Kings @ Wings - Kopecky and Meech scored goals. No really.

Red Wings 2-1 Kings
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We didn't see this game, so no recap. Go away.

We don't get FS Detroit Plus. Every time an upcoming game is to be shown on FSD+, they throw up the graphic with all the cable companies that show what channel you can see the game on. FSD+ on Comcast allegedly is channel 900. But channel 900 is nothing but a black hole. So while it was nice (shocking) to see the Pistons snap their 37 game losing streak against the Magic tonight, we'd like to know what's up with this shit.

As for watching an online feed: the power/cable in the Lansing area was a little .... weird today. A large number of people in the city had their cable interrupted for reasons that we haven't heard. Then it was fixed, or something. Then there was a mysterious, reoccurring power-outage issue that legitimately creeped us out, so online viewing wasn't possible for the whole game. Weird day all around. At least it was only the Kings.

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Due to a contract dispute with Blogger, we'll be holding out from doing a game recap tomorrow until the issue is resolved. Note to the Blogger brass: You'll have to do better than zero years, zero dollars. Quit insulting us.

The Answer to the Wings roster log-jam

I've been watching this Ville Leino dude play, and he's the real deal. It's a no-brainer sort of thing. You watch him, and you can tell (with ease, actually) that he has a greater imact to this team on the ice than Kirk Maltby or Tomas Kopecky has. Maltby's "locker room presence" or whatever the hell you want to butter it up as doesn't make up for his shortcomings on the ice.

So the answer? Fuck the rules. Just play however many guys you want, and everybody drives home happy. Roll five lines.

Look at this.

Ville Leino needs to be on the Detroit playoff roster.

With no cap room and more than enough good players that can crack the starting lineup, it's time to do something groundbreaking. I think the answer, obviously -- I can't believe they haven't tried it yet -- is just to dress 23 player a night for the rest of the season. What, are they going to fence off Leino's locker? Snipe Kopecky from the stands if he tries to take the ice? Please.

Check this out.


Pav - Hank - Homer
Cleary - Mule - Hossa
Jiri - Fil - Sammy
Leino - Draper - Helm
Maltby - Kopecky - Mac

Lids - Raf
Kronner - Stu
Lil - Chelios
Lebda - Meech


Incredible. All they have to do is ignore the cap, and they avoid the awkward Maltby-Kopecky-Leino rotation. Which, of course, is the goal here. You never want to have to make tough decisions like this in professinoal sports. That's why it's insanity that nobody has tried this. Look, the cap isn't a tangible being, right? You can't see it or touch it, and it can't physically do anything to you, right? So to hell with it then.

And if they complain about ice time? Fuck it. Play six skaters at all times. Screw the refs and their penalties. Nobody is going to physically restrain players from coming out of the box or off the bench. They'd eventually crack and let us have our way.

I mean, sure, there's the definite possibility that fines could be handed down, asterisks could be branded, games forfeited and it would ruin the teams' credibility for decades. But come on. We wouldn't want something as horrible as "hurt feelings" to arise from all of this. Fuck that, man. Babcock isn't about to actually tell Kirk Maltby to sit and watch the playoffs, is he? Not a chance. It would be too painful to go through.

This way, Malts can still feel like he's a solid contributor and have his ego soothed, Leino gets the minutes he has earned and everybody wins. Start 23 players and all problems will be solved.

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I dedicate this to "Pops":




Grandpa died this morning after, no lie, his 13th heart attack. Dude was straight up gangster. See you later old man.

Sharks @ Wings - Datsyuk gets violent

Red Wings 4-1 Sharks
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Home ice appears to be somewhat of a big deal for these teams. The Sharks have looked downright scary at the Tank, while the Wings have now scored 10 goals to San Jose's 1 at Joe Louis.

No need to hype this one up.


Here's how it happened, as it happened.


1st Period

• 20:00 ... Brad Stuart returns from being a vegetable to bolster the Wings D.
  

• 17:58 ... Dan Cleary gets retribution for Claude Lemieux's hit on Draper by hitting Joe Thor -- Ok, ok, let's not do this ... boarding call and the League's 28th best PK takes the ice.
  

• 15:16 ... The crowd gets their "boos" in as Claude touches the puck for the first time. I love the name for the Roenick/Lemieux/Shelley trio: The Monsters of Medicare Line.

• 13:09 ... Hossa is better at hockey than we are. Power play goal. Red Wings 1-0 Sharks.

• 12:48 ... Cleary's getting some attention from Sharks players who are looking to retaliate for Joe Thorton. So not only does he live with the paranoia of Samuelsson's unpredictable slapshots, he holds the ire of an entire angry team.

• 8:11 ... Sharks might be losing their cool a little bit. Namely Thornton, who tries to lay a hit into Brian Rafalski, but gets a penalty. Joe must've heard somebody say the word "Playoffs".

• 5:00 ... Murph interviews Datsyuk. I was gonna quote something, but I literally couldn't understand a single goddamn thing he said. Not one word. Somebody get this dude Rosetta Stone.
  

• 3:52 ... Ville Leino should be batting 6th for the Tigers. He bats one in out of the air, using his full reach. Unbelievable start for this guy. Red Wings 2-0 Sharks.

• 3:31 ... Some wacky shit takes place immediately thereafter in the Wings end, and a Sharks goal is being reviewed. Ken Daniels' brain nearly explodes trying to call the play. But the replay clearly shows the puck didn't completely cross the line. No goal.
  

• 0:39 ... Datsyuk has like 3 or 4 hits this period, really bringing the energy. But don't take it from me. Mick says, "Does he have a spark in his rear end or what?" Is that like a "fire under his ass"? 'Spark in his rear' sounds kinky to me. I don't like that shit.
  

2nd Period

• 19:49 ... Thornton couldn't wait to get out of the locker room and into the penalty box. He waited all of 11 seconds. Power play Detroit.

• 15:49 ... Henrik Zetterberg. I don't know what to say. So sick. Red Wings 3-0 Sharks.

• 13:30 ... Power play goal Sharks. The total score now in two games between these two at JLA is 9-1 Detroit. Red Wings 3-1 Sharks.

• 9:20 ... Ty Conklin just pulled his nuts out. What a fucking save on the guy who used to be Jonathan Cheechoo. Wow.
  

• 3:39 ... Sammy makes a sweet move and then puts a slapper on goal from the blue line. Something that rare needed to be documented.

• 3:39 ... FS Detroit reports that Dean Chelios -- Chris Chelios' great grandson -- will be playing hockey at MSU.

3rd Period

• 20:00 ... Hossa didn't return after getting hit on the head a couple times midway through the 2nd. Didn't seem too serious, and either we weren't paying attention or they didn't elaborate on what his long-term status is. But again, it didn't look like that big of a deal.
  

