Today is the second game in the Western Conference Semifinals series between Detroit and Calgary. The Flames shocked the Wings in Game 1 when Marcus Nilson scored the game-winner in overtime, beating Cujo over his left shoulder. When Nilson scored the game-winner, I, like a lot of Wings fans in the Joe or on their couch, stared in disbelief. I’ve seen plenty of Wings’ OT losses, most memorably in the playoffs, but the numbness is always the same.

The casual, boxscore Wings fan saw that Cujo had allowed 2 goals on 18 shots, and blasted him for his performance. The diehard Wings fan saw the Wings flat in the second half of the game with Cujo solid enough for a Wings victory. But it’s hard to win a playoff game with only one goal, and, let’s face it, we can’t be giving the hook to our starting goaltenders so easily. The way I see it, the Wings don’t have the kind of goaltending that’s going to steal many games this playoffs, in the fashion of a J.S. Giguere. The Wings’ goaltending cannot carry the team, and Cujo and Manny have kept games within reach these playoffs. It’s up to the offense to score more than one goal in a playoff game, and losses these playoffs have come down to the Wings’ jacked up offense choking and sloppy defense.

I will go further and say that, without Robert Lang in a Winged-Wheel, the Wings could very well be golfing right now. This is a guy who was supposed to supplement the Wings, not carry them on his back. But his 7 points (3 goals, 4 assists) in 7 playoff games have been one of the few consistencies in the Wings locker room. He has lived up to the hype of his physical presence, using it to create scoring chances in these first seven games.

Coming into Game 2, the Wings need to score early and get the Joe rocking. The Flames were flat early in Game 1, and the Wings didn’t take advantage of it. If the Wings expect a restaurant atmosphere in the Saddledome, like how JLA often is, they’d better watch video of Calgary fans in the Vancouver series. The Wings can’t blow opportunities to win at home and expect a 1572-mile trip into enemy territory to change anything for the better. Now is the time to even the series and prepare the long haul. Six or seven games is to be expected, which means more than one trip to Calgary.

As for the power play, it has been absolutely abysmal for the Wings: 0-for-6 in Game 1 and 2-for-35 for the playoffs. The Wings have to learn how to use blueline blasts from Schneider and Lidstrom, and, excuse the cliche, crash the net more. Coach Lewis recounts the nightmare of failing to convert:

“We had a 1-0 lead. We had a power play. We could have made it 2-0. We didn’t do that. Third period, we had a power play late. We could have won the hockey game there. It didn’t happen.”

The Grind Line did a great job of shutting down Jarome Iglina, a wise move after watching the Hart Trophy finalist dominate the Canucks in Game 7 with two goals and an assist on the series-winner. It’s disturbing that the Wings can shutdown the main threat of the Flames, dominate most of the game, and lose.

I’m confident that the Wings will react and win Game 2. While it’s getting old that the Wings always seem to need a bit of shock treatment to get going, I expect Game 2 to pan out like Game 5 of the Nashville series. The Wings just can’t accept going down 2-0 heading into Calgary…

Injury Update

On Monday, Thomas and Shananan did not practice with what Coach Lewis described as “little, minor things.” Unfortunately, minor was not the case for Steve Thomas and he is out indefinitely with groin tear. Jason Williams got the go in Game 1 in place of Thomas, who will likely not return this series. Steve Thomas on his injury situation:

�I feel like I�ve had a black cloud over my head all year. The only time I�ve been healthy is when I got here. It�s hard to play when you�re not 100 percent, but that�s what hockey is all about.�

Some good news is that Jason Woolley might return in Game 2. Woolley has been out forever (read: February 16) with back issues, which were finally diagnosed as a cracked vertebra. He is healthy, and would likely bump Mathieu Dandenault up to forward in the event of a return.

Well, I was at the game last night and got to watch the Wings get robbed of a win in person. It was my first playoff game ever and just the third Wings game I’ve been to (one exhibition, one regular season and now one playoff). It was a whole lot of fun even though the ending sucked.

