Absolute Frustration
My world has been turned upside down with the Detroit sports scenario. Everything I once knew about Detroit sports teams is fading away and it all happened this past Saturday. Here’s why…
1) The Tigers beat the Minnesota Twins, 18-1, on Saturday.. The Detroit Tigers scored 18 runs. How in the world did that happen? The Tigers are now 15-9. That’s not an amazing record, but considering the past few seasons - it’s a miracle!
2) Saturday was NFL Draft Day. Over the past few years, the Detroit Lions have drafted wide receivers. These players would then sign for millions of dollars and then wouldn’t be able to catch half of Joey’s passes (even his good ones). Many people expected for USC’s quarterback, Matt Leinart, to be one of the first five drafted in this year’s first round. Well, the Lions had the #9 pick and Leinart was still available. We had the option to pick up this great QB. I know the Lions have just signed two QBs, but they are only mediocre - nothing amazing. And even if we didn’t keep Leinart, we could’ve traded him to someone with a lower pick in exchange for Ernie Sims (the guy we actually drafted) and a lower round draft pick. But no, Millen has no balls whatsoever. Ugh. Why do I watch every single Lions game even though I know they are going to lose and suck it up majorly.
Ernie Sims is a Florida State linebacker who has had 5 concussions - five - in college! Plus, he’s only 5′11″, and we used our first pick to get this guy? We need a franchise quarterback; someone to save this team from the hell it’s currently in. Leinart was available and we passed!
As with most drafts, though, there will probably be critics. Two quarterbacks, Leinart and Vanderbilt’s Jay Cutler, were selected with the following two picks and Millen said the Lions had a few trade conversations.But they were sold on Sims.
“Sometimes when the right guy is there for you, you don’t move around, he may not be there,” Marinelli said. “When you get the right guy and we all feel good about him, you make those picks.”
Sims was also arrested on a domestic violence charge last summer and ended up pleading no contest to reduced charge. He admitted that was a mistake and said, “I put it behind me.”
The other two draft picks Detroit made yesterday are:
- Second Round (#40 overall): Safety from Nebraska
- Third Round (#74 overall): Wisconsin’s running back
3) The Pistons lost their playoff game, 124 - 104. They still lead the series, 2-1. I’m not really worried about them and their playoff future; however, it was too much for me to take. A Wings and Pistons loss all in one afternoon/evening and I had to watch both of them (but really only the 2nd half of the Pistons game).
The 124 points were the most allowed by the Pistons in a regulation playoff game since they gave up 123 to Atlanta in 1991.”I wasn’t frustrated by what they did,” Ben Wallace said. “It was frustrating the way we were playing. We were pounding the ball down to Sheed (Rasheed Wallace) in the post early, then we went away from it. We tried to do it the hard way. We got stagnant, man. Sheed was going, we should have rode that all the way.”
4) The Wings are one loss away from playoff elimination. One bloody loss!Here are reactions from Wings, Oilers, and other hockey fans from Saturday’s game…
Alanah and Jeff @ Vancouver Canucks Op Ed:
Alliterative Red Wing Fan Poetry: On the Wings is “disgusted†and Behind the Jersey is “depressed, discouraged, disappointed, disenchanted, downhearted, down, and desolateâ€. Guys, take your fingers off the trigger and breathe. Detroit is certainly capable of winning two straight. (But could someone tell Manny Legace to please shut up?)
Speaking of VCOE, they have been doing playoff jokes on the various teams since the start of the playoffs. For every team they posted a joke on, that team won 6 of 7 games. So I left them this comment: “I think it’s time for you to do a Detroit joke on Monday. We have to win that game and with your pretty decent success rate, it’s time to give it a try. Please!”So for the sake of the Wings, please send any Detroit Red Wings jokes to Alanah and Jeff (email: vancouvercanucks oped (at) gmail .com) and they will post them sometime tomorrow. Here was their response to my request: “Well, Christy, since you’re begging…! Yup, Detroit’s on the list. But that means that some of you people need to (anonymously or otherwise) send me some good Red Wings jokes! P.S. The irony of asking Red Wings fans to send me Red Wings jokes is truly fabulous.”
Matt Saler @ On the Wings:
As far as big games go, I don’t remember a more uninspired performance by the Wings. I don’t understand why they couldn’t get up to play a full game in front of their fans (I suppose the tomb-like atmosphere at the Joe has something to do with that) and when they had a chance to take the lead in the series. The Oilers played great and maybe still would have won, but if the Wings had even played to half of their ability, I wouldn’t feel so ripped off by this game. They put up a performance like this and I’m supposed to get all excited about Game 6? I’m supposed to have hope that they’ll actually show up to play in Edmonton? Why couldn’t they do it yesterday?They’ve been down 3-2 in a series before but that was in 2002 and it was a completely different team. That team knew how to win big games. This team seems to have forgotten. Sure, the series technically isn’t over but they are going to have to play out of their minds Monday night if they even want a chance at winning. I know Edmonton will “bring it” but will the Wings?
I’m not ready for another early exit. I waited two years for this? I’m tired of getting my hopes up only to have the Wings fall flat on their faces.
Helene St. James @ Detroit Free Press:
Those Red Wings. They storm through the regular season scoring on everyone, and now here they are in the playoffs, and like in previous years, goals are a problem.Despite battering Dwayne Roloson in the first period Saturday the Wings could not break him, and then the Oilers broke them. Spotting any opponent three goals in the playoffs is dangerous, and when it is to a team as good defensively as Edmonton, it is flirting with disaster. The Wings lost, 3-2, at Joe Louis Arena in Game 5 of their first-round series, and now they must win Monday night at Edmonton, or face a third straight disappointing playoff run.
Saturday’s game was the first time I thought to myself, “Wow, this Roloson is really keeping Edmonton in the game.” That thought was during the first period; after that, it only got worse.As always, IwoCPO at Abel to Yzerman has some great thoughts regarding Saturday’s game:
But at some point, and it has to be Monday, the Wings have to gel again. Leaders have to sacrifice. Defensemen have to strengthen their games. Goalies have to erase their memories and young stars need to explode. It can’t be one or two of those factors. It has to be all of them, happening at once on Monday night.Is it likely? Maybe not. But it’s certainly possible. Edmonton has a chance to kill this thing, to crush the windpipe. How will they react? We’ll see.
He also brought up Mikael Samuelsson’s playoff performance and that he had recently signed a three year deal with the Wings. I had totally forgotten and I’m so frustrated with the deal now…
Does the date March 25th mean anything to you? Let me help. That’s the day Mikael Samuelsson signed a nice 3-year deal. Anyone want to guess how many goals he’s scored since then? 2. Thanks.
Mike at Covered in Oil:
Ah, but this is where Dwayne Roloson’s .935 SV% shimmers like sparkling wine. It’s not like Roloson is making supersick saves in a 1997 Curtis Joseph sense; but he’s definitely looking more calm and assertive than he ever has in his 20-25 games as an Oiler. His glove hand looked good, and if he popped out any rebounds Roli managed to keep them clear from the high slot. His little eyes-shut zen meditation thing between plays seems to work, and more importantly it’s miles away from the scared flailing that passed for goaltending early in the season.
Yzerman and MacLean practice today
The Captain, Steve Yzerman, took part in today’s short practice at Rexall Place in Edmonton. I expect for Yzerman to play on Monday (Game #6 at 8pm) since it’s an elimination game. He couldn’t tell the reporters if he would play tomorrow night at that point in time.
