Yeah, it was me.  And I’ll add this - Bert looked a lot better in the second period.  I remember the first couple games he played for the Wings in the regular season thinking “man, this guy is getting his legs back fast.”  Let’s hope I was right.  I saw him do the “bull in a china shop” thing at least once in the second - push the puck ahead, run somebody over, push the puck ahead, run the next guy over…next thing you know he’s into the zone with the puck on his stick.

Nice goal by Draper.  Playoff goal all the way - as was the Flames’ goal.  I like Babs coming right back with Draper.  That line should get the most minutes this period - obviously it’s a “grinder” game.  I’d like to see Draper, Maltby, and Zetterberg play together.

Posted by Paul on 04/17/07 at 11:10 PM ET

I felt that Zetterberg (was it Z?) got a little bit of interference/holding on that Iginla goal in the Calgary zone…

Here,s hopingthe Flames will revert to the offensive-n—show they were in the first two games…

Luc

Posted by Luc on 04/17/07 at 11:55 PM ET

That’s a coaching mistake.  I remember Bowman used to have the backup goalie keep track of faceoffs - so when it counted he could have the hot hand in the circle.  Lang for a possibly series-changing faceoff?  Bad coaching.  Juggling lines just to put a cold player in?  Bad coaching.  Babcock deserves most of the blame IMO.

Oh, and the refs.  OH my GAWD the refs.  Like I said, I knew we were in trouble when I saw McCreary drop the puck, and he proved my right on the phantom goalie interference call on Calder.  Goalie lunges for the puck, runs into the player OUTSIDE the crease…and it’s interference?  Give me a bleeping break.

I’ll say this, though - I pretty much expected the Flames to win this game.  Too many good players with too much pride, plus desperation and home ice…equals a win.  It would have been a steal for the Wings.  3 wins in a row against any team in any situation is difficult.  I expect the Flames to take a “hey, we’re going to be OK” attitude in game 4 and get roasted again.

Wings in 5.

Posted by Paul on 04/18/07 at 12:02 AM ET

I’ll agree with that non call.  I thought that if they caught Markov with that phantom penalty at least they’d get that one.  Oh well, it’s a gift.  Calgary may be in trouble though if Dion is found to have a concussion.

Posted by Hap from Grand Rapids, MI on 04/18/07 at 12:04 AM ET

“I felt that Zetterberg (was it Z?) got a little bit of interference/holding”

A little?  That’s putting it lightly.  I’m not going to use it as an excuse, but the officiating was lopsided.

Posted by Paul on 04/18/07 at 12:07 AM ET

Thanks, Bettman… an impressive display tonight.

Is Frasier suiting up for game 4?

The “new” NHL…

/puke.

Posted by TeamDub from Toledo on 04/18/07 at 12:12 AM ET

Bert looked very slow and out of postion at times.  What a hit by Cleary….WOW!  Hopefully the bouncing puck settles down Thursday.

Posted by millsz from Brownstown, MI on 04/18/07 at 12:13 AM ET

Thoughts:
- Lang’s line was brutal all night, no passion between him and Sammy, sit one of them for Hudler, seriously

- Bert looked lost and out of sync, while he may be a game changer, I have a feeling those days are over. He looked to be a shell of himself out there and only occasionally got involved

- Dats’ line needs to do a better job fighting through checks. I think Homer is bringing that line down with his poor puckhandling and less than stellar foot speed.

- Dom was way off his angle on the 2nd and 3rd goals, although the 2nd hit off Z’s skate. Nick made a bad gamble on the Iginla goal and was toasted because of it.

- No panic though, I felt the Wings would lose tonight and I’m not too terribly upset about it. Need a better effort from some guys on Thursday and it should be wrapped up in Game 5 on Saturday.

Posted by Jeremy from Bowling Green/Oregon, OH on 04/18/07 at 12:20 AM ET

“Nick made a bad gamble on the Iginla goal and was toasted because of it.”

The announcers on Versus blamed it on Zetterberg not being able to handle the pass.  Clearly Lidstrom should have fired it out of the zone, but he tried to be fancy and 3 seconds later it’s in the net.  You can count Lidstrom’s playoff mistakes on one hand…but tonight he just used up another finger.

Posted by Paul on 04/18/07 at 12:40 AM ET

Oh, sure.  The ONE TIME I want the Red Wings to win (and get a sweep- I picked it for a playoff contest), they don’t.  Can I blame Bertuzzi?  Please?

Posted by DC Sports Chick on 04/18/07 at 07:29 AM ET

Luc,

It was totally obvious. Z was the guy that was expected to be back on Iginla, and when he came out of the corner to start the backcheck, he got held up big time in front of the Calgary goal with the puck going in the opposite direction.