The Wings really came out strong in the first and I was looking forward to witnessing a domination exhibition by the guys. Instead, I got one by Miikka Kiprusoff. While the Wings didn’t generate a ton of chances, they did get a few pretty darn good ones in the first and Kiprusoff shut them down each time. We all could see a goal coming and the everyone in the Joe would start inhaling in preparation for wild cheering but then the Wings would get stoned and that air would be let out slowly in a sigh of disappointment. The Wings were mostly still taking shots at Kiprusoff’s chest and making it easy for him to stop the puck at times other than their rare decent chances. Fortunately, the Wings were not giving up many chances themselves and did a good job of containing the Flames’ vaunted speed.

The Wings did “score” a goal at 7:02 but it was nullified by Kris Draper’s Holmstrom-on-Lang’s-goal-like goalie interference on Kiprusoff. Of course no one in the Joe realized this until Draper was already in the box so we all cheered wildly and once we realized what had happened, we all sat down feeling like a bunch of idiots, a feeling which we promptly took out on the refs by booing wildly.

The Wings didn’t come out as strong in the second but did finally score at 6:14. Robert Lang got the goal but I could have sworn his shot went in off Shanahan’s ankle. That’s the thing about going to games, you don’t have the luxury of the 5x-replay and I couldn’t see the puck on the replays they do show. Anyway, the goal took place in my end which was cool to see.

A couple minutes later, Craig Conroy hit Joseph like a ton of bricks and had 20,000 hearts stop all at once. Joseph was down for a minute or two but got up and was apparently fine. It wasn’t quite as scary as it would have been in the past given Manny Legace’s quite capable but I was still worried as heck.

The Flames got on the board themselves at 17:57 when non-scoring defenseman Robyn Regehr scored out of nowhere on a harmless looking shot from the left point. The puck went through some traffic but I don’t think Joseph was screened all that much. He just cheated and went down too early only to be beat high. Not a very good goal for Joseph to give up, in my opinion.

Okay, enough with the linear summary. Now on to some impressions.

Obviously Dave Lewis has absolutely no short-term memory because if he did, he would remember how poorly Derian Hatcher and Chris Chelios worked together last round. They were totally awful last night and I spent nearly the whole time yelling at them for their crappiness. They are both far too slow to be a pairing and neither one has been playing all that hot lately. Hatcher has no shot and Chelios didn’t seem to remember how to carry the puck. Neither one was all that physical even though they are expected to be the team’s most physical players. Why the heck they were playing together is completely beyond me.

Another example of why Dave Lewis doesn’t learn from the past: the fact that the second power play unit was always four forwards and one defenseman even though last round, the power play only worked when there were two defensemen and three forwards out there. He must have partially learned the lesson since he usually had Lidstrom and Schneider out there on the first unit but he needs to learn it fully. Brendan Shanahan, in his current state of relative offensive inaptitude, does not belong on the point (or maybe, even on the power play at all). The standard unit composition of 3-and-2 had moderate success last night if only in generating some half-decent pressure once or twice. Either way, though, the power play was pathetic in the most extreme sense of the word and that is something that needs to change if the Wings do not want to find themselves watching the Flames in the Conference Finals.

I do not blame Curtis Joseph for the loss last night and Wings fans who are doing so are being ridiculous. He may have not been stellar but he does not deserve the full blame. One thing I noticed throughout the game was the fact that after the Wings’ strong start, they gradually began to lose control of the game and that continued until the Flames took over in overtime. The Wings once again did not play a full game and that has got to change. Of course, I would like to see Joseph win a game by himself but I’d rather see the Wings win as a team and stop leaving their goalies out to dry. Manny Legace is not the answer here, the Wings playing a full 60 minutes is.

They are very lucky that the Flames also were not at the top of their game either because there were many times where the Wings’ sloppiness with the puck nearly resulted in a Calgary break the other way. The Wings were far too casual with the puck in their own zone and kept passing it in front of Joseph which really pissed me off.

Here is an interesting factoid:

“The Wings have lost seven straight overtime playoff games at home dating back to Game 2 of the 1998 Stanley Cup finals, when Draper scored against Washington. Detroit is 2-10 overall in its last 12 playoff overtime games.”

That game in ’98, by the way, is one of my favorite Wings moments ever.

I’d like to thank those two Calgary fans who happened to sit behind us at the game for being so quiet and reasonable. I’m proud to say that I did not hear anything beyond good-natured joking from Wings fans when they noticed their presence.

I enjoyed going to my first playoff game though I wish it had ended a bit differently.

