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Twin Killing? Probably Not
by IwoCPO on 11/18/08 at 08:17 AM ET
Comments (21)
Dammit. I held my breath as I looked at the schedule this morning, hoping Edmonton wouldn’t be playing again for a few more days. I guess, in the excitement of all those Rahmani commercials last night, I forgot about the consistent “Hitchcock scouting the Oil” references from Ken and Mick.
My point? They’re anxious in Alberta, and it would appear Craig MacTavish may be on the outs.
Why does that matter to you and me? Because how strange would it have been that the Wings were the final nail in two coach’s coffins...in less than a week? Well, doesn’t look we’ll have that claim unless the Oil management moves fast in the middle of a road trip. Damn. Would have been fun.
And worthy of plenty of high-level discussion here where we stay well above the gutter.
Meanwhile, back in Edmonton? They’re not thrilled. Not one bit. Jim Matheson, beat writer/columnist for the Edmonton Journal, obviously has no personal stake in the matter.
Obviously, the Oilers didn’t get the memo, didn’t read the league stats, or what MacTavish said went in one ear and out the other. Before the game was 5 1/2 minutes old, they were down two men with Ethan Moreau off for a hook on Zetterberg and Souray for a slash on Tomas Holmstrom’s leg in front of Roloson.
“You take one penalty and you’re already down a third of a goal to that team,” said MacTavish, who obviously was a math major in college.
Obviously, I have great respect for the “math major” comment. Well done, sir.
Head to the comment section of that story and you’ll find far less sarcasm and a lot more burning torches.
Enough about them. No sympathy. 2006 still haunts me and leaves me with bad thoughts on otherwise cheerful days.
On to the Wings? Alrighty. How’s this? Last three games, and our favorite stat: shot totals. 18, 27, 21. I’m no math major (sorry Jim), but that’s a bit lower than we’ve gratingly become accustomed to. An average of a very pleasing 22 shots/game. Ahhhh. So easy to type. Two 2’s, back to back. Tap...tap. Try it with me. 22. Fun, huh? One more time. 22.
The Mike Babcock Consolidated Quote of the Day (MBCQOTD)
“How many shots against tonite Ansar? Check your stat sheet. Check it...Jesus Ansar. You don’t have it? Teddy? Teddy? Gotta get you seeing again. How’s the eye? Scratched it? No PK for you. Seriously. Paulie, take Kulfan off the PK until his eye clears up. Mule scored again tonite Paulie. Did you see that? He scored again. He keeps shooting and scoring and then he dances. Amazing stuff. Sure would like to keep him. I’ll hide him in my basement if I have to. Just tuck him away with my Stretch Armstrong and all my Evil Knievel ramps. Just keep him down there until the bad man forgets we ever had him. Down in the basement...Happy, get me a sandwich.”
Thanks Mike. Good points all around.
They did look good though didn’t they? They do look good. It seems that Teddy Kulfan, former Deep Digger Captain and now part-time shoveler, may have been on track the other day when he said the Wings have “righted themselves.” Too early to say? Oh yes. But there are signs that the Hasek may be staying closed for at least a few more weeks.
“We’re coming together here as a group,” Babcock said. “We weren’t pretty early on but we’re limiting shots and that’s a positive.”
A few positives from last night. Speed and lots of it. Aggression from all four lines. Great back checking. All the things we’ve taken for granted and have been there for the most part all season. But last night we saw it, as Uncle Mike will tell us the next twenty hours or so, for sixty full minutes.
Better, we saw a total team defensive effort. But, the Wings aren’t out of the woods yet. And neither are you. None of you have failed to notice the fact that there have been consistent lapses and breakdowns, up to last night. And one game doesn’t erase the bad thoughts. Hell, Anaheim had an entire year of it last season and expected to turn things around in the playoffs. Wrong.