• 18:00 ... Thornton tries to take out his aggression on poor Murph between the benches. "I've been speared," Murph cries.
  

• 13:30 ... Pav is now playing like 2008 Playoffs Datsyuk. He's trying to hit a Shark at every chance he gets. I like when he plays this way. He's so good that the only time he really falls off his game is when he seems board with the competition level. When he combines the intensity with the skill, it's even more fun to watch.
  

• 9:36 ... Kirk Maltby puts in his best shift of the year and the crowd recognizes him for the hard work. Cool thing to see.
  

• 4:40 ... Darren Helm resembles a coked up 1998 version of Kris Draper. He deserves his own blog. If the Pistons played defense half as hard as Helm plays hockey, they'd be like 50-5 right now. I imagine that Mike Babcock is completely obsessed with him. Like in a 12 year old girl/Tiger Beat cover sort of way.
  

• (2 minutes-ish... it's late, I'm lazy) ... Hank picks up his 2nd goal on a 5-on-3. This comes after Dan Boyle took exeption (for some reason) to yet another Datsyuk hit and retaliated with a dumb slashing call. I tend to not really believe all of the "Wings are in the Sharks" heads stuff, but they certainly have looked that way tonight. Red Wings 4-1 Sharks.

Final

• How many Wings would you say had "great" games tonight? 7? 8?
  

• On that list you'd have to include Conk, who looked very un-Osgood tonight. Solid night all the way around.
  

• Datsyuk was everywhere. Hank was locked in. Helm and Leino were great. Stuart stood upright. Raf continues to pile on the assists. Terrific total team output.

• Ville Leino has 5 goals already. He plays hard and looks like he's been playing NHL hockey for way longer than one month. It would nearly be painful making a guy like Maltby ride the bench during the playoffs, but at this rate, Leino cannot be scratched two months from now. There's no way.
  

State of the Deke Address

This post will pain me.


Due partly to a lack of time and desire to put forth a necessary effort, I am officially announcing my retirement


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from blogging about the Pistons, Tigers and Lions.


This is a decision that I have thought hard about. It's a decision that I talked over with my wife, our nine children, and my godfather Tim Cheveldae.

I've toiled with the thought of making this a one-team blog for the last several weeks. I have come to the realization that, while the fire is still there as a fan, I no longer have the drive to compete with the best. If I could, I'd blog about those three teams until I reach my late 20's, maybe even my 30's. But my body just can't handle the punishment anymore.

During the past few months I have felt my production slip. My game isn't up to par. My cliches are being used in full force but it's not helping. So as a prevention to becoming an embarrassment to myself and my fans, I'm cutting my losses and will from now on speak only of the Detroit Red Wings.

This decision came about due to largely to a conversation that Cheveldae and I had while splitting an appetizer sampler at Denny's last month. He told me to call his old friend Ray Sheppard, and that Ray always gives the best advice about these sort of things. He gave me his number. What follows is a dramatization of Mr. Sheppard's response.



Despite Shep's apathy, I've forged onward.

The reason that this announcement is hard is because I follow the Big 4 with an equal passion. Every night before I go to bed, I pray to God that the Lions will win the Super Bowl, and every night He responds by throwing a bucket of Mike Ilitch's fermented piss through my window. It's a terrible cycle, but why do I do it? Because I fucking care, dammit. (Contrary to what Drew Sharp once wrote about me, I do not "yearn for the savory taste of another man's urine.")

In conclusion I'd like to thank my comrades, my enemies, and my mentor Eklund. I will now take any questions.

**********

And now that the self-indulgence is out of the way, a brief summary:

• this isn't really a major announcement, since we've only done hockey since like September.

• it'll be better for the site in the long run (or something?)

• cosmetic changes will appear gradually or suddenly, I don't know. Whatever we feel like.

Meet Clarence

I was doing my usual perusing of the hockeysphere this morning when something caught my eye. Mr. James Mirtle of the highly respected From the Rink is going down to see our buddies in Nashville this weekend. He will see them play the Red Wings.

I am worried, friends. I know that reader Chris from Tennessee is one of only seven knowledgeable beings in that entire hockey-watching region. It's proven fact, I've asked around. And I'm worried that Mr. Mirtle is going to see this first hand and expose the hopeless group of fans for the ass crack-licking degenerates that they are. You know the kind of sleeze he likes to write; three hours at SoGay and that city will be toast.

So who is Clarence? Clarence is my made-up cousin from the Nashville area who recently was introduced to hockey. While he isn't too bright, he's made-up family so you will treat him with respect while he has the floor. Why is he here, you ask. Well I've been thinking about how I need to give back to my community. I need to spread the word on the sport I love. By giving Clarence a chance to speak to the people of his demographic, I think it will do the entire state of Tennesse some good.

Here he is.


Hello all.
______


Introduction. My name is Clarence and I recently started watching hockey, the sport on ice where you try to score points and punch your opponent in the face at the same time. I first fell in love with the sport when me and my girlfriend got free tickets to a game last year on "free abortion night" against the Chicago Indians. I am now a devoted Nashville Predators fan and watch every second of every quarter of every game from my sofa, which also doubles as a toilet. When cousin Tyler encouraged me to spread the word on Preds hockey today, I thought it was the best news since my sister told me her vagina works the same as girls that aren't related to me. Let us start with a few general rules of the game.

Gameplay: Hockey is a quick and violent sport, made all the more complicated because you are freezing while playing it. The ice that you play on is typically colder than football and baseball fields, and if you are too large, there is a chance that you could fall through the ice and catch a cold. Worse yet, you could fall through and get eaten by a shark. You don't want this to happen because they don't let you back in the game if you are dead.

Tools: Before each game you are given a long stick and shoes with sharp things on the bottom. You use these to move around the ice and try to slap the black circle thing at your opponent. If you slap the black circle at your opponent and miss and it goes into what northern folk call a "net" (more common to you and I as either a large turkey-frying device or a dead baby catcher), a blaring red beacon will sound and order you to do a tribal dance of your choosing in one of the four corners of the rink.
_____

Fan Behavior.

Ethics: At Predators games, it is expected that everyone who enters the arena leaves all of their dignity at the door. Anything that comes to mind -- regardless of how wrong it may sound -- you must say it loud and with repetition. For example. When the Preds host the Red Wings of Detroit, you may feel the urge to say how much they "suck". Now, generally this term is used toward people or organizations who are below average or terrible at what they do, but for reasons only known to our Predator fan ancestors, we must tell them how much sucking they do. The Red Wings have made the postseason every year since the late 1800's, shortly before the arrival of Christopher Columbus, but despite this, they suck because they are elitist arogant fuckheads. We hate them because they think we are stupid and have sex with our own family members, the latter of which simply doesn't happen nearly as often as one may think.
_____

Coach.