The Wings need to win tomorrow to keep this series from getting out of hand. If they cannot win even when the Flames are constantly icing the puck like they did last night, something is wrong.

It’s a good thing the Avs lost last night too or
else the Wings would look even more stupid.

Here is the box score.

Lines-
(Courtesy GWB)
Shanahan-Lang-Yzerman
Maltby-Draper-McCarty
Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Hull
Whitney-Williams-Holmstrom
Whitney-Lang-Yzerman
Shanahan-Lang-Holmstrom
Whitney-Lang-Hull
Maltby-Draper-Yzerman

Lidstrom-Schneider
Hatcher-Chelios
Fischer-Dandenault
Hatcher-Schneider
Lidstrom-Chelios

4 on 4-
Datsyuk-Hull
Whitney-Lang
Zetterberg-Datsyuk

Hatcher-Schneider
Lidstrom-Schneider

“PP”-
Whitney-Lang-Holmstrom
Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Hull
Lang-Datsyuk-Hull
Yzerman-Lang-Holmstrom

Lidstrom-Schneider
Shanahan-LIdstrom
Shanahan-Chelios
Hatcher-Chelios

PK-
Shanahan-Yzerman
Maltby-Draper

Lidstrom-Chelios
Hatcher-Schneider

OT-
Maltby-Draper-McCarty
Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Hull
Whitney-Lang-Yzerman

Lidstrom-Schneider
Hatcher-Chelios
Fischer-Dandenault

Net-
Curtis Joseph

Tonight is the first game in the Western Conference Semifinals series between Detroit and Calgary. The Flames are coming off their first series win since winning the Stanley Cup in 1989, when ex-Wing Mike Vernon was between the pipes. In addition, the Flames had missed the playoffs in seven previous seasons.

Game 7 of the Flames/Canucks series certainly lived up to its hype. With the score 2-1 Flames, the Canucks pulled Alex Auld and, with 5.7 seconds left in regulation, Matt Cooke tipped in the rebound off a Markus Naslund shot, sending the game into overtime. It was a nightmare shift for Jarome Iginla, who missed a chance at the empty net, and tripped over his stick at center ice. But the Hart Trophy finalist had an amazing individual performance outside of that minute of Hell, scoring two goals and assisting on Martin Gelinas’ series-winning goal. In dramatic fashion, the Flames won the series with the fastest Game 7 overtime goal in NHL history, 1:25 into the extra session.

After a seven game series of intense play, the Flames are a bit wounded. On defense, Jack Adams finalist Daryl Sutter is without Toni Lydman (concussion) and Denis Gauthier (leg/knee). Gauthier will not be available this series, while Lydman remains questionable. In addition, forwards Dean McAmmond (back), Steven Reinprecht (shoulder), and Dave Lowry (abdominal strain) are all out for the season/indefinitely. Chris Simon (knee) is questionable. This is exactly the scenario Wings fans were hoping for, as we debated playing the Avalanche or Flames in round 2. Respecting both teams’ talent and grit, it’s definitely better to play a worn-down team coming off a seven game series in Calgary, rather than a team who just routed their first round opponent in five games in Colorado.

But the Wings can’t take the Flames lightly. Captain Jarome Iginla is on fire and Miikka Kiprusoff is in the zone in net. In addition, the Saddledome in Calgary is one of the most intense playoff environments. The Wings will also have to adjust to an increase in travel, with Calgary 1572 miles from Detroit compared to Nashville at 472 miles. And Wings fans will have to adjust to late-night games, with Game 3 (9:00 PM), Game 4 (10:00 PM), and Game 6-if necessary (10:00 PM). But we’re an east team in the Western Conference, so players and fans alike are all used to these factors.

Coach Dave Lewis is pondering whether he will use four lines to try to wear down the Flames:

“I probably don’t make a decision until just before the game.”

One thing Lewis will not debate is who to start in net. Cujo was solid last series, replacing Manny Legace in the Wings’ Game 4 loss and starting in the Wings’ Game 5 and 6 wins. He also boasts a 24-8-3 career record against the Flames. During the regular season, Cujo shut the Flames out 3-0 in the Saddledome on November 4. The Wings lead the season series versus the Flames 3-1. The loss came in the last meeting between the teams on March 16, a 4-1 Flames win in the Joe. Manny Legace allowed 4 goals on 18 shots in the game.

