Well…one of my favorite times of the year is upon us and I thought I’d talk about it a little bit….damn….I keep burying the lead in all of these and I don’t know why right now..it is the Stanley Cup Playoffs starting Wednesday night and I thought I’d share a few thoughts on the journey to get where we are with our team. It has been a season of inconsistent play that has left us faithful frustrated and confused at times, excited at others, and with the hope that our team will drive on to the cup finals and win it….that was the rabid fan in me talking and it really does mask the uncertainty that shrouds these playoffs…what team is going to show up? The dominant one that uses power, speed, and skill to amaze us, or the one that leaves us scratching our head and looking at the ice to see if it is really mud they look so slow. That type of performance has made me hold my breath during almost every game, to wonder when the self-destruction will come….but still always hoping it won’t.
That said, let’s take a look at some of the particulars that I think are necessary for us to get out of the first round….it’s one of the things that M and I were talking about this aft; that we just don’t have the goaltending that will steal us a game or two when we are not playing as we can. I just don’t think Jimmy Howard is that type of a goaltender but we don’t have anyone else with Osgood being hurt. That leaves us with another great big unknown…when will Hank Zetterberg be back? I know, no one player is essential for the success of a team, but with how Hank has played this year with all of the injuries, I think he is the one we can least afford to lose. One last thing, we need to start to play like we want it, there has been too many games where we have phoned it in and if anyone does that, Babcock should sit them and let one of the youngsters give it a try…after all, it was a couple of years ago the the unknown Darren Helm came into the playoffs and won a starting job for himself by outplaying everyone on the ice. So, I think you are going to see a few of these as the playoffs progress….Let’s Go Red Wings!!
Well…starting with the Wings losing in Ot last night…and the routs of Michigan and State, it was a bad couple of days for Michigan sports….I guess the Big Ten isn’t as good as it looked during the regular season…but we might get one good thing out of it…that Rich Rod will probably be gone from Michigan and we can start over again…after all, he’s had three years to put together some kind of a defense and just hasn’t done it….I can say I won’t miss him…..
I think the Wings have been going quite good lately so I guess I shouldn’t bitch…especially with the four guys that are now out with injuries….and it is cool to see some of the youngsters get a chance to play…I think that Mursak kid is going to be fun to watch…he’s as fast as Helm and I’d like to see the two of them just run away from the defensemen. To still be in first in the West with the bad stretch we’ve had is a good thing..last year, we were in 9th or something at this point in the season so I do feel good about making the playoffs….and everyone will be back for them so I’ll match us up against anyone…starting to get excited already…
Maybe another one later but I don’t think so….have “The Creature From the Black Lagoon” cued up on Netfliux instant and the Rose Bowl going…
Well…I don’t know if you are getting as tired of me talking about politics as I am but, in case you are, I think I’ll change it up some and talk about sports for a while…I’ll probably come back later with some political ramblings but I don’t know if I can muster up any outrage today. I’ll try, but no promises…
On to sports….I am excited about the Wings and Canadiens game tonight as I am whenever we play an original six team…and they are on a tear with a record comparable to ours so it should be fun….in interviews in the Detroit papers today, the guys even seem pretty geeked up about it….this is one that I’ll have the gear on for…might even go out for while to share a little of it. Then, we have the “Big Chill” at the big house tomorrow where Michigan and Michigan Sate play an outdoor hockey game that will set the record for attendance by almost 30K…I WILL be watching that one on TV…V even got tickets for it but I’m not sure I’d want to sit in the cold for 2 1/2 hours…I like the couch better and having my own private bathroom….and beer. I’ll be rooting for Michigan….
Hmmmm…what else? I could talk about soccer but I drive enough people away with my normal stuff that I can’t take the chance of losing more of you….Baseball? Not that interested right now….Racing? Nope….nothing happening there but the BTCC….and if I have to explain what that is, you’re not interested enough in racing to keep reading…so I’ll stop here…more later…
I’ve been thinking that I need to lighten up a little for a while, or for one post, whichever comes first, so I think I’ll throw out some thoughts on sports….I am getting so tired of Napcar, or Nascar to the rest of the world…can’t we have another champion? The TV ratings are way down and if you look in the stands at the races, you’ll see that they are 30% or more empty no matter where the races are. In my opinion, it’s a result of the sanitizing of the design of the cars they race…they’ve taken the innovation out of it by having such a stringent set of rules. Where are the days when Curtis Turner showed up with a 3/4 scale car that no one could figure out until he parked it next to a rental car of the same make? It used to be an exciting time when you never knew who was going to show up with the next big thing….but now, cars are being disqualified for being 10 thousandths of an inch out of spec…less than the width of a human hair…
Basketball…nope, don’t care about basketball…
Football…well, the Lions are still the Lions but I am hoping that they will at least be competitive on t-day. And, we have Michigan vs. Ohio State Sat but I’m just hoping it’s not a blowout…hmmm…I’m not really offering any insights here…so I think I’ll just stop for a while…I could get to Manchester United but I don’t think any of you out there know or care about soccer…I will say this..they were playing against Wigan yesterday and two Wigan players were sent off with red cards…but Man U only won by 2-0…they have looked terrible all year and I’m tired of hearing about Wayne Rooney bitching about his contract, etc…what has he done in the last year?