1 ~ We have one head coach that tells the players what to do. Last year, Brent made a very unflattering characature of what Mr. Barry looks like on this website. Actually, it's pretty remarkable and accurate. Our coach looks exaclty like an egg. In fact, he is an egg. A robotic one that the league created and programmed to run our team when we were first created because nobody wanted to coach hockey in Tennessee. It's strange because even as a non-human, he is still better than 2/3rds of all the coaches in the league. I'd sure like to crack him open and fry up his innards though.
_____

Players.

1 ~ Like other fans, we have "favorites". Our favorite Predator is Jordin Tootoo. Because Tootoo is a silly name and makes you think of choo-choo trains, we make whistle noises when he is on the ice. Because real whistles are now banned at the arena, we fans now turn our backs to our neighbor, pull down our pants and allow that person to make a loud, ear-piercing whistle by blowing into our assholes, causing us to uncontrollably scream in a high pitched manor. Directions on how to do this are printed on the back of every seat.

2 ~ Chris Chelios: Back in his heyday four or five decades ago, Chelios was a relevant hockey player who everybody hated because he was a dick. Nowaday's he is only good for cleaning the ice with his urine. But because we are at least 40 years behind the rest of civilization, we treat him like shit when we play the Red Wings even though he might be the least important person on the face of the Earth.
____

Rules.

1 ~ Rules aren't important to you and I. The striped policemen will determine what rules are. If you do something wrong, you are sent to jail.
_____



Conclusion.

This is the end. I hope my little hand guide to Nashville people has been helpful and will generate some interest in this ice sport. If there are any questions I will be happy to answer them (but only if I haven't accidentally infected Tyler's computer with beastality porn). Chelios sucks.

A call to arms of sorts

Us here at The Triple Deke are very fond of hockey. And I'm willing to bet a lot of our readers are as well. So I'm extending an invitation to anyone out there reading who owns an Xbox 360 and a copy of NHL 09 to play a few games of our favorite sport on virtual ice. I (Brent) am an avid gamer and can often times be found online. I run an EASHL (EA Sports Hockey League) team both Tyler and I love to play vs. games. So whether you play all the time or you're just a weekend warior send me a messege and play a game or fifteen against the guys from The Triple Deke.

Starring Brent as MrTripleDeke (My EASHL player)

(Who can really resist a change to beat the crap out of this guy!?)

Contact me on Xbox Live
-Gamertag: MrTripleDeke

Or send us an email (now that we remember to check it, sorry again.)
-Thetripledeke@gmail.com

Or... Just leave a comment, we'll get back to you whichever way you choose.

Weekend analysis: Friday-- good, Saturday -- bad

Blogger gave me the weekend off, so I spent some non-hockey time with Mrs. Deke (hey, unless you can think of a better girlfriend/anonymity gimmick, kiss my ass). I did not see a second of either game the past two days.

However, my inside sources tell me that the Red Wings beat Anaheim on Friday. And they looked very good in doing so. Hank was the man.

But my source's sources tell me that the Minnesota game was a dreadful. A reverse score of Friday's masterpiece. Anytime you give up five goals to the Wild, it's time to question your own gender.

In other news,



4th Line stuff:

"The unit has featured Kris Draper, Kirk Maltby and Tomas Kopecky for most of the season. It has not been as effective defensively or provided the kind of energy the team would like.

Salary-cap limitations precluded any changes until defenseman Brad Stuart's injury created enough room to recall Darren Helm and Ville Leino from Grand Rapids.

Coach Mike Babcock already has said Helm will be playing in the postseason, just like last year." (Khan)

Kopecky has no right playing over Leino right now, much less
Darren Helm.

So, Kirk Maltby. What's the non-douche way to handle that whole situation? Do you think Babcock really wants to go into the playoffs with the "experience" of Maltby over the energy of Leino? No way in hell. For every intangible thing that Malts supposedly does with his experience-ness, Leino will add double that with actual offensive output. The Cup won't be hanging by a thread that is determined by keeping Kirk Maltby in the lineup, but perhaps injecting Leino will have at least a small, recognizable impact.

The situation feels bad. Malts is by no means a legend or icon, but he's .... something, right? Here were my thoughts before the season started.

"Kirk Maltby has put me in a bit of an emotional pickle. I like the guy, as it's pretty hard not to if you're a Wings fan. He's a high character guy, and judging by his interviews and such I can say that I wouldn't mind sharing a game of Jenga with him. You know, the one with the blocks and shit. It's great. And when you eventually fuck it up and make the tower fall, and your nemesis yells "JENGA" at you like an asshole yelling that "the light is green" at an intersection, you get to play dominoes and make everything better. Jenga is fun."

See? You can't even discuss this without distracting yourself entirely. It's impossible. Why am I still typing.

Howard called up, Osgood told to "go fuck himself"

Some fairly big news out of Detroit today as Ozzie will be scratched for the next week. Conk will start against the Ducks, while Jimbo will get a chance to prove his worth against the Wild.


"Osgood will remain in Detroit to work with goaltending coach Jim Bedard. The two were on the ice about 30 minutes before today’s morning skate. Osgood was the last player off the ice and he declined to speak with reporters (freep)."


Well the Minnesota game is significantly more interesting now, that's for sure.

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Naturally, I had to work today and I'm late to this little tea party. A couple different views to the story here.

1) You have the A2Y crew, headed by the normally tranquil and subdued Chief, who see this as a clear message from the Wings' brass to Osgood that he needs to get his shit together, and he needs to do it in a hurry. Actually, the Chief drops this interesting nugget to ponder:


"I can’t help but think, continue to think, that we’ve seen Chris Osgood play his last meaningful game as a Detroit Red Wing. "


Whoa. That's pretty heavy. But if Howard plays well -- even though it's just one game -- won't it be hard to still try and get Ozzie into a grove with not one but TWO goalies that people would prefer over him? Ken Holland, your thoughts?


Asked if Conklin would be the starting goaltender if the playoffs began today, Holland said: “Well, the playoffs don’t start today.”


Then you have George James Malik's take, which appears to rationalize the situation from the Wings end with a little less of that whole "sending a message" speak:


"Howard has to clear waivers to be sent down to Grand Rapids next year, so the Red Wings have to see how he will perform in the NHL sooner than later...And as he has yet to win a game at the NHL level, this is his one opportunity to strut his stuff. It was going to happen, and with three full days off after Saturday's game in Minnesota, this is the perfect time to give Howard a start."


