Abel to Yzerman
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Devastating Dallas: The Keys To Game 3
by IwoCPO on 05/12/08 at 03:39 AM ET
Comments (15)
I’ve been giving strong consideration to using a Seger lyric as the title of tonite’s live blog, but decided against it. A few of you have suggested I go with a couple, more obscure Lightfoot songs. I thought of doing that too, and taking full credit for the idea. But, I can’t. The Wings are now 3-0 since we went with “Fitzgerald” and I’m not turning back. Plus, I’m chomping at the bit to use a particular line and I can’t until the number reaches “1”.
On to the keys, the fact-driven, stat-backed, heavy-handed analysis A2Y has become famous for.
Composure. The Wings have had plenty of it, while Senior just can’t seem to find any. Mike Ribeiro gets to play tonite and I’m on record as saying I don’t mind that decision. Do I agree with it? No. I think it’s an example of the hypocrisy of this league and the spineless, gutless, incompetent manner in which a little man runs it. Gary Bettman is the worst, and there can be no comparison, commissioner in professional sports. That’s saying something when a counterpart of his can turn a blind eye to his best players injecting their bodies with chemicals not used in most livestock factories.
Osgood threw a butt end? Did he? Just for fun, let’s pretend he did. While you’re imagining that, I’ll let long-time member of the A2Y 19 explain why this situation is so...Bettman.
If the Stars fans and the league offices would be fine with Holmstrom turning around at any point during any game when Turco slashes, punches or tries to castrate him with his fists and goalstick and swinging his stick two handed into Turco’s chest as hard as he can, then I don’t have a problem.
If they’d say one word, utter one peep, or in any way evince even the slightest discomfort with that, then they and the league offices can absolutely go f*** themselves.
That’s HockeyinHD, in the comment section of this post. He’s right on the money. Let’s be real clear about what he’s saying. Tonite, when the mental midget slashes Homer, or rattles his puppies, or punches the back of his head, Gary Bettman has said that when Holmstrom turns around and gives Sybil a BC two hander to the chest, all he can expect is a fine. Good to know.
The key we were talking about is composure. When the real rednecks get riled and Senior starts flying around, maybe even when Dallas takes a lead tonite--which would be an interesting development, considering they haven’t had one in six periods now--how the Wings react to that will be significant.
But don’t sit there and fret about that, because there hasn’t been a hint of panic in this team since the two-goal-choke-the-shaft trend we saw in Round 1 against Senior’s little brother. That’s long gone. Solved quickly enough by a goalie change.
Speaking of. We said prior to Game 2 that we wouldn’t be mentioning Osgood as a key factor anymore, that it’s a little too obvious and that there’s no reason to think his steady play won’t continue. Well, three factors have intervened since then. (1) I called him your Conn Smythe leader (winner). (b) He’s going to face more than the 20 shots/game he faced in 1 and 2. (3) Dallas feels they may have rattled him a bit after the back alley smack addict attack at the end of Saturday’s game.
Osgood will probably have to have his best game of the playoffs tonite. I’d guess he’ll see 25 shots and a bit more traffic.
Slush. That ice is going to absolutely suck tonite. Forecast calls for 83, sunny and slow. Back in ‘98 that was a story because that Stars team was built for those conditions. Hatcher was real comfortable slogging rather than skating and so was Ken Hitchcock. Not so much anymore. Dallas likes to move the puck as much as the Wings do, they just don’t do it as well. They claim puck possession as a strength, and speed as an asset. Both teams are going to be equally affected. The main difference being Senior is used to playing in that crap.
Babcock. Uncle Mike is close. So much closer than when the Wings were two victories away from the Final last year. Still without a deal for next year, but that’s a foregone conclusion. The guy has proven to us that he’s a keeper. Tell me a wrong move he’s made. Sitting Lilja? Replacing Hasek? Inserting Helm? Playing Maltby in Game 1? Disregarding matching lines in any series? The only decision I’ve questioned was the move to separate Kronwall and Stuart early on. But he reversed that quickly. But he’s beyond proving he belongs. Now the guy’s inching up on a Cup and his foot is on the gas. I don’t think any coach left is having the impact he is, and his influence has got to be huge in that room.
Faceoffs. The Stars have been little bitches in the faceoff circle, losing more than 70 percent the first two games. First stick down may be a slight reason for that. We’ll see tonite.
Finally, the violence factor. Don Cherry, the “flamboyant” voice of all things Canadian, continues to blast the Wings as being too soft, not “rock ‘em, sock ‘em” enough for you rednecks. Not sure what Don’s been doing during the first two games, but it sure hasn’t been watching hockey. The Wings have owned the corners. Every big hit has been at Dallas’ expense. There has been no question as to which team has played more physically and there’s no reason to believe that can’t continue tonite. The best line of the year was Uncle Mike’s when he said Drake likes to run dmen and he likes to watch Drake run dmen. We need Uncle Mike to be nearly giddy tonite.
