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Abel to Yzerman

Red Wings’ New Year’s Resolution:  Kick Everyone’s Ass

by IwoCPO on 01/09/09 at 03:12 PM ET
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Updated 1545 with Steve Ott and Nik Kronwall exchanging friendship bracelets below.

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One.  Few bloggers have the courage to go that nuts with apostrophes in the post title.  I’m just sayin’.

Two. I’ve looked at the remainder of the schedule and decided the Wings probably won’t lose again.

It’s pretty clear though, isn’t it Brah?  Uncle Mike let ‘em coast, and I mean that…he let them coast…until the home and home.  And I’ll bet, because he’s a sneaky bastard, he’d looked at those two games all along, as far back as August or July or whenever the schedule came out.  I’m betting that he told Moustache he’d let this team use the word “hangover” in conversation right up until that first Chicago game, actually the third but you know what I mean.

He sounds downright, I don’t know, surprised by the Wings’ play of late.  But we know better.

“It appears to me the guys got real excited when we played Chicago, with the Winter Classic, and we’ve been able to carry some momentum energy-wise that we didn’t have earlier in the year,” coach Mike Babcock said. “The emotional engagement has been much greater.

“It’s a game of passion and if you don’t have it, you can still be talented but you can’t be as good as you can.”

It “appears” to you Mike?  Really?  Here’s how it “appears” to me.  Babcock laid the law down around 29 December.  Something to the effect of, “Have a fun six months?  That’s nice, because Adrian says it’s ok if we go ahead and mess with Creed again.  So I figured, you know, it might be time you guys pulled your heads out and started kicking a little ass.  A lot of it, actually.”

22-7 the last five games.  We’re talking goals.  Hold on.  Jesus.  I’m never using the NHL.com stats interface again.  I’m at the frigging game-by-game part, trying to look at the Wings’ last five games. I just want to see a list of shots against, but they have it broken down by home and visitor?  I’m seriously considering just quitting this post right here. 

Whew.  I took four hours off and feel a lot better.  Seriously.  While I was away?  Mo and Nate are setting up an A2Y Shindig for 20 February, the night Sasquatch and the Poultry come to town.  More details to follow.  Also, in DC.  Wings play the Caps on 31 Jan.  Game time is 1230.  We are in the process of hunting down a seedy joint that will open its doors that morning and start pouring drinks hand over foot.  That has great potential for ugliness.  Awesome.

If Scotty Bowman can be fired by this franchise, Michel Therrien sure as heck isn’t untouchable.

Good line, eh? That’s from Seth Rorabaugh of Empty Netters.  Pens are reeling.  Therrien’s gonna get canned and soon.  And Gary’s Baby Boy will undoubtedly come out of it unscathed.  Never has one player won so little and been annointed so soon.  Oh, yes.  I know.  Pens fans won’t agree with that statement.  Well, too bad.  Take a look at GBB’s postgame statements from the Finals last year, particularly those directed at Zetterberg, and tell me he’s ready to lead.  Good with the bad Sally.  Good with the bad.

So, yeah.  We’re gonna wait until after this next West Coaster to determine just how far the Wings have come.  Can we look back at these last five games and say it’s time to let the puppies out?  Is frolicking authorized?  Hookers and fire trucks?  Over the course of eight days the Wings play 5 times:  Dallas, Anaheim, LA, San Jose, Phoenix.

Ten points on the table.  Successful trip?  I’d say 7, but not if we lose to San Jose.  If the Wings come home with 8 and San Jose bends us over?  Fail. 

Or…not.  Or, the Wings lose five straight, we fetalize ourselves in the back of the Hasek with warm PBR (come back Dub) and stale cheddar and the world caves in.  But February showed us last year that the world can’t really cave in two months before the playoffs start, you know?  Unless Nick gets hurt.  Really hurt.  Or Datsyuk or Hank or Hossa or Franzen or Homer.  Injuries can stop this team, but I’m starting to think that over the course of a 7 gamer, not much else can.

Did we mention Hossa?  Hey.  I dug these quotes from him this morning.  I’ll tell you why in a minute.  Hold your horses.

“We played a great 60 minutes,” Marian Hossa, who had a goal, said. “We were strong in every aspect. I think we’re getting better defensively. That’s huge because we know we can score goals.

“Every line’s coming back so hard to help our defense. The defense is giving us pucks right away. We’re playing in their zone most of the game.

“There’s lots of two-way players. It’s almost impossible for the opposition to do something if you are committed like we are lately.”

“It shows how balanced this team is,” Hossa said. “Not many teams are like ours. We know we’ve got lots of guys who can score.”

So there Hoss.  You’re into it, eh?  Everything you expected?  Plenty of open ice, opportunities, great linemates, good food in the room, Uncle Mikey’s saying nice things about you, fans are digging you.  Team’s winning.  Better yet, you know as well as any one of them that if the effort is there this team is a favorite over anybody.  Oh, and Hoss?  Stick around and you’ll be a favorite again next year, whether the Cup stays where it belongs or not.  So, I guess what I’m saying is that, well, it’s January.  The month negotiations were supposed to be able to begin.

And there’s the thing.  Do we know if they have?  The negotiations? Have they started?  Because if so, that’s a good thing.  If they have, that means Hossa is willing to discuss staying…Cup or not.  What we don’t want to hear is that there will be no contract talks until after the playoffs because that means that Hossa is truly earmarked for one year and one year only.  And that would make me sad.  It might be reality, but puppies die sometimes, you know?

Khan(!) reports that we have a starter for tomorrow night against Buffalo.  Conklin.  We should have known.  Not. Going. To. Second. Guess. My. Uncle.

Not gonna do it.  But.  But…ummm, we don’t want a “rotation.”  Teddy Kulfan says Conklin’s start on Saturday and Ozzie’s on Monday sets up a “rotation”. But Kulfan half-asses it.  He likes the word “rotation.” I don’t.  I hate it.

Coach Mike Babcock said this will set up his goalie rotation for next week, with Chris Osgood likely starting Monday in Dallas. The Wings open a five-game road trip in Dallas that takes them into the All-Star break.

Ok. What is it then?  Every other game?  Alternating?  For how long?  Christ.  Look.  It’s almost as if we’re scared to give the job back to Osgood, scared that he’s going to blow it again and we’re all going to have to face the fact that we don’t really have a starting goalie at all.  Oh, I know.  That’s a lot of hockey in a short period of time in a bad place where the fake tans and the white wine don’t mix well with things we enjoy.  Except for Rummy and Gabe.  We dig you guys and who else is on the West Coast? I don’t even remember.  I’m all jittery still from the nhl.com.dumbass episode.

Man.  Scattered today, eh?  Alright.  Bottom line.  Play like they have for the last five games and this team is practically unbeatable.  42 games left and I’m saying the Wings win 32 of them.  An even 60 wins. 

K. I’m done.  Ran a few miles at lunch today, just to keep you up to speed on the marathon training.  Then came back and had three turkey sandwiches with extra cheese.  Gonna down about six Yuenglings tonite and will probably start early tomorrow.  I’m 40.  I like beer. I like cheese. And I’m gonna run a marathon.  Thanks to the Viking Doc with the advice regarding the side effects.  Just one,  doc. Just one marathon, then I’m done.

Hey.  One more thing.  We all enjoyed throwing Steve Ott under the bus last night for his cross check on Kronwall and the way he conducted himself pretty much all night.  But if you’re wondering if Junior earned a bit of punishment?  Dave Guralnick proves he was no choir boy last night either.  And we dig that.

Enjoy your Friday bitches.

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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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