No matter the side that you tend to agree with, one thing is for certain: Chris Osgood's play has been so poor that it's as if he had sex with Roberto Alomar's girlfriend last summer. His struggles have been uncanny. Ozzie was so solid last year that we were thrilled when he replaced Hasek. Repeat: T.H.R.I.L.L.E.D. It's amazing that only 8 months later we're salivating for either the Penguins 2008 backup goalie or an (at times underachieving) AHL-er.

Hossa drops gloves, terrifies nation of Wing fans

I'll admit that while this was awesome, it scared the piss out of me. At one point during the beginning of the fight, it appeared as though Hoss took a serious blow to the face, but he seemed alright.



As if the guy couldn't endear himself to the Wing faithful enough already, he goes out and exposes those 7.4 million dollar fists to stick up for his teammates.

Whenever Huds takes shit from opposing players, it seems like somebody is always right there to back him up. Remember Lilja/Phaneuf last year? Don Cherry can choke on elk cock ... this team might not fight all the time, but they rarely have to. For whatever reason -- maybe because the Wings are so loaded that other teams have to play responsibly first and agitate later -- other teams don't run at our players like you assume they would against a perceived "soft Euro" team. The Wins do a good job of picking their spots, however. As soon as Jiri got a face wash into the boards, you knew there would be some retribution. You just didn't think it would be Marian Hossa.

Predators @ Wings - Nashville just took another penalty

Red Wings 6-2 Predators
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Drapes got a nice video tribute before the game started in commemoration of his recent 1000th NHL game. Then he got a gift from the Ilitch's, some flowers, an award thing, and an overcoat filled with gold jewelry that was abandoned in a Greektown alley.

This game was more of a practice than it was a legit contest. The Preds gave the Wings every chance imaginable to get their power play clicking, and the Wings took full advantage.


1st Period

• 20:00 ... The Wings are going with the road whites once again. If they play anything like the last time they did this, I might take out the recording of this game and strangle myself with the tape.
  

• 16:50 ... Wings get the first power play of the game, and now we'll see how the solid Nashville penalty kill will hold. Through the first couple of shifts of the Mule's return, the Franzen-Filppula-Hossa line looks like it has some jump.

• Goal -- Jiri Hudler, 20th of the season. Mule is right in front of the action taking up space, as well as the attention of two Predators. Jiri finishes it up with a nice backhander. Red Wings 1-0 Predators.
  

• 13:41 ... Conk makes his first significant stop of the night, denying Red Wing-pain-in-the-ass Steve Sullivan.

• 13:00 ... YES ... Kronner steps into Tootoo. Very encouraging. Also of note: Red Wing passes are coming fast and furious. Quick decisions and quicker puck movement is making this game look good early.
  

• 11:34 ... How it's supposed to happen: You're playing an inferior team at home, so you get the big jump on them instead of waiting 'til midway through the 3rd period. On the power play, Hank scores a layup. Red Wings 2-0 Nashville.

• 9:19 ...

Larry Murphy -- "Kris, you guys have a 2-0 lead, what do you attribute that to?"

Draper -- "Uhhh ............................................................ a good start."

• I think that proves that Drapes doesn't even think about offense when he's watching from the bench, let alone skating. When the puck gets moved up ice, I picture that his head stops panning with the play right at the red line. Then he stares longingly at the Wings' end of the ice, hoping desperately that they get called for a penalty so he can take a defensive zone faceoff.
  

• 4:04 ... Draper involved in more action: He hip checks Tootoo and then gets a stare down from the little shit. Frankly I think Drapes should've done the league a favor and exposed his skate blade to Tootoo's midsection.
  

• 2:34 ... Kronwall looks incredibly sharp with the puck so far. He just picked up a puck behind the net and whipped it out of the zone to start the rush while barely even looking up ice. That looks like a lot of confidence to me.
  

• 0:06 ... Steve. Fucking. Sullivan. He gets his first goal in like 6 years, naturally, against the Wings. Red Wings 2-1 Predators.

2nd Period

• 15:47 ... Datsyuk, Hossa and Zetterberg all creating havoc in the Nashville zone on the same shift. I just wet my pants.

• 14:04 ... Babcock might not be pleased with what he's seen in the first five minutes of the period. We've seen the Gauntlet Line of Pav/Hank/Hossa and now Hank paired with Hossa for a quick shift.
  

• 13:35 ... Oh for fuck's sake. Conk puts his stick in one of the dreaded corners and gets delay of game. One of the stupidest fucking rules in the history of sports. If I had a Mount Rushmore of evil, I'd have Hitler, Jason Grilli, Claude Lemieux and a carving of a trapezoid.
  

• 10:30 ... Ken Daniels remarks how Leino is wearing Danny Grant's #21. What -- no mention of Boyd Devereaux?

• 9:59 ... Nick Norris with a net-seaking missle: Red Wings 3-1 Predators. What a cannon.

• 7:15 ... This is a joke. Steve Sullivan ... Red Wings 3-2 Predators. Good line change guys. Nice one. Hey, wasn't that one of Todd's duty's as assistant coach last year? Ridiculous.

• 3:50 ... Franzen hears the Hossa talk and is playing possessed. Power play goal, Red Wings 4-2 Predators.
  

3rd Period

• 18:53 ... Pavel Datsyuk is absolutely unreal. Lidstrom is unreal. The Wings power play (4 goals tonight) is pure fiction. What a pass, perfect shot. Red Wings 5-2 Predators.

• 13:25 ... Hoss gets the crowd in a lather with some fancy stickhandling. It looks like he plays with an 8 foot stick at times.
  

• 9:51 ... Nashville turns goon. Hudler, on his knees facing the boards, gets his face smashed. Then he has some words with Sullivan, Mule comes to defend him, and -- no, I'm not seeing this right. It looks like Hossa's in a fight. Marian Hossa. Surely this is a hologram or something. I'm starting to see shit that isn't there, so let's move on.

• 4:22 ... Johan Franzen scores again. The Wings power play scores again. I like hockey. Red Wings 6-2 Predators.

Final

• I'm not positive, but I think that the Wings have won all 10 or so games that I've recorded and subsequently live-blogged. I don't remember them losing one that I've watched on tape.
  

• In all seriousness Hossa's fight was pretty rad. I don't even care that he "lost" it; he got a couple good shots in and showed some stones in front of his teammates.
  

• I'd have to nitpick to complain about anything in this game. So I won't. Good night.

We Suck

Turns out we're not very good at the whole "blog" thing. Or at least the checking our inbox part.

Brent -- "You know what I haven't logged into in forever? The Triple Deke's email."

I totally thought he was going to say Live Journal.

**********

While spam had infected our inbox like HIV, there were still some emails that we didn't respond to. So we're just putting it out there that we're not total dicks. You have our sincerest of apologies. And just to spite my own negligence, I'm going to link an interview that was passed our way two whole months ago. It's about Wings goalie prospect Thomas McCollom, written by Chris Pope of The Good Point.

