982 replies to this topic

[Anijuice]

Just finished watching the 3rd period and I have to say, I couldn't disagree with the majority more about the 5 on 3. Franzen clearly cross-checked the phoenix player and Helm interfered with Hanzal.

Don't tell me this board wouldn't be blowing up if that happened to us and the refs didn't call the coyotes on it. The refs weren't perfect as always, but those were two easy calls to make.

Blinders, people, it's not hard to take them off.

[wings_fanatic]

I truly think that Babs is just resting Nick for when it matters in the playoffs... especially cuz Phoenix is trying to hit to hurt and we do NOT need further injuries... Also, we had a 4-0 lead today and it was 4-1 for quite some time which is where a lot of rest came into play for Nick. He started playing more after it got 4-3. It is an interesting move by Babs tho as he usually does not "plan ahead" like that. I like this move tho because if Phoenix is unable to beat teh Wings without Hank (and Franzen for when all 4 goals were scored)there is no way they will beat a fully loaded wings team so Nick may as well rest for the later rounds.

[Konnan511]

Just finished watching the 3rd period and I have to say, I couldn't disagree with the majority more about the 5 on 3. Franzen clearly cross-checked the phoenix player and Helm interfered with Hanzal.

Don't tell me this board wouldn't be blowing up if that happened to us and the refs didn't call the coyotes on it. The refs weren't perfect as always, but those were two easy calls to make.

Blinders, people, it's not hard to take them off.

The Franzen one I'll give you, but Helm has as much right to the ice as the other guy. Just because Usain Bolt is the fastest runner in the world, you shouldn't penalize him for being fast and making him start ten yards further from the end. Just cause Helm is fast and can get to a spot quicker, don't penalize him for doing so. It's no surprise the Coyotes got 6 or 7 straight PPs to end this game.

[CopenhagenWing]

Just finished watching the 3rd period and I have to say, I couldn't disagree with the majority more about the 5 on 3. Franzen clearly cross-checked the phoenix player and Helm interfered with Hanzal.

Don't tell me this board wouldn't be blowing up if that happened to us and the refs didn't call the coyotes on it. The refs weren't perfect as always, but those were two easy calls to make.

Blinders, people, it's not hard to take them off.

I think the majority of the posters just want consistency. Penalties are penalties no matter the score or time of the game.

[Mabuhay Red Wings]

Better than having to face the realization that Nick may not be that good anymore.

[haroldsnepsts]

Just finished watching the 3rd period and I have to say, I couldn't disagree with the majority more about the 5 on 3. Franzen clearly cross-checked the phoenix player and Helm interfered with Hanzal.

Don't tell me this board wouldn't be blowing up if that happened to us and the refs didn't call the coyotes on it. The refs weren't perfect as always, but those were two easy calls to make.

Blinders, people, it's not hard to take them off.

Sure those are two easy calls to make. They could've made similar calls 5 to 10 other times in that game but didn't. I don't think there's any conspiracy here, there's just zero consistency from the refs as to what constitutes a penalty.

A good ref would actually set the tone early as to what he's going to call and let go, then try to maintain that standard through the course of the game. These refs seemed to change shift to shift. Franzen's was a crosscheck, but worse had happened and not been called, and he could've just as easily taken both of them. And the Helm interference could've been called on nearly every defensive zone faceoff for either team. Add to that Hanzal actually was holding Helm's arm under his own, which was partly responsible for the takedown.

Call it that way all game, that's all I'm saying.

[Vladifan]

Game on!!!

I like your new avatar!

Just got to the board to start reading all the goodies! (pant, pant...cough, cough)

[Anijuice]

I think the majority of the posters just want consistency. Penalties are penalties no matter the score or time of the game.

That would be nice, wouldn't it? I guess I'm not as upset about the 3rd period calls on us because they were all correct calls to make - we've seen a lot worse called against us (hooking on Lidstrom in game 1 that led to a 5 on 3).

It's interesting to note that the coyotes' board was blowing up about the calls in the first period which led to a couple PP goals for the wings. I thought the calls the refs made in the first were correct, and coyotes' fans use the ref excuse as the reason why we were able to take the lead.

Same thing happens on the wings' board in the third period. Refs make correct calls that lead to a couple of phoenix goals and we're back to conspiracy theories.

[Vladifan]

Bertuzzi needs to take out Doan.

As the game turned out, this could have been the theme of this whole frickin' thread. ANYbody needs to take that jerkass, cheapshot piece of s*** out.

