Cern 0 Report post Posted October 24, 2009 (edited) Looking at the standings, we're only 3 pts out of first and have a game in hand. A couple straight wins, and everyone will feel better. This. Yeah there are people arguing stuff like 'if it was the playoffs now we wouldn't be in' but the fact of the matter is that the playoffs AREN'T now. It's an 82-game season, it by nature is going to allow a bit of wiggle room for the occasional downturn, particularly when all teams experience them. All we need is a string of a few solid games to get back into contention. My only genuine worry is with goaltenting atm. Oz just needs to start playing 60 minutes instead of the first 50, Howard is more problematic but he hasn't played nearly enough to produce a decent assessment - though I'd keep a tight leash on him. Edited October 24, 2009 by Cern Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
gcom007 1,465 Report post Posted October 24, 2009 This. Yeah there are people arguing stuff like 'if it was the playoffs now we wouldn't be in' but the fact of the matter is that the playoffs AREN'T now. It's an 82-game season, it by nature is going to allow a bit of wiggle room for the occasional downturn, particularly when all teams experience them. All we need is a string of a few solid games to get back into contention. My only genuine worry is with goaltenting atm. Oz just needs to start playing 60 minutes instead of the first 50, Howard is more problematic but he hasn't played nearly enough to produce a decent assessment - though I'd keep a tight leash on him. I would say Osgood actually played a solid 60 minutes last night. He had no team in front of him for the last 5 minutes of that game and it's only because of Osgood's play that we didn't lose that game in regulation. People are overreacting about the overtime goal in this instance. Osgood's been significantly better so far this year between the pipes compared to last year and he's only bound to improve as the season goes on and he gets into more of a groove. What's all the more encouraging in saying that is that he's playing better despite the fact that once again, the defense is doing next to nothing to help him out. Osgood can't do it all and ANY goalie in this league is bound to let in 1 goal a game they really want back. Everyone makes mistakes and goalies, ALL OF THEM, are no exception. Their mistakes are simply more visible than the mistakes of skaters and sure, that sucks, but as a standard, I give every goalie an ugly goal a game without question. They happen to everyone. Osgood's had his at inopportune times, but he's been outstanding plenty of other times despite having little to no help on defense. Again, he's already playing much better than he was last season, it's just he's not getting any help. Hell, the defense, again, just like last year, scares me far more than Osgood. I think we'll be in a lot better shape when we get Lilja back and don't have to rely on Lebda so heavily. If we make a trade and/or a coaching change on the D, we'll be in even better shape. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Miss Wing Queen 154 Report post Posted October 24, 2009 Other than some of our first few games, Ozzie has increasing been stepping up and looking more consistent. For all those that are saying his play has been terrible because he has let in 2 to 3 goals a night, first, remember back to February and March of last year when we played Nashville and Columbus. In both cases, Ozzie was on the ice for most of the night, and we lost to Nashville 0-8 and Columbus 2-8. To me, THAT is called being terrible, not how he is playing now with the exception of the game against Buffalo. And for the game against the Coyotes, a case can be made that all three goals were just bad luck. The first he blocked, and in every other circumstance, the puck would have deflected off him and up past the goal into the netting, but instead it didn't get high enough or far away enough and they scored. The second, aside from a very poor defense move in front of him, should have been waived off because the puck was out of sight before he was PUSHED into the net with the puck. The third, was bad luck at its best--blame how his stick caught and redirected the puck or the fact that it didn't deflect a few more inches to the outside of the net. Give the guy a break. He's made some terrific saves--AO against Washington and quite a few Thursday night during the first and second period, but especially in the last 3 minutes of the game to force overtime, as well as many other times in at least our last 4-5 games. It' not fair that when any other player on our team has ups and downs, people say that they are just going through a rough patch. But if it's Ozzie, it's not deemed a rough patch but instead negates all the previous years he has played like the future HOF goalie he is, and they call him the worst goalie in the world and start calling for his head. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SouthernWingsFan 854 Report post Posted October 24, 2009 I'm not inferring that we're bound to have another epic, record-setting regular season. It's a tougher league and we're not as good this year as we've been in the past. However, the bottom line is that all too often, October doesn't mean s***. If it was '95/'96 you can bet that LGW's would be flipping a s*** if it existed just like it is this year. The reality is, it's all for naught by the time things really shake down. People need to relax and lay off the panic. NO! THIS MAKES TOO MUCH SENSE! STOP MAKING SO MUCH SENSE!!! I WANT TO PANIC DAMN IT!!!!! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
talex 1 Report post Posted October 24, 2009 The Wings still have a lot of great players, who knows how the season will wind up. I certainly do not blame the players. You want to blame anyone, blame the NHL. It is tough being a fan and know that your team did not field the best roster the orginization would have because the league set limits on what the owner / team could do. I realize the cap is what it is and every team has to play by it, but it does not change the fact that the Wings could not field the team they would have liked to, they can do little to replace a fallen star player so it's hard to blame the team, blame the league. I know I personally have lost a lot of interest in Hockey in general since the product I saw in last years finals (no not saying the Wings were robbed, just willy nilly calls and floating rules etc made it less than it could and should have been), add to that the cap and well, for me it is just the league I blame. Economy stays bad and it will only get worse if they lower the cap, so get used to it. For all those who are going to say I am just a fair weather fan, fine I can accept that, I stood by for many, many years pre '97 and did not feel this way, and I suppose to many that does not count and I cannot help the way I feel about it, between what I saw last year in the finals and the cap, my interest has dropped to the point I did not get center ice this year and won't be, did not purchase a ticket pack and I won't be, did not get my annual jersey... I am not deliberately punishing anything either, it's just I do not have the same interest watching my team struggle and knowing had the leaugue not put limits on the front office things would most likely be different, in other words I know that the prodiuct the Wings are putting on the ice is not the best one they could and would have offered up, hard to blame them for it, they still did a hell of a job considering. I will watch some of the free games on tv and probably go to a game or 2 but that will be about it, this is the new NHL and I am a new type of NHL fan, former fanatic now a casual observer and I don't fault the Wings for it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
