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Abel to Yzerman

Van Hagar, Hossa and Hockeytown

by IwoCPO on 07/04/08 at 06:03 AM ET
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Ssssshhhhh.  It’s ok.  I’ll explain.  And don’t get all flustered and start rolling your eyes.  When you enlisted into the A2Y19, you did so under the agreement that part of that deal meant putting up with my references to things other than Wing hockey. 

And I’m telling you, this one’s relevant. The coincidence is…stunning.

It all comes down to the kooky things that can happen while you pump a little gas.  Me? My life changed at a gas station in Missoula, Montana about ten years ago.  It was then that I realized the sound the pump makes when giving you the sign it’s ok to fill up? The three little beeps?  You know the beeps.  Stay with me.  Those beeps sound exactly like the first three chords to AC/DC’s family classic, “Highway to Hell”.  Dude. I’m not kidding.  Try it out.  Your world will be different.

Eddie Van Halen was filling up at a gas station outside LA in 1985, and he was probably wasted.  I don’t know if he was humming H2H because of the beeps, but I do know that before he got back on the road and started pounding beers again, Sammy Hagar pulled up.  Their conversation was short, probably because Eddie couldn’t complete a sober sentence.  Roth had left. Hagar was bored. Eddie needed a lead singer. The deal was brokered, right there at the pump.  19 hours later they were rocking out.

With their Conks out?  I doubt it.  But rocking out.

Then, day before yesterday?  More fun at the pumps.  Kenny Holland gets a call from Hossa’s agent.  The fella wants a Cup.  Kenny wants another.  Hossa doesn’t care about the cash. Well, not much anyway.  7.4. Nicky’s happy. Kenny’s happy.  Hossa’s happy. We’re all happy.  Before Tick Tock can finish dropping half Hossa’s salary on gas, a dozen’s in the bag.

And the reaction has been all over the charts.  You’ve read the MSM.  Now we turn to the bloggers.

We start with Puck Daddy, a gold mine.  You’re just silly if you haven’t been there by now and I’m assuming most have.  Sean Leahy found a collection of less than happy Pens blogs and message board whiners.  Leahy begins with a nifty prediction: “Add Hossa to a lineup with Henrik Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk and Nicklas Lidstrom among others, and well, you’ve got your 2009 Stanley Cup champions.”  I know.

Then, on to Pittsburgh.

Let’s Go Penguins.com message boards:
“AlexPKeaton: I have no respect for Ho$$a at all.”

BigK at Penguins That Fly:
“Hope he fails horribly, maybe suffers a career ending injury there.”

ThePensBlog:
“It’s almost as if we should retire that x=Stunned equation. It doesn’t do this situation justice.”

A few hours prior on Puck Daddy, Greg Wyshynski had made mention of the reaction in Pittsburgh and elsewhere.

All of these emotions are completely understandable because Hossa said this: “I want to have a best chance to win the Stanley Cup. I feel like Detroit is the team.”

Ouch. Just ouch. Hossa is so certain about the Red Wings giving him a better shot to win than the Penguins that he’s willing to risk tens of millions on a one-year contract and the chance an injury could derail his financial future. An agent told Rob Rossi of Chipped Ice that the one-year deal in Detroit is “a huge slap to the face of Pittsburgh and Sid (Crosby).” The fans felt the impact, too.

Let’s be clear on a few things.  If you’re a fan who hated Detroit prior to July 2nd?  You really hate us now.  There is no doubt about that.  There are certain blogs out there we’ll mention in a bit that have been absolutely silent since The Signing and that can only be attributed to the rage they can’t quite come to grips with yet.  And there is no doubt that they hate them some Hossa in Pittsburgh.

But when you get right down to it, and here’s where Alex P. Keaton’s comment from above is so frigging stupid, the guy turned down huge, obscene cash and lots of term for the best chance to win a Cup.  All the crap being hurled at him now means nothing when you keep that in perspective.  He wants to win a Cup and he went to the team that best offered him the chance to do so.  Plus?  Yeah, plus.  He probably doesn’t like Therrien.  Hell, maybe he doesn’t like Gary’s Baby Boy.  Who knows.  All we know for sure is that when it came down to it he told his boy Rich Winter to call Holland at the pump.  And he told him to respect the Lidstrom equation, accept the deal and roll the dice.

And here’s the thing:  he’ll re-sign next year too.  Why?  Because Tick Tock’s a genius. And because the good players don’t leave Detroit until everyone’s ready for them to do so.  And at 29?  We won’t be ready for him to leave just yet.

Now. Before the world changed, rumors of Hossa’s destination were all over the map, literally.  Edmonton fans were pumped because plenty of smart people were pointing to the province as the place of choice.  Didn’t happen.  But, unlike a few hundred thousand in Pittsburgh, Black Dog rolled with it.

So I guess Detroit saw Hossa good, huh?

Actually the crux of this deal is that Hossa saw the Wings good.

And we may do this all again next summer.

Considering how often athletes say they want to win but then take the money and run I admire Hossa for this move. He wants to win and he signed with the team that has the best chance to do so. As for all of the whining that has already started about UFAs not coming to Edmonton, just please stop once and for all. This is about one thing only. Hossa wants to get his name on the Stanley Cup. He will get his big payout next summer. It may be with the Oilers.

Maybe not.

Guy wants to win and he has all the money he will ever need already. Good for him. 