Tough way to lose, but I will say this: the poor PP is the main reason they lost this game, despite how tough that no-call leading to the GWG is to swallow.

The good news is that I feel that was the Flames best effort, and Detroit left a lot in the locker room. If the teams play virtually even on the stats chart and by the eyeball test like they did last night, and it is clear the Wings aren’t letting it all hang out, the feeling on the series has to be better than it has been the last two seasons.

Posted by Nathan on 04/18/07 at 07:41 AM ET

TeamDub:  Good to see you!  Pray all is well or as reasonably well that can be expected under your circumstances.

I lost $5.00 to my 14 y/o son, he said Flames win 4-3 (pretty close).  He also says Wings in Five.  Heres hoping the little prognisticator continues his winning ways.

Bert looked bad the first period, but I thought he really came on later, I agree with Paul.  He appears to be a (F)lame target and thats way better than Z or D being the target. 

Cleary has been outstanding all series, last night he wa a man on a mission—that hit was incredible.  Wonder if that might leave some concusssion issues for the (F)lamer.

I hate to shine a spotlight on the painfully obvious, but Cleary, Drapes, and Malts have played the best physical, grinding, cycling, games this series.  Their line rocks.  Not enough minutes for Fill, and the Mule.  Sammy needs to get off the Lang line, put Bert up there at least they had some chemistry.

I kinda thought Hank was a step slow most of the night.  His mishandle on the PK was costly.  And who was it that mishandled the puck in the neutral zone resulting in (F)lame third goal?  Was the ice bad?????

All in all not the Wings best night.  But as Babs always says (maybe to CYA) a little adversity is never bad.  Hell, even the Duck got roasted last night.

Posted by Jeff - - OklahomaWingNut from NeverNeverLand on 04/18/07 at 08:29 AM ET

I agree that Bertstillwuzzi was not a major contributor; in fact he was downright brutal in the 1st.  He looked slow, out of synch and even looked like he felt sick on the bench between shifts.  Scary.
The time he took a little hit behind the net later in the game and then skated slowly to the bench holding his left hand awkwardly against his rib/back area made me nervous - I think his back is the real problem, not the concussion.
That said, he’s here for a reason - and while this might not have been the best game to roll him out - we gotta get him going.  Better now, against Calgary than later against TheTeamWhoseNameWeDoNotMention.
It was mentioned in game 1 (by Mickey Redmond I think) that Bert’llmakeuwuzzi’s presence on the Zberg/Delma line would change the physical dynamic for those two.  Why not put him there?  Let Hudler play on a line with Homer and Lang.
And I agree with everyone in the free world (except Babblecock of course) that Sammy sits.
Great to see Drapes score - woulda been awfully nice to see Malts get one of his patented shorties last night though.
The Wings played pretty solid 2nd & 3rd periods, but they need to crank it back up a notch if they want to win game 4.  They can’t allow themselves to be satisfied by the “Kipper stole the game and we’ll be fine” mentality.

Posted by Hoser from Downer Peninsula on 04/18/07 at 09:00 AM ET

Are you nuts?  Break up the top line in the league?  Not a chance.  When Zetterberg gets his full rhythm going again and those three start clicking, they’ll win games for us.

Posted by Paul on 04/18/07 at 09:03 AM ET

Can I blame the Wings loss on Babs’ tie?  Please?

Well, I had these thoughts last night, I thought putting Bert in was a mistake.  While he was better in the 2nd, I thought he looked kind of like a deer in the headlights when they had some shots of him on the bench.  Z had a bad game (third goal anyone?) and I thought Hasek was shaky.  I’ve been saying to my playoff buddy that all the Flames needed to do was get some shots on net and they would expose Hasek.

Great energy by Draper and Cleary.

The Wings PP has to improve.

Posted by hockeychic from Denver, CO on 04/18/07 at 09:04 AM ET

Your right H-Chic, I thought, at the time, if the Wing scored on that 4 min PP early in the 1st, that the
(F)lame might be done.  The Wing looked a step behind most of the 1st period—and they knew the
(F)lame would come out gunning—- head-scratcher there.  Tied after the first, I was not overly concerned.  I’m still not.  If that was the (F)lame best effort, Wings in five.  The PP will roll around.  If Wings can stay out of the sin-bin they’ll win.  Five on Five the (F)lame just don’t score.

