Leave Doc alone, he’s a born and raised Wings fan if I’m not mistaken.

Steve, Ted Montgomery’s a “born and raised Wing fan” and so’s Madonna.  Both of them are idiots too.  If Emrick’s supposed to be such a sage hockey guy, how do you explain him falling on such a poorly researched crutch as that? 

Stupid statement from a smart guy?  Probably.  But stupid nonetheless.

that can’t be an Emrick quote. There’s no mention of a knife or a pitchfork.

Why the MSM gets laughed at by fans, reason number 47,000.

The Red Wings “character” has been “tested” in every single freaking playoffs, including last year, when they reached the final four and gave the eventual champions a tough fight even minus two of their top three defensemen before losing.

“Just OK with Osgood?” He does happen to be right there with the leaders in GAA, so I think he’s doing a bit more than a potted plant in the goal.

The biggest mark of the team’s character is that no one yet has snatched a microphone from one of the MSM jackasses and jammed it up his rectum to hear a more intelligent opinion than they are spouting right now from the other end of the GI tract.

Not to mention, of course, the mind-numbing stupidity of simultaneously questioning the Red Wings’ character but assuming the Sharks will do very well.

Marleau has been ripped most of the year for being too quiet and not working hard enough to be captain, or even on the team if someone else would take him (but has been playing much better since the trade deadline).

Thornton still has the tag (however unfair) of not being able to carry the team through the playoffs.

The entire team is more recently characterized by catastrophic meltdowns at the first speed bump in the playoffs - they have more questions to overcome regarding character than Detroit does.

(I think they will do pretty well this year, but they do have to prove it, as all teams do.)

Haha, I’m with you Pharazon.

Can’t stand when he says that stuff. Why can’t he just say, “chips the puck in” instead of “knifes it in”?

I’m thinking we should stick with a douche theme for nicknames.  Emrick can be the “Douche of Earl”.  I can hear the JLA faithful singing now..."douche, douche, douche, douche of Earl...”

I will happily extend the “Douche Canoe” contest for the entire playoffs, not just Saturday’s game!  The first successful “Douche Canoe” sign at ANY 2008 playoff game will win the tickets.

I want to be fair to people who may not be attending Saturday’s game, or who are from other cities that loathe the Douche Canoe as much as we do.

The first person ANYWHERE during the 2008 playoffs who can successfully get the sign on camera behind McGuire’s head can win!  It would be extra special for it to happen during a Detroit game, but I do not play favourites… just the anti-Douche Canoe hate game.

Seriously, the claims that the Wings don’t have enough character and San Jose will win the cup are seriously flawed.  I admit, I’m scared shitless at the playoffs starting, and I am terrified of Lidstron breaking his leg and Hasek letting in 18 goals on Saturday, but if you apply a bit of thought to it, San Jose shouldn’t be considered a Stanley Cup favorite. The facts just aren’t there.  This is a team that has underachieved in the playoffs for quite some time.  The Red Wings dispatched them in six last year.  Other than adding Campbell (yes, he’s a good player), what major changes have taken place since last year?  Is Wilson still coach?  Has Thornton really changed into a playoff bulldog?

With respect to the Red Wings, they were gritty in the playoffs last year, reaching the final four and suffering some horrendous injuries before losing by a hair to the eventual champions.  Did they significantly change?  I don’t think so.  Are they less gritty?  Well, if you watch Homer, Franzen, Mac, and Abdelkaber play on Sunday, I think the answer would be no.  Is Hasek significantly worse?  Not based on Sunday’s outing.

I really do think that the media is reacting (maybe they don’t even realize it) to Detroit taking their place as the pre-eminent franchise in this league since 1997, pre and post-lockout.  Since guys like Lidstrom make it look so easy for 82 games, the wheels MUST CERTAINLY come off come playoff time.

It’s frustrating.  I’m not predicting that we’ll crush Nashville or any other team (I’m pessimistic and nervous, which is why I feel so at home here at A2Y), but if an impartial analyst simply looked at Nashville and Detroit’s numbers, they couldn’t possibly predict that a team that barely made an eight seed is going to unseat a team that led the NHL wire to wire.

TDeters - you are right on.  There are some interesting stats up at Battle of Alberta that show just how good the Wings are against the rest of the Western Conference.  I am not on the Sharks bandwagon as the rest of the MSM seems to be.  I don’t think they have the coaching or the heart.  I do believe they will beat Calgary but not make it out of the second round.  I’ve decided to try not to let the MSM’s nasty comments about the Wings get to me.  Let them all be doubters and let the team prove them all wrong.

A ha! I knew it! I tried to give him the benefit of the doubt after his little Freudian slip on Sunday.  I brought it up in the Live Blog but immediately regretted it...I figured I was just being a paranoid Wings fan.

Well, just because I’m paranoid doesn’t mean they all don’t hate us.

The biggest mark of the team’s character is that no one yet has snatched a microphone from one of the MSM jackasses and jammed it up his rectum to hear a more intelligent opinion than they are spouting right now from the other end of the GI tract.

Yeeouch!

Memo to self: Never offend Baroque. Ever. End Memo.

You guys are getting awfully defensive over what was, without a doubt, nitpicking the unanimous Cup favorite. “Yep, they’re good,” surrounded by dead air doesn’t make compelling television. Not sure how the fans who have celebrated three championships in a little over a decade can get off keeping a chip on their shoulder.

It’s April 9th, Snevik.  The playoffs start in 28 hours fifteen minutes.  Many of the readers (and I) are afraid of getting electrocuted because they’re typing as they sit in a puddle of their own urine.  I think a little leeway may be in order.