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Comments
Not late Osrt. Early. Chelios always worries me, a bit more for his tendency to take bad penalties than anything else.
See you guys tonite for the LB.
Posted by IwoCPO from Washington, DC on 05/12/08 at 04:04 AM ET
There is a very faint rumor swinging around a message board or two that Mule has a blood clot and could be done for the season. Because that, mother****ers, is how the stress train rolls. Choo-Choo.
Posted by scsgoal31 from Huntington Woods, MI on 05/12/08 at 06:48 AM ET
There is a very faint rumor swinging around a message board or two that Mule has a blood clot and could be done for the season.
I think I just threw up in my mouth a little.
Because that, mother****ers, is how the stress train rolls.
Exceptional usage.
Posted by IwoCPO from Washington, DC on 05/12/08 at 06:57 AM ET
“The Stars have been little bitches in the faceoff circle...”
Priceless.
Posted by Nathan on 05/12/08 at 07:55 AM ET
Temper - Temper. Tempers are high! Good, very good. In my occupation, a person who lets emotion take control, by definiton, is not thinking. Uncle Mike is on a mission, the Wings are on a mission. If DAL is feeling the pressure, well then they cannot play as well as they could with emotions in check. Sticks gripped a little too tight (evidence game 2). Centermen wondering just WTF they got to do to win a draw (a whopping 30% win rate). Marty, Marty wondering what he has to do to get Homer out of his kitchen (and don’t think Uncle Mike didn’t send a tape to Walkum on Marty’s antics in game 2).
DAL has to win—add a just a little more pressure (okay add alot of heat). DET, I bet they’d love just to get a split.
IMO, I bet DAL is just about gassed. If I’m Uncle Mike, I’m rolling 4 lines consistently the next two games. Aside from the fact that all 4 lines have played really well, it uses DET depth to advantage. DAL already looks a step slower than DET; keep them gassed.
DAL can’t score—that is the simple truth. Two games against DET and they have scored 2 total. In 14 playoff games, DAL G/G is 2.64, by comparison, DET is 3.67, and DET have scored 6 in this series.
Mission tonight, win or lose, keep the throttle wide open—crappy ice or not.
Aurie #6, good call Chief!!
Posted by Jeff OKWingnut from Hockey Netherworld on 05/12/08 at 08:02 AM ET
Babcock hasn’t disregarded line matchups at all. Exactly the opposite, in fact. Check the head-to-head icetime for last game: Datsyuk and Zetterberg played about 11 even strength minutes against Ribeiro and Morrow, and less than three against other lines. Same story for Holmstrom, but with fewer minutes, and Rafalski, but with more minutes. Lidstrom was matched even more closely Ribeiro and Morrow, playing over 12 minutes with them on the ice. Same situation with the second line, third line (except for Draper, who goes sometimes goes out for critical faceoffs), and the fourth line.
Just because Babcock matches the first lines together doesn’t mean he’s not playing the matchups. It’ll be interesting to see how the matchups change when Tippet has last change in Dallas.
Posted by Ryan from Toronto on 05/12/08 at 08:53 AM ET
Turco is losing it. Will be interesting to see how tonight goes. As Chief says, composure is key. If Dallas is as riled up as they seemed at the end of Game 3, let them take the dumb penalties and give us the PP. They can’t win a faceoff to save their lives and they are not getting enough shots on goal. The officiating in these playoffs is ludicrous at best. I was talking to my brother last night about the debacle in Pittsburgh and then he started whining about the officiating in the Det/Dallas game (he’s a Stars fan). I just laughed and said, “Wake me when you actually have an argument.” But even he admitted that the Stars are not strong enough to stay with the Wings.
Posted by hockeychic from Denver, CO on 05/12/08 at 09:57 AM ET
Forecast calls for 83, sunny and slow. Back in ‘98 that was a story because that Stars team was built for those conditions. Hatcher was real comfortable slogging rather than skating and so was Ken Hitchcock.
At the start of last night’s Flyers-Pens game I thought, “Damn. That ice really must be slushy. Look at the way Hatcher and the Flyers D are struggling to get up ice.”
But, then, the Pens got the puck and it was Katie Bar the Door. They may not have been as fast as usual, but they still were faster than the Flyers, especially Hatcher. I think “bad” ice affects everyone, but I think it actually affects slow skaters more than fast skaters. Since Detroit seems to have an edge in speed, I think it’s advantage Detroit.