Posted by Jeff - - OklahomaWingNut from NeverNeverLand on 04/18/07 at 09:14 AM ET

OHH and I just cannot believe Redmond would suggest to put Bert on the H-Z line(although I did not get FSN, I got the CBC feed)  (Play-by-play man was such a homer, Color guy was fair at least).  Paul is right—why in the world break up, what at one time, was the best line in the league??  Thats just insanity.

What are the odds Hudler replaces Sammy for game 4?
Better than Hudler replacing Lang for sure.  Sammy looks lost out there.  Calder sure was fighting for the loose pucks and mucking up in the corner last night.

And I know you all are going to laugh but Except for one play, I thought Lilly was pretty solid.  I think all three (F)lame goals were a direct result of Wing miscues.  The puck sure was bouncing alot too.

Posted by Jeff - - OklahomaWingNut from NeverNeverLand on 04/18/07 at 09:21 AM ET

Jeff - I saw Lilja make a good play at one point and I said out loud, “Oh wow, that was Lilja!”

The idea of breaking up the top line is ridiculous.  Soon (hopefully next game) Z is going to hit his stride again.

Posted by hockeychic from Denver, CO on 04/18/07 at 10:27 AM ET

I see your point, perhaps you’ll all forgive my foolishness.

Aw heck, who am I kidding?  I’m not conviced that ‘the top line in the league’ was even the best line for the wings last night.  Besides, it’s not like Homer’s wheels and superior skill level are the reason they are such a good line - it’s the wheels and skill of Zberg/Delma that make that line what it is.  Homer is simply the immoveable object they use to screen the goaltenders and muck pucks out of the corners and off the boards.  You think Whomewuzzi couldn’t function in that role?  Or that playing with the Euro twins wouldn’t help get him up to speed?

I’m not saying it’s a (Coors) silver bullitt or any thing, but after seeing the way that line played last night and the way Bertsalittlewuzzi didn’t fit in on his line last night - what’s the harm in trying it for a few shifts?

Redmond brought it up early in game 1, when he felt that the Flames were taking liberties with Zberg (remember that sequence where he got roughed up coming in on the right wing, and then punched in the face near the end boards followed by futher harassment after the whistle on the left wing side of the ice after the whistle?) and Delma - he felt that there wouldn’t be nearly as much extra curricular activity if Bert was on the ice with them.

Posted by Hoser from Downer Peninsula on 04/18/07 at 10:31 AM ET

Lang needs to be put in his place….I’m thinking on a milk carton.  It’s been close to four months waiting for him to “get going”.  Babs need to use his foot and elevate hime to the press box.  He can provide in depth ananlysis and share hair care tips with Kerry F.  Keep the energy level high….bring back Huds!!

Posted by Rumbear on 04/18/07 at 10:40 AM ET

“I’m not conviced that ‘the top line in the league’ was even the best line for the wings last night.”

They weren’t.  You know Hank didn’t play the last month, right?  He’ll get it back, and so will the line.

“Besides, it’s not like Homer’s wheels and superior skill level are the reason they are such a good line - it’s the wheels and skill of Zberg/Delma that make that line what it is.  Homer is simply the immoveable object they use to screen the goaltenders and muck pucks out of the corners and off the boards.  You think Whomewuzzi couldn’t function in that role?”

Holy cow.  Absolutely incorrect.  That line is not what it is without Holmstrom.  Nobody in the league, Bertuzzi or otherwise, can do what Holmstrom does the way he does it.

“Or that playing with the Euro twins wouldn’t help get him up to speed?”

Putting him with the Euro twins will just confuse him.  He’s already out of synch and has no idea what the other players are going to do - you think putting him with one of the most unpredictable players in the league (Datsyuk( is going to HELP?

“what’s the harm in trying it for a few shifts?”

I absolutely hate it when coaches mix up lines when things are working.  It’s why the Wings lost last night.  We shouldn’t be having this conversation - Bertuzzi shouldn’t have played.

[/rant]

Posted by Paul on 04/18/07 at 10:41 AM ET

“I absolutely hate it when coaches mix up lines when things are working.”

You must have absolutely despised Scotty, eh?

Homer’s determination and pain tolerance are the things he brings that nobody else in the league does.  I’m simply not going to ascribe to the belief that he is the kingpin on that line - sorry.

For the record, I was not even attempting to insinuate that Zberg was anything approaching abysmal last night and I don’t blame Zberg for anything.  Yeah, he had some rough shifts, but he had some good ones too.  I’m certain he’ll continue to get better with each game.  I’m not worried about either he or Delma.