“I feel better than two days ago,” Yzerman said. “I’m encouraged. Hopefully I’ll feel even better for game time tomorrow.”Asked if tonight being an elimination game will factor into his decision to play, Yzerman said, “Oh, no question. No question. It’s pretty simple, really, if I feel I can be an effective player, I’ll play and if I don’t, then I’m not going to play. If I’m ready to play then I will and if not, then I’ll have to step aside.”
I just hope that he will play and Yzerman’s last game at the Joe won’t be Game #2, which was the last playoff game I attended.Additionally, the Wings called Donald MacLean, “the Grand Rapids Griffins forward who scored 56 goals this season in the AHL,” on Saturday night. Upon which, he flew to Edmonton and practiced with the Wings. MacLean has only played with the Wings three times this season, but his first goal came on the power play against the Oilers on April 11.
Game #5: Oilers 3, Wings 2
I watched the game at Dockside Sports Pub in Ft. Myers Beach with about 9-12 other Wings fans; I was shocked to see such a large “crowd” at a random sports pub in Florida. The comments made during each period were what I wrote down while watching the game. So these are during the game reactions…Anyways, the game sucked. I’m depressed, discouraged, disappointed, disenchanted, downhearted, down, and desolate. The Wings have to head to Edmonton with a 2-3 series deficit. Not cool whatsoever.
There are three things that scare me in this series:
1) The second period. Is it just me, or do the Wings find a way to suck it up in the second period? Edmonton scored all three goals in this afternoon’s second and I’m pretty sure Detroit sucks in the second period this series.
2) Our penalty kill. Sure we had some nice 5-on-3 kills in Game #4, but the Oilers seem to always score on one of their first few power plays.
3) Chris Pronger. He’s averaging 36:41 minutes per game this series and got an assist on all three Oilers’ goals this afternoon
First Period
- To start the game off, Willy pummeled some Oiler behind the Oilers net - my check of the game.
- During a Wings power play, Homer was alone in front of Roloson, but couldn’t find a way to get the puck in the back of the net.
- There was a 4 on 3 for about a minute producing some good scoring chances for the Wings, but no goal.
- We’re looking pretty good because we’re applying a lot of pressure and thus getting some scoring opportunities. Manny has made some key saves, but hasn’t had to deal with a lot of shots thus far in the game.
- With 3:30 left in the first, we’ve gone 0/4 on the power play.
End of First Period: Wings 0, Oilers 0
(Detroit outshot Edmonton, 11-4)
Second Period
- Chris Pronger takes a shot from inside the blue line whereupon Fernando Pisani flicks it into the back of the Wings net 5:16 into the second period. The Oilers have six 5 on 5 goals this series. I can’t believe we have been controlling this game and then the Oilers get the first goal. Ugh. The second period is always our downfall. Oilers 1, Wings 0
- I’m enjoying this NBC feed much more than the CBC one on Thursday night. At least they aren’t extremely biased in either direction…or so it seems.
- With 11:26 left in the second, Stoll took a shot from the center of the face-off circle to Manny’s right. The shot deflects off Ryan Smyth’s leg and goes behind Manny into the net. Oilers 2, Wings 0
- The Joe is embarassingly quiet. Rexall’s crowd puts the Joe’s to shame.
- While it’s 4 on 4, Shawn Horcoff just “poked and jammed away” (according to an NBC broadcaster) to score the Oilers’ third goal of the game with 7:24 left in the second. Oilers 3, Wings 0
- Manny made a nice save when Torres went on a breakaway.
- A guy’s wife in the pub is the granddaughter of former Wings goalie Terry Sawchuk; unfortunately, her presence did not grant us any luck.
- 1:21 left in the period, Shanny gets on a breakaway and actually gets a goal!!!! An absolute miracle since he’s had zero offense previously. The Wings can still do it since they are only down two goals at this point. However, I believe it was Draper who tripped some Oiler, which should’ve been called a penalty but then resulted in Shanny’s breakaway. Like I said before, I’ll take any goal we can get (tainted or not).
- An Oilers shot hit the post - thank goodness that didn’t go in.
End of Second Period: Oilers 3, Wings 1
(Emonton outshot Detroit, 11-10)
Third Period
- It’s not looking good. We really didn’t come out flying - not a good sign.
- Roloson made a really nice save on a Shanny/Draper rush (Shanny shot?) to maintain the Oilers two goal lead.
- With 21.5 seconds left in the game, Henrik Zetterberg scores to give the Wings and fans a tiny minute chance of tying this game up. Datsyuk and Holmstrom were given the assists.
- They left Manny in goal and then called a timeout. I believe they still left Manny in net. Why wouldn’t you pull Manny? We needed that extra man! Please let me know if I am incorrect and that they in fact pulled Manny at that point in the game.
End of Third Period: Oilers 3, Wings 2
(Detroit outshot Edmonton, 11-4)
Overall Stats
- Detroit had 32 total shots on goal / Edmonton only had 19 shots
- There were 10 total penalties in the game (6 on the Oilers / 4 on the Wings)
- Only one penalty came in the final period of the game, while six penalties came in the first period
- Detroit won 61% of the face-offs
- The three stars of the game were (in order from 1 to 3) Chris Pronger, Dwayne Roloson, and Brendan Shanahan.
- Detroit went 0/6 on the power play and killed 3 of 4 penalties.
Game #4: Wings 4, Oilers 2
Wings defeat the Oilers in regulation, 4-2. I blogged during the game, well I posted during the intermissions and then following the game. Here’s what I had to say throughout the night…
First Period
I missed the first couple minutes because OLN didn’t cut to the Wings vs. Oilers game feed until the Ottawa vs. Tampa Bay game ended (Ottawa won). But aside from the first few minutes that I saw, Detroit looked pretty good! They applied lots of pressure and had some great scoring chances.
Edmonton’s Fernando Pisani scored 7:22 into the first while on the power play. From my perspective, Cleary got caught behind the play and Pisani was left all alone in front of Manny. So when the puck popped up from behind the net, Pisani had a nice shot to get the puck in the net. Torres and Horcoff were given the assists. Oilers 1, Wings 0
A little over six minutes later (13:25 in the 1st period), Mathieu Schneider takes a nice shot from his “post” inside the blueline while on the power play. Tomas Holmstrom deflects the puck behind Oilers goaltender, Dwayne Roloson. It was Holmstrom’s third goal of the season (including regular and postseason) against the Oilers. Wings 1, Oilers 1
Five minutes and 58 seconds later, Robert Lang (who was given an assist in the previous Wings goal) shot hit two goalposts. The replays weren’t totally clear, but Niklas Kronwall was given credit for the goal after tipping it in? The CBC broadcasters speculated that Spacek was the one who actually accidentally kicked the puck in. I’m not sure. If anyone can confirm if this is correct (or inform me if it is incorrect), I’d really appreciate it! The OLN people now say it looked like the puck bounced off Kronwall’s leg and then went into the net. However, there was no kicking motion involved (the goal did go under review) and the goal stood. (Sometime in the 2nd: It appears that Lang has now been credited with the goal.) Wings 2, Oilers 1
Detroit went 1/4 on the power play while Edmonton was 1/2 on the power play. Detroit also won 61% of the face-offs.
