Drake_Marcus

No idea what this statement has to do with the rest of your post, or whether you actually believe what you wrote makes sense in relation to the original post. But I'll be sure to keep my eye out for this Drake Markus character you speak of.

What team doesn't in this situation? Success attracts fair-weather fans, there's nothing we can do about that other than ridicule the worst of them.

But none of that caused the Wings to come out so slow and phone it in for 2 periods- they did that on their own. Nothing the refs did forced Z, Franzen or Cleary not to bury the puck on their best opportunities. I find Gill's constant interference as annoying as anybody. Same goes for the non-call on that blatant interference on Lids that directly led to a goal. But again, those things don't change the fact that the Wings had plenty of really great opportunities to put the game away last night only to flub them. If anything I'd say the number one outside factor that hurt the Wings last night was the terrible ice conditions. The bouncing pucks caused by the ice screwed Zetterberg over on not one but two great passes from Dats.

People seem to be a bit confused about what statistics are supposed to do. You can cavalierly shout that 'stats don't mean s***', fine- probabilistic outcomes don't require your belief to remain valid. People here seem to have a hard time telling the difference between a person using statistics in a discussion and a bad fortune teller. Let me illustrate my point with an example: Your odds of being hit by lightning in any given year are 1 in 700,000. What that means: The average person that lives through a year of average situations is highly unlikely to be hit by lightning. What morons think it means: "I stand around in a field holding a copper rod in a storm with relative impunity". Or: "Screw you people who paid attention in math class- I'm in control of my own destiny, stop trying to tell me I'll be hit with lightning." Why that last part is retarded: No one is saying you are never likely to be hit by lightning. Statistics aren't a crystal f***in' ball. You modify the likelihood of something happening with every action you take- you're not being told what will happen by a person who mentions a statistic. That lightning statistic isn't valid for people who sit at the top of an isolated tower, it isn't valid for that one guy with a metal plate in his head and a love of standing in open fields. That stat is valid for the average person in any year long period. Nothing more, nothing less. The onus is on you to use your intellect to interpret the meaning and validity of a particular stat in your situation. Honestly here people. This gleeful ignorance thing is ridiculous. The original poster simply pointed out that no one has won the cup in game 7 on the road in quite some time. Cool. That speaks to the difficulty in winning an elimination game on the road, especially when both teams stand to be eliminated if they lose that game. Being the home team is always an advantage. No one is saying it guarantees or predicts anything. This is simply meant to make people feel a bit more confident- based only on who is playing in their home rink, the situation is more favourable for the Wings. There are many, many other factors involved- this statistic doesn't claim to cover anything other than home rink advantage. Again- it's up to you to read the stat and interpret it's validity.

Staal: Big, strong shut-down centre with great face-off skill (usually, not so much lately) and lots of scoring upside? Yes please.

It's physics man- his elbow rode up on the shoulder pads. Physics... like ask Pronger and s***. Word.

Thanks boss

Crosby is jealous of Zetterberg's smokin' hot Swedish wife. Hell, a lot of people are jealous of Zetterberg's smokin' hot Swedish wife!

Really? Everyone has their own persecution complex, but Cleary fans?!? The Cleary hating community would barely fill a smart car.

I'm not so sure. I agree that staying with that line is going to create tons of offensive pressure on the Pens, but saying that it's a no brainer to stick with is in game 6 is a bit much. If Malkin and Crosby are kept together on one superline, absolutely counter with Z-D-C. But remember that the Pens have last change in game 6. If they split up Crosby and Malkin, having Zetterberg and Datsyuk on seperate lines gives Babcock a much, much, much better capacity to match lines. Having Zetterberg freely shift to match himself against Crosby, regardless of what linemates that puts Z out with, worked really well in game 3. This fell apart in game 4, but I chalk that up to Zetterberg's relative level of exhaustion after his 24 min performance in game 3, and more importantly- the overall garbage play of the Wings in game 4. If Dats can do the same thing to Malkin that Zetterberg did to Crosby in the first 3 games we can hopefully minimize Malkin. Remember that Datsyuk gets another 2 days of rest between now and then, and he already looks much better than he has since the regular season. Given Filppula, Cleary, Hudler, Hossa and Franzen's contributions tonight, we should feel confident that the Wings can out score the 10 forwards on Pittsburgh's roster not named Crosby or Malkin. But hey, this is an elimination game for the Pens, anything can happen, any player can be a hero. Before Filppula's offensive explosion in these playoffs I'd argue that point, but so far we've seen a new Filppula- he's a Finnish hockey player who suddenly has some finish. I'm loving the new, more confident Filppula!

