It’s so easy to get ahead of yourself.  Can’t get ahead of yourself.

Posted by 19 from Denver on 05/14/08 at 03:17 PM ET

It’s so easy to get ahead of yourself.  Can’t get ahead of yourself.

Posted by 19 from Denver on 05/14 at 03:17 PM

wouldn’t that be plagiarism since there was no reference to the originator?

Posted by cementslinger from Midland MI on 05/14/08 at 03:21 PM ET

The Penguins don’t have that fluidity, especially in their own end. They prefer the Jericho approach to defence, which involves throwing up a huge wall and hoping it doesn’t get penetrated. (This is also known as the sober-prom-date defence.)

The Pittsburgh Sober Prom Dates.  I like it.

Posted by Matt from Chicago on 05/14/08 at 03:31 PM ET

He wasn’t only talking about Henrik Zetterberg and Pavel Datsyuk, who, with apologies to the Pittsburgh Penguins, are what Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin would like to grow up to be some day.

ouch.

Posted by PaulinMiamiBeach on 05/14/08 at 03:32 PM ET

I’m not superstitious, I just don’t happen to own any more cats.  All kidding aside (believe that if you want), and no disrespect to the bloggers; they may be correct in their assessment that PIT won’t win many more games.  I also agree that:

DET are like a cold, calculated hit man. Everything is done with the utmost of precision. No bullets are wasted. They get in, they get out. Literally.

In my opinion the Wings are the better team because, as Coach Babcock said (paraphrasing to the best of my ability):  the Wings best players are playing their best.

Let me illustrate:

Playoff +/- leaders, from TSN.ca:

POS Player TM GP G A PTS +/- ATOI
LW Henrik Zetterberg DET 13 9 9 18 13 20:54
C Pavel Datsyuk DET 13 8 9 17 11 20:24
D Nicklas Lidstrom DET 13 2 7 9 10 25:14
C R.J. Umberger PHI 15 10 4 14 10 17:01
C Johan Franzen DET 11 12 3 15 9 18:09
D Brian Rafalski DET 13 2 8 10 9 23:27
D Robert Scuderi PIT 12 0 3 3 7 18:22
D Niklas Kronwall DET 13 0 11 11 6 22:28
D Randy Jones PHI 14 0 1 1 6 21:06
LW Pascal Dupuis PIT 12 1 4 5 6 16:08
RW Marian Hossa PIT 12 8 7 15 6 20:00
D Ryan Whitney PIT 12 1 5 6 6 18:28
C Valtteri Filppula DET 13 3 3 6 5 15:52
RW Tomas Holmstrom DET 13 3 7 10 5 16:04
LW Sergei Kostitsyn MON 12 3 5 8 5 15:09
C Scott Gomez NYR 10 4 7 11 5 20:53
D Kimmo Timonen PHI 12 0 6 6 5 24:56
C Sidney Crosby PIT 12 4 15 19 5 20:04
C Evgeni Malkin PIT 12 8 10 18 5 20:40
LW Ryan Malone PIT 12 4 8 12 5 18:16
RW Petr Sykora PIT 12 5 3 8 5 15:40

Zetterberg has 18 pts and is +13
Datsyuk has 17 pts and is +11
Crosby has 19 pts and is +5
Malkin has 18 pts and is +5

DET’s best players have 35 pts and are +24
PIT’ best players have 37 pts and are +10

You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out the Selke finalists have a much better two-way game than the kids in PIT.

Posted by Jeff OKWingnut from Hockey Netherworld on 05/14/08 at 03:35 PM ET

DET’s best players have 35 pts and are +24
PIT’ best players have 37 pts and are +10

wow.  excellent stat.  Datsyuk and Zetterberg will be able to shave some points off of Crosby and Malkin with their defensive skills, and apparently Crosby and Malkin have no defensive skills…

Posted by PaulinMiamiBeach on 05/14/08 at 03:39 PM ET

I don’t see a series against the Pens going more than 5; 6 at the absolute max.

To be perfectly hones, I would call a sweep but I respect Fleury and their young guns’ ability to create some magic, ala LeBron against the Pistons last year.

Posted by Osrt on 05/14/08 at 03:41 PM ET

I am NOT superstitious.

I just think the evil spirits in the fabric of space-time can hear my thoughts. 

(Fortunately, they can’t read, so internet dialogue is safe.  They are telepathic, those universal evil sports gremlins, but also illiterate.)

Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 05/14/08 at 03:52 PM ET

I just don’t happen to own any more cats.

Older Than Chelios left a couple of kittys up in the baggage car after the Preds series.  You can have them.  Be careful though, I will not go near them without a nine iron in hand.  Nasty buggers.  Of course, they have “issues” with me after that whole pelt/throw pillow thing.  I’m prolly leaning on on of their cousins right now.

