Why the Wings will lose this series

[Slayergirl78 0]

Pittsburgh is giving it everything they have to even attempt to hang with the Wings. Wings are still winning.

THIS. Sure they may be the Eastern Con. champs 2 years in a row but they are still nowhere near being in the same league as the Wings and until they can reach that level they will continue to lose. Just my 2 cents.

[Konnan511 1,736]

:obligatory you're wrong post:

[10 Minute Misconduct 104]

Like Pierre LeBrun said. The Pens are done like dinner.

[NomadFromKazoo 42]

after watching the first two games of this series and taking into account some other factors, I am extremely concerned that we will lose this series in 6 or 7 games despite being up 2-0

Did you watch them?

But in the spirit of your post, oh my God, oh my God, the sky is falling! We're SCREWED! The world is ending, our chickens are coming home to roost, we're losers, we're injured, we're tired, our goaltending sucks and so does our offense and defense. We're old and decrepit, no one's buying our cars, we're unemployed, we have no power play, we can't stop their power play, Crosby and Malkin are hockey Gods and we can't stop them, it's OVER, we've run aground, we've run ashore, the boat is sinking, the rats are jumping ship.

[Broken 16 381]

Not having last change is not the end of the world. Worst case scenario... Helm is covering Crosby for a few seconds. I can live with that.

[IrishWing19 6]

So with this in mind, I truly believe the Pens will take the next two games bringing it back to Detroit tied 2-2 with all the momentum. Our guys will be more exhausted then theirs at this point given injuries and the fact that our top D-man and guys like Zetterberg are actually playing more minutes than their top guys (this will begin to affect us immensely as this series roles on).

Game 1: Lidstrom logged 24:07, Zetterberg logged 22:48, Hossa 19:40

Gonchar logged 23:21, Crosby 22:35, Malkin 23:14

Game 2: Lidstrom 23:20, Zetterberg 23:18, Hossa 18:15

Gonchar 23:14, Crosby 19:36, Malkin 20:23

Please don't make stuff up. The only reason Z logs a slightly larger about of time is because he's on the PK.

[greenrebellion 415]

Game 1: Lidstrom logged 24:07, Zetterberg logged 22:48, Hossa 19:40

Gonchar logged 23:21, Crosby 22:35, Malkin 23:14

Game 2: Lidstrom 23:20, Zetterberg 23:18, Hossa 18:15

Gonchar 23:14, Crosby 19:36, Malkin 20:23

Please don't make stuff up. The only reason Z logs a slightly larger about of time is because he's on the PK.

Put Stuart in there and compare to their second D, then you'll start to get the picture.

[IrishWing19 6]

OK, Stuart logged 23, Eaton logged 21 in game 2. The Pens aren't as concerned about match-ups as Detroit, also worth noting that they rolled 7 D in the first game. Lidstrom, Kronwall and Rafalski's ice time are actually down on the regular season and Stuart's is up, it's not a big deal, they're professionals, they can handle it, stop worrying and enjoy the rest of the series.

[ZETTERBERGPWN 2]

Pierre?

LOL

[daniel1 32]

Hey, this guy said some stuff that wasn't all rah-rah about the Wings!

Get out all those troll signs guys!

The nerve!

It's a Wings board dumbass. We're supposed to rah-rah the Wings. Just because the Pens boards are full of morons and idiots that doesn't mean you HAVE to come over here and try to dampen our enthusiasm over winning the Cup again this year. If you don't like what's being said here then go elsewhere. Maybe you should spend your time whining to Cindy and Evelyn about how much money they make compared with the # of points they're putting up in this series so far. For that kind of dough you could just pay off the NHL to probably GIVE you the cup, maybe you could convince them to change their whole playoff schedule to give you an advantage and that the rules don't apply to your players if they break them and... oh wait a minute, I see you've already done this, continue on good sir, and may your bribery bring you nothing but more tears from Cindy and Evelyn as we skate past them with the Cup (while Hossa shakes all your ******* hands).

