And what better chance for Eaves to get more ice time...and maybe on a higher line than he would have. What if Mule’s injury actually accelerates the emergence of “Dan Cleary, V.2.0”? Wouldn’t that be a nice surprise.

In my multi-substance-abuse mind right now, I agree completely with OTC. There is no better chance to see if we are betting on the right people than right now. Fil has to step up big; his playoff performance level would be a good standard to aspire to. I don’t know if Cleary has more to give. Kronner has to step up production to approach Raffy’s numbers. Leino has to prove that he’s a winner. Dats have to be flying circus level but apart with some playoff duty together. Tuzzi, JWill, Eaves, May have to show they still have careers and can be a useful part of the best organization around.

Gramps: If Babs pulls off another 50 win season, you will have to acknowledge him as a great coach. Agree?

Posted by Osrt on 10/09/09 at 08:55 PM ET

About ten years ago I tore an ACL.  What’s absolutely unbelievable to me is that Franzen went on to finish that game.  If you’ve been through the shock of an ACL tear you’ll distinctly remember the feverish sensation catching on just seconds afterwards.  And the pain.  It’s undiscribable, until you actually try to walk around when it becoms unfathomable - especially after spending a good few minutes getting cold on the bench.  To me, this is a testament of the Mule’s indisputable toughness.  Very few players would be able to score a goal aftear tearing an ACL in the same game.

I know it sucks - throw up in our mouth style - but still, we’re sitting on the Mule.  This guy is a beast.

Posted by lilja4ever on 10/09/09 at 09:41 PM ET

Only bright side so far is the lack of acknowleding the trools cheering for a substancial injury to a stand up man of a hockey player. Stay classy Pen(i)s lovers.
Just getting home from a hunt where I chose to spare a deer’s life, in retrospect a poor decision. The Mules injury deserves a sacrifice.

Posted by MOWingsfan19 on 10/09/09 at 10:14 PM ET

Very few players would be able to score a goal aftear tearing an ACL in the same game.

It’s important to note that there are essentially two major bands of the ACL and it is possible to have partial tears.... so you know… take that info and only partially puke

Posted by MarkK from Maryland on 10/09/09 at 10:29 PM ET

Gramps: If Babs pulls off another 50 win season, you will have to acknowledge him as a great coach. Agree?

Not a chance.
If he doesn’t, it will be the players that take the heat, so why should he get all that credit if they do it for him.  50 wins and an early exit in the playoffs (more often than not)....are you going to claim he is a great coach.  He was out-coached in the playoffs last year, and by the way.....that wasn’t the first time.

You lose a great player like the Mule and the team will step up and play above their level....
but only for 4-7 games and then they regress.  Holland should jump on any chance to pick up
a veteran.  Experience that someone like Shanahan could provide will stabilize the team and calm the youngsters.

He also hits the net pretty regular from the point on the PP.

Mule’s absence opens more ice time for other players, but let’s don’t waste it on youngsters that aren’t ready.  I’m fine with giving it to Leino and Helm.  Lilja comes back...use Meech up front.

Real experience at a discount is quite an asset.

3 games into the season...don’t assume for a second that there will not be more injuries.

Posted by HockeyTownTodd from the "NOT QUITE DEAD PIRATE" on 10/09/09 at 11:36 PM ET

I’ve been doing a lot of reading on ACL injuries and I gotta say, I don’t see how the team even thinks it’ll be possible for him to be back in four months. Eight months seems to be the general consensus I’ve found.

Posted by Alzy from Innisfail, Alberta, Canada on 10/09/09 at 06:39 PM ET

This really varies per person.  I had my right ACL reconstructed in 2005.  It took 3 week until I was solid on walking, 2 months before I felt normal (run, squat, etc).  I took 3 months of physical therapy mostly because my HMO didn’t believe I was okay after 2 months.  I didn’t have the fancy tools/doctors/massage/exercise equipment that will be available to Franzen; mostly I just used a bicycle as my main mode of transportation and relearned how to walk without putting as much stress on the knee.

About ten years ago I tore an ACL.  What’s absolutely unbelievable to me is that Franzen went on to finish that game.  If you’ve been through the shock of an ACL tear you’ll distinctly remember the feverish sensation catching on just seconds afterwards.  And the pain.  It’s undiscribable, until you actually try to walk around when it becoms unfathomable - especially after spending a good few minutes getting cold on the bench. 

Posted by lilja4ever on 10/09/09 at 09:41 PM ET

Like MarkK mentioned, no one really knows if Franzen had a partial tear previously, nor do we know the percentage that’s torn right now.  They can do surgery with a partial tear, mostly so it doesn’t get worse.  There have been some players that just play with a large brace on to do surgery off-season.  Plus, if the adrenaline is going, you won’t be feeling much pain anyway.