End of First Period: Wings 2, Oilers 1
(Detroit outshot Edmonton 14-6)
Second Period
4:03 into the second, Spacek scores through Manny’s 5-hole. Yes, the 5-hole. He should’ve had that save. Some of the goals he has allowed this series have not been hard ones; but our backup, Chris Osgood, has a lower body injury (an OtW reader said it was a tweaked groin) so we had to call up rookie Jimmy Howard. Howard has four games of NHL experience under his belt so it’s pretty safe to say that Manny will remain in net. Although Manny did step it up during out penalty kills, he just needs to keep his 5-hole covered and not allow easy goals! Wings 2, Oilers 2
Matt @ Lets Go Wings forum had this to say (and I couldn’t agree more):
You can’t just give this Edmonton team life, and that’s what Legace has done. I know it’s not entirely on the netminder, but it’s not like the Edmonton goals were the result of a bad defensive play.The team is playing solid defensively, but as soon as Edmonton sniffs blood after each of the goals they scored tonight they go bonkers for a few shifts keeping the Wings scrambling… then it slowly heads back to the Detroit possession game.
It’d be nice to gain some momentum with a lead and MAINTAIN the lead for once. Please?
The Wings had four penalties this period. Cheli - what were you thinking? We were already down a man! Maybe the refs missed something Edmonton did, but we couldn’t afford that penalty. He was having fun toying with Smyth (was that the guy?), but do that when we’re not already trying to kill a penalty, buddy. I like the passion and that he’s now pissed about the ref’s call, but try to stay out of the box!Three of those penalties came 15:46-17:52 into the period. While I was incredibly pleased that the Wings actually managed to kill two 5-on-3 Oiler advantages, we made too many stupid trips to the penalty box that we only had 7 shots on Roloson (to Edmonton’s 13).
Detroit won 53% of the face-offs in the first two periods.
Sidenote: Captain Steve Yzerman did not play tonight due to a lower back injury (or at least that’s what we’ve been led to believe). While we were able to win tonight, we need the captain! As I mentioned earlier, Osgood is hurt. During intermission, he said that he hopes to be ready for Saturday’s game in case something should happen to Legace. But if it’s groin issues, can we really be that certain? If the Wings make it past this round, I am and I will be bloody terrified that our backup to Manny is Jimmy Howard, a rookie with 4 NHL games behind him. Let’s just hope we won’t need a backup.
End of Second Period: Wings 2, Oilers 2
(Edmonton outshot Detroit, 13-7)
Third Period
6:44 into the final period, Nick Lidstrom scored from the right corner inside the blueline. Now I’m a Wings fan and am just plain happy that he scored. I watched with my family, fellow Wings fans, and am watching the CBC broadcast courtesy of OLN. The broadcasters strongly believed it was a pick. My brother and dad thought there was obviously some contact, but Lidstrom did not cause him to spin around and fall. (Edit: I’m just happy the Wings scored another goal after Lidstrom’s shot. Obviously, this goal helped with momentum and whatnot, but I’d feel just slightly guilty if that was the only goal that got past Roloson in the third.) Wings 3, Oilers 2
Pavel Datsyuk makes a beautiful play (good stickwork and actually “pushed” past the Oilers player - I can’t think of a better word than “pushed”) and passes the puck to Henrik Zetterberg in front of Roloson. Zetterberg makes a slight deke and shoots the puck backhand to give the Wings a two goal lead! The goal happened 15:53 into the third and scored while on the power play. Wings 4, Oilers 2
The Wings went 2/4 on the power play in the third while the Oilers only had two power play opportunities and did not capitalize on either one. Detroit won 54% of the face-offs in the game, overall.
End of Third Period: Wings 4, Oilers 2
(Detroit outshot Edmonton, 10-7)
Overall Game Thoughts
The Wings needed to win this game and they did. As a Wings fan, I couldn’t be happier! The series is all tied up at two game wins apiece and we are not heading back to Detroit down, 3-1. The game’s three stars were (in order from 1 to 3) Nick Lidstrom, Chris Pronger, and Robert Lang. It’s good to see Lidstrom step up and finally get on the scoreboard.
Detroit’s offensive leaders tonight: Robert Lang had a goal and two assists tonight. The only goal he did not contribute to was the last one. I was impressed with his offensive presence tonight especially with captain Steve Yzerman out of the lineup (with a lower back injury). Mathieu Schneider also had three points tonight, all of which were assists. It’s also nice to see Pavel Datsyuk notch two assists and playing a big role in that final goal cementing the Wings’ lead.
Quick Game Stats
- Wings outshot Edmonton, 31-26.
- Manny made 24 saves / Roloson stopped 27 shots
- Edmonton’s Mark Greene went to the penalty box three times tonight (most of any player on either team / Detroit’s Holmstrom was second with two penalties). He was called for cross checking, hooking, and tripping.
- Edmonton had two more penalties in the game than Detroit, 11 and 9 penalties respectively.
- 5 of the 6 goals in tonight’s game came on the power play. Only Lang’s goal in the second period came while playing at even strength.
- Detroit went 3-11 on the power play (roughly 27%). Edmonton went 2-9 (about 22%).
The game didn’t seem to have a lot of flow with the amount of penalties this game had (20 overall). It’s hard to get a rhythm going when the whistle is blowing every two seconds (an obvious exaggeration).
- First period had 6 penalties (Edmonton had 4 to Detroit’s 2)
- Second period had 8 penalties (Detroit had 5 to Edmonton’s 3)
- Third period had 6 penalties (Edmonton had 4 to Detroit’s 2)
I just looked at the previous games’ offensive score sheets and although it seemed like a bazillion penalties were called, Tuesday’s game had two more penalties than tonight’s with 22 total penalties (each team with 11). However, three of those penalties did come during the overtime period. Last Sunday’s game in Detroit only had 9 total penalties (5 Detroit, 4 Edmonton). And the first game of the series had 16 penalties (8 apiece); none of those penalties were called during either overtime periods.
Sacamano at Battle of Alberta with his postgame reaction:
I don’t usually like to talk about the refs because in the grand scheme of things everything tends to even out in the wash; but that missed pick call on the 5 on 3 was a back-breaker.Having said that, there were about 10 other penalty calls on the Oilers that were deserved, and they did have two 5 on 3’s that they failed to convert. Terrible discipline. Hemsky was quite simply, awful tonight. In addition, like the other loss, the Oilers had zero 5 on 5 production — not that there was a heckuva lot of 5 on 5 play.
He also mentioned that the Oilers still have a strong shot at winning this series is if this is the best Detroit can do. Well, we all know Detroit can do a lot better (namely our second period crappiness), but will they actually bring it on Saturday’s game?
In conclusion…
- The Wings won and we didn’t have to go into overtime!
- I hated watching that CBC broadcast. It really made me miss Mickey and Ken at FSN Detroit.
- Obviously today’s game was a pretty important one, but I think a win on Saturday is also pretty key. I wouldn’t want to head back to Edmonton down 3-2.
- Did I mention the Wings won? Woohoo!
- I’m also down in Florida at the moment. I got badly sunburned after playing extremely casual tennis, if you can even call it that, for two hours. But I’ve walked the beach and swam in the pool and relaxed. Plus the Wings won, it’s been a great day! As such, I won’t be updating a whole lot since my internet access is limited (I’m borrowing my brother’s ethernet cord and he has to do homework so I can only go online when he’s not using it).
Thanks for reading Behind the Jersey and please leave comments telling me what you thought about the game - the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Game #3: Oilers 4, Wings 3
I’ll be posting throughout the game, but not necessarily in a ton of detail.
- Loud crowd! If only the Joe could be like that, but we have all the silly rich business people. Ugh.
- Whoever sang the two national anthems, my parents and I were cringing. Man - I’ll take Karen Newman over him anyday!
First Period
- The Wings are putting a lot of pressure in the Oilers end. Jason Williams was pretty close to getting a goal, but it hit the far goalpost. The play was reviewed and no goal was the outcome.