Notables:

The Wings last played the Atlanta Flames in the 1978 playoffs, winning the preliminary round 2-0. If you are wondering why it was only a two game series, go here and read up on the history of NHL playoff formats.

The Wings have 2,191 man games of playoff experience to Calgary’s 608, the effect of 14 straight playoff berths….Shanahan and Thomas had Monday off with injuries Lewis described as “little, minor things.” Shanahan is likely to start tonight, while Thomas remains questionable. Jason Woolley (back) is also questionable for tonight’s game.

Everyone remembers the “upper body injury” that sidelined Nashville’s Marek Zidlicky, power play quarterback and defenseman. The Tennessean has confirmed it was a concussion, after the crushing Kirk Maltby check in Game 1. Zidlicky on the injury:

“I would feel better, but then after 25 minutes (of exercise), I would feel the same again. It was very serious, my head. I’ll just get a lot of rest and go back home.”

The NHL has announced the finalists for its awards for the 2003-2004 season, which will be presented in a gala June 10 in Toronto. The Red Wings have only one player up for a major award. Kris Draper is in the running for the Frank J. Selke Trophy, awarded “to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game.” Despite missing 15 games with a torn left rotator cuff, after a practice mishap involving Curtis Joseph before the dreaded March 3 Calgary game, Draper is still in the running for the Selke. The last time a Red Wing won the Selke was Steve Yzerman in 2000.

Kris Draper, a first-time Selke finalist, had a career season in goals (24) and points (40). His previous bests were 35 points last season and 15 goals in the 2001-2002 season. In addition, Drapes boasted a +22 plus/minus rating, reflecting his solid defensive play, and took only 31 penalty minutes. The tandem of Kirk Maltby and Kris Draper is widely considered the best penalty killing force in the league, and Draper had 5 shorthanded goals. Drapes’ overall season breakdown is 24 goals, 16 assists, 40 points.

Also up for the Selke are New Jersey’s John Madden and San Jose’s Alyn McCauley, also centers. Madden won the award in 2001, and closed this season out with a +7 plus/minus rating, 12 goals, 23 assists, 35 points, and 22 penalty minutes. McCauley had the most points of the finalists, boasting a 47 point season (20 goals, 27 assists). He was also had a +23 plus/minus rating and only 28 penalty minutes.

Steve Thomas is a Rock

Steve Thomas is the Wings’ nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, awarded to the “player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.” Steve Yzerman was last year’s winner after his return from extensive knee surgery. When asked why he was up for the Masterton, Thomas responsed, in humor, “Because I’m older than dirt.” Thomas is 40.

Associate Coach Barry Smith on Thomas:

“He’s a tremendous pro. Even when he sits on the bench and misses shifts, he’s always pushing the rest of the guys.”

After Bryan Allen broke Henrik Zetterberg’s leg with a wicked slash November 3 (5-1 Wings loss), the Wings responded by signing Steve Thomas on November 5, a $1 million, one-year deal. Thomas was left unsigned after a playoff stint with the Mighty Ducks, partially since he wanted to play near his family in Toronto. As he waited for a team to sign him, he worked out with a junior team in Toronto and contemplated retirement. The signing with the Wings rejuvenated Thomas, who had 5 goals and 2 assists in his first 10 games with the Wings. He played in the Wings’ December 8, 3-2 win over the Kings, but was unexpectedly sidelined and underwent knee surgery. He returned January 21 at Anaheim, in a 2-2 tie. But things didn’t go well for long. Later in the season, Thomas suffered and aggravated a rib injury, leading to the cracked rib diagnosis. Thomas made the playoff roster, but has been near-invisible. It just seems like the rash of injuries ruined his initial energy after signing for a stint in Hockeytown.

Shafted on the Blue Line

After having a solid season on defense (+22 plus/minus rating) and offense (14 goals, 32 assists, 46 points), Mathieu Schneider is not listed as a finalist for the James Norris Memorial Trophy. Instead, finalists for the Norris are Ottawa’s Zdeno Chara, New Jersey’s Scott Niedermayer, and St Louis’ Chris Pronger. Chara had a breakout season with 16 goals, 25 assists, 41 points, and maintaining a +33 plus/minus rating. Niedermayer was stellar with 14 goals, 40 assists, and 54 points, in 81 games. Pronger had a clone season to Niedermayer’s, with 14 goals, 40 assists, and career high 54 points, but in 80 games. It’d be pretty funny if Pronger’s having played one less game with the same output affects his contention against Niedermayer. Pronger won the Norris in 2000, and this is his third time as a finalist. He came back from an injury-plagued season, and was stellar despite key absences of Al MacInnis and Barret Jackman on the Blues’ blue line.

