Archive for February, 2010

In Which I Title A Post “Monday Musings” Ironically

Posted by on . 3 comments

Just a couple things:

… Of course the game we’re unable to watch is the one the Wings win. Of course. But we’re watching March 1st, so the Wings’ll have to win without us not watching. Or something.

… I feel really bad for Tomas Holmstrom. To be Franzen’s mode of entry into the Olympics while Forsberg is still somehow healthy enough to play has to suck. Here’s hoping the layoff will do him good.

… As previously stated, I’m all for Franzen playing in the Olympics. Knowing him, he should come out of the gates in March in prime goalie-terrorizing form. Of course, knowing him, he’ll manage to get injured in one of the cleanest types of hockey…

… How much of a warrior is Kirk Maltby? The guy’s got a shoulder in need of surgery yet keeps playing because the team needs him. And he’s playing well. I still don’t envy him his decision on whether or not to take the surgery. I hope the Wings have one more contract waiting for him so he can hang ‘em up with Draper next year.

Quick Update

Posted by on . One comment

In case you missed it, Brad May was waived earlier today, so that’s done. May has some time to think about whether he’ll retire or report to Grand Rapids.

As for the LTIR part of the  earlier report, it looks like guesses of Kronwall or Eaves are both wrong. Turns out the Wings, now that they’re getting healthy finally, may take the opportunity to do something they’ve had to put off for months: put Kirk Maltby on the LTIR while he has surgery to repair a shoulder issue that’s bugged him since June. Doing so would clear up the cap space needed to activate Lilja (if only just).

It’s an interesting scenario, for sure. Malts has to choose one way or the other and you have to bet the Wings are seriously hoping he’ll pick surgery. If he does, who knows when, if ever, he’ll be back in the Red-and-White? I don’t envy Kirk this decision. With Lilja back in Detroit tonight (he won’t play another game for the Griffins) and the doctors’ decision on his status needed as soon as possible (no waiting until after the Olympics), Maltby doesn’t have a ton of time.

It’s a shame because he’s been playing some really good hockey this season in spite of this shoulder thing.

Anyway, Meg and I are Up North this weekend, so no preview or review of the game tomorrow. No cable means no watching the Wings face down the super hot Senators. Oh well. Should be back to posting Monday, probably with Olympic status updates. Have a good weekend!

Wings 2, Sharks 3

Posted by on . 6 comments

Bullet points? Bullet points:

  • Another 50+ shot=loss game. They’re getting old, no?
  • Thought the Wings played well overall. Sharks are a good team and can win head-to-head matchups 1 out of 4 times, I guess.
  • Howard with another wasted strong effort. The winning potential of both goalies is near zero now, methinks. May be time to prioritize starts in other ways…
  • Datsyuk must be reading ye olde blogge (ha, right). He was leading by example all over the ice last night. Note that doesn’t always mean favorable result, but it certainly ups the odds. Kudos, Pavel.
  • Shootouts. Fail.
  • So Nabokov’s actually a good goalie. Who knew?
  • Ryan Clowe, welcome to the pantheon of jackassery. Join your teammate Joe Thornton and other donkeys from around the League.
  • Let’s get three of a critical possible four points tomorrow with a win, eh Wings?

May to be waived, Kronwall/Eaves to LTIR?

Posted by on . 8 comments

Update (12:30 PM): So, I checked the CBA and it says a player on LTIR has to be out for 24 days and 10 regular seaason games, which throws my little “don’t worry, he could be back after the real deadline” bit out the window. Everybody panic!

Except Ansar Khan reports Nik was on the ice today. So, maybe Eaves is the guy and maybe May’s not the only guy being moved. McKenzie may not have had the full picture. - Matt

Bob McKenzie reported on Twitter that May’s expected to be waived today. No surprise there. The surprising part of the tweet, though, was the news that the Wings are expected to put someone on the LTIR to clear up room to activate Lilja.

It’s easy to leap to the conclusion that it’s Nik Kronwall, but it’s possible Patrick Eaves will be having an extended recovery period. Thanks to John W. for reminding me of that.

Whoever it is will have to either sit out the remainder of the season or until another move is made at a later date. It’s possible Kenny couldn’t wrangle a deal in time before this pre-deadline deadline. It’s possible he could swing a deal by March 3, however, so even if it is Kronwall, it’s not reason to get overly concerned just yet. He might not be done for the season, just out long enough to legitimize LTIR status.