Detroit has always been known for advancing their draft picks at their own pace and not rushing them and that won't change with McCollum, but Wings fans will be waiting for his much anticipated action at Joe Louis Arena. With Chris Osgood showing his age even more as every game passes and prospect Jimmy Howard not blossoming into the stud the Wings expected, all eyes turn to the small town kid.

"I have thought about it a bit," said McCollum. "It's extremely encouraging to know that there is some depth there but it's not a ton. It definitely shows me that there is a spot [in Detroit] if I work hard enough."

**********

Tonight I'll be gorging on Italian cuisine at my birthday dinner, thus missing the game live. A recap will be delayed, but completed because I feel slightly obligated to do a Wings/Predators 'cap for reader Chris in Tennessee. If they lose though i'll probably throw my computer out the window. It's not a "must win", but it's definitely a "must not lose", if that makes sense.

Can't believe I had never seen this before

via Puck Daddy. 2nd half of Pav's interview was equally entertaining. And any excuse to post this picture is a good excuse.


Some of the comments at the end of the interview regarding the picture are hilarious. My favorite of which came from commentor "the Great One":

"Ridiculously fun interview. Instant Dats fan. I'd be a bigger fan if he didn't have a Mars Attacks head."

Off-night boredom

Wings fans were provided with plenty of good reading material today, starting with the already-linked-everywhere-else Datsyuk interview over at Puck Daddy. The would've made me stop blogging about the Wings if I didn't mention it. This is what happens when you start a post at 8 PM.

It's a must read, if for nothing else, because you don't get to hear Pav speak very much, so this is probably the most extensive thing that he's ever done. Although, there was that half hour special on FS Detroit, but I think Pav said a total of like 8 understandable words during that whole program.

Best part of the interview was when he was asked who the most underrated player in the NHL is.


"I am a very shy person, so I cannot name him. But you can hear that player in your receiver right now talking to you."


It's hard for me to objectively comment about Datsyuk. Luckily for me, I don't give two shits about sounding objective. He's the best player in the league.

I loved this line too:

How concerned are you, playing in the Detroit until 2014, that you may suffer an injury from all the octopus slime on the ice during home games?

"I have never seen anything like that. I think hockey players are all great skaters and can avoid all the octopuses."

**********

So ... this is kind of an audacious headline. Wow. And I like how there was nothing in the entire story that made me feel as reassured as the title would make you feel on its own.

"I think we have a chance to keep both players, but that does mean other players have to move," -- Ken Holland

If the Wings keep Franzen and Hossa, there won't be room to re-sign players such as Mikael Samuelsson and Jiri Hudler, both of whom also are in the last year of contracts. That's why it makes sense for the Wings to explore a trade leading up to the March 4 deadline.

While there are better players than Franzen and Hudler out there, I don't want to see them play anywhere else. The Mule's 2008 playoff run is something that I want to tell my illegitimate children about someday -- if I have to explain to them that two years later he was playing for the Blues, I would die a little inside. And if we keep him and have to cut ties with Huds? Man ... The Chief said it best today, about how we've watched him toil from line to line only to see him finally grow up this season.

"Oompa? Not so easy now is it? We’ve watched this kid grow in this organ-I-zation. I’ve practically sobbed for two straight deadlines, begging Tick Tock to just trade him anywhere. Please. Naturally, he refused and now we have a kid who could be a top six forward on any team in the league.

And we want to keep him. Thanks, again, for asking."

If he's a top six-er on another team next year, I'll be pulling for him, regardless of what team that may be for.

Like most Wings fans, I've spent a number of hours looking at cap figures and theorizing ways that Hossa, Franzen and Hudler can all get signed. As it stands, the Wings would have about $10 million if the cap stays around where it is now. In making a conservative estimate, I'd say the Wings need a bare bones minimum of at least $14 million to get all three. That's under the crazy circumstance that all three just love playing in Detroit so much that they sign for less than they would be offered in the open market. Long story short? It's not happening.

Ken Holland is a smart dude. He knows that the Wings won a Stanley Cup without Marian Hossa. Shit, they won a Cup against Marian Hossa. So he's aware that roster depth is of the utmost importance. This isn't the Ottawa Senators. If he gets Hoss for a deal similar to Hank's (many years, front loaded, low cap number), then it can work.

But my gut tells me that he'd be the only one. I'd estimate that Franzen could get 2-3 million per year more elsewhere than here. So keeping 3 out of 3? I'm not even sold on 2 out of 3.


**********

With no hockey tonight, I'm split-screening Pistons/MSU basketball. Dick Vitale is doing the MSU game. Something is up with his voice ... it sounds like he swallowed a droor full of steak knives before the game. He sounds awful. Is it too much for him to get a night off if he's not feeling well? It's already a chore enough as it is listening to him when he's healthy; now I'm subjected to having his voice rape my ears? Thanks ESPN.

**********

More tidbits from Holland, this time about goaltending.


I'm not looking outside the organization, I'm not really looking to do anything on the trade front," Holland said Monday. "It's going to be Ty (Conklin) or Ozzie (Chris Osgood)."


I see this as more of a case of there being just about zero options for reliable goalies than Holland showing confidence in Ozzie and Conk. For those of you who think going out and finding an affordable, available playoff-proven goaltender is easy, please give Ken Holland a call so he can tell you directly to suck his ass. Now granted, I haven't read too many Wings fans clamoring for a shiny new goalie, but if I have to listen to one more asshole call 97.1 and slur out a convoluted trade scenario to get rid of Ozzie, I'll wrap my car around a tree.

Wild @ Wings - Happy Birthday Us

Red Wings 4-2 Wild
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Tonight marks the one year anniversary of The Triple Deke. Who gives a fuck.

We've regressed from an all-encompassing Detroit sports blog to a hockey blog to just a hockey game-recap blog. For year #2, I'd like to post more than just game recaps but I rarely make the time to do it. I'd also like to eventually move to another site but that has been months in the making (heavier emphasis on "months" than the actual "making" of anything). I haven't contributed any variety of, well, anything in weeks, and that disappoints me a bit. I started this thing because I love the Detroit teams and I like writing a lot, but I haven't been that good at it lately in my opinion. It's felt a little stale.

So I'm going to try and do better with this in the next few weeks and gauge where The Triple Deke is going. If it stays sort of shitty, we might have to take it behind the shed and beat it to death with a baseball bat. If it gets better, I'll sell the content of our archives to Yahoo for 1.5 billion dollars and retire anyway. Suck it.

But yeah, the Wings were pretty much phenomenal in this game.


1st Period

• 20:00 ... It's the Detroit Red Wings vs. the 1990's New Jersey Devils. Let's do this.