Though Chara was a lock-in pick as a finalist, I still think Schneider should’ve made the cut. Also, Nicklas Lidstrom did not make the cut, but this was expected by most analysts. In Lidstrom terms, this season was a weak one for the Swede. He had a career low offensive output (10 goals, 28 assists, 38 points), and actually looked mortal on defense (but still had a +19 plus/minus rating). Lidstrom had won the last three Norris Trophies, and was in the top-two for six straight years.

Is Lewie Award-Worthy?

In addition, there is some argument that Dave Lewis should’ve been mentioned as a finalist for the Jack Adams Award, as he coached the Wings to a President’s Trophy despite a rash of injuries. Ron Wilson, John Tortorella, and Darryl Sutter are up for the award. In past season, the Jack Adams has become an underdog coach award, although Scotty Bowman won it with the Wings in 1996.

My Award Picks:

Jack Adams Award: John Tortorella, Lightning
Calder Memorial Trophy: Michael Ryder, Canadiens
Hart Memorial Trophy: Martin St. Louis, Lightning
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: Martin St. Louis, Lightning
James Norris Memorial Trophy: Zdeno Chara, Senators
Frank J. Selke Trophy: Kris Draper, Red Wings
Vezina Trophy: Miikka Kiprusoff, Flames

… Because the Flames beat the Canucks 3-2 in OT last night in Vancouver, the Wings will face them in Round 2, which will start Thursday night. The Flames are a good team and this coming series will not be an easy one for the Wings. However, I do not worry as much about them as I do about the Avs because they are not as deep. I don’t know if the Wings are ready to face Colorado yet with Forsberg playing like he is. I’d rather have them play a team like the Flames which will provide a large enough challenge to prepare the Wings for a possible Conference Final with the Avs but not to beat them in a seven game series. The Flames are as fast and bigger than the Predators and will put up a heck of a fight. They also have a hotter goalie, which has screwed the Wings over in the past, and a red-hot Jarome Iginla. They can overcome both those obstacles though by playing the tight defense they can play combined the with the quick striking offense they have. The Wings should be able to win the series, though, as long as they play like they did in the last two games and not like in the first four of Round 1.

Here is the schedule for Round 2:
Thu. Apr. 22 vs. Calgary Flames @ 7:30 PM
Sat. Apr. 24 vs. Calgary Flames @ 3:00 PM
Tue. Apr. 27 at Calgary Flames @ 9:00 PM
Thu. Apr. 29 at Calgary Flames @ 10:00 PM
Sat. May. 1 vs. Calgary Flames @ 3:00 PM
Mon. May. 3 at Calgary Flames @ 10:00 PM
Wed. May. 5 vs. Calgary Flames @ 7:00 PM

… Former Wing and member of the Russian Five Igor Larionov has announced his retirement at age 43. Igor played a large part on the Wings for years and won three Cups in Detroit. He was a mentor to Pavel Datsyuk and at least partly responsible for the player Pavel is today. He left the team this summer and signed with New Jersey when the Wings wouldn’t give him the pay raise he wanted. He didn’t have a very good year there, though, playing just 49 games and earning just 12 points (1 goal). One of the best players in hockey history, Larionov did not rack up huge numbers in the NHL since he came into the league only after playing 12 seasons in the Soviet Elite League. To go with his three Cups, he has two gold medals which he won in 1984 and 1988.

It’s sad to see Igor finally hang ‘em up after so many years of watching him play for the Wings. I have many memories of The Professor, my favorite probably being when he scored the game-winner in triple-overtime in Game 3 of the 2002 Stanley Cup Finals after dancing in and waiting out Arthurs Irbe. Congratulations on a great career, Igor, and may you be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame very soon. Thank you for all you did in your time with the Wings.