[Mabuhay Red Wings]

Quite an improvement in faceoffs! Nice.

[Miss Wing Queen]

The game was so great today. I've been to a few playoff games before, but I have never heard the crowd (myself included ) so into it. I got such a big kick out of the "Todd Ber-Tuz-Zi" chants and loved that Franzen got his share of chants, especially after he returned to the ice.

Today was just a weird game, though. I was surprised how passive everything seemed, especially at the start of the 1st period, almost like it was a regular season game. After all the talk, I expected Phoenix to come out with a bang, and instead, they looked like they were skating through mud or more so, like it was the last minute of a game and they were down by 10 and were giving up. Unfortunately, with no noticeable resistance, Detroit pared back their energy too somewhat. They really could have laid into Phoenix even more than they did if they had played with a little more energy and hustle themselves. They did a really good job for most of the game, but when Phoenix started scoring on the PPs and starting getting some life back into them, Detroit was kind of caught off guard. Thankfully, Phoenix was still not really bringing it, otherwise, the game could have gone to OT.

As far as the penalties go, I say it was a mix of some good calls, some blatantly bad miscalls (Franzen), and the refs just interfering too much (as Mickey would say, just let them play). I'm beginning to believe that just as refs think Holmstrom=goalie interference/goals waived off, the same is true of the refs thinking DRW=call anything and everything even if it's not there. We've become the Tomas Holmstrom of the NHL. They see the winged wheel, and the whistle blows before it barely touches the refs' lips, especially in the playoffs.

Three pluses to the game: (1) Got to meet Kirk Maltby after the game as he was coming out of the press box and got his signature (thank God I put that sharpie in my purse before the game), (2) got to meet and chat with T. Campbell (the DJ at the Joe) who gave me a CD of the music he plays and told me the name of a song that was driving me crazy, and (3) rode back to Hockeytown cafe on a shuttle bus that turned into a party bus as all of us fans (some pretty well wasted) chanted (to the delight of fans we passed who were walking by), booed and bitched out Doan, and heckled Phoenix fans out the window.

A great time overall! Keep it going, Wings! On to Phoenix to keep the momentum going!

[Vladifan]

get mad ericsson!

He really had a good game. I'm very happy for him and proud of him.

[Mabuhay Red Wings]

(2) got to meet and chat with T. Campbell (the DJ at the Joe) who gave me a CD of the music he plays and told me the name of a song that was driving me crazy

Any chance you can share that list of songs with us?

[Vladifan]

what? jovo can just grab somebodies face and push it around?

That whole thing just reeked. It was a bulls*** call. And NObody, including Panger, admitted what a bulls*** call it was. And the thing about Jovo grabbing Helm's face (other than it could have been a REAL call) reminds me of comments all the announcers agreed to during the Lakers' game made about Kobe's meltdown. And that is, as an athlete gets older and can't do what he used to be able to do, he gets frustrated. THAT, I believe, in a nutshell is what happened to Jerkoff Jovonoski. I honestly hope he's out of the series, whatever happened to him.

Edited by Vladifan, 16 April 2011 - 07:03 PM.

[Electrophile]

Better than having to face the realization that Nick may not be that good anymore.

Which Nick? Because you can't be referring to Nick Lidstrom.

[Vladifan]

Jovanovski hurt?

Promise??!

[Vladifan]

Franzen is such a bad ass. Someone needs to get a that clip of him on the bench saying no to the face mask. That was gold.

I was thinking it might show up on somebody's extended highlights tonight. I hope so.

Unfortunately - they showed a replay of him skating this morning and it didn't look good.

He looked like he was skating fine at first - then he got toward the net, and made kind of a twisted stop and looked like he tweaked it. Again.

[betterREDthandead]

The Franzen one I'll give you, but Helm has as much right to the ice as the other guy. Just because Usain Bolt is the fastest runner in the world, you shouldn't penalize him for being fast and making him start ten yards further from the end. Just cause Helm is fast and can get to a spot quicker, don't penalize him for doing so. It's no surprise the Coyotes got 6 or 7 straight PPs to end this game.

I thought it was the other way around, actually. Helm did interfere (the one I was really pissed off about was the Filppula interference right at the beginning of the power play) but the Franzen "cross-check" was the weakest thing. It was a hell of a lot less penalty-worthy than the cross-check he received in retaliation. That was the s***ty call to begin with.