- Mikael Samuelsson chose to flick the puck towards the center of the Wings defensive zone instead of clearing it. An Oiler got a clear shot, puck sent behind net, and then Jason Spacek scored on a slapshot 4:15 into the first. No one was blocking Manny’s view; he just went down too early. Oilers 1, Wings 0
- This drives me absolutely crazy. The Wings seem to have the game going their tempo and then they make a stupid (and costly) error. The Oilers go up on the board and get the momentum. Come on Wings - let’s cut back on these silly defensive errors!
- The Wings had at least 30 seconds with a man advantage and they used it. Detroit applied a lot of pressure with the puck in the Oilers end the entire time. Kronwall had numerous shots that looked like they could’ve gone in. Mathieu Schneider made a nice pass to Henrik Zetterberg who flicked it in (for his 2nd power play goal of the postseason) 12:06 into the first. Shots all even at 7. Wings 1, Oilers 1
- Ridiculous. I just told my dad, “Look at all the pressure the Wings are applying! Oh crap, here come the Oilers. I bet they score here.” And what do they do? They score. I think we’ve been doing pretty well and then we make stupid stupid mistakes and the Oilers pounce on those opportunities. Plus Manny isn’t looking too hot. Ryan Smyth scored at 16:48. Oilers 2, Wings 1
- I am so confused with this penalty stuff. Holmstrom got called for holding and then interference; I didn’t see the interference and holding? Then Jason Smith is in for Roloson. And now Cheli tried to clear the puck and it went out so we have a delay of game. So for like 56 seconds, the Oilers are 5-3 on the Wings. Fortunately, Lidstrom and Zetterberg have each cleared the puck to kill about 15-20 seconds.
- With exactly 30 seconds left on the 5-3 Oilers advantage, the first period came to a close. Thank goodness. Mike Babcock better have something to say to his team. The Oilers aren’t beating Detroit; Detroit is beating Detroit. Stupid penalties. Stupid mistakes. Ugh. - The Wings had 6 penalties to Edmonton’s three in the first.
End of First Period: Oilers 2, Wings 1
(Edmonton outshot Wings, 11-9)
Second Period
- 2:38 into the first, Pronger takes a shot from right inside the blueline and Torres deflects it behind Manny. This was, of course, on the Oilers power play. Man, this game is pissing me off. Oilers 3, Wings 1
- The Wings have a power play after Smyth ran into Manny (he just couldn’t stop); they need to score right now. And the Wings don’t even generate that many offensive opportunities; the Oilers just block and clear.
- Steve Yzerman was hooked as he was going to the goal. If it wasn’t for Yzerman, I’d be losing my mind. The Wings need to look at him and replicate his fervor and ability. He’s outskating some of the Oilers and he’s getting chances. Lidstrom hit the goalpost during the power play. Our passes are sloppy; we just aren’t connecting and that wasted the rest of the power play.
- Panic hasn’t set in, just yet. Extreme worry has though. Can we score at least two goals in the third without allowing anymore Edmonton goals in? I guess we’ll find out…
End of 2nd Period: Oilers 3, Wings 1
(Detroit outshoots Oilers, 6-4)
Third Period
- I love the comment by Happy Pancake at the Lets Go Wings forum: “Can we take the Wings players’ families hostage until they start playing like an actual cohesive NHL team?”
- You’ve GOT to be kidding me. Lebda called for unsportsmanlike for diving? Seriously - he was bloody “corkscrew”ed according to Mickey. There was no way he could’ve stayed on his feet. For the first time, it wasn’t the Wings fault. I’m getting mad…And the penalties were offsetting, but that should’ve been our bloody power play! Vladiator on the LGW forum said: “Man, I don’t know. With that last call, just looking more and more like a Canadian Conspiracy to me.”
- Yzerman drew an Oiler penalty. We need our power play from the regular season right about now. This is ridiculous, with 1 minute to go in the power play, I think the Oilers had more shots than we did. Edicius on the LGW forum: “Was…was that actually a power play? I didn’t realize so much defensive play was required when one is on a power play.”
- Finally! Zetterberg scores another power play goal with 8:08 left in regulation. Willy actually did something good and helped set up that goal. Come on Wings please don’t make a stupid mistake and screw up our momentum. Oilers 3, Wings 2
- Amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yzerman won the face-off, Schneider took a slapshot and bam it’s in the back of the net with 7:44 left. Can they get another one and perhaps win this game? Or will the menacing Oilers return? We need Yzerman on the ice - all the time. Wings 3, Oilers 3
- Man. That Oiler (Hemsky) fell head face into the board and just laid there until the refs blew the whistle and then popped right back up. And the Wings had the pressure down in the Oilers end. Man that sucks. Let’s just say that it was pretty easy to read Babcock’s lips about what he had to say to the refs and it was all swearing. If looks could kill…
- Well, there’s 1:17 left in the third and it’s all tied up at 3. Looks like we’re heading into OT. Oh crap, Lidstrom made a hook and now we’re shorthanded. He’s our penalty killer! Ahh. In game 1, didn’t we have to kill a last minute penalty that extended into overtime? Hopefully this is a good sign of things to come.
- Darren McCarty scored to help the Flames beat Anaheim, 5-2.
End of Third Period: Wings 3, Oilers 3
(Wings outshot Oilers, 14-5, and won 68% of the face-offs)
Overtime
- We have 47 seconds left to kill in the penalty when OT starts. To bad we have an intermission, the Wings certainly had momentum. Let’s Go Red Wings!
- Stress causes my knee pain to really flare up. So the Wings need to score ASAP so (a) my knee can feel better and (b) I can get some sleep. Fortunately, I finished my freshman year of college tonight at 9pm when I turned in my bio final exam. Otherwise, it’d be an early morning…
- We killed the penalty! Oh man, I just had a near heart attack - 2 Oilers on a breakaway and they call it offsides. Didn’t look like it from what I saw.
- 15:32 left in OT, Zetterberg got hooked multiple times by Spacek and so the Wings go on a power play. Come on!!
- Spacek (?) had a breakaway and Willy hooked him but there is no penalty shot. Just a penalty. Thank goodness. Ahh, Willy you’re killing me! The Wings successfully killed the Oilers power play; Manny had a pretty nice save.
- Now Peca is in the box, come on Wings! I can’t believe no one has scored with the 3 different power plays in OT. The Oilers killed that penalty. Man.
- Yzerman was hit somewhere and left the bench. But he’s back on the bench and looking very determined. We need him out here winning us some face-offs!
- I love that the Edmonton fans boo Cheli whenever he touches the puck. I must say I’ve been impressed with their involvement in the game; puts the Joe to shame.
- Crap. Yzerman took 2 steps out onto the ice and then went back off. Uh oh. This is not good. Even if we win this game, we need Yzerman. *I* need Yzerman playing.
- Willy scores!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can I believe that Willy scored? Oh wait, they are reviewing the play. Crap, it went through the side of the net. No goal. What a momentum loss, we’re back to OT.
- Shots, 38-24, in Detroit’s favor.
- Doesn’t look like Yzerman is playing anymore tonight, but he’s still sitting on the bench. He had 14:22 of ice time tonight.
- Less than two minutes left in OT, how has no one scored yet? I can’t believe we’re possibly going into ANOTHER double overtime in 3 games. Yep, we’re heading into double overtime. At least we’re seeing the actual Red Wings playing and not their slow/sloppy/lazy alterego.
