stevie for president

Yeah, but I mean did the Islanders gain more points from the shoot out than the Maple Leafs?

The best individual team in the NHL wins the Stanley Cup. That doesnt really say anything about which conference is better overall. Are you afraid of the Presidents Trophy winner or 7 teams with over 100 points?

I hate Lang just as much as the next guy, probably even more, but he is by far the best playoff performer for the wings since he was signed. Let's not sour on him yet. Look who he is playing with. Its a far cry from williams and Yzerman, thats for sure. Back on topic, Filppula has been a force since he signed with the wings. Game in and game out he has had chances and made great plays despite 6-8 minutes of ice time. The only difference now is he found the back of the net twice instead of just making a highlight reel move denied by a circus save.

I just wish the instigator rule was never invented because I feel like if Hartnall got his ass kicked a few times, he wouldn't stick out a knee or run a goalie. Having said that, I don't think the hit on cheechoo was an intentional knee. Last night in the Ducks Wild game, there was a similar looking hit behind the net. Radulov is an amazing talent and I would absolutely orgasm if he was on the Red Wings. He shows up in the post season, and he isnt afraid to finish his check. And thats all he did, even though he should never have started the check. I think he is too young to have a reputation as a cheap player. If he has a reputation, I would be calling for his head, but he doesn't so to me it was a rookie mistake. Tootoo is just a ***** and I would be happy to see Clowe, Bertuzzi, Moen, or the pain train kick his ass game in and game out. Let's just hope Ron Wilson tells his guys to drop the gloves.

i think itll be more of an upset if the wings beat the flames, believe it or not.

Maybe if manny was still the Red Wings goalie you could say Calgary has a chance, but both goalies can steal at least 1 game. With Kipper in net, I don't see a red wings sweep, unless its 1-0 every game.

he says it better than any of us ever could.

not sure if this has been said, but there could be a month off between games 5 and 6, fact is Detroit has a horrible time at the Pengrowth Saddledome. Calgary's biggest advantage, excluding their superior goaltending, scary defense, hard hitting forwards, iginla, Dion, and explosive offense, I would have to say is their arena and the fans that fill it up. That place will be rocking and you won't be able to hear the announcers, especially in game 6, because that means either they can win it or they can tie it. either way, its a huge game.

I don't think in any other sport's history an 8th seed was favored against a 1st seed in the 1st round of the playoffs. I love it. I think it's great for the NHL. Before, the playoffs were a joke. You knew it would be a top 3 team vs. a top 3 team. This year at least 12 teams are cup contenders and 20 teams are playoff calibre. I think it's great. If you take the record minus the division record of detroit and calgary, Detroit has 63 points and calgary has 59 points, so their 50 games against non division teams are almost even. Their record against eachother is exactly even, including GF and GA (10 and 10 for both teams). On paper, this should be a close series and I dont know why people are overwhelmingly gloomy about the red wings. IMO, every team in the west should have high expectations because anyone could win the cup.

Brodeur won his 48th game, breaking Bernie Parent's record set 30+ years I think he is by far the best goalie in the NHL today and maybe the best goalie of this era (arguments can be made for Roy and Hasek), but with the shootout instead of a tie, i wonder how meaningful this really is. i know the nhl of the 70s and the nhl today are very different, but still a record was broken.

Whether they win or lose, you cant deny this will be a hard hitting series where you have to work for every inch. As much as i didnt want the wings to play the flames, im excited because i think this will be the best series (i enjoy the hitting and great goaltending more than the fast skating 6-4 games).

There is no mistake that Brodeur's save look "easy" That has a lot to with cutting off the angle, not committing to the shot too early, being square with the shooter, and controlling rebounds. Nothing against Hasek, i dont think anyone can deny that he is either the best goalie since 1990 or the 2nd best(behind roy), but he was not fundamentally sound. He made incredible saves because he was caught out of position so many times. and again, thats taking nothing away from him, because ive seen brodeur out of position and not even attempt a save, yet hasek made a name for himself making that save. And I hear what everyone says about the SO. I think if Parent had SO than his record would be untouchable, except if Roy had SO's too. But, having said that, Brodeur did break the record under the current rules, and you can't knock him for that. And his team is NOT GOOD. They were until the lockout, but they lost two of the best defensemen in the NHL, they have poor offense outside of their top line, and despite this, they are atop the Atlantic. Brodeur deserves the Hart, IMO. Brodeur and Luongo both single-handedly won their respective divisions with teams that otherwise wouldnt be looking at a playoff spot.

as bad as the oilers are, anyone can win on any given night. All I know is, I would rather play the Avs in the 1st round, so for the 1st time since the 2001 cup finals, I'll be cheering for the Avs.