[87to71 0]

When the Wings were busy getting knocked out of the playoffs early against the Ducks, Flames and Oilers, a lot of people thought they were "unlucky," too. Got a lot of shots on goal, played in the other team's end all game long, then caught a "bad break" or "unlucky bounce" and the other team scored the winning goal.

The truth is that there's a reason why some teams are outshot and their goalie seems to stand on his head and they win in the playoffs. Keeping the other team away from the dangerous areas of the ice will lead to some not-so-dangerous shots on goal. Protecting a lead by just chipping the puck out instead of taking chances by pinching with the defense will inflate the other teams shot totals. Those things also make the goalie's save percentage look good.

But those things also win playoff games. The Wings were outshooting Pittsburgh after two periods last night. They sat back in the 3rd with the lead. Look at Anaheim in the 2nd round this year. They did many of the same things to Detroit that Detroit is now doing to Pittsburgh. It was NOT luck that the Ducks hung around in that series. They execute that style of hockey to perfection and it led to an upset of the 1 seed and a series against the defending champs that came down to the last 3 minutes of game 7.

My point is that teams have to find a way to win when they're not at their best. Detroit has done that in games 1 and 2. They're beat up and have had a gruelling road to the Final. If Pittsburgh had to go through Anaheim, the roles might be reversed. If Pittsburgh could even get through Anaheim, that is.

The Pens are playing very good hockey. They controlled enough of the ice that either game could have gone either way. But the Wings are making the most of their chances, and that's what teams did to Detroit a few years ago. I, for one, find being on the other side of that equation pretty sweet.

If you are the Pens, you make this series in to the roughest series you can possibly make it and get the Wings off their game. FINISH EVERY CHECK. CLUB HOLMSTROM WHEN HE IS IN CREASE AREA. GET TRAFFIC IN FRONT OF OSGOOD. Change the dynamics here and have Warrior mentality. You want the Cup, GO GET THE CUP.

Anaheim did that to Detroit in their cup year. Pens need to batter the Red Wings same way.

[robat 13]

tl;dr

[henrik40 76]

Why why why???

GO WINGS!

[Doc Holiday 0]

Put Stuart in there and compare to their second D, then you'll start to get the picture.

But you were talking about the Wings top D and the Penguins top players....

[Broken 16 381]

If you are the Pens, you make this series in to the roughest series you can possibly make it and get the Wings off their game. FINISH EVERY CHECK. CLUB HOLMSTROM WHEN HE IS IN CREASE AREA. GET TRAFFIC IN FRONT OF OSGOOD. Change the dynamics here and have Warrior mentality. You want the Cup, GO GET THE CUP.

Anaheim did that to Detroit in their cup year. Pens need to batter the Red Wings same way.

That looks good on paper... but not every team can just decide, out of the blue, to change their style in order to beat the Wings. The Penguins don't have the roster to just up and decide to be the next Anaheim. The only chance your team has is to beat the Wings in a run and gun game and try to pin them in the offensive zone for huge stretches. Good luck.

Everyone keeps saying, even Wings fans, that Pittsburgh outplayed the Wings. Why? Because they had a few scoring chances? I didn't see that at all. I saw Pittsburgh with a few good chances and a bunch low percentage chances. I saw Detroit basically entering the offensive zone like they were walking a dog. I'm sorry, but all this talk about how Pittsburgh "has learned what it takes" is just garbage. I saw a team that couldn't put away an exhausted, injury ridden team even after the league totally hosed the Wings by bumping the schedule back and putting in a back to back for the first two games. Penguins should have pounced and they choked instead and the so-called SUPERSTARS looked extremely normal.

And Malkin... what the hell was that? He started throwing punches before he even dropped his stick! The was frustration personified.

Edited June 2, 2009 by Broken 16

[Sneaky Pete 0]

The Wings will pick the Pens apart if they keep allowing a huge body to camp in the crease looking for redirects and rebounds.