End of Overtime: Wings 3, Oilers 3
(Detroit outshot Edmonton, 10-6, and won 53% of face-offs)
Double Overtime
- Have you seen the My Stanley Cup ad featuring the Wings? It’s the best ad the NHL has produced yet this year. Although Kiefer Sutherland’s voiceover sounds nothing like Jack Baeur in 24 (great show by the way), but the commercial showed action and highlighed popular players like Shanny, Lids, and Yzie.
- Yzerman is skating okay on the ice now; hopefully they were able to work some magic during intermission. He has a fantastic pain tolerance, I truly admire and appreciate that in a person and athlete.
- Pressure on both ends; both goalies have made some key saves. Come on Wings, let’s get this puck in the back of the net! It’s 2am here in Detroit!
- I must say that I’ve been most impressed with Kronwall and Yzerman tonight. Kronwall has been hitting and taking shots and making no major mistakes that I’ve noticed.
- Ok, the Wings are dominating which is scary because everytime the Wings really dominate, the Oilers score a goal off a bad defensive/goalie error. Come on, come on.
- With 11:16, Stoll scores so the Oilers win 4-3 in double overtime. Crap. I knew this would happen. Crap. Crap. Crap. Well, I’m not as terrified as I would have been had we lost the game, 3-1, but that still doesn’t help the fact that we are down in the series now, 2-1.
- What a night to try out this liveblogging stuff. It’s 2:10am, good morning everybody.
End of Double OT: Oilers 4, Wings 3
(Wings outshot Oilers, 8-5)
Overall
Personally, I thought the Wings deserved the win. Had the game ended in regulation, I would’ve had something different to say. But they dominated in the last 7-8 minutes of the third and then throughout the first and second overtime. Well, this just plain sucks. But I have not lost heart; the team brought it. However, I didn’t see Yzerman play in the 2nd OT - not good. It appears to be lower body, perhaps hip flexor?
For more info, check out the offensive scoresheet.
Game #2: Oilers 4, Wings 2
I don’t have time for a game summary/recap because I must study for my big bio final on Tuesday night. If you want a recap, check out Abel to Yzerman.
My thoughts on the game…
- Boring! I’ve only been to 2 playoff games in my life - Friday’s and Sunday’s games. So I could only compare Sunday’s crowd to Friday’s and boy was it so much quieter! I think it might have something to do with how a majority of the game was just uninteresting. Sure, there’d be flashes of Wings offense but still, the game seemed pretty slow from the upper bowl.Â
- Yzerman is doing pretty sweet. If only the rest of the Wings played with the same intensity he has this series, we’d have this series locked up, 4-0. Yesterday in the third, Yzerman carried the puck down the wing and nearly scored. It reminded me of the shootout when we needed Yzerman to score to stay in it and he did. Except this time, our knight in shining armor couldn’t put it in the net reminding us that he, too, is human. IwoCPO had similar thoughts…
Delma Huddle makes an appearance. He’d been slow and lethargic up to this point, but there he is snatching a Legace rebound and weaving his way up ice, The Captain on his wing, keeping up with him (which should tell you something about Datsyuk’s health). Pavel slides one to Stevie and I’ll be damned if it’s not 1987. Yzerman muscles his way by Pronger and time stops. Frame by frame we see the Captain pulling us even, willing his way to the crease, falling, holding on to the puck, burning Roloson, waiting, horizontal now, sliding it toward a tie game and an explosion at the Joe.Off the post.
I’m not panicking, yet. The Wings have a good road record and they know what needs to be done. But I’m going to hate it if the Pistons sweep the Bucks while the Wings struggle to win the first round…Well, that’s all I have for now. I must go study - sorry!
Game One Reactions
If you haven’t read my personal thoughts on the game (I was at the Joe), please check the entry below this one or just click here. The rest of this entry is what various fans / bloggers / media have said about Game #1 of the Wings vs. Oilers series…
Detroit Free Press / HELENE ST. JAMES and GEORGE SIPPLE
“Our power play and our penalty kill, they’ve got to improve a little bit,” defenseman Chris Chelios said. “I thought tonight we were a little flat on both. But give credit to Edmonton, they played a solid game defensively and they cause you to take you off your game.”"It’s not a young team that gets frustrated when a goalie is playing that well,” Manny Legace said. “We just keep plugging away and it’s just a credit to the great guys in this dressing room. They don’t get frustrated too easily.”
In other news, Helene St. James reports that Jiri Fischer will be traveling with the team to Edmonton.
Wings defenseman Jiri Fischer, who hasn’t played since suffering a seizure Nov. 21, will travel with the team to Edmonton.”Fisch is a great human being, and his passion for hockey and his enthusiasm for the game is contagious for our team,” Babcock said. “It’s great to see him doing well. He doesn’t look like he is going to have the same career, but he’ll make a significant difference somewhere, when he decides what that is. We’re ecstatic that he’s around our team.”
Detroit Free Press / HELENE ST. JAMES
“Our coaches have harped on us all year: Get it to the net, just get it to the net,” Maltby said. “As soon as I got it, that’s all I was thinking. Just had that little voice in my ear, just get it on net, especially when it’s in overtime. It just found a way in.”Their line was the difference today,” said Robert Lang, who scored first, on a power play. “Our fourth line was playing great and you’re going to need that.”
“You need guys like Malts to win at playoff time,” Wings coach Mike Babcock said. “He competes.”
Detroit Free Press / MITCH ALBOLM
You wanted playoff hockey back? It’s back. So is that old indigestion. It took two years for Detroit to see an April octopus. Two years to see a new Karen Newman playoff outfit.And one night to make the fans sweat all over again.
Double overtime? Nearly four hours of action at the Joe? Stop me if you’ve heard this before. The Red Wings opened a playoff series against a lower seed with way less experience and they dominated them with shots but they couldn’t get the puck to– Stop?
OK. But not before saying this. THEY WON! You can lift your head from your hands now…
THEY WON!
And in case you forgot, that’s the idea.
And in case you forgot, this is exactly what playoff hockey is like. You sweat. You groan. You swear you’re never going to put yourself through this again.
Go to sleep early tonight.
There’s another game tomorrow.
IwoCPO @ Abel to Yzerman
Legace was outstanding. I don’t care how few shots he faced (25) or about the two PP goals he gave up. He limited Edmonton to two goals and that’s what we needed. He stood tall in the third. Nice, nice playoff performance.Zetterberg wasn’t outstanding. In fact, it may have been his worst game of the year. 1 shot in regulation (much better in OT with 4 shots), 3 giveaways and not much of a threat. Was Peca on him all night? I think so.
Yzerman: outstanding. He looked fresh all night even when the ice looked like Reunion Arena.
Brendan Shanahan: not so much. No shots in regulation, but a few chances in OT. He’ll come around.
Datsyuk: I hope he realizes, if he cares, that if a charley horse (if that’s what it is) keeps him out another game, and the Wings lose this series, he’s going to be the scapegoat. Suck…it…up. If and when Datsyuk returns, and if he’s effective, watch the Zetterberg and Shanahan troubles disappear.
ANSAR KHAN @ Mlive.com
After sitting out three of the last four games, Steve Yzerman is picking up where he left off. You had to be impressed by the way he was outracing Oiler defenders for the puck and setting up teammates.The Wings responded well to the Oilers’ attempts to set the physical tone early. Johan Franzen and Andreas Lilja, in particular, did a good job of throwing their weight around. It’s important for the Wings to show they can dish it out, too.
Robert Lang was their best forward in the 2004 playoffs and something tells me he’s going to be strong against this postseason. His size and strength enables him to fight through the traffic around the net, which is crucial around playoff time.
I’ll post more reactions later today if I find more, especially from all you Wings and Oilers bloggers!
