"the dominator"

[Offsides 21]

Well, here's how I see it.

Before the series, I noted that Hasek had the ability to drag the team through a couple of games through the series if we had to get our act together.

However, nothing has been going right for us the last couple of games -- including Dom...

But remember when we did win the Cup with Dom that he struggled in the first round, too.

This isn't one person's fault...not Dom's, not anyone. But if we don't get our entire game under control we will lose. Every year Detroit tries to blame solely the goaltender and it simply isn't true.

[wingsfan75 2]

Hey Offsides, Lang got his game back a bit last night. I thought he played his best game inthe series so far. That's a good sign.

[AtlantaHotWings 987]

2 goals game 3 on PP

2 goals game 4 on PP

0 goals game 3 on PP

0 goals game 4 on PP

Still lose by a goal I dont think its goaltending but perhaps someone best be watching video on Redbird 1 today on the way home. Plus Calgary is going down to bllock shots less chance of deflections forces the shot high etc etc.

[edicius 3,269]

Someone mentioned Dom trying to hack Iginla's head off with his stick (not seriously, of course)...am I the only one that thought that Dom was merely pointing at Iginla, basically saying to the ref, "Where the hell's the call on HIM?"

[TheDude 0]

What goals are you calling Soft? The only goal i consider 'soft', or that I thought he probably shoulda had, is the goal by Iginla in game 3. The rest he was screened or the puck was deflected. I can't think of any others. He's made excellent saves to keep us in the game. it coulda been 5-2 yesterday.

The Conroy goal was a softie. Yeah there was a slight screen on it, but it was on a bad angle from the top of the circle, and Dom should have had that one for sure. The winning goal is not a softie, but if Dom was on the top of his game he probably would have stopped that one too. In the playoffs, soft goals kill teams. The Wings just tied the game just over 2 minutes prior to the Conroy goal, and killed the momentum the Wings had when they tied the game...

BTW I am not trying to say Hasek is the sole reason the Wings lost games 3 and 4...that would be silly. Just he certaily played a big role in the losses. Also I think Hasek will rebound from his subpar play(as will the rest of the team) and lead the team to winning this series.

edit:spelling

Edited April 20, 2007 by TheDude

[wingsfan75 2]

Someone mentioned Dom trying to hack Iginla's head off with his stick (not seriously, of course)...am I the only one that thought that Dom was merely pointing at Iginla, basically saying to the ref, "Where the hell's the call on HIM?"

That's the way I saw it too. I didn't understand the call at all unless it was for diving.

[DEVILSWATERBOY 10]

Its called heart until they find a leader that will give them that aspect they will be lost, they did not play bad but they are missing that extra 10%

They need a leader that will go the extra mile that extra 10%, heart heart heart do not get me wrong I like Lids but Dom is not the Dom of old he is just an old Dom , THEY NEED DRIVE AND HEART MILES AND MILES OF HEART BECAUSE THER COULD NO TOMORROW :!:

[puckloo39 5,686]

Someone mentioned Dom trying to hack Iginla's head off with his stick (not seriously, of course)...am I the only one that thought that Dom was merely pointing at Iginla, basically saying to the ref, "Where the hell's the call on HIM?"

that's all he was doing. Life's not fair.

article from Globe and Mail

read it if you feel like it, it's a fun perspective of the Dominator. The Wings like him.

Edited April 20, 2007 by puckloo39

[wolverines9797 0]

First time poster here so I will say hello. The way I see it, last night Flames got 2 5-3 goals and 1 lucky bounce off a players leg. Dom need to get his head in the game and stop trying to draw penalties. Putting the Wings on the PP when they are 2-25 might not help anyhow. Lets see how they come out tomorrow.

[OsGOD 3]

The Conroy goal was a softie. Yeah there was a slight screen on it, but it was on a bad angle from the top of the circle, and Dom should have had that one for sure.

You do know why it went in from a bad angle don't you? Not because little ol' Conroy is that good to remote control the puck past him... But because it was twice deflected off the D-man.

[Covenant 0]

Thanks puckloo! Aww.. I love the Dominator! Now just don't let Iggy rattle you in Game 5, show us why we brought you back!

(heck, I'll even throw in an extra $450,000 if you can beat the Flames )

You do know why it went in from a bad angle don't you? Not because little ol' Conroy is that good to remote control the puck past him... But because it was twice deflected off the D-man.

No doubt OsGOD -- - how many times did they have to show the replay for us to see the deflection? Once for me! As soon as Conroy raised his hands I knew it had to have bounced off something, Dom doesn't let in Cloutier-Style goals.

[OsGOD 3]

Thanks puckloo! Aww.. I love the Dominator! Now just don't let Iggy rattle you in Game 5, show us why we brought you back!