The Wings can do this again Thursday and even Saturday. But Edmonton and Calgary aren’t San Jose. And, yeah, that’s the team on our scope this year...in case you haven’t figured that out yet. The Wings need a measuring stick and little Toddy’s boys will be it. Limit them to 22 shots? Now we’re talking.
In the meantime, keep on keepin’ on. Pad that lead in the Central* (automatic asterisk for “Wings clinch division") and keep working on what went well last night.
Oh, hey. Back to Happy Jim Matheson for a minute. Is this the stupidest lead in newspaper history?
Ty Conklin now has three kids after he and wife Erika welcomed a bouncing baby boy to the family roster Saturday but, so far, Ty hasn’t named any of them Win.
I’m no Ed Murrow...but that’s just idiotic.
And to all the ships at sea...keep it dry. Or don’t.
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Comments
Hey Chief, great posts the past few days, good to see you back posting on the regular. Was the absence the standard one week mourning period for the spending budget in the armed forces when a Democrat takes power? Don’t worry, they won’t put you guys out of work, they’re already talking about Afghanistan.
Couldn’t be prouder of the A2Y 19 either for some classic immaturity the past couple of games, which I have been on tape-delay blog. Our defence really stepped up vs. Edmonton and that talk Uncle Mike said about simplifying their game is true. The average length of our pass was half as long and twice as accurate. No more rink wide Hail Mary passes.
Oh and I suspect Uncle Mike benched Pavel for a couple of shifts. Remember when Hoss and Zatta were paired together? No accident. But why, you ask, would Babcock bench Datsyuk? Because our Russian got a little pass-happy and wouldn’t shoot when he should have.
Once returning to the ice, Pavel made up for lost time by shooting every chance. Including a rare slap-shot that just missed the left post. Message sent and received.
Although he had the shutout, I feel Conk is over commiting on his side-to-side play. He stops them when he has to, but may find himself pourous against good East-West passing teams like the Sharks and the Pwns.
Great game overall. Secondary scoring at ES and our D plays 60 minutes… Good Times.
Posted by VooX from Behind the Bar in the Hasek Club Car on 11/18/08 at 09:41 AM ET
Great post, Chief.
Too bad about Pisani breaking his ankle. It looked nasty on TV. Lidstrom stayed right with him after he was hurt.. Pisani also missed about half of last season with ulcerative colitis.
Don’t lock up the Hasek car just just yet ... That was a demoralized team the Wings played last night. Even the Whalers might have dominated that game.
Man, are those Edmonton fans upset! ... The Wings still might have a shot at “winging” another coach if they pound them Thursday night.
Guess what? We have ourselves a goalie controversy!
Thanks goodness! This is an annual tradition, and I was needlessly worried that we would not have one this year.
Posted by w2j2 on 11/18/08 at 10:01 AM ET
Oh and I suspect Uncle Mike benched Pavel for a couple of shifts. Remember when Hoss and Zatta were paired together? No accident. But why, you ask, would Babcock bench Datsyuk? Because our Russian got a little pass-happy and wouldn’t shoot when he should have.
Good observation, didn’t catch that, although I did notice Hank and Hoss together for a bit.
Great posts Chief, and I can dig your focus on the present but how about a post on the upcoming signing troubles?
Too early to think more...need coffee…
Posted by Osrt on 11/18/08 at 10:20 AM ET
From MacLeod:
Darren McCarty can still fight. ... He clearly beat Zack Stortini, Monday night, making it two fights in a row that he’s won. Aaron Downey is a better fighter, but McCarty is a better hockey player, more skilled, more positionally sound. Again, I never would have thought it last spring. McCarty has turned me into a fan.
Warms my heart to read that.
Posted by Gabriel from San Diego, CA on 11/18/08 at 10:20 AM ET
I’m very glad the Wings won last night....but I’m not putting too much stock in this game. Thanks to a really bad allergy attack, I had to cancel my class and was able to watch the whole game.
I really thought the Oilers quit last night. I think Ken and Mickey got bored about half way through the game.