Ovechkin with 2 goals so far on the night is 2 shy from 100 of his career. I was just letting everyone know. That's impressive to have 100 goals in your first 2 seasons. it probably hasnt been done since selanne, if he even did it, i assume he did from his rookie totals. Im just too lazy to research it. oh well, talk amongst yourself.

have you ever had the girl of your dreams come up and talk to you and you either stuttered or said incoherent phrases? thats what it was like when i met the captain. like a school boy in love. and yes i am a man and i am very straight, but stevie has been known to do that to guys. Nice to meet you i'm umm...hi. Red wings fan? I saw you lift the cup. Its heavy. Yes it is. You're umm...i'm...its shiny.

i hear you. thats why i love players like yzerman, barry sanders, and ladanian tomlinson. He is about to score his 100th goal and he acts like its his first. But still, he is one of the most exciting athletes in america.

they playing field in hockey and basketball is significantly smaller than baseball and football, and football and baseball generally have outdoor arenas. that could be why they seat 2 or 3 times more than hockey and basketball. who knows?

well 90 points in the regular season and 3 assists 0 goals in the post season or 60 points in the regular season and 6 points (3 goals) in the post season (6 games) Next week, would you rather have Lang or Datsyuk in your lineup?

Wings vs. Wild Ducks. vs. Flames Canucks vs. Stars Preds vs. Sharks then round 2: Wings vs. Stars Ducks vs. Preds. Round 3: Wings vs. Preds obviously wings in the cup finals. I know its the sissy way out and its a pipe dream, but i think those are the 3 easiest teams in the west and the wings match up best against them.

It helps when you can say the Pistons are far and away favorites to win the eastern conference, the Red Wings could win another stanley this year with no shock to anyone, and the Tigers are probably world series favorites, and just making the playoffs in baseball is an acheivement. But you also can't say we are satisfied because our teams win, because the lions sell out every game. and even if we expanded this, i know u of m football sells more tickets than any other football team, msu vs. u of m set an attendance record for a hockey game. You can't deny detroit fans are great fans, but you have to admit we have been blessed with exciting teams.

Sorry if this has been said, i havent read all the posts, but.. Patrick Roy won the conn smyth trophy 3 times out of 4. the only year he didnt win it, Sakic was a mad man and scored 34 points in 22 playoff games. I judge goalies in 2 categories, Wins in general, and Wins in big games. Brodeur will retire with more wins than patrick roy could ever dream of having barring any injuries, but Patrick Roy 2 more stanely cups, 3 more conn smyths, and about 60 more playoff wins. I'd have to give that nod to Roy, as hard as it is to do such a thing.

How about "Not Again!!"

what about vs. boston Boston holding the stick - 2 min 6:23, M. Sturm Detroit hooking - 2 min 6:23, R. Lang Boston hooking - 2 min 10:49, A. Ward Detroit diving - 2 min 10:49, T. Holmstrom Boston roughing - 2 min 16:34, T. Thomas served by B. Bochenski Detroit slashing - 2 min 16:34, K. Calder The wings should have had 3 powerplays on those occasions, and that diving penalty may have cost them the game, even though they looked pathetic, but it was 2-2 at that point and instead of a powerplay, boston scores on a 4 on 4 and it all went down hill from there. Note: a lot of this perception could have a lot to do with our bias.

thanks aflac. I'm listening to Mike and Terry go off on basically how horrible bettman is and now i can see why. Thank you twice, actually, because I was upset i missed this.

This wasn't classified as a misconduct penalty. It was intent to injure. The box score per yahoo says NY Islanders tripping - 2 min 1:32, M. Satan NY Islanders hooking - 2 min 7:09, T. Poti NY Islanders attempt to injure - 10 min 13:29, C. Simon served by A. Hilbert NY Rangers hooking - 2 min 17:18, M. Rozsival There is no unsportsmanlike, or any other penalty for that matter, that would cause the gwg to be scored on the ensuing powerplay. This is why i am confused.