Obviously, a situation involving anyone going on the LTIR sucks all around, but I don’t think anyone would disagree losing Kronwall for any further period of time would be awful for this team. Losing  Eaves would also be bad, given his work ethic and commitment to sacrifice, but they can afford to do without him for a bit. They can’t do without Kronwall, at least not well.

For what it’s worth, last night there was a brief clip of Kronwall walking away from Fil and Franzen and he had no visible limp. I’m hoping George is right and that the team is just giving him the time he needs to get fully healthy for the Olympics.

On the other hand, May and Eaves aren’t enough to clear up the cap. So… I may just be grasping at straws here.

Game Day Open Thread: vs. San Jose

Posted by on . 4 comments

The Wings have a chance to polish one of the few bright spots on their season by closing out a sweep of the Sharks with their 4th paradoxical win over that team tearing up the West. Can they do it? Will they fall flat and surprise us with suck just when we were getting used to the idea of a Wings team capable of showing up for big games? Tune in tonight!

Anyway.

No Kronwall, no Eaves, no Holmstrom. That last may mean Franzen’s headed to Vancouver for the Games. I’m a little unsure how I feel about that. On the one hand, it means he gets more playing time and could come out of the gates in March firing on all cylinders and pucks into the net. On the other, he could get injured, because that’s just how this season’s gone. I guess I think the “getting playing time under his belt” side of things has me leaning toward being okay with him going, but yeah. Only if he goes as Bubble Boy. And if it means automatic ejection to touch him. Update: Just kidding on Holmstrom. When Forsberg gets injured, though, Franzen can be there, assuming they take him as a reserve. - Matt

Back to tonight: The Wings will face Evgeni Nabokov, that noted Platonic ideal of a starting goaltender….who was on the bench last night. Because even the Sharks play their backup sometimes.

Meanwhile, Jimmy Howard’s starting for the Wings because he’s not tired. How do I know? Because Babcock asked him in front of his teammates and the media, and he said he wasn’t. You can take that kind of player/coach interaction to the bank. No player would ever succumb to the enormous pressure not to look like a baby in front of the guys and lie to his coach about being tired or hurt. It’s just not done. Even when Babcock would be sure to be friendly and understanding because he’s such a player’s coach and pal.

The Wings need a win tonight. And Saturday. And I’m sure I’m a terrible fan for thinking, “Which is exactly why it won’t happen,” immediately after typing those two sentences. You’re probably not thinking that at this point in the season, after all that’s happened, right?

This post brought to you by The Letter S: Where Sarcasm Lives.

Wings 3, Blues 4 (SO)

Posted by on . 8 comments

Deserved, undeserved: On the one hand, the Wings didn’t deserve to even get one point: they did a great imitation of a steaming pile of crap for like 99% of the game. But they overcame a two-goal deficit, albeit with goals you’d find in the dictionary next to “garbage.” I guess that counts for something. But I definitely fall more on the undeserved point side of things.

Jimmy: A waste of another strong performance. At this point, if they’re going to lose anyway, why bother starting the hot guy? Why continue to subject him to this complete lack of support?

Leadership: I can’t shake the feeling that this season would be a lot worse had the calls of some been answered with the removal of Babcock. It seems clear he’s the reason the team’s even doing as well as it is. The players are sleepwalking at best or near-comatose. There’s only so much even the best coach can do about that. You can say “if he’s lost the players, it’s time for a change,” all you want, but who would do better? Babcock is the best bench boss out there. Anyone less isn’t a long-term solution, even if we see a short-term improvement from the babies in uniform. It’s not coaching, or at least, it’s not mostly coaching. It’s leadership.

I get flak for calling out the Lidstroms, Zetterbergs, Datsyuks, Rafalskis, Kronwalls, etc. on the team, but to me that’s where the issue lies. The men with the the letters on their chests or the big bucks need to step it up here. They need to lead by example. They’re not doing that. Here and there, you see above-mediocre shifts from those guys, but when’s the last time you saw any of them flat out dominate over an extended period in a game to such a degree you got excited and stayed that way? Datsyuk threading the puck through a couple guys isn’t what I’m talking about here. There used to be magic in those names. There isn’t any more.

Those players need to dig deep and lead the team out of this wilderness.

Two more: Two more games before the Break. The Wings can choose to float through those like they’ve floated through so many games so far this season, or they can go into it having made a statement. Which is it going to be, Lidstrom? Zetterberg? Datsyuk? Rafalski?

Postscript- Franzen: A solid start, for sure. He looked pretty good out there for a guy who hadn’t played in four months. With a little more rust shaken off, he could start chasing pucks into the net. Maybe The Mule needs to take the team on his back.