• 18:35 ... The impressive Leino stays on the ice for the first minute and 35 seconds. I like how he seems eager to make his mark early in his pro career without appearing over-anxious or out of place. He not only belongs in top-tier hockey, he looks like he belongs in this system.

• 13:24 ... To this point, Minny's trap game hasn't effected the flow of the Red Wings' play at all. 5 Shots for Detroit already.

• 13:00 ... For those around the country who think Mickey Redmond is 100% "homer", listen to his reaction to the Wild's first penalty and rethink that. "The ref strained his neck looking for that call!" I'll give you like 99% homer, but he seemed livid at that call. The guy want's nothing more than it to be 1968 right now. Even the A2Y crowd thought the call was absurd.
  

• 10:32 ... Wings score on that power play. Injustice, but we'll take it. Kronner did a superb job using his eyes to direct the Wild defenders one way and then sent the puck another way, and Sammy picked up the scraps. Red Wings 1-0 Wild. (Edit: they did not score on the power play, but about 45 seconds after the PP ended. My bad.)
  

• 7:14 ... The Wings' pressure in the Wild end is immense right now. Clutterbuck and another Wild player tried to smother the puck in the slot literally by having sex right on top of it to scare the Wings away. I think I saw insertion and I am not happy about it. Shots are 15 to 4 right now. (Between this play and Sidney Crosby's ass-fisting display earlier this season, the NHL has really reached out to their homosexual audience.)

• 5:43 ... Now we're in trouble. The Wings get called for two penalties on the same play, already killing a penalty, and now the box is full. 5-on-3 for Minnesota. Can't even gripe about the calls either.

• ... Brent Burns -- amazing shot to tie the game. A one-timer coming across his body, high glove side. Red Wings 1-1 Wild. Sometimes you just have to forget about what team you root for and appreciate it when some unreal shit happens. For the record, those sentiments go out the window and get buried 50 feet underground once the playoffs start.
  

• 2:32 ... Ken Daniels on Brad Stuart's injury: "I guess 'spinal compression fracture' sounds better than 'broken back'." Wait, it does? What? Am I wrong or don't both of those things sound equally horrendous?
  

• 1:32 ... Mick is just beside himself with the officiating. Even more than usual. He just let a "jesus" slip out on live TV ... not that I'm offended, but I think it's worth noting since he seems like he's going to drink himself into a coma rather than call the rest of this game. 2-to-1 odds he says he calls one of the refs a fag before the night is over.

2nd Period

• 18:45 ... Cal Buttfuck charges from the parking lot to seek out revenge on Brett Lebda, and ends up hurting Brett's back. This is the part where I thought Mick was going to commit career suicide and spew out whatever the verbal equivalent to the Holocaust would be, but he somehow restrained himself. Somebody must've tranquilized him during the intermission. (And no, I couldn't care care less if "Cal Buttfuck" is an unoriginal joke. Kiss my ass.)
  

• 9:38 ... Lilja moves the puck up well to Huds, gives it to Hoss, and Hossa makes the great extra pass to leave Hudler with basically an empty net. Awesome goal. Red Wings 2-1 Wild.
  

• 8:48 ... Holy shit, Marian Hossa you are a sorcerer. He holds the puck around the net, gets everybody in the state of Minnesota to stare him down, and then he passes to Draper who slaps the one-timer home (also, nice job Leino for providing the screen). Red Wings 3-1 Wild. By the way, "Hossa to Draper" immediately reminded me of "Conway to Goldberg" at the end of Mighty Ducks 3. Hopefully more than two people get that joke.
  

• 2:45 ... Leino, wow. The Wild spend a solid minute trying to fellate themselves in their own end. Then Leino shows some amazing hands -- catches the puck of the back boards, sets it down and wraps it around for the goal in the blink of an eye. Third goal in six career games. Keep him in Detroit. Red Wings 4-1 Wild.
  

• 0:00 ... Wings are out-hitting the Wild, killing them on faceoffs, out-shot them 16 to 6 in the 2nd period (33-18 total), and appear to be having zero issues with their defense. Other than that, Minnesota has nothing to worry about.
  

3rd Period

• 17:49 ... I'm glad to see Hoss succeeding without Pav or Hank, because Hank looks great playing with Pav. I know that's not groundbreaking news for anybody who has watched this team the last few years, but I always tend to forget how much different he looks when he's not centering a separate line. He's great by himself, but he's got this killer instinct with Pav that's awesome to watch. Just a thought: maybe because Pav is so good defensively, Hank feels like he can go all out in the offensive end when they play together?
  

• 9:35 ... The Wings give up a rare short-hander when Koivu makes a great move on Sammy, cuts to the net and beats Oz to cut the lead to two. I worry now that Ozzie's going to start to press because he doesn't want to let in the dreaded "third goal." Red Wings 4-2 Wild.

• 6:52 ... What a shift by the Hank/Pav/Cleary line that ends in a Wild penalty. One of the best of the year by any Wings line. Amazing. (I wish they had completely obscure award shows for stuff like that. That's must-see shit right there. "And the award for Best Broken Stick Replacement Handoff From The Bench goes to ..."

• 3:15 ... More Line #1 domination.

• 0:00 ... Wings finish off the Wild for the W. 6 Straight wins.

Final

First, I thought Ozzie looked very sharp. It's only one game, but still, it's still fairly encouraging.

Terrific output by the entire team. Hossa had two great assists ... Leino looked good ... The D held down the fort ... Hank/Pav/Cleary didn't produce a goal but still looked. Minnesota played last night, and the Wings did what they should do when playing a home game against a team in the 2nd game of a back-to-back. When they play this well, it's hard to come up with those viscerel, angry posts that TTD reader Chris likes so much. Sorry dude.

Wings @ Predators - Plus other thoughts

Red Wings 5-3 Predators
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Fucking technology.

For what feels like the 900th time, I failed to see what channel the hockey game was on and ended up recording something else inadvertently. It's only occasionally that I get to watch these games live, so one would assume that I'd make the extra effort and be sure of what I am taping. But no. I'm a jackass.

Instead I come home at 7 AM to find that the Pistons couldn't beat the Bulls, which almost solidifies my opinion that Joe Dumars needs to start randomly selecting players and throwing them into a raging fire until the team wakes up from this coma they've been playing in. Maybe I just don't know what I'm talking about (distinct possibility), but I don't understand why this team is playing .500 ball since Iverson's arrival. It shouldn't be happening. You cannot have a team with AI, Stuckey, Rip, Sheed, Max, Dice, and whatever is left of Tayshaun and not be at least within 10 games of first place. And I don't even want to bring up Curry. Not only am I completely exhausted as Pistons fan from talking about the Brown/Saunders eras, I also can't pin the struggles all on his shoulders when Joe decided to saddle the rookie coach with the task of managing the egos of both Rip and Allen fucking Iverson just 4 games into his coaching career. That's no small task.