[Doc Holiday 0]

That looks good on paper... but not every team can just decide, out of the blue, to change their style in order to beat the Wings. The Penguins don't have the roster to just up and decide to be the next Anaheim. The only chance your team has is to beat the Wings in a run and gun game and try to pin them in the offensive zone for huge stretches. Good luck.

The toughness of the series isn't even what made it to seven.

It was a dominant first line (dominant against any line) and smothering team defense.

The Penguins have neither.

[Broken 16 381]

The toughness of the series isn't even what made it to seven.

It was a dominant first line (dominant against any line) and smothering team defense.

The Penguins have neither.

Exactly. I don't want to sound like too much of a homer, I try to be objective as possible. But the Ducks had me WAY, WAY, WAY more scared. Pittsburgh is hanging by a thread right now. The Malkin fight says it all. That wasn't a "I'm gonna pump my team up" fight... it was a total hissy fit because they know they are one game away from being completely owned.

Good point on Getz too. Gimme that guy ANY DAY over Malkin or Crosby. M and C like to act like tough guys and they definately have skill, but Getz owns both of them.

Edited June 2, 2009 by Broken 16

[Drake_Marcus 890]

Last game, TWO people from Grand Rapids scored, short our top setup guy.

I think......I do dare say......we're doing fine

Ericsson shouldn't count as a GR person at this point. He's played ~30 straight games as a Red Wing and he's considered a permanent member of the Wings' top 6 d-men at this point.

The crazy thing is how well Ericsson is playing after only 30 games as an NHL player. TSN, CBC, NBC, everyone is raving about how Ericsson's played in the playoffs. I'm really excited to see him play a full season next year. He should have an impressive rookie season given that he's already adjusted to the NHL game, something that usually takes rookies half a season if they're a quick learner and a few seasons if they're not.

[Electrophile 3,554]

We have to win 2 of the next 5. Pittsburgh has to win 4 of the next 5. Who has the better odds? I'm not saying we're going to sweep them because they're coming out for bear tomorrow night, but we have a pretty good chance to win in 5.

[87to71 0]

That looks good on paper... but not every team can just decide, out of the blue, to change their style in order to beat the Wings. The Penguins don't have the roster to just up and decide to be the next Anaheim. The only chance your team has is to beat the Wings in a run and gun game and try to pin them in the offensive zone for huge stretches. Good luck.

Everyone keeps saying, even Wings fans, that Pittsburgh outplayed the Wings. Why? Because they had a few scoring chances? I didn't see that at all. I saw Pittsburgh with a few good chances and a bunch low percentage chances. I saw Detroit basically entering the offensive zone like they were walking a dog. I'm sorry, but all this talk about how Pittsburgh "has learned what it takes" is just garbage. I saw a team that couldn't put away an exhausted, injury ridden team even after the league totally hosed the Wings by bumping the schedule back and putting in a back to back for the first two games. Penguins should have pounced and they choked instead and the so-called SUPERSTARS looked extremely normal.

I agree this back to back schedule did favor the Pens and I for one thought they would at least come away with a split and they just didnt get it done. You gotta give credit to the Wings for finding a way to win 2 games without Datsyuk and hold serve on home-ice. As for your assessment about the Wings just entering the Pens zone all of the time and the Pens havent learned what it takes Im not sure I agree with both of those statements. I think both teams have had spurts in both games where they have carried the play for a period or a good 10-15 minutes and it's gone back and forth. Babcock pointed this out after the game at his press conference. Keep in mind the Red Wings were held without a shot for the last ten minutes of the first period and the first few minutes of the 2nd. I wouldnt call that just entering the Pens zone like they were walking a dog. You gotta give the Pens a little bit of credit there for taking over the last half of the first period and totally shuting down the Wings.