(heck, I'll even throw in an extra $450,000 if you can beat the Flames )

No doubt OsGOD -- - how many times did they have to show the replay for us to see the deflection? Once for me! As soon as Conroy raised his hands I knew it had to have bounced off something, Dom doesn't let in Cloutier-Style goals.

Obviously not enough for the rest of the flock to comprehend

[MickMcGeough 0]

Flames fans, just thank you lucky stars you have had a mess of 5 on 3s the last two games.

Other than those you havent look good at all.

Just thank the maker and smile.

I don't know that any luck was involved in getting the 5 on 3s last night... I'll hold my thanks to the maker and thank Hasek intead for costing the Wings another goal in a tight game with his flopping around.

Otherwise though I thought Hasek played well enough to win last night. The difference was how much better the Flames PK was than the Wings PP, and the defensive play from Calgary's forwards in the last 20. Detroit really turned up the heat in the third but the Flames forced almost all the shooters to the outside and let Kipper see everything.

[tazzer82 0]

from a flames perspective, and with his antics the last time we played you guys in the regular season, thats 2 points and 1 playoff game he's cost your team. Your PP wasn't on, but you guys played a very strong game and the forcheck in the last 8 minutes or so was intense.

I guess i'm not sure what dom's trying to accomplish, other than the obvious attempt to draw a penalty. I just think someone needs to tell him when someone doesn't touch him, and he flops like a wounded baby seal, and then makes the motion of hacking iginla's neck off.. well.. nevermind.

I didn't catch the post game from babcock, did he call him out again?

I wouldn't be so quick to point at Dom and say those things, especially when Kiprusoff has been doing the exact same thing whenever there is a Wings player anywhere near him. The only difference is that the refs are calling the penalties for him, and I hope someone does actually run him over, just so he has a reason to be on the ice.

[NeverForgetMac25 483]

2 goals against in game 3 on PK

2 goals against in game 4 on PK

0 goals in game 3 on PP

0 goals in game 4 on PP

Goaltending has nothing to do with it. Establish your forecheck, which will put the Flames on their heels, thus creating PP opportunities and control of the game. Don't establish your forecheck, Wings get on their heels, and take PK's.

This is your problem.

SIdenote: AtlantaHotWings, I think you mistyped the first part of your post. I've corrected it in mine, and agree with your sentiment.

Edited April 20, 2007 by Never Forget Mac #25

[tazzer82 0]

Here's what Babs had to say on the supposed penalty to Dom:

Mike Babcock said Iginla should have gotten a penalty, too. “I saw his elbow hit him right in the forehead and that put us down five-on-three,†Babcock said. “I saw a guy get bumped and whether he dove or didn’t dive, if the guy gets bumped and elbowed in the head, that’s at least a penalty both ways. He wasn’t trying to send a message, he was just reacting. Do I like what happened? No. Could he have handled it differently? For sure.â€Â

http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article...4/1053/SPORTS05

[zaxx 0]

When I saw Dom swing his stick I thought he actually was taking a swing at Ig. I really wanted him to follow through and clip Ig in the upper body or throat. I am a bit of a sociopath but I want the Wings to get in a big fight this series. Show some spark and get the team going.

It would have been awesome for Dom to be the one to do it for them.

I know I would feel bad for Ig as he would have one hell of an injury, but man it would have been worth it....

Come on guys beat someones face in.. Bert squared off with Dion before a ref came in. Big Bert could and would have taken him!

[MickMcGeough 0]

When I saw Dom swing his stick I thought he actually was taking a swing at Ig. I really wanted him to follow through and clip Ig in the upper body or throat. I am a bit of a sociopath but I want the Wings to get in a big fight this series. Show some spark and get the team going.

Classy.

Not sure how much a suspended goaltender would help the Wings cause though.

[zaxx 0]

Classy.

Not sure how much a suspended goaltender would help the Wings cause though.

Yes the suspension would have been horrible. Still it would have been sick to see..... man I am messed in the head.

Detroit does need someone who can get in a big fight and get the team lit up. We do not really have that player and it makes comebacks very difficult. Momentum is so important.

[motorcitykid 42]

OK. We can nitpick this series to death; and our team.

To me, it's simple: when your PP and PK SUCKS - you will NOT win. You simply cannot win a series [or at the least go very far] with special teams as pathetic as ours right now.

Quit blaming Hasek. A s***ty goal happens in a series all the time. Ask Kipper. The difference is you rebound and make teams pay the price. So far our inability to score on the PP or stop the Flames on a PK is killing us.

Babcock? He continues to play Samuelsson and Lang, and has done squat to improve our special teams. I think it's time for him to take a long, hard look at making some changes. Win Game 5, yes. We're home. But keep this s*** up, and no matter if we advance - this team will not be standing here in June.