Wings 3, Oilers 2 (2OT)
As most readers know, I attended tonight’s game in the Joe. I’ll also have you know that I sat in the nosebleed section (row 19 of a possible 24 rows in the upper bowl). I did see the game, but most of the time I couldn’t tell who made a big play down on the other end of the ice. And they never show replays of penalties at the Joe so what I thought was fair/unfair could’ve been the opposite and I know no better. That being said, here are my game thoughts…
Pre-Game
I love going to the Joe; it’s my favorite place in the world. There’s something about wasted Wings fans (before the game starts) that just brings a smile to my face. Anyways, my dad and I made our pre-game predictions.
Dad - Wings win, 4-1.
Me - Wings win, 3-2.
So I was right, I just didn’t say that it’d happen in OT, much less double OT. Oh, and that 10 minute pre-game show was nothing special lemme tell you. The best part of the pre-game show was when two octopi were thrown out on the ice while Karen Newman was singing the National Anthem - you couldn’t even hear her the crowd was so excited. And then after she finished, Al came out and picked them up and waved the larger one above his head, what a perfect way to start the playoffs in Detroit.
First Period
It seemed to me that the Wings looked really strong as they started the game with a lot of intensity and spent most of the time in the Oilers end. They only looked weak while on the penalty kill (which was pretty shaky all night). And of course, Samsonov scores while Schneider was sitting in the box for hooking.
With less than three minutes into the game, there was a fight in front of Roloson and I was like, Maltby? Where was this displayed intensity all year? I liked it. So in my first playoff game, I experienced the octopus throw and a fight within a span of 10 minutes or so. Pretty nice if you ask me.
Robert Lang scored first and as IwoCPO @ Abel to Yzerman mentioned earlier today…
The Enigma: R. Lang. Dammit, Lang…I’m sick of calling you The Enigma. Let’s see 22, 23 consistent playoff games. Win faceoffs, carry the puck, keep the puck. Be strong in the corners and FIND THE CAPTAIN. This guy is so key for us. If R. Lang gets hot, if he pops a couple tonite Edmonton is in serious trouble. Yes, Peca’s probably going to shadow Zetterberg. Datsyuk will be doubled every time he, eventually, touches the puck. Shanahan is going to see little open space and Homer is going to be absolutely abused in front of the net until the whistles come out. But if Lang can carry his line….there’s no way to spread the defensive wealth far enough to contain that that unit.
And as I sat there watching the game, I could just hear his voice in my head. Lang got a goal early in the game and I thought the Lang / Yzerman / Williams line had the most opportunities throughout the game.Each team had three penalties apiece. While I did struggle to catch some penalties, I thought they were all fair aside from Yzerman’s but I certainly could’ve missed that. Was it me, or did the Oilers really go after Yzie? I mean, it is a hockey game so I don’t expect them to ignore him, but he just seemed to get hit time and time again and no one did anything about it!
Shots favored the Wings, 15-5, in the first.
Second Period
Now this is where it got really ugly for the Wings. Chelios got called for cross-checking (and I actually agreed with this call from my viewpoint), 7:48 into the second. As I previously mentioned, our penalty kill looked shaky - we weren’t being aggressive, just kind of sitting back. Well right before Pronger (who I can’t stand by the way) scores, some Oiler knocked Manny Legace over. Everyone in our section was yelling at the referee because clearly that was goalie interference and clearly unacceptable. However, nothing was called so Legace got up where he was quickly scored upon. The Oiler standing in front of Manny to try and block his view did an awfully good job because Manny couldn’t see anything.
I really thought the Wings had more penalties to kill than just the one, but looking at the offensive scoresheet I clearly am mistaken. Maybe it seemed like more because the Wings got two power play chances following the Pronger goal and the Oilers were in our end more than we were in there’s. The second half of the period was miserable. It was like a switch was turned off and all of the Wings became lazy and thought they were playing St. Louis in a meaningless game instead of the fricking Oilers in the playoffs! It was incredibly frustrating to watch in the stands.
Detroit outshot the Oilers, 16-6.
Third Period
The Wings didn’t look really intense to start the period, but it appeared to grow as time went on. They had a number of solid chances, but nothing went in until Kirk Maltby tied the game at 2 apiece, 13:58 into the third. Now, I had a sucky viewpoint for this goal and only saw the replay once on the screen above center ice. They had the guys in Toronto check to see if there was a goal or my guess was that it looked like Maltby might have kicked it in, but I don’t really know. I was incredibly nervous because losing that goal would’ve killed the small amount of momentum we had started to build. Fortunately, the goal stood and the Joe went nuts.
However, Shanny got a roughing penalty with 1:50 left in the third. I was so nervous because with the way the Wings penalty kill had been working, I thought they were going to score for sure. But somehow the Wings managed to keep the score tied and force an overtime.
Edmonton outshot Detroit, 8-7.
Overtime #1
I spent most of the overtime (and the second overtime) acting like a chicken with its head cut off. If the Oilers were in the Wings end, I just whispered “no no no no” until the puck was cleared or carried out. For any Seinfeld fans, I acted like Kramer the one time he won a bet at the race track and when he stood there saying “come on” and whipping an imaginary horse with his newspaper. Anyways, I just sat there whispering “come on” like a mad woman. I clearly could not handle the pressure of a Wings fan in the playoffs.
I also became very appreciative that the NHL does not have shootouts in the playoffs. How wrong would it have been if the game ended that way? Yuck.
The Wings actually played really well in these 20 minutes with 16 shots on goal to the Oilers’ 6 chances. The referees didn’t call any penalties, which I was thankful for.
Overtime #2
If I thought I was a mess the first OT, I got even worse in the second. Fortunately for my head and heart’s sake, Maltby scored the game winner 2:39 into the double OT. Edmonton had no shots in that time span while Detroit had 3. After Maltby’s goal, the Joe went crazy! I’ve never experienced anything like it (since Michigan lost to Ohio State and Notre Dame this year at the Big House). It was a fantastic way to conclude my first playoff game.
Overall
Detroit only went 1/6 on the power play tonight. The special teams weren’t very hot or even mild tonight, which made the game much closer than it could’ve been.
The Oilers goaltender, Roloson, made all but 3 saves on 57 shots. 57! I had to give Roloson props for the fine goaltending tonight and I’m very nervous about the future games because of the trouble he could give us. He was only given the second star of the night. Chris @ Covered in Oil had this to say about Roloson’s performance tonight:
Seriously, what a performance from Roloson tonight. So solid, so calm, even after having his head sat on. That’s rare, people. you can’t teach… having you head… sat on. And playing well. Right? Right. Also, gotta love his little Hextall moment early on to set the tone, with the one-two slash-crosscheck. Sure we got a penalty, but dammit, it was emotional. And emotional victories are almost as good as real ones.Except when they’re not. Like tonight.
Game-winner, Kirk Maltby, received the number one star with captain Steve Yzerman claiming the third slot. Yzie got one assist tonight and I thought just played fantastic. He set up some great opportunities throughout the night.The NHL.com recap had this little tidbit to share with us:
Detroit is the most experienced team in the playoffs with more than 1,500 combined games and 26 Stanley Cup rings while the current Oilers entered the postseason with 449 games of experience and no championships.
I think the experience really helped us finish out the game tonight. Sure we had numerous rough patches, but we got it done and got the win, which is all that really matters.The recap also had this to say:
Maltby made it 2-all with 6:17 left in regulation when he scored off a rebound on a goal that stood after a video review. He had just five goals this season after scoring 14 in each of the previous two.”You need guys like Malts to win at playoff time - he competes,” coach Mike Babcock said after coaching Detroit for the first time in the postseason.