Osgood while he has been lucky having shots ring off the posts such as Guerin's and Crosby's he has also stepped up and made some key saves when he has needed too. He stopped Fedotenko in the first period last night when he had a clear shot to the net, he made a save on Malkin after the Wings turned the puck over in their own zone early on in the 2nd that would have made it 2-0 Pens. And also stopped Malkin on Saturday night in Game 1 when he had a clear breakaway that would have given the Pens a 2-1 lead. So while the Red Wings have won the first 2 games and have gotten the timely goals and have done what they have needed to do, I still think these two teams are very close to being evenly matched. We will see what happens tomorrow night with the change of venue and if it can turn this series around for the Penguins...

[BAFGA 0]

Hey, this guy said some stuff that wasn't all rah-rah about the Wings!

Get out all those troll signs guys!

The nerve!

Uh, this is a Wings board, I.T.G..... What did you expect?

I echo everyone elses feelings about your presence here.

[C-TownWing 0]

So with this in mind, I truly believe the Pens will take the next two games bringing it back to Detroit tied 2-2 with all the momentum...And if they can make it 2-2, they'll have the momentum, the energy, and they'll be able to smell the trophy at that point and I believe they'll have that extra bit of desperation to put them over the edge in a six or seven game series.

So the Pens have all the momentum because they win 2 straight (hypothetically) but we don't have any momentum at all from winning two straight? Got it. One thing you should probably have picked up by now is that the Wings are less susceptible to emotional and momentum changes than just about anyone. The Pens? Yes, they've learned since last year, but I still see some panic with them. They almost sound like they're trying to convince themselves they're still in it. You might read it as confidence and that's cool, but I don't.

A couple other points:

1. I said this in another thread, but have we already forgotton how heavily the deck was stacked against us? You know, the thing we were bitching about all last week? We had no right to win both of those games, yet we played the Eastern Conference champs (and one of the hottest teams as well) evenly (yes, evenly) and gutted out 2 Ws. We were far from our best and will only get stronger as the series goes on. Let's not forget that the Pens are playing in these games too and we have more depth.

2. I'm not overly concerned about last change. Z's done a fantastic job and rightly gets a lot of credit for it, but really, it's been a full team and coaching effort on Crosby. We've rightly figured out that guys like Guerin and Kunitz are quality players, but at the same time, only as good as Crosby makes them look. So we're smothering him every single time in, sometimes with 3 guys. Our 2nd D pair is as good as most teams' 1sts, and we don't have a single forward on the team that doesn't put out on the backcheck. Where's the matchup they're going to exploit at will? I don't see it.

3. Osgood. Can you see him letting 3-4 per game (what they'll need to win) past him after how well he's played all playoffs? I can't.

[SDavis35 140]

That looks good on paper... but not every team can just decide, out of the blue, to change their style in order to beat the Wings. The Penguins don't have the roster to just up and decide to be the next Anaheim. The only chance your team has is to beat the Wings in a run and gun game and try to pin them in the offensive zone for huge stretches. Good luck.

Everyone keeps saying, even Wings fans, that Pittsburgh outplayed the Wings. Why? Because they had a few scoring chances? I didn't see that at all. I saw Pittsburgh with a few good chances and a bunch low percentage chances. I saw Detroit basically entering the offensive zone like they were walking a dog. I'm sorry, but all this talk about how Pittsburgh "has learned what it takes" is just garbage. I saw a team that couldn't put away an exhausted, injury ridden team even after the league totally hosed the Wings by bumping the schedule back and putting in a back to back for the first two games. Penguins should have pounced and they choked instead and the so-called SUPERSTARS looked extremely normal.

And Malkin... what the hell was that? He started throwing punches before he even dropped his stick! The was frustration personified.

Not so sure the "wings got hosed by the schedule" really has any merit. Pens had to deal with 7 game series in round 2 and only had one more day of rest prior to this series. Yea we're injured and all, but we ARE the best team in the league. Once Dats comes back, assuming he's truly healthy, look out. If there's anything to blame, its the injury bug flying around our boys. As for the rest of the post, I completely agree.

[FLWINGSFAN4013 5]

who puts the most pucks in the net wins, we are up 2-0 and 2 games from winning, while they are 4 games from winning and we have 6 goals to their 2.