You're right. Thanks. Not really. Any clutching or interference you think you see is negated by the fact that Gill's top 10 moves involve clutching and grabbing. I disagree. I have no such illusions, this is a series between two great teams- either one can win in either building if they play well enough. Of course it's worth noting that people who believe the Pens can't win in Detroit are more grounded in reality than those who believe the Wings can't win in Pittsburgh. Pens in Detroit: 0 for 3 Wings in Pittsburgh: 0 for 2 As the Detroit Lions would tell you- the number after the "0 for" is pretty important. You're right in thinking all bets are off if this series goes to 7 games. That's why every Detroit fan in their right mind is praying the Wings and Pens play game 6 like they did game 5.

It'd be fantastic, but remember- 15 wins doesn't get you a cup. I'll reserve the supreme confidence for the parade (knock on wood).

ilmickeyli took my word, so I'll say: Wings 'cause that's what Red Wings hockey looks like and it's the first time they've played Wings hockey this series.

Much more balanced, but I'd keep Filppula as the second line centre to help stay competitive on face-offs, same goes with keeping Helm on the third: Datsyuk/Zetterberg/Holmstrom Franzen/Filppula/Hossa Cleary/Helm/Hudler Maltby/Draper/Samuelsson

If Malkin and Crosby are playing together: Datsyuk-Zetterberg-Holmstrom (switch for Cleary if Holmer doesn't get a 'boost' from this) Hossa-Filppula-Franzen Hudler-Helm-Cleary Abdelkader-Draper-Samuelsson (I know, I'm advocating dropping Leino, who I like, but Abs will come out harder after the sit) Lidstrom-Rafalski (possibly switch for Ericsson if Rafalski isn't playing like himself) Kronwall-Stuart Ericsson-Lebda Or, if Malkin and Crosby are split and Babs feels like some more adventurous D pairings: Franzen-Zetterberg-Cleary Hossa-Datsyuk-Filppula Hudler-Helm-Samuelsson Abdelkader-Draper-Holmstrom (a very defensively unbalanced line, but we have last change, so shouldn't be too killer) Lidstrom-Stuart Kronwall-Ericsson Rafalski-Lebda (the tiny pairing, but again- last change) Those defensive pairings are odd, but maybe keeping Lids and Stewie together all game will make them more comfortable on the PK, it's not like the PK can get worse!

That moment isn't really a series turning point in and of itself. It's only really a turning point if the Wings end up losing to the Pens and people start looking back to see where the tide turned, but the goal by Staal isn't really going to effect the Wings tomorrow. Know what I mean? It's more a road sign than it is a fork in the road. I guess. The pressure is on both teams really. The score is tied 2-2 right now- tomorrow is really a 'game 7' atmosphere for both of them. The Wings will feel more confident at home, though. For the Pens, knowing they're going home next game is a cold comfort if they're down 3-2. And again, Pens fans have to count on the Wings going on a significant losing streak here- they've already s*** the bed two games in a row, logic says they're due to bounce back and give a more dominant effort tomorrow. A veteran team like the Wings has seen this stuff before and so far they've always come out guns blazing when their backs were against the wall... I agree 100%. It's been a nerve wracking series to watch, but definitely exciting. Sid wasn't in a slump as much as he was being dogged by a Selke caliber forward every second of the game. Last night the match-ups were in Sids favour and he got away from a Zetterberg that was tired from his 24 min game 3 performance. Tomorrow the match-ups won't be so kind to the Pens.

Really? You think the players didn't rank their peers fairly!?! In a survey of half the friggin' league that kind of bias wouldn't make sense. These are professional athletes, I have a hard time believing that they all have a juvenile hatred of Crosby. Crosby won the Pearson after his season of diving and complaining, so that just proves that the players aren't holding that against him in a vote on who's the best player. Ever since his first few seasons, Crosby hasn't really been terrible for diving nor has he been as much of a complainer... to an extent that's a reputation that stuck with him even when he stopped deserving it. Dude- there's no NHL wide conspiracy against Crosby amongst his fellow players- that's as absurd as the Flyers fans that though the refs threw the series between your team and theirs.

