes.

This is awful, where is the urgency? I'm frankly bored watching this s***. This game is over unless the Wings wake up.

Sadly, I feel SJ takes the game and series tonight. The Wings have yet to put together 60 minutes of consistent hockey, and until they prove to me that they can, I'm not going to be too hopeful. SJ 3 Wings 1 Prove me wrong, boys.

Winner of this game wins the series, it is that important. The Wings need a good start and need to score first. No feel for the game, no prediction, just win.

Game was boring all around. For so much hype into this series, the game was a big disappointment, looked like a preseason game at times. SJ played their game, score first and slam the door. Wings looked disinterested after it was 2-0, they tried but what they mustered up wasn't much. Where was the crowd? I swear, every game it seems more and more likely that the fans feel they're entitled to see the team win. Make some damn noise in the building. I was very disappointed with the lack of energy by both the fans and the team. Game 2 needs to be better for both teams. The Wings were too passive and didn't hit enough and the Sharks sat on their 2-0 lead. Snoozefest. Lose Saturday and it's going to be a very short series.

Hey gang. On another board I frequent for college football, we do this during the week leading up to a game to have some good, clean fun. Please refrain from using any racial, sexual or ethnic slurs when playing the game. Past instances are better fit when making fun of the coach, like Wilson losing in 98 with the Caps to the Wings in the SCF. Hopefully you guys like the idea and we can have some fun with this. I'll start: Ron Wilson...is confused on whether or not GM Doug Wilson is related to him or not.

Zetterberg did not take part in the morning skate. Could be more rest, or he could be hurt again. I'll try to keep you guys updated.

Wow, looks like the bandwagon is about to lose two of it's wheels. Listen, I'm upset and frustrated as much as the next guy, but the fact of this series remains that the Wings cannot execute when their opportunities are given to them on a silver platter. The power play has been nothing short of atrocious and the penalty killing has been very suspect, but they are areas that can be improved upon much faster than even strength play. The Flames have 2 goals in this series at even strength...2 GOALS! The Wings know they need to be more disciplined, and they know that they need to capitalize on their chances. The fact remains that if the Wings play their game, they won't be defeated in the even strength department, they just won't. They're giving Calgary too many easy chances to score, and spells a recipe for disaster, especially on the road. The notion of no heart and passion is laughable and makes me question just how many people on this board are true Red Wings fans, or just affiliate themselves with a winning team. Mark my words, they will win Game 5. If they have another monumental collapse, then there needs to be heads taken on both the organizational level and team level, but I firmly believe it will not reach that point. This team has been in this situation before, '03 vs. Nashville was no different and the Wings won in 6. If the guys are made of what we think they are, this series will over Sunday night.

Outclassed and outworked. Pathetic effort by this team. Calgary wanted it more tonight, and the Wings looked like a joke especially on the PP and in the last minute. I'm embarrassed by what I saw tonight, thoroughly disgusted. Thoughts: - Franzen has had 2 good playoff years so far. He's impressive and comes hard to play every night. - Flip's effort was unmatched tonight by anyone else on the Wings team. It's sad to see that happen, but it's a harsh reality. - Bert had a good 1st but went invisible afterwards. - Special teams sucks, so uncreative on the power play and too aggressive on the PK. - Sammy or Lang need to sit, they were awful in their own end tonight, and frankly I'm sick of seeing both of them on the ice. - Dom's been average the past 2 games, and he hasn't been much better than Manny was last year. - No urgency, no effort, totally listless. I'm ashamed to be a Red Wings fan and having to watch this crap. - Calgary's come to play now, and Saturday is the ultimate gut check time. If anyone on the team has any balls, someone needs to stand up in the locker room and say enough of this s***. Awful, absolutely brutal. End of rant, I'm going to bed.

The salting of gray in the last playoff beard of the Thrashers Scott Mellanby was a hint. The declining number of late-game shifts, the blur of younger players streaking down the ice, the accelerated aging process of the athlete - they all foretold his immediate future. So, this is how it would play out for Mellanby: A four-and-out postseason dusting by the New York Rangers that at times tweaked his pride and tested his captaincy. There are no guarantees how a long career ends in any business. Especially in sports, where sentimentality is the first victim of keeping score. Getting swept by the Rangers in an experience that Mellanby perfectly described as “deflating,†is hardly the way a 21-season-long run is supposed to finish. “I think it is. It has been a great, fun ride, but I think it’s time,†he said. Best of luck to Scott in the future, he's always been a great leader who never got his due. Poor guy never won a Cup either. Thanks to Scott for all he did for the game.