Roloson made 54 saves. “Unfortunately, they got a lucky bounce at the end of the game,” Roloson said. “You can’t fault our guys at all.”
Manny Legace, who made just 23 saves for the Red Wings, said he felt a sense of relief. “Especially when it goes to double overtime and the other goalie stands on his head,” Legace said. “We got lucky.”
In conclusion, I’ve been to plenty of Wings games and have never really felt comfortable talking to those around me because they didn’t seem that interested. Well tonight, I talked to the people on both sides of my Dad and I as well as the guys behind us. I enjoyed the hockey talk because I sadly have no one to talk to at college.I really enjoyed the game tonight, although it was a little too close for my health’s sake. I also found out that my youngest brother has a soccer game in Grand Rapids on Sunday afternoon so I will be taking my other brother to Game #2 of Round 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. 2 games in 3 days, can I handle it?
Wings now lead the series, 1-0. So how will they do Sunday? I’m predicting a 2-1 win by Detroit. Go Wings!
Please leave a comment or send an email to let me know what you thought of the game! I’ll be studying biology all tomorrow, but I’ll try to post some of your game reactions during a study break!
Wings vs. Oilers Predictions
This shall be my last post until after Friday night’s game (final exam Thurs night, moving out of my dorm Friday, pre-op appointment, and the playoff game) so for any last minute Wings’ news, check out Abel to Yzerman or Kukla’s Korner.
As the 2006 NHL playoffs are about to arrive, almost every fan and hockey blogger have their predictions for either their favorite team’s series or the entire playoffs as a whole. This post will feature a variety of people’s comments on the playoffs (especially their thoughts on the Wings vs. Oilers series) as well as my own personal pick. I know a couple bloggers will be posting their predictions sometime Thursday or Friday so I’ll try to update this entry as I hear/read new picks.
For my personal prediction, I think it’ll be Detroit in 5. If the regular season series is any indication, we could be in for a wild ride this first round. However, I think we have the right coach to make sure that an early round exit doesn’t happen again. And while all the records Detroit has broken and accolades they’ve received don’t mean anything, it does show we’ve had a pretty sweet year and it’s reminding me of past Stanley Cup winning seasons. And I like it.
“That’s just scary good…”
As Jes Golbez @ Hockey Rants said, “Each stat has a different leader on the team. That’s just scary good.” Like Jes says, the Wings have a lot of players that are really good.
Defenseman Mathieu Schneider leads the team in +/- rating with a +33. With 64 assists to his name, Nick Lidstrom is making it pretty easy for him to win his fourth Norris in five years. The team leader in points (87) is No. 13, Pavel Datsyuk, with his buddy Henrik Zetterberg only two points behind. Chris Chelios barely beats Shanny with the most PIM, 108 (to Shanny’s 105). And who has the most power play goals? Henrik Zetterberg with 17. Johan Franzen (aka The Mule) leads the team with 2 shorthanded goals.
In the offseason he changed some of the game’s rules, today Brendan Shanahan tops the Wings with 40 goals. Not including this season, Shanny has 17 seasons to his name. 5 of which, he scored 40 goals or more. His most recent 40+ goal season came back in 1999-2000. Is it me or do our veterans seem refreshed this year? Shanny, Cheli, Lids, and Yzie all seem to be stepping up their game when it counts.
Is 8 the magic number?
The sports writer has made his playoff picks. Overall, Mirtle picked the New Jersey Devils to win it all over the Dallas Stars in the finals. For the Wings vs. Oilers series, he chose Detroit in 6 games.
Series key: Dwayne Roloson
It comes down to this: Can the Oilers stop the league’s top power play in a series that is going to come down to special teams? Roloson is going to have a huge say in that, and he’s going to have to be a star. Chris Pronger’s a big factor here as well. The Red Wings have shown few weaknesses all season, but they have struggled somewhat when playing the Oilers. Still, with the playoffs comes a raised intensity level, and Edmonton’s going to need a whole lot more from players like Mike Peca than they got during the season.It’ll be a fascinating series.
Mirtle also has the Wings advancing to the second round, just to lose to Anaheim. Personally, I don’t think Babcock would allow a playoff series loss to his old team.
Tom Benjamin @ NHL Weblog
I’m liking the way Tom thinks: Detroit in 4. A nice sweet sweep over the Oilers.
Detroit-Edmonton - Steve Yzerman (again) or Cal Nichols and Kevin Lowe (ever)? Can anyone stand the Edmonton hockey media at the best of times? How will they be if the Oilers actually do something? Not only do I want the Red Wings to sweep, I want them to lead every minute of every game. I don’t want the Oilers to score a single goal or even threaten to score a single goal.
Tom gets a lot of readers’ comments on all of his posts. Out of the four readers who left comments, they all picked Detroit to win in 5.
John Buccigross @ ESPN.com
John goes with the norm and picks Detroit over Edmonton. How many games does he think it’ll take? Five.
No. 1 Detroit vs. No. 8 Edmonton: I wrote this back in October after seeing the Red Wings play the Blue Jackets in Columbus:”You can put the Wings back among the Western Conference elite. In fact, from what I’ve seen and considering their experience, I put the Wings as the favorite in the West. I think the Wings could get to the Stanley Cup with Manny Legace or whoever else in net.”
I still believe this. Unless Pavel Datsyuk can’t play. I’m sure he will at some point. But hold off on the long-term Wings wins until we see Datsyuk back at 100 percent. Still, this series should be manageable.
John also commented about some end-of-the-year NHL awards. What Wings players or staff made the list? Along with New Jersey and Carolina’s coach, he named Mike Babcock as a candidate for the Jack Adams Trophy.
There were many outstanding coaching performances this season. In fact, one could argue that the depth of quality NHL coaching has never been better. Hence, the tight races down the stretch. But it’s truly amazing how Babcock elevated the play of so many players after he stepped into the culture of Detroit, with its heavy air of tradition and recent habits.
As many bloggers and analysist have been predicting, Nick Lidstrom looks like the winner for the Norris Trophy: “For 28 minutes a night, nearly every slap shot on goal, outlet pass, power-play goal and regal air — Lidstrom is simply the best.”
David Johnson @ HockeyAnalysis.com
David comments on all the Western Conference matchups including the Wings vs. Oilers series. He picked Detroit in 6.
These two teams matched up fairly well during the regular season with both teams wining 2 games and 3 of the games going to overtime. If that sort of thing happens in the playoffs we are in for a dandy of a series despite being 1st seed vs 8th seed. The key to the series for Edmonton is getting quality goaltending from deadline pickup Dwayne Roloson. Edmonton has very solid defence and enough offence to compete with most teams so it will be up to Roloson not to give any games away. Detroit is such a well balanced team it is hard to pinpoint any one aspect that we should focus on as a key to success but having Zetterberg continue his scoring ways in his first playoff as a first liner will be important for them.
Tom L @ Sabre Rattling
For playoff round #1, Tom picked Detroit to win the series in 6.
Detroit (1) vs. Edmonton (8)Analysis: Detroit is not the powerhouse their record suggests. 25 wins in their division is almost damning with faint praise. That said, if Edmonton had actually played well coming down the stretch I would pick them to upset the Wings in 6, but, they didn’t and ex-Sabre Roloson will not be the difference maker (psst… K-Lo, Marty Biron was your answer). The Oilers blueline is world-class but their offence and team-unity aren’t. There’s an upset in here somewhere, I’m just not sure I can find it. I’m rooting for the Oil just not hopeful.