You don’t want to mix it up?  ok.  But don’t you think it’s important to get Bert (dude needs to be playing with someone named Ernie, but I digress - as usual) going at some point?  Preferrably before you absolutely have to have him?  IF they go back to the games 1&2 lineup and lose game 4 in a goalie duel at the Saddledome, you want to bring Bert back in a must-win game at JLA?  I don’t.  Then how long does he sit?

You don’t want to break up the ‘top line in the nhl’ - I’m not going to lose any sleep over it - it was just a suggestion.  I’m not married to it.  But I sure didn’t like the Franzen/Filppula/Wuzzi line - he pretty much ruined those two.  Whereas I think Zberg and Delma are strong enough that they can still play their game and make use of him as well.

Bottom line: I believe it’s important to get him going and that’s going to take time - so why wait until it’s too late?  Oh, and Babblecock sat the wrong guy.

Posted by Hoser from Downer Peninsula on 04/18/07 at 11:16 AM ET

“You must have absolutely despised Scotty, eh?”

No, he was a great coach.  I didn’t say I don’t like coaches who do this, I said I don’t like it when coaches do this.  I hated it when Scotty did it, although he didn’t muck up the lines when they were WINNING (not like Babs did last night, anyway).  I firmly believe that if Scotty were the coach of this team, Lang would have been riding the pine a long time ago.  Of course, Filpulla and Hudler wouldn’t be getting but about two shifts a game, either.

“Homer’s determination and pain tolerance are the things he brings that nobody else in the league does.  I’m simply not going to ascribe to the belief that he is the kingpin on that line - sorry.”

I didn’t say he’s the kingpin.  I said nobody else in the league can do what he does, and it’s an integral part of the line.

“You don’t want to mix it up?  ok.  But don’t you think it’s important to get Bert (dude needs to be playing with someone named Ernie, but I digress - as usual) going at some point? “

Nope.  I wish we had never picked him up.  If he had played straight through the end of the season it would be different.  But trying to get a guy going DURING the playoffs is a very bad idea.

” Oh, and Babblecock sat the wrong guy. “

That’s the bigger issue here, I think - and it appears most fans agree.

Posted by Paul on 04/18/07 at 11:45 AM ET

“Nope.  I wish we had never picked him up.  If he had played straight through the end of the season it would be different.” 

Maybe I’m too easily intoxicated by potential, but I simply can not stop thinking about what a force he could be.

“But trying to get a guy going DURING the playoffs is a very bad idea.”

I really don’t want to face that fact (due to aforementioned intoxication), but better judgment in clearer times (not mid-SCP) would find me agreeing whole-heartedly with that.  I don’t like that.  Not one bit.

I’m sure Babblecock will mend his errors for game 4 (and articulate them nicely no doubt).

Posted by Hoser from Downer Peninsula on 04/18/07 at 12:22 PM ET

“I’m sure Babblecock will mend his errors for game 4 “

I’m not so sure.

Posted by Paul on 04/18/07 at 12:39 PM ET

For what its worth, and my opinion matters as much as everyone elses except Babs, I think these are the truths:
1.  Paul is right.  Homer,D and, Z will prove to be the most productive line despite facing the opponents best D and best clamp down O lines.  Look at game one and two as well as how well they were going prior to Z getting dinged.  Only that guy managing/coaching in Jersey would even fathom tinkering with that line;

2.  Cleary, Malts, and Draper are the best two-way line the Wheel have right now.  Big energy, big hits, shut-down line, grind, cycle, and generally wreak havoc with the (F)lame altogther.  I have been most impressed with Cleary all series, and last night he just crucified Warrener.

3.  Mule, Fill, and used to be Hudler now Bert are getting too few minutes as well.  Mule and Fill have been terrfic.  Fill has two goals and is a good two way player in very limited time.  Mule, well he just rocks the (F)lame world.

4.  Lang, Calder and Sammy.  Not much happening there.  Calder has been apresence down low.  Lang sucked big in game one with his 6 t.o. Game two was better, but they seemed, except for Calder, invisible last night—again.  At one time Lang had it going on with Cleary but thats been months ago.

The issue is, as Paul puts it, why tinker with soemthing not broke.  Because, as is obvious, Babs is not about to hear the Wheel are being outmuscled this year.  They are going to play Bert for his size and style.  (Bert had at least one good shift where he bull-dozed the puck out of the zone and plowed over two (F)lame in the process).  Soooo—Poor Hudles gets shit canned instead of Lang.  If Babs is determined to play Lang—I think he should at least consider sitting Sammy who looks really lost.  Hudles has lots of energy and only a few less goals this season than Lang in a lot less time.

Posted by Jeff - - OklahomaWingNut from NeverNeverLand on 04/18/07 at 01:15 PM ET