And good for us.  Wing bloggers…react. 

BTJ

I hope every Wings fan just takes a deep breath and treasures this day. Yes, we’ve had our ups and downs and for those of us living in Michigan, the Wings may be the only good thing going for us. BUT, this signing is amaaazing. It’s been over 10 hours since I heard about the signing and I’m still giddy about it. I mean, look at what this improvement can do for our team.

Most common mental pastime of the A2Y19 the last two days?  Line combinations.  Unbelievable, wacky stuff.  Do you play Hossa with Zetterberg and Datsyuk?  Second line his ass with Franzen and Fil?  You could literally place them on three separate lines.  There is enough talent among the Wings forwards to do that.  Uncle Mike’s got his crayons and flip charts out, you better believe it.

So does Dave at Gorilla Crouch.

There’s a good shot Hossa could replace Tomas Holmstrom on the top line at even strength. Homer’s goals per 60 minutes at even strength really dropped off this past season. With Zetterberg, Datsyuk and Hossa each player’s goals per 60 minutes should be well north of 1.20. That would potentially make the best line in the NHL even better. Homer’s net-front presence is much more valuable on the power play but you can see where last year Johan Franzen had much better production with the man advantage. So with that being said, here is how I think the lineup works for next season on each of the scoring lines.

Even-strength

Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Hossa
Franzen-Filppula-Holmstrom

Power Play
Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Franzen
Hossa-Hudler-Holmstrom

There’s too much of it. Too much talent.  Not enough spots.  It’s almost unbelievable to consider the dilemma facing Uncle Mike and Tick Tock.  Who the hell stays and who goes to GR or else where?  Helm, Abadabbadoobiekidoo, McCarty, Downey, Ville Leino, Kopecky.  That’s six guys who would make any other roster without a second thought.  And they’re all fighting, essentially, for the 12th forward spot in Detroit.

September in TC is going to be a dog fight.  A war.  First things first though.  Let’s get Filppula back in the fold Kenny.

On The Wings

If anyone offers him $3+ million and he takes the offer, the Wings’ can’t stop him leaving. However, I like to think Fil would relish the thought of playing for the Cup again, particularly with a winger like Hossa. Maybe I’m naive, but I don’t see a problem there as long as he’s willing to accept $2.5 million or less from Detroit.

Agreed and here’s why.  Holland is too smart.  He thinks three, four moves ahead.  Signing Hossa didn’t mean the Wings are forsaking Filppula.  He’s already considered it and they’re simply working on final numbers.  Within three days he’ll be back in the fold and Kenny can rest.

Pete, my long, lost twin brother at Yzerman is God, hits the deal from all angles.  Most importantly for us, he’s considering the various nicknames and glossary entries we’ll have to consider as a result of The Signing.  Baroque, because she’s so smart especially compared to the rest of us, started something with this whole name thing.  It’s…catching on.

Moving on to onomastics - the study of names and nomenclature. God, the Wings blogotron is dorky and I love that. BehindTheName is a great resource and I’m astounded to find others enjoy it as much as me. Baroque’s onomastic etymological research must be credited with two fantastic nicknames for Hossa: Mars, and God of War. “Mars Hossa” just rolls of the tongue. I love it as much as Wally (which is catching on, as Baroque notes! Strong work, YIG commenters!) Certainly better than Fiesta Redwingcana, which is a mouthful and also stolen (or shall we say, adapted).

You can call him Sarah for all I care, as long as he puts up 80 points and hoists that bad boy next June. 

So, I’m curious what some of our friends are saying, how they’re handling The Signing in St. Louis, or Denver.  I’m sure the Bitter Bitch Blues fans at Game Time must be puppy-like in their mirth.  Right?

#  Poor College Student Says:
July 2nd, 2008 at 11:37 am

Fu** Detroit

Hossa to the Wings
1 year 7.4 mil

# Brad Lee Says:
July 2nd, 2008 at 11:45 am

f
u
c
k

A one year deal? Really?

# Pagan Says:
July 2nd, 2008 at 11:51 am

Hossa to the Wings
1 year 7.4 mil

THIS is exactly why I hate Detroit. The rich keep getting richer. They’re the NY Yankees of hockey. I have no respect for a team that goes out and buys talent on this scale every year. I know they also draft well and do a good job developing talent, but them throwing money around like this just pisses me off.

Here’s to hoping the Wings spontaneously combust.

NY Yankees of hockey.  Told ya.  Poor BBB fans.

Disappointment.  Nothing on the Dive blogs.  No mention whatsoever that I can find.  Dammit.  Now that hurts. 

But speaking of the Dive, it brings up the memory of Darcy Tucker.  How crazy is it that we were even discussing the merit of bringing him aboard. Now, don’t get me wrong.  I still feel that had Tick Tock followed the script of simply adding one more forward for a few mil, a 20 goal guy maybe, then Tucker would have been my choice. 

Nothing more than an afterthought now though, eh?  What an unbelievable week.

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Welcome to Abel to Yzerman, a Red Wing blog since 1977.  No other site on the internet has better-researched, fact-laden and better prepared discussions than A2Y.  Re-phrase: we do little research, find facts and stats highly overrated and claim little to no preparation.  There are 19 readers of A2Y. No more, no less. All of them, except maybe one, are juvenile in nature.  Reminding them of that in the comment section will only encourage them to prove that. Your suggestions and critiques are welcome: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

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