You're absolutely crazy to put 08-09 Ovechkin below 08-09 Iginla, and same goes for putting Iginla and Parise above Datsyuk. Dats has been injured the entire playoff run- not just his foot... something was wrong with him going back to the last few regular season games- his shot and stick handling haven't looked right since then. It boggles my mind that you failed to include a guy who walked out of the regular season nominated for the Hart, Pearson, Selke and Byng. Based on the 08-09 regular season (so I'm ranking as if I were voting on an award): 1. Ovechkin (goals scored and most importantly- game winning goals scored) 2. Datsyuk (top 4 in offense, number 1 in defense, when you scale his PP and 5-on-5 time up to Malkin, Crosby or Ovechkin's, Datsyuk ends up being the top scorer, go ahead- calculate it for yourself, I did) 3. Malkin (coudn't carry the Pens over 500 when Gonchar was down, it was really Gonchar that saved their season) 4. Crosby 5. Parise Iginla's year just wasn't great. And I can't get over the people who think he's a "complete player". Being able to score, fight and hit doesn't mean you're "complete", being excellent at scoring AND not being scored on makes you complete (in other words- you're proficient in both facets of hockey- offense and defense). Edit: (Torry) Spelling

Penguins fans that believe Datsyuk will hurt the Wings more than help them are really underestimating a guy who is currently nominated for the Hart, Person, Selke and Byng. Even if Datsyuk's not 100%, his defensive and offensive contribution will be well above the level of the player he's replacing in the line-up. He's been injured all playoffs, and yeah his numbers haven't been good, but if you watched all the Wings' playoff games so far you'd know he's been our best penalty killer not named Nick (yes, that includes Zetterberg, who could be argued was the equal of Pavel in penalty killing but was really just a hair less effective than Pav on the PK).

The thing is that the best eidence that he's returning is coming from observation, not just listening to the company line. Before they said he was a game-time decision and people would report he couldn't skate properly and he was limping. Now they say he's ready or at least 95% ready to return and people are reporting that he's skating well, participating in full contact drills, walking normally, laughing and joking with reporters and even staying after practice to push his legs harder in anticipation of playing in a game.

Given that Sidney is now out of the bottle, there's no reason not to switch Z to the more potent scorer- Malkin. That being said, I'm sure Z has a better idea of who he's better at shadowing. He seems to have some good anti-chemistry with Crosby so who knows that Babs will do.

Wings: --> Turn over the puck at least a half dozen times each period. --> Fail to maintain pressure in the Pens zone in all but a handful of cases (the start of the 3rd being a good example of what should've happened all game) --> Wings get nearly two full powerplays in a row to add the nail in the birds' coffin. They fail. --> Left Ralfalski and Lidstrom out on the PP for about 30seconds too long (f*** that makes me mad- the Wings always emphasize short, effective shifts), tired Rafalski gets beat by Staal. Osgood the weak Staal goal in (although he shouldn't have been in that situation anyway). Tables are completely flipped and we fail to recover. --> Wings display the pathetic PK we've come to expect this season and especially this post season. --> Wings fail to capitalize on their chances. --> Penguins clog up the middle of their zone, throwing tons of men in front of the net- lateral passes are very tough to make except along the blueline. Solution: shoot from the point and shoot often. Wings Solution: keep playing like normal and let them break up your offensive pressure and get an odd man rush going the other way. Honestly, the Wings better feel pretty f***in' embarrassed right now. I can't believe they let the Pens get their confidence back. Now all the Pens feel like they can score, win and have their mojo back. Us? We look like f***in' amateur hour out there. These last two games have to be the worst 120 mins I've seen the Wings play all postseason. I'm just praying Babs can slap them in the face and make them play like the Detroit Red Wings.

Haha. DuckTales a woo woo doodie doodie do do doodie doodie do do DuckTales a woo woo!

This is 100% the reason why we lost on Tuesday.

Guys, we're not going to beat the Pitts fans in a "my guys can score more than yours" contest.