So anyway, I tried to watch the extensive game highlights on NHL.com, but for whatever reason I can't play the video without having Firefox crash. Pretty aggravating. With no highlights up yet on Youtube (and Sportscenter's usual debauchery of having Barry Melrose talk about the Westminster Dog Show rather than do more than one fucking game recap) I cannot view what happened in this game.

Instead I'm left to see what statistics jump out at me. The first and most obvious one is the ridiculous shot discrepency: the Wings outshot the Preds 51-21. Sounds good, right? Yeah, they needed an empty netter from Datsyuk to secure the W. Not that surprising though when you consider the fight that Nashville usually puts up in their building.

Also: 2 goals and an assist each for Hank and Pav, another goal from Hossa, and 3 assists from Rafalski who continues to tally up the points in a career year. Conk giving up 3 goals on 21 shots doesn't sound too hot, but according to what I've read it wasn't that bad of a night.

I wish I could've seen this damn game. I'd like to know if we're still heading upward or if we're just treading water, waiting for an upstart team to get hot and shock us in the first or second round because we don't have a grip on this goaltending issue. While one game in Nashville isn't going to predict what will happen two months from now, I still like seeing the evidence first-hand. I'm looking for something that gives me more confidence that what I just typed in the last two sentences. I don't like having those thoughts. I don't like envisioning another "Edmonton in '06", and then getting into a massive fight with my girlfriend when I throw a remote and she goes "calm down, they just won the year before," and then I have to flee the state because I murdered her and devoured half her body in a fit of uncontrollable rage. I don't want that to happen.

I will say this, however. I liked the hockey that was played on Saturday and Sunday. For the first time in a while, maybe even all season, the Wings toyed with their opponents at both ends of the ice. If you take away those three goals that the Oilers scored in the 3rd period, when they lost a bit of focus, they finally resembled the team that won a Stanley Cup last season. I thought Mike Babcock's coaching job over the weekend was absolutely brilliant. I know that beating the 10th place team in an inferior conference isn't too much to get excited about, but shutting down the league's top two point producers in the 2nd game of a back-to-back was very, very encouraging. Rolling the four lines, conserving energy, keeping Ozzie on the bench and completely sucking the life out of the Pens? Give it up for Babs.

Speaking of Oz, I'm all for what Babcock is doing right now. The longer Ozzie stews, the better. He has ALWAYS played better when he has something to prove. He watched Mike Vernon win a Cup after he couldn't hack it at first, then backstopped the Wings to another Cup in '98. Then he got a little too comfortable during the next three years and got shipped out of town. After he fell off the map, he came back and -- with a chance to revitalize his career -- Won another Cup after outplaying Hasek's corpse. He's never, ever been that good when he is the undisputed #1 Red Wings goalie. I think that puts a huge asterisk on his career, but that's for another day's discussion. Right now, I want him angry and riding the pine. Because this team isn't winning Cup #12 with Ty Conklin in net (If this somehow happens, I vow to create the first ever Triple Deke webisode where I eat an entire plate of horse shit; skipping right past the usual order of crow). Keep Ozzie on his toes for long enough and hopefully, hopefully he'll finally tune in long enough for us to do some damage come Playoff time.

Blues @ Wings - Winning ugly (or just flat out disgusting)

Red Wings 4-3 Blues (SO)

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The Wings came into this one on a bit of a losing skid. The way they have played has been troubling for a squad made primarily of the players who won a Stanley Cup eight months ago, due in large part to a robotically efficient defense. Try watching Game Three of the Western Conference Finals, or the first two of the Cup Finals (team defense at it's finest) and you wouldn't believe that this is the same squad. The players are there, but the results aren't. Eight months ago these guys were calculating and suffocating opponents before they even picked up the puck at the other end of the ice. Now they're reacting one to two seconds too late every other play and giving up 4+ goals on a regular basis. I don't fucking get it.

So despite the fact that the Wings "won" this game, many of us still have a bad taste in our mouths, as if the Blues came into the Joe tonight and won outright. And they might as well have. Here's how I saw the game as it unfolded:

1st Period

• 20:00 ... Wings are wearing their road white uni's ... now THERE'S the adjustment we've been looking for.

• 18:00 ... Kris Draper, playing in his 1,000th career game, gets his first shift with Datsyuk and Hossa. Nice move there by Babcock.

• 17:30 ... Versus announcer (and former Wing announcer from way back) Dave Strader says that Justin Abdelkader is up from the Griffins, who play in the "International Hockey League". I like you Dave but your not exactly enhancing the image of Versus' hockey coverage in the eyes of fans with that statement.
  

• 12:50 ... Fil draws a penalty behind the Blues net. Gotta feel for him at least a little bit this year -- with no time on either PP unit and manning the 3rd line he's dropped into obscurity a bit. He'll be much more in the scheme of things next year with the personnel changes coming, bank on it.

• 9:30 ... Nothing comes of the power play. I would like that two minutes of my life back, please.

• 9:00 ... 11 minutes in, shots are 2-1 Detroit. I almost fell asleep tying that.

• 7:30 ... It should be 1-0 St. Louis but Backes chokes on a gift-wrapped chance. Not that this is news, but Ozzie's confidence looks like it's at rock bottom.
  

• 4:54 ... a defensive collapse leads to a 3-on-1 Blues chance, that again results in a Red Wings' escape. Lidstrom and Kronwall have been relatively bad this period: Lidstrom relative to his usuall awesomeness, and Kronwall relative to the 2008 playoffs (which has been an ongoing issue all season long.)

• 0:00 ... This period reminded me of what vomit tastes like. Two shots for the Wings. No score after 1. And because it needs repeating: TWO SHOTS FOR THE WINGS.
  

2nd Period

• 17:26 ... Holy god. Maltby scores to give the Wings the lead. But just saying that doesn't do it justice: It was a 2-on-1, with Kopecky, and with only one option (a Maltby slapper), the two execute the play and a goal results. What a pleasant surprise. Just keep putting shots on goal guys. Red Wings 1-0 Blues.

• 14:25 ... An indescribably homoerotic goal by the Blues ties it. Literally. I've started and stopped at least 10 different sentences trying to convey what just happened. Ozzie, Lidstrom ... sloppy all around. I hate hockey sometimes. Red Wings 1-1 Blues.
  

• 13:40 ... It's just weird when Black History Month is discussed during a hockey game. It's even weirder when the announcer says, essentially, that Black History Month is big in Detroit because a lot of black people live there. Dude, Strader ... why don't you just stop talking for a while, okay?
  

• 13:28 ... Manny Legace sucks. Really bad. Red Wings 2-1 Blues.