I did like the energy and I did see some shot blocking and a little more aggression on the PK. Pavel has got to stop turning pucks over like that.
It is nice that Conklin got a shutout, I just don’t feel he was really tested.
I was wondering about MacTavish yesterday too. Interesting comments he made about Penner.
All in all, I saw much more of a team effort last night and that’s a good thing.
Just wish they wouldn’t all bunch up around the puck so much....
Posted by hockeychic from Denver, CO on 11/18/08 at 10:21 AM ET
how about a post on the upcoming signing troubles?
Been thinking about that Osrt. I’ve been trying to wrap my head around our salary structure for two years and I haven’t got there yet. Soon.
Posted by IwoCPO from Washington, DC on 11/18/08 at 10:24 AM ET
Did you guys see this shot?
Robin Buckson / The Detroit News
Homer: “Schnell Bitch, ScheLL!!”
Oil: “Oh Lawd!! It hurts so good!”
Posted by Osrt on 11/18/08 at 10:42 AM ET
The only way that picture could be better is if Homer had his Conk out and was peeing on him…
Posted by rwingscup19 from Dallas on 11/18/08 at 10:48 AM ET
The only way that picture could be better is if Homer had his Conk out and was peeing on him…
To each their own!
Posted by shanetx on 11/18/08 at 11:18 AM ET
Now that’s the way we like to see the D. There were one or two moments when things weren’t lined up quite right, but it was an acceptable number. Granted, Edmonton didn’t play a very threatening game, but the boys looked like they remember how to play the system again.
-Hoss and Franz keep changing my mind about which is a higher priority resign. They’re both monsters. I
-’m also in favor of giving Conk one more thrust in net.. Overplaying shots or not, make Ozy want it just a bit more.
-As well as Flip played with Z, I really like the Grifs line right now. Even Kopy has been playing aggressive and with jump.
-Lebda had an OK game too. But he leaves himself on the ice to long, and starts making mistakes quick, especially on the outlet.
Hell, even Murphy was mostly coherent last nite. A win all around.
If MacT gets axed after Thurs game, Wings might wanna start taking the ice wearing an executioner’s hood.
Posted by Nate A from Dark side of the moon on 11/18/08 at 12:35 PM ET
The only way that picture could be better is if Homer had his Conk out and was peeing on him… Posted by rwingscup19 from Dallas on 11/18/08 at 10:48 AM ET
And worthy of plenty of high-level discussion here where we stay well above the gutter. by IwoCPO on 11/18/08 at 08:17 AM ET
Chief, are we going in a new direction?
Anytime I feel like I’ve crossed the line or my 16 year old daughter asks me why I’m posting pictures of 15 year old iCarly, I just log in and read other posts from The 19 and I don’t feel Creepy anymore.
Posted by RWBill from jabbing a six inch sewing needle into my eye. on 11/18/08 at 12:50 PM ET
Hasn’t this conk thing run its course? I mean it will be hard to keep it up forever, at least that’s what she said..
Posted by lilja4ever on 11/18/08 at 01:30 PM ET
A very impressive game, like the Wings of last year..
or
Did the Oil go out of their way to look like they were
attending a keep away clinic?
There were still defensive mistakes, but the Conk covered
them so well...they were easily overlooked.
Taken 3 yrs, but I finally decided Lebda is a liability and ‘gots to go’.
An average of a very pleasing 22 shots/game.
You casually mentioned it so lets just be a little more specific:
Against 3 teams that are currently non-contenders.
3 teams with a combined goal differential of (-35)
3 teams with a combined record in the last 10 games of 11-15-4,
and disregarding little gary’s numbers game that becomes 11-19.
Posted by HockeyTownTodd from upset when blogs don’t live up to my expectations on 11/18/08 at 01:35 PM ET
The MBCQOTD is back. Great.
And Gramps agrees with me about Lebda. Even better.
What’s that at the window? A