The wild card in all of this is passing. Whoever is able to make shorter and stronger outlet passes that mitigate the effect of the slushy conditions may have the ultimate advantage. I guess we’ll see in about eight hours.
Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 05/12/08 at 10:50 AM ET
Plus, I’m chomping at the bit to use a particular line and I can’t until the number reaches “1”.
Much as I’d love to see a Seger lyric (Roll Me Away or Night Moves come to mind), yeah, you gotta roll with what mojo you got goin’. And now I’m interested. I know the whole song by heart, but still struggling to find what goes well with One. “At seven PM the main hatchway caved in...” Something about the Maritime Sailors’ Cathedral and 29 times? A really tenuous connection with Terry Sawchuk? Dunno. See, this is why you’re the clever blogger and I’m the lunkheaded commenter.
Posted by AndrewFromAnnArbor from the Hockey Folk Singers Hall of Fame on 05/12/08 at 10:54 AM ET
Something about the Maritime Sailors’ Cathedral and 29 times?
Maybe…
Posted by IwoCPO from Washington, DC on 05/12/08 at 11:05 AM ET
Hatcher had over 28 minutes last night for the Flyers. The loss of their two defensemen is already hurting the Flyers slim chances. What happened to Briere in this series?
Posted by hockeychic from Denver, CO on 05/12/08 at 11:09 AM ET
Reiterating what hockeychic said, courtesy of The Detroit News by way of our good friend George at Snapshots:
McCarty admitted that the Wings learned to channel their lesser instincts under Scotty Bowman:
“I can’t tell you how many times he was screaming at me from the bench not to fight this guy or do something,” McCarty recalled Sunday. “So it’s sort of ingrained in you. It’s gotta be the right moment, where you’re not going to hurt the team and not going to get an extra penalty. And that’s the thing: Scotty always said toughness was being able to take that extra punishment, whether it was in front of the net or wherever. Not retaliating or putting yourself above the team, that’s toughness, too.”
The Red Wings’ current coach, as Niyo suggests, is more than happy to agree with the Don Cherrys and Barry Melroses of the world, who claim that the Red Wings are all but “programmed” to not retaliate--but Mike Babcock says his team’s a physical one, too:
“The 39 times we finished checks last night, I don’t know how much turning the cheek (that was),” Babcock said. “I don’t know if their (defensemen) think we’re turning the other cheek.
“I mean, what’s toughness? Is toughness punching someone in the head after the whistle? Or is toughness having the puck, or running over someone, or being in the right place screening the goalie? You guys decide that, not me. But I have my own theory, obviously.”
In another article I saw recently, Zetterberg talked about using his anger to play better. Seems to be working pretty well.
And one final question RE: Don Cherry and Barry Melrose. How many Stanley Cup winners did they coach?
Posted by YzermanZetterberg on 05/12/08 at 02:36 PM ET
The only thing I have to say is,
“BRING IT ON!”
Lets Go Red Wings!!!!!
Posted by Kate from Pa. on 05/12/08 at 05:50 PM ET
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I have no idea why you’re up so late Iwo, and I’m not sure why I’m reading you now either.
Great write up! But I have a couple of disagreements.
1) Ozzie did try to get in Ribiero’s way, but it was to protect his D behind the net. A lot of goalies do this, frequently. Georgeums has a good write up about it. The basic idea is to make the forward take a longer path around the extended stick so he doesn’t have a direct line to the D. If you raise it just as he’s coming in, they may even have to stop or severely slow down. I don’t mind Ozzie showing a rough edge, or making look subtle. Better than Turco’s sparring with Homer’s head.
2) I don’t think Ozzie will have to play the best game so far. He’ll be solid and make the same (sometimes great) saves he did in game 2. Why? Because the Wings will be even more defensive minded as a road team and suffocate Dallas, especially if they feel their game is being hampered by bad ice.
Babbles is the best! I’m sure he’ll win a Jack Adams trophy in the next few years, or even a couple of years in a row. We may even have to call him Jack Babcock.
Did you see this article about Z from The Dallas Morning News? Lids thinks Z will be the next Yzerman!
The one thing that concerns me is how both teams will respond to Ribiero’s slash. Are they going to try and run Ozzie again? Are we going to pound Ott? Or send Drake to hunt Ribiero? Maybe Dats, since he has been hitting a lot lately!
Also, is anyone else getting a little nervous whenever Lebda and Cheli are back there? I’ve actually begun to get worried about Cheli, although he’s been pretty good on the PK. Please tell me that it’s just me!
Posted by Osrt on 05/12/08 at 03:41 AM ET