… Ted Kulfan confirms what I said yesterday about the first round being a wake-up call for the Wings in the Detroit News. He even goes so far as to say they are “… indebted to the Nashville Predators” for preparing the Wings for the rest of the playoffs. That’s true but you wouldn’t think a veteran team like the Wings would need such help from a team like the Preds. It’s obvious they that they had become complacent, though, and that they needed such a wake-up call. Now they just need to stay awake. It will only get tougher and there are three more rounds before the Cup gets handed out.

… The Wings will most likely start Round 2 on Thursday. They will face either Colorado or Calgary, depending on the results of the Canucks/Flames Game 7 tonight in Vancouver. The series could also start on Wednesday but that is not as likely, though I would probably prefer seeing the Wings play then. Rest is important in the playoffs but there is such a thing as too much rest and I don’t want to see the Wings get complacent again. The sooner they start, the better, especially if they will be facing Calgary, a team which will be exhausted after a hard fought series if they come out of it.

… Ray Whitney’s goal Saturday afternoon was his first goal in the playoffs since April 18th 2000 when he was a Florida Panther. His assist was his first since May 19, 1995 when he was a San Jose Shark. Ray has only played in the playoffs three times in his career, twice with the Sharks and once with the Panthers. He has not been on the best teams in the league, that’s for sure. Welcome to the upper tier, Ray!

… There are three series going to seven games in the first round this year:

Calgary/Vancouver (Game 7 forced Saturday night/Sunday morning when Canucks won)
Ottawa/Toronto (Game 7 forced last night when Ottawa won)
Boston/Montreal (Game 7 forced Saturday when the Habs won)

The Habs will try to complete their comeback from a 3-1 deficit in the series tonight in Boston while the Canucks will try to win their series after going down 3-2 in it tonight as well. The Leafs and Sens play tomorrow night.

… As has already been mentioned by Tom Benjamin of Canucks Corner’s NHL Weblog, there is an excellent piece by Dubi Silverstein in which he summarizes salary escalation in the NHL through the years. Definitely a must-read.

I’m glad that’s over! It was good to see the Wings team I know and love in those final two games but it disturbs me that they really only earned a win in two of those six games. They will have to build on those two wins, though, and play even better in the coming series. They can’t count on being able to make a comeback in the final 20 minutes of games or on lucky fluke bounces either in the coming weeks because the teams will only get better.

I think it was a good thing that the Wings got Nashville in the first round because the series hopefully served as a wake-up call to the team. Dave Lewis thinks so: “I loved this series. It’s what we needed. They hung around and won the two games here and put big pressure on us. Our players really rose to the occasion.” I wouldn’t go so far as to say I loved the series but I think it served a good purpose in getting the Wings going and preparing them for the coming rounds. The Preds presented a surprising challenge for the Wings, to be sure, and that is something the Wings’ future opponents will not likely appreciate a whole lot. It was better than playing the Blues, the Wings’ historical playoff pushover.

Congratulations to the Nashville Predators on a fine season. That team has a bright future and will only get better. Stay faithful, Nashville fans!

How big was that hit by Kirk Maltby on Marek Zidlicky in Game 1? Zidlicky left the game after that and never came back in the series. He was an enormous part of the Preds’ power play and had he been able to play, the series likely would have had a much different outcome. To give you an idea, the Preds went 1-for-29 on the power play without their blueline quarterback. The Wings will have to work on controlling themselves and adjusting their style of play to fit the refs’ whistles in Round 2 because they can’t rely on their penalty killing to save them again.

The Vancouver Canucks stayed alive in their series with the Calgary Flames last night, forcing a Game 7 after winning 5-4 in triple overtime (the blew a 4-0 lead in the process). If the Flames win on Monday night, they will be the lowest remaining seed and will face the Wings in Round 2. If the Canucks win, the Avs will be the lowest remaining seed and they will face the Wings while the Sharks will face Vancouver. Neither of those two series is appealing to me but if I had to choose, I’d probably say Calgary. I’d rather have the Wings face a worn down Sharks/Avs team in the Conference Finals than an Avs team that pretty much ran over the Stars in the Quarterfinals. The Flames would be more worn out from their long series with the Canucks and even with Miikka Kiprusoff in net, I’d rather the Wings played them. Either way, it will be a very tough series for the Wings and they’d better bring their “A” game along with them.