The Stars have tried skating with the Wings...didn’t work.  Last go round it was hit em hard, hit em alot...didn’t work.  The squirrels inside Turco’s head are pinging off his cranium like a golf ball in a garbage can.  All that’s left is team pride.... as SpongeBob says “Uh, good luck with that!”

Detroit center Kris Draper noted that Babcock has a “pedal-down mentality.”

The Train keeps a rollin....

Posted by Rumbear from Victory Station on 05/14/08 at 04:11 PM ET

Just visited PensBlog. Man, they are juvenile to the Nth and have the crude photoshoping to back it up; good stuff!

It’ll be fun to raid them; bring it!

Colbert on Penguins: Are you birds or swimmers? Pick a side, we’re at war!

Posted by Osrt on 05/14/08 at 04:43 PM ET

God I don’t know what to think.  I was a wreck during the first twenty minutes of game three against Dallas.  I’m okay with the rest of this series since it’s 3-0 and the Dallas guys sound broken during interviews, but Pittsburgh’s going to be tough.  It’s silly to think that any actual players read these posts (although who knows), but I think that we somehow influence the outcome (I know that’s silly too).  Therefore, I can’t get comfortable with any approach other than one-game-at-a-time, bear down, tight checking, defense first, etc.  I have confidence about the finals, but I think we need to keep our focus.  Think of the responsibility we have (wink)!

Posted by TDeters on 05/14/08 at 04:43 PM ET

TDet :  I expected the first 10 minutes of hell on the road against a team whose season was on the line, and it was, but the wings withstood the best that dallas had left.

we’ve come so used to dominating the other teams that when it’s close to even ice we start panicking.  that says a lot about how well this playoff has gone.

Posted by RWBill from jabbing a six inch sewing needle into my eye. on 05/14/08 at 05:11 PM ET

Talk about superstitions...I realized on the drive home today that the Wings have not lost a game since me and my family dropped my Grandfather off in his final resting space in the middle of the desert.  The night the mule won it in OT was the night we got up there.  So we have some good spirits out there on our side to battle the evil spirits off

Posted by eyesris from Chestertown, MD on 05/14/08 at 05:17 PM ET

“Superior never gives up her dead”

Posted by johnnygloveside on 05/14/08 at 05:31 PM ET

Chief, I just noticed the update...you really suck at Wii Bowling!  A tie? WUWT?

I’m just axeing....

Posted by Rumbear from Victory Station on 05/14/08 at 05:55 PM ET

Older Than Chelios left a couple of kittys up in the baggage car after the Preds series.  You can have them.

Not Spike and Biff!

Oh, what the hell, they really are nasty guys so, if it’ll help the cause you can off ‘em. But you’d better get both at the same time because, like Pav and Hank, concentrating too much on just one of them will only lead to disaster.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 05/14/08 at 06:05 PM ET

Older Than Chelios left a couple of kittys up in the baggage car after the Preds series.  You can have them.  Be careful though, I will not go near them without a nine iron in hand.  Nasty buggers.  Of course, they have “issues” with me after that whole pelt/throw pillow thing.  I’m prolly leaning on on of their cousins right now.

Oh, you tell me now?  Didn’t you see my note?!

I have been trying to get rid of these for weeks wondering who would just leave them behind.  Life in the baggage car has been rough.  The playoffs have put me in a state of mind where I have been unable to work.  This in turn forced me to trim expenses.

I’ll have to sort this out with OTC.

Posted by lilja4ever on 05/14/08 at 06:12 PM ET

I have been trying to get rid of these for weeks wondering who would just leave them behind.

Actually, Lils, both Spike and Biff would eat that guy for breakfast. My guys are a lot meaner than the “kitty” in the photo.

Like I said before, if you do corner ‘em, you’d better get ‘em both at the same time. Otherwise, unless you’re wearing a goalie mask, plan on seeing a plastic surgeon.

Posted by OlderThanChelios from Grand Rapids on 05/14/08 at 06:20 PM ET

....he’s the nice one!  9 iron, he respects the 9.

Posted by Rumbear from Victory Station on 05/14/08 at 06:24 PM ET

No question in my mind that the Wings are the better team, but the one big difference in a Wings/Pen series will be goaltending.  We’ve destroyed the Dive AND Bubba Sr., but look who was backing each of them up.  ThreeOrFour and Marty “I’ll Never Get Over Macho Grande” Turco.  It’s not going to be a cakewalk like the last 7 games.

Regardless, we have to remember that we haven’t won this series yet.

Posted by Gabriel from San Diego, CA on 05/14/08 at 06:41 PM ET

Oops.  Looks like you jinxed it.

Posted by Joe on 05/15/08 at 08:08 AM ET