Tom later went on to say that the Wings defeat Anaheim in the second round, but lose out to San Jose in the third.
The Puck Stops Here
The blog, The Puck Stops Here, has chosen Detroit over Edmonton in this first round matchup.
Detroit was one of the better teams in the NHL this year. Edmonton backed into a playoff spot when Vancouver imploded. Detroit has Lidstrom, Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Schneider who all had better seasons then any Edmonton Oiler this year.
ColbyCash.com
According to Colby’s spreadsheet, the Wings have a 67.1% chance of making it to the second round. Detroit also has a 21.8% probability of making it to the finals, higher than any other team on the spreadsheet.
Shawn P. Roarke @ NHL.com
Roarke picked three game breakers from each team in the Wings vs. Oilers series. Pavel Datsyuk, Nick Lidstrom, and Tomas Holmstrom make up the Detroit list while Ryan Smyth, Chris Pronger, and Dwayne Roloson form Edmonton’s list. He also has a “Crystal Ball”…
Detroit Will Win if: It can keep this series short. The Red Wings must start out fast at home and put Edmonton immediately behind the 8-ball. Not only would the Red Wings love the extra rest that will come from dispatching the Oilers in four or five games, but they want to avoid any chance of Edmonton getting its confidence up and entertaining notions of pushing this series to a sixth or seventh game. Detroit must also find ways to get on the power play, where its devastating wave of man-advantage specialists — who have combined to give Detroit a League-leading conversion rate of 22 percent –can wreak appropriate havoc against the Oilers penalty killers and wear down players like Pronger.
Edmonton Will Win if: Roloson stands on his head. Usually, upsets in the first round can be traced back to clear dominance in the goaltending department. Nobody is convinced yet that Detroit’s Manny Legace is a proven playoff performer, After all, he has only 230 minutes of playoff experience and just two wins. So, if Roloson can continue his recent stellar form, and the Edmonton attack can rattle Legace, the Oilers could find themselves extending this series into the sixth and seventh games, where history has proven that anything can happen. Also, Edmonton will have to play the body at every turn, hoping to wear down Detroit’s older players, as well as slow down some of the team’s walking wounded.
Mike @ Covered in Oil
Before Mike made his predictions, he had this to say: “In this spirit, I think the key for picking first round winners is to just go a little batshit and pick 2-3 unforeseen upsets. Why not? Not counting Detroit (lord help us), the biggest difference between the top and bottom seeds is anywhere between 1-10 additional wins.”
DETROIT (1) versus EDMONTON (8)
Mike looks skyward, whistles: uh… Edmonton in 7?Do I even believe this? Maybe. If someone takes out Lidstrom’s knee or cross-checks him in the face, Cory Cross becomes their 5th D, so think about that. The Wings are as disciplined and well-positioned team as any in hockey, but I do think there’s some individual weaknesses in their defence corps (some are old, too young, too slow and most of them can’t score). The Oil are likely to play like they usually do in the playoffs, which is a simple game based on an aggressive two-forwards deep forecheck with lots of hitting. It could payoff and turn their game around, especially if Roloson plays above .900.
Off Wing Playoff Contest
Eric @ Off Wing Opinion is hosting a 2006 NHL Playoff Contest. Whoever picks the Stanley Cup champ (and if there is more than one person who made that pick, a random person will be selected) will have $100 donated to a charity of their choice!With 42 submissions in as of early Thursday morning (April 20th @ 12:30am), Detroit leads the pack with 7 votes followed by Dallas (5) and Calgary, New Jersey, and San Jose (4).
NHL Playoffs - Round One
The Wings will face off against the Edmonton Oilers in Round One of the 2006 NHL Playoffs. I will be at the Joe, this Saturday afternoon, for the first game of the round and my first playoff game ever. Until that evening, check out this blog along with On the Wings, Abel to Yzerman, and Battle of Alberta for pregame/pre-round coverage. I won’t be able to post a ton, but I hope to make my posts full of content.So this Saturday afternoon marks the first playoff game for the Wings and Oilers this season. I expect the Joe to be loud and I hope for a Wings win b/c it’s my first playoff game in Detroit!
After Colorado lost in overtime over the weekend earning one point, the Edmonton Oilers have been given the No. 8 seed and the honor of playing Detroit, something the Oilers were hoping for.
Dallas has eliminated Edmonton from the playoffs five times and has caused the Oilers and their fans a tremendous amount of frustration over the years. So when some Oilers said they wanted to face the Wings in the first round, they weren’t showing a lack of respect, [Cory] Cross and [Dan] Cleary said.”Deep inside, after Dallas has eliminated them all those times, it may be a case of (facing a different team),” said Cleary, who played in Edmonton from 1999-2003. “We definitely have to be ready. They’re a good, quality team.”
Said Cross: “They’ve played Dallas so many times, and Dallas has beaten them almost every time, I’m sure they’d rather play somebody else.”
The Oilers aren’t concerned with the limited amount of playoff experience their players have in comparison to the Wings.
Most of the Oilers’ playoff experience is on the resumes of Pronger, Mike Peca (69), Todd Harvey (58) and Ryan Smyth (44).The Red Wings have guys like Chris Chelios with 222, Yzerman with 192, Nicklas Lidstrom with 168, Brendan Shanahan with 151 and Kris Draper with 148.
While most of us look at the season series to help us figure out how the playoff series will go, GM Ken Holland says that the Wings have a clean slate in this aspect.
The regular season is all forgotten, and we start from scratch,” general manager Ken Holland said Sunday, “but the history between Detroit and Edmonton is we’ve always had close games. Both teams are really built on speed and skill. I anticipate a very difficult, very close series.”
The Oilers do make me nervous and this won’t be an easy series by any stretch. I was bummed when the LA Kings missed the playoffs and then the Avs just had to get that extra point to get seed No. 7.Helene St. James at the Detroit Free Press has a good point to think about (at least for Wings fans):
Finally, there’s this to consider: The Wings have points in 19 straight games, having continued to play hard every game despite having locked up the top spot in their division, conference and league. The Oilers have spent the past month playing for their lives and barely earned the No. 8 seed.
Hopefully that is an indication that when things really matter and the season is on the line, head coach Mike Babcock will get strong performances out of his players.Captain Steve Yzerman will be leading the team down a road that hopefully won’t end until Hart Plaza in late June with that shiny silver Stanley Cup propped up on top of a bright red sports car. Pierre Lebrun had an interesting comment regarding Yzerman’s prowess even after being in the league for 22 years:
In many ways, Yzerman is like the winner of the NHL’s version of Survivor. Al MacInnis, Mark Messier, Scott Stevens, Vincent Damphousse and Ron Francis, among others, called it quits before the season. Brett Hull, Mario Lemieux and Dave Andreychuk followed suit early in the season. The new NHL wasn’t for them.Not Yzerman. His decision to come back is playing out as the right one.
So what do my fellow hockey bloggers and fans have to say about this first round match-up? If your thoughts aren’t listed below, leave a comment or drop me an email to see it posted here.Â
“I am looking forward to seeing the Wings in the playoffs. I think they’re a very difficult team to get a read on.On one hand you have proven playoff performers like Yzerman, Shanahan and Lidstrom. Guys who have won it all multiple times. Then you have guys like Zetterberg and Datsyuk who are young and don’t really strike me as big game players. I don’t follow closely though, so I could have a bad read on them.
In the end, I hope the Oilers win the series and Cory Cross is on the ice for every game winner against the Wings. In fact, I hope Dan Cleary is too.”