28 replies to this topic

[RainingBlood]

I see this rivalry getting more and more intense.

[ComradeWasabi]

I don't think so, for a few reasons:

1) No inciting incident like Lemieux's hit on Draper.
2) The Wings aren't fighters anymore. There's nobody on the roster who will duke it out with the Ducks goons anymore, which means it's pretty much a one-sided rivalry now. It's hard for a rivalry to get really heated and bloody when the power play is your enforcer.

For the record, I love the Wings' style of play and I don't believe they need to change and add fighters to the roster. Just saying, a power play can't make Claude Lemieux turtle.

[Fingercots]

I do have the feeling that every time the Ducks and Wings meet in the playoffs over the next few years it's going to be a tough series. I would rather see the Ducks lose to another top team and have the Wings play the winner of that series.

[RainingBlood]

The reason I say this is because If****** hate the Ducks. My hatred for the Ducks rides allmost as deep as the hatred for the AVS. Im not putting the 2 rivalries against each other. I just see the game with the Ducks getting more intense. The mini fights after game 6 is starting to mek me think this a little bit.

[Rocket Queen 30]

Doubtful, but these teams really do clash pretty well and there's a bit of good history. I don't think any other team will have that intense rivalry with Detroit that Colorado had.. except maybe the Hawks.

[Chris L]

No. But the Ducks sure think so. Just like the Hawks. Imagining a rivalry that isn't there.

[Vincanni]

I see a growing rivalry and feel Anaheim can easily survive a shift of leaders with the current youth on their roster even after their current vets retire or sign elsewhere, but at best its not going to be even half the rivalry we had with Colorado.

[Rocket Queen 30]

No. But the Ducks sure think so. Just like the Hawks. Imagining a rivalry that isn't there.

I disagree.. the Hawks are division rivals and have always played Detroit tough, even when they stunk. They have a storied history and while its not the same kind of rivalry Detroit had with Colorado it's still a rivalry. More history.. less hatred. Fun stuff!

[Echolalia]

They aren't becoming the new Avalanche, because the level of that rivalry escalated to a world of its own, but a legitimate rivalry isn't too far from the horizon if you're uncomfortable with considering what we have with the Ducks right now a rivalry. The Ducks have pushed the Wings to their mental and physical limits, and brought the very best our team can be in terms of skill, and the Wings consistently do the same to the Ducks. There isn't a whole lot of serious brawls, but look at this last series: the Wings engaged in four fights. Nobody would have predicted that they would have gotten into four fights throughout the entire playoffs at the beginning of the April, let alone four fights in a single series. They weren't extreme Laraque-like fights, but it takes a lot to get the Wings to drop the gloves, and the Ducks succeeded in doing so four times in seven games. That's about as legit a rivalry as this generation of Wings is going to get.

[Heroes of Hockeytown]

The Wings-Avs rivalry existed in the precap era, when, for a while there, it was destined that either the Wings, Avs, or Stars were going to represent the West in the Stanley Cup Finals. The two teams twice met in back to back years, for a total of five series in seven years. Three times they met in the conference finals, acting as a de facto SCF.

The cap and passage of time (ie Roy) have ended the Avalanche's time as a dominant franchise but it's pretty hard to replicate the run those two teams put together as top teams in the NHL.

In contrast, the Wings and Ducks have met twice in three seasons two times, but only the most recent pairing has been competitive. Although the 2007 WCFs were likely a de facto SCF, the Ducks have not been nearly as dominant as the Avs were at their height. If somehow the Wings and Ducks manage to avoid being gutted by the cap and have the (mis)fortune of running into each other a couple more times in the playoffs, you might make the case, the bad blood aside, which for this era of Red Wings hockey is purely on their end.

Wings-Ducks might be the best so-called rivalry we've got now, but it's nothing compared to Wings-Avs.

[C-TownWing]

I see a growing rivalry and feel Anaheim can easily survive a shift of leaders with the current youth on their roster even after their current vets retire or sign elsewhere, but at best its not going to be even half the rivalry we had with Colorado.

I say no, because once they finish transitioning to their younger guys in a couple of years, "I hate the Ducks" will really just be "I hate Corey Perry."

[NC WINGS FAN]

I hope not!! I hate the Ducks more than I ever hated Colorado.


Unlike Anaheim, Denver is actually a good hockey city. The Ducks are just some "Mickey Mouse Franchise" no one cares about. They are nothing but a drain on the league and I hope they never ever get anywhere near the cup again.

I hope they finish dead last next year.

[Dabura]

No. The Wings and Avs had something special, something unique. The Ducks are the Wings' current WC rival, but that doesn't make them the new Avs.

Edited by Dabura, 19 May 2009 - 12:10 AM.

[Vladiator]

Well if Roy somehow finds himself as the head coach or somewhere in the Avs organization, I really think that old rivalry may be revived. Umm who were the most hated players on the Avs when that rivalry was at its peak ... yes The Turtle and Roy were at the top of that list. And who didn't root against every team that Crawford coached in the NHL?

Who can't hate Roy? Narcissistic bastard. Enjoy watching his records crumble.

Edited by Vladiator, 19 May 2009 - 12:28 AM.

[Stiffy]

Why can't we just enjoy the past for what it was and stop trying to recreate it? Sure there are COnference finals and Cup wins shared, but face it, the Avs-Wings rivalry was once in a lifetime and unique in history. It's not a pulitzer prize book, but read "Blood Feud" and also find the older Wings commemorative DVD with the top 5 Wings games that includes the turtle game and the 2002 WCF game 7 six goal in 1.5 period humiliation of Roy (following the game 6 with the epic statue of liberty save that was not a save). Do that little homework assignment and then look at any other potential rivalry and you will come up short in so many ways.

[chrisdetroit]

I do have the feeling that every time the Ducks and Wings meet in the playoffs over the next few years it's going to be a tough series. I would rather see the Ducks lose to another top team and have the Wings play the winner of that series.

If Neidemeir retires AGAIN, the Ducks are done. They have no depth so I don't see them being a force in the future. The same thing happened to the Avs. Where are they now?

[MrSandMan]

I'm with NC WING FAN, Anaheim doesn't even deserve a hockey club. They don't get much fan support and why do they need 3 teams in California? I think Kings and San Jose get more fan support, so Anaheim should be dismantled and destroyed. Oh, and I never like Emilio Estevez in Mighty Ducks. There, I said it!

[chrisdetroit]

I disagree.. the Hawks are division rivals and have always played Detroit tough, even when they stunk. They have a storied history and while its not the same kind of rivalry Detroit had with Colorado it's still a rivalry. More history.. less hatred. Fun stuff!

What are you talking about? The Wings owned the Hawks for years.

[SouthernWingsFan]

This isn't even close to becoming what was the rivalry with the Avalanche in the mid-late 90s. However, this is the Wings current main rival IMO. If Chicago make the playoffs with some consistency, I think they'll eventually overtake Anaheim on the rival list.

[betterREDthandead]

Has Anaheim retired any numbers of players that were there two seasons yet?