[redhot]

Soooo I have yet to predict anything yet since i've been a member, so here I go...4-3 Detroit in a nail biter....though as long as we win that's all that matters...I hope tons of octopus is thrown on the ice today regardless of what rules the weazel has set...I hope the boys come out with the same intensity that I know the coyotes will be coming out with..I wish I could be at the game today but oh well..If the Joe can be as lively as it was in game 1, then the boys should have no issue feeding off that energy and turning it into a solid win...GO WINGS GO!!!

Not bad. You should predict more - but maybe not a nail biter next time please.

[Hockeytown0001]

Franzen, Doan differ over impact of 23-stitch hit

Detroit- A smile managed to break out on Johan Franzen's face, despite it being stitched up like a patch-quilt.

"I probably should have stayed out. We played a lot better without me," he said after the Red Wings' 4-3 win over the Coyotes in Game 2 on Saturday. "They'll think about that next time."


Make no mistake, though, Franzen didn't think it was any kind of joke the way his face came to crash into the boards 9:37 into the game.

"I was hit from behind in front of the boards," he said. "Usually you get thrown out of the game for that."

It took 23 stitches — closing wounds to the forehead, nose and upper lip — and nearly a period and a half before he returned to the game. He also had to pass a 15-minute mandatory concussion test.

All the while, Phoenix captain Shane Doan, who hit Franzen, continued to play.

"I don't know why he (Doan) was still in the game," Franzen said. "He shouldn't be in the game. The (defenseman) got me with the stick and then he hit me on my numbers."

There was no penalty called on the play, mostly because Franzen appeared to lose his balance and was falling before Doan hit him in the back.

"Him and I were both racing to get the puck," said Doan, who scored two goals Saturday. "He sees me coming and he tries to hit me as much as I tried to hit him. Obviously it's a bad situation the way he goes into the boards. You never want to see anybody get hurt."

Said Coyotes coach Dave Tippett, "It's a hockey hit. Franzen was off-balance and I think that's an area where players have to protect themselves better."

The no-call on Doan took on greater scrutiny in the second period when Wings' center Darren Helm was called for boarding defenseman Ed Jovanovski on a seemingly routine play behind the Coyotes' goal.

"Jovo got run at the end of the boards," Tippett said. "If you look at it, Franzen stops and turns back. He goes into the boards on his own. Doan didn't touch him while his body is on the boards. He stopped and spun and Doan hit him four feet in the middle of the ice.

"At the other end, that's what they (the league) are talking about — Helm ran the guy into the end boards. It's a big difference."

Red Wings coach Mike Babcock didn't exactly see it like that.

"Neither one should be a penalty," he said. "Franzen toe-picked and Doaner bumped him. In my opinion that's no penalty. Helmer self-chipped the puck into their zone and went in. Jovo knew he was there and Helm hit him hard. No penalty."

Franzen wasn't buying any of that talk.

"One cut was from the (defenseman's) stick and one cut was from the boards," Franzen said. "He hit me from behind and they missed it somehow."

Franzen and Doan became entangled again late in the second period and Doan drew the ire of several Wings by running his glove hard over Franzen's fresh stitches.

When asked if that violated a code between players — face-washing over new stitches — Kris Draper pointedly said, "Go ask him. Ask Shane."

Doan wasn't apologizing.

"He cross-checked me in the back and then he face-washed me and I responded," Doan said. "If he doesn't want to get rubbed in the face, don't come cross-checking me and face-washing me. I didn't go looking for him there, but if he wants to come in and create an altercation, I'm ready. I didn't realize you're not allowed to touch someone after they do that to you."

Franzen didn't appear to have any problems with the face-wash.

"That's not going to hurt anyone," he said. "The worst it's going to do is open a stitch. It's the other play (the hit in the back) that I am not happy about."

Doan said that while he wasn't necessarily targeting Franzen for extra physical abuse Saturday, taking him out of his game — especially with leading scorer Henrik Zetterberg already out with a lower body injury — couldn't hurt.

"He's a great player and has been phenomenal in this series," Doan said. "If I can slow him down any way possible, it's a big help for our team."

The victory and 2-0 lead in the series was the best salve for Franzen's face.

"That's all that matters," he said. "I don't know how we played. I didn't watch most of the game. It seemed all right, had a 4-1 lead when I came back. I think we played good.

"We'll take it to them when we go to Phoenix."


From The Detroit News: http://detnews.com/a...t#ixzz1JjzNkorG

Edited by Hockeytown0001, 16 April 2011 - 08:47 PM.