Posted by creasemonkey from happy to be motoring on two wheels again on 10/10/09 at 12:03 AM ET

Uncle Mike says he’s moving Wally up...so there goes the best line the Wings had so far. He, however, then goes to say this-

“He’s played the wing tons and so has Zetterberg,” Babcock said. “Fil has played with Datsyuk and a lot and Z (Zetterberg) has played with Datsyuk a lot. The difference is Z shoots and Fil wants to pass. Passing the puck doesn’t do you any good if you don’t eventually shoot it. That’s how you get points.”

Interesting. Very interesting. I do wish, however, that he’d leave that third line alone, and maybe just move the whole thing up to the second...but he’s the coach....and has a much better idea of how to run a hockey team.

Posted by mrfluffy from Cincy on 10/10/09 at 12:17 AM ET

Well just fuch me in the goat azz.  Chief you must be lying.  This can’t be true.  WTF?

I’m sure they are gonna bring in a vet.  They have to.  Since the media loves to talk about how many goals the wings lost to free agency, lets add Franzen’s regular season goals to that number and it comes out to a nice lofty 122.  They scored a total of 289 for the season.  That’s 42 percent of their scoring.  Now I know that the Mule is hopefully coming back before the playoffs and whatnot, and that we have signed some people to replace some of our losses, and we are counting on others to step up their play, but if you think that this is not a MF mountain of adversity you are out of your ever loving mind.  I’m not claiming that the sky is falling or anything stupid like that.  I too believe that the Wings have some players that can and will step it up, and that some of the players that they signed are capable of filling some of the void, but all of their jobs just got a whole lot harder.

I’m really hoping that the Tuz can remember how to play hockey here pretty damn quick.  I told a coworker today that a stump tied to Z’s waist would make a better line mate that Bert, and now he is our power forward.  With the exception of that one nice defensive play against the Hawks he seems to be only capable of turning the puck over.... repeatedly.

Holy shlt, where’s my beer…

Posted by ITDeuce on 10/10/09 at 12:35 AM ET

Jesus.  Now what?

Posted by valas from in DC, bitches on 10/10/09 at 01:07 AM ET

Not a chance.

You’re a SOB but I love ya.

He also hits the net pretty regular from the point on the PP.

You and Paul both; I’m digging this idea a bit more; it could be another Fetisov style acquisition. Kenny thought Scotty was insane for pushing it but it turned out to bring have brought the Russian 5 together. That really began things for us. Looking forward to seeing how Ovie and Semin are carrying on the Russian tradition; Green even plays a bitch version of a Russian game. But Pasha rules your world:

Witness

This

Shite

Posted by Osrt on 10/10/09 at 01:49 AM ET

If you weren’t shotgunning a beer by the time you got to the 8th word in that story, then you’re not my friend.

F*ck that.  I was shotgunning paint thinner by the fifth word.

Are you there, Uncle Mike?  It’s me, Andrew.  CIRCUS TIME, bitch.  And don’t give me any of that ‘Wally-isn’t-ready-to-center-the-second-line’ sh*t, or I’ll smack you like a granny ho that ain’t bringin’ in the cheddar no mo’.

And keep Gator in GR too.  And make me a sammitch.  Crawfish, dill, pickles, lemon, pepper and batavia lettuce on tsitsel rye.  A cup of coffee strong as Swedish mule piss, and Irish it up.

F*ck.

Posted by AndrewFromAnnArbor from Fortress Europe on 10/10/09 at 03:44 AM ET

I nominate OTC for a Nobel Prize for best use of optimistic verbiage and literary exuberance in the hockeyball category.

“Thank you for the honor but I have to respectfully decline because it’s obvious to everyone that I just haven’t done anything to deserve it.”

Don’t you wish more people would say something like that? 

Anyway, I’m not a fan of moving Fil up to either the first or second line. That means either Drapes or Abbi will be the third-line center (unless Babs throws Cleary in there). They lost a winger. Why wouldn’t you move, oh, I don’t know, a winger up to fill that spot?

If it wasn’t for statements like this, Babs would really piss me off…

That’s life. Let’s suck it up and go play.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 10/10/09 at 07:51 AM ET

Donkey balls.

Posted by monkey from Jesus and the Dinosaurs on 10/10/09 at 08:44 AM ET

In my entire life, I have never slung a perfectly good bacon sandwich against the kitchen wall in disgust, like I did when I read the news this AM.

Apparently, the dogs are happy about all this. Traitors.

Posted by dougie on 10/10/09 at 11:42 AM ET