Well…have been busier than crap all morning and now I’m going out to ride the bike before it rains…I’ll be back later with a topic but it might be sports, I’m not sure yet…
Yep, I’ve decided to do a sports update today…but I’m not typing too well since my hands are still a little numb from the bike ride….there was a little tidbit that I’d like to pass along that made me smile…when I stopped and parked the bike, the odometer read 666…yep, bet that made you laugh, too…never really thought of myself as the devil but who knows? Just joking…you know I don’t believe in that stuff. First lets get to the Lions…if you’ve been here in the past, you’ve seen that I had almost let myself surrender to the optimism that plagues all of us Lions fans at some time in the season…but I have been inoculated by their play over the last two weeks so I can let them go until next year….the disease didn’t hurt anywhere near as much this year and I may be gaining long-term immunity…I hope so.
Then, we have our Red Wings….how can one team be so good when the football team in the same city has been so terrible for so long? Can the Ilitches buy the Lions, too? Back to the Wings….another good start to the season and it’s great to see them playing upwards toward their potential…but I think they can get even better once the first line gets going and Hank and Pavel start dominating like we all know they can. I would like to tip my hat to the play of Danny Cleary and Todd Bertuzzi….it’s is a joy to watch them at full strength again with the nagging injuries healed….we need those points right now and let’s just hope they keep going when the rest of the team kicks it in gear…it’s going to be fun! Go Wings!
Well…I’ve already gotten another post out before this one so look down if you want…or not if that is too much work. Boy that was kind of a strange day yesterday with the Michigan football team playing a basketball game…when was the last time you saw a score of 67-65 in a football game? I found it funny when one of the press columnists said that the Michigan defense won the game for them…really? Did you watch the same game I did? The Michigan defense made exactly one play…the last one that save the two point conversion in the 3rd OT. Other than that, there was no defense played by either team…I mean, c’mon…over 1200 yards of offense? Bo must be spinning at 10,000 RPM at that result…and I think Rich Rod should be gone at the end of the season…he has been a disaster for Michigan..not just for the crappy teams, but for his staining of the reputation of U of M…I think that may be the most important thing to me..it may be quaint but I feel that you can win even when following the rules…Bo did it, Lloyd Carr did it, and I don’t care how much college football has changed..honor is honor.
That said…it was one of the weirdest games I’ve ever seen…Go Blue!
Well….that was about as good an opening game that we could expect from the Red Wings…they dominated every facet of the game hand we even got to see the second fight of Pavel Datsuyk’s career…I laughed so damn hard when that happened that I couldn’t catch my breath. It was good to see Mike Modano get his first goal as a Wing, and Hank and Pavel both got one along with Frantzen which made it a 4-0 shootout. Jimmy Howard looked good in goal but it was bad to lose Ericsson with back pain…I was a little disappointed that we didn’t see Maltby for the last game before he retires and I hope the Wings set aside a game night to honor his contributions since the early 90′s. Another game tonight but the damn dish folks haven’t settled the contract with Fox yet….so I won’t be able to see it without going out. Might be the time to try out the new bar over here….
Now, let’s get to the big game of the day..our own intrastate rivalry here in Michigan…Michigan versus Michigan State in college football…two teams, both 5-0, and more than a little hatred between them…I’m already in my gear and waiting…will probably take a nap before it since I almost overdid it last night and the energy level is s little low. Maybe make some coffee? I am rooting for Michigan as always…you know my rooting hierarchy…I will root for State whenever they are not playing Michigan…but, this year, I think it’s going to be State since they have a much more balanced team…Michigan’s defense has been suspect all year but we can hope they will improve today, can’t we? so, Go Blue!!!
Well…have been looking forward to this day all summer…the first televised Red Wings preseason game. Have the gear on already and I’m waiting to hear from K to see what time we are meeting up for HH…I have planned for C and D to come over after that to watch the game with chips and dip…oh, already said that this morning, didn’t I? Can’t wait to see some of the new kids play since some of the veterans are being held out to give them a chance to see what they can do and we should see huge amounts of energy with their jobs on the line.
I know the game won’t be as good as Sunday’s when we have Ken and Mickey doing it but that is okay; I want to see what the Hawks will look like after all the changes in the offseason and they are the champs, after all. So, Let’s Go Red Wings!!
Well…have been reading about the Red Wings getting ready for the start of the season and I just wanted to say a few words about Kirk Maltby…to start, I just want to say thank you…thanks for the hard work and for your contribution to what it is to be a Red Wing…the hard work, the teamwork, and for being a person that anyone’s kids can look up to. I know it must be hard to have your role reduced this season and to have to accept the two way contract where you’ll have to play in GR. But don’t think we fans don’t appreciate it…we appreciated you being an integral part of 4 Stanley cups and will never forget you doing whatever it took to make that happen.
So, from fans across Hockeytown, I just want to say thanks…keep playing hard and I hope to see you in GR this year…
Well…got on the bike today and the damn back tire was flat again…but that’s not what I want to talk about. It was an okay Michigan win this aft but with the ease that UMass moved the ball, I still have huge concerns about Michigan’s defense when they get into the Big Ten schedule. I don’t know if they can just ride the offense and expect them to match the opponents score for score and then get just those few more points. I think my hair went brown and then back to grey watching the last couple of minutes; just like ND last week. At least they got some more of the offense going this week so it didn’t have to be the Denard show all the time. I guess I’ll still have to hold my breath when they play Bowling Green next week. This just isn’t the type of Michigan team that I am used to….