• 10:45 ... Justin Abdelkader makes a nice, nice hit. And he didn't even punch the guy from behind or slash his neck. Uplifting shit right there (You gotta love the obligatory, predictable comments at the bottom of that video -- shocking that Michigan fans would go to the extent to point out that their education is better than ours. I would've never expected that one.)
  

• 10:00 ... Well, gotta say it: Awesome shot by Patrik Berglund to tie the game again. Cross-ice one timer pass (nice lane coverage guys) on the power play, and a perfect fucking shot. Maltby is left shaking his head, kind of like a guy who wishes he was playing in the late 90's NHL again. Red Wings 2-2 Blues.
  

• 8:39 ... I can barely keep up with this game now: Hossa goes stick side on Legace and gives the Wings the lead again. And ... nooooo!!!! ..... Manny gets pulled! God dammit. Red Wings 3-2 Blues. What a release by Hossa.
  

• 0:00 ... 1st period = 5 shots on goal combined. 2nd period = 5 goals combined.

3rd Period

• 20:00 ... A shot of Manny Legace on the Blues bench, barely awake. I wouldn't be surprised if he went straight to a bottle of Jack right after being pulled. Or before being pulled, for that matter.
  

• 17:00 ... A mini Blues scoring chance ... I just can't get over how shaky Ozzie looks. I never will. When he goes into prolonged stretches like this, it's a nightmare.

• 12:35 ... Lilja undoes a season's worth of good will (by his standards) by taking a 5 minute major for boarding. I am not looking forward to sitting through this, not one bit. No way Ozzie doesn't let ONE by here. I'd rather watch a half hour of Sports Soup instead of this shit. Wait wait wait wait wait, I take that back, that was a joke.
  

• 8:01 ... With under 30 ticks left on the major, the Blues break through as Keith Tkachuk tips in a puck from in front. Nobody was within breathing distance of him in front of the net. Oh, and that was St. Louis' 3rd power play goal of the game. I think the Lions' secondary was out their killing that penalty. Red Wings 3-3 Blues.
  

• 6:00 ... Biggest note of the game tonight: A commercial for Denny's airs. They show a singing banana peel named "Nannerpuss". His peeled parts are attatched to strings, and he dances like a puppet. What a strange/confusing moment in television history. I will never, ever be the same after this. I feel like I just watched a combination of a solar eclipse and my parents having sex.

• 1:53 ... We're less than two minutes away from going to overtime, at home, against the St. Louis Blues. I'm almost to the point where I hope we lose this game, just so Babs' post game team-ripping is that much more fiery. This has been pathetic.

• 0:00 ... The 3rd period ends with somewhat of a desperation fury by the Wings. A little late for that, fellas. Way to wait til 59 minutes into the game. Did I mention this is a home game against the Blues? The St. Louis Blues? A near legendary shift by Pav at the end there, but still, come the fuck on, you guys.

Overtime

• 5:00 ... Uhhhhhhhhhhhhggggg ......
  

• 3:00 ... St. Louis nearly wins it after Backes wins a puck in the corner and finds Weaver, flying into the zone, but he doesn't finish ...

• 1:26 ... Then Oshie finds some space and wrists one, Ozzie comes up with the nice glove save. The Wings are being terribly outshot, and it's weird. I'm officially rooting for Tkachuk to score now.

• 0:00 ... Funniest thing I've heard all day: "They look lik they are all playing with malaria" -- ITDeuce, A2Y game thread. Right on the money.

Shootout

• Wings win the shootout 2-1. Hooray and shit.

• I was hoping Babs would throw out Abdelkader to start it, just to send a message. Instead Pav misses, Huds scores with what I'm just going to call "The Jiri Hudler Move", Hossa goes glove side high with a wicked shot, and Ozzie does well enough to pull out the win.
  

Final

• Good effort from Abdelkader. I like that I have this feeling after every game I've seen him in.

• On the blue line: I liked the game Rafalski had, until he nearly bent over for the Blues in the waning moments of regulation with a turnover. Lidstrom was very mortal looking. Kronwall is (not so secretly) sucking a lot, I'm at a loss to describe it. Chelios didn't look half bad when I noticed him, but that doesn't mean much. We need Bob Rouse.
  

• Hossa has the sickest release in the league, period. His SO goal looked so easy it shouldn't be fair.

• The Wings should feel embarrassed to take two points in this one. The Blues outshot us 33-20. Babs should rent a semi truck to drive through the lanes the defense is allowing, just to get the point across.

• I don't know what to make of Ozzie's night. He looked out of place at times, disoriented even, like somebody roofied his water bottle. But he only let three by when it seems as though six or seven could've got passed him, and all three were PP goals. And in comparison to Manny Legace, he was Terry fucking Sawchuk.
  

Injury Bug at large, vows to strike again

What an asshole.

*****

I'd like to apologize for this:

Me, January 21, amid a hissy fit after the loss to the Coyotes -- "Mule is out, Stuart's dead, and I'm sure Hank is due for his annual back mishap. Sorry for my pessimism but I can't help but hark back to last year's injury clusterfuck, which was right around this time of the season."

The next game, Z pulled up lame and in pain. I recalled that I had lashed out at the keyboard with that last paragraph and then realized that high levels of pessimism are only further perpetuated when shit actually comes true. It sucks.

So along with Z, you already know that a myriad of other injuries are starting to take their toll on the Wings' roster. From Helene St. James:

Henrik Zetterberg won’t play tonight but expects to return Wednesday. Zetterberg, who has missed the last two games because of back spasms, took part in the morning skate, but said afterwards he wouldn’t play against the Blues... Tomas Holmstrom, who didn’t skate Monday, is to go for an MRI today on his sore groin. Defenseman Derek Meech has a “tender groin” general manager Ken Holland said, and is day-to-day... There’s also an update on defenseman Brad Stuart, who is dealing with multiple injuries after crashing into the boards Jan. 20 at Phoenix. In addition to ribs breaking through the cartilage, trainer Piet Van Zant said Stuart has a compression fracture on the spine from when two vertebrae hit each other. Stuart is out at least three weeks (Freep).

Compression fracture of the spine. Gross.

The injury situation gargles balls but you can't do a damn thing about it. It happens every year, to every team.

I just hope the Zetterberg injury coinciding with his lifetime contract signing doesn't prove to be symbolic of how his tenure will play out. You know he's a warrior but when he gets into his 30's, how will he be able to cope year-in and year-out with his ailing back? I guess we can worry about that later. Or next week, whatever.

The BIG issue right now is that the Wings are on Versus tonight. Fuck the January losing skid -- let's concentrate on breaking the Versus losing streak and actually win a game on that channel. Losing to the Blues at home tonight will cause my skull to leak brain matter. We must win.