[datsyukiandeke 0]

when is Babcock going to wake up and realize that the whole "mediocre forward at the point on the power play in the playoffs" thing isn't working and hasn't worked for the wings. Last year it was Williams, this year is Samuellson. He can't hold the zone to save his life, he makes sloppy passes (though he was not the only one in Game 4), and the best he can do is waffle a lame wrister straight to kipper, which is effective, if at nothing else, heating up Kipper. Strange how Babcock can change each line 11 times during a game, but can't recognize something as glaring and fundamental as that. 2 D at the point, I don't care if its Cheli or Lilly, at least they know how to hold the zone and cycle.

I'm not about to panic about Dom in goal yet, because two of their goals were on bogus 5 on 3 situations. And how you gonna tell me that the wings get called on a carbon copy of the nothing bump on Dominator for interfering and then there turns out to be no place in the game of hockey for pointing a stick or as Mick says, "chincy" hooks and holds. The refs get caught up in the atmosphere of these loud canadian rinks and end up calling anything that gets an 'oooh' or 'aaah' from the crowd.

However, I do believe that in order for a team to be anything in the playoffs, their goalie needs to make a huge save here or there and IMO Dom hasn't done it, and he has at least 2 or 3 soft goals in his pocket in games 3 and 4.

The wings have to shake this road break down and come home hungry. Its up to Babcock to make the appropriate adjustments and the veteran players to hold their ground and stand tall. They are gonna need to take it at home Saturday if they don't want another first round disappointment.

[Spinner 6]

Ya Hasek shouldn't be acting on the ice. Just play the figging game. As for the power play...this is the first year we haven't had a Shannahan or Hull in the middle of the ice with his stick raised and ready to knock in that one-timer. When we only shoot from the blue line, we obviously are going to lessen our chances for a power play goal. Someone needs to step up with their stick raised and ready.

[motorcitykid 42]

when is Babcock going to wake up and realize that the whole "mediocre forward at the point on the power play in the playoffs" thing isn't working and hasn't worked for the wings. Last year it was Williams, this year is Samuellson. He can't hold the zone to save his life, he makes sloppy passes (though he was not the only one in Game 4), and the best he can do is waffle a lame wrister straight to kipper, which is effective, if at nothing else, heating up Kipper. Strange how Babcock can change each line 11 times during a game, but can't recognize something as glaring and fundamental as that. 2 D at the point, I don't care if its Cheli or Lilly, at least they know how to hold the zone and cycle.

I'm not about to panic about Dom in goal yet, because two of their goals were on bogus 5 on 3 situations. And how you gonna tell me that the wings get called on a carbon copy of the nothing bump on Dominator for interfering and then there turns out to be no place in the game of hockey for pointing a stick or as Mick says, "chincy" hooks and holds. The refs get caught up in the atmosphere of these loud canadian rinks and end up calling anything that gets an 'oooh' or 'aaah' from the crowd.

However, I do believe that in order for a team to be anything in the playoffs, their goalie needs to make a huge save here or there and IMO Dom hasn't done it, and he has at least 2 or 3 soft goals in his pocket in games 3 and 4.

The wings have to shake this road break down and come home hungry. Its up to Babcock to make the appropriate adjustments and the veteran players to hold their ground and stand tall. They are gonna need to take it at home Saturday if they don't want another first round disappointment.

As I read your post I became even more pissed off. Lidstrom, Chelly, Schneider, take your pick - even Markov ...why the hell is Samuelsson STILL at the point. You said it best - he can't even hold his position. Fed up isn't the word.

It wasn't long ago we were #1 or #2 in the league in BOTH PP & PK. All the time. This is something I will never get use to. It might not be Scotty on the bench or Stevie, Shanahan or lazy ass Hull out there, but I WILL NEVER get use to seeing our special teams suck this bad, and for how much longer? Over to you Babcock ...

[regwinguofmfan 0]

Huge saves?

They scored three goals last night, 2 of which were 5 0n three

they had a 5 on three goal last game, and he was hung out to dry on another goal.

Id say hes playing well enough to win, its the other 5 guys in front of him that are playing like s***.

[DaKineMaui 8]

What goals are you calling Soft? The only goal i consider 'soft', or that I thought he probably shoulda had, is the goal by Iginla in game 3. The rest he was screened or the puck was deflected. I can't think of any others. He's made excellent saves to keep us in the game. it coulda been 5-2 yesterday.

Agreed - IF there were 'soft' goals being allowed by a Wings goalkeep in the playoffs you'll see 319 threads with 40 pages of replies on the topic.

Hasek ain't the problem. Problem is that it's 2-2 with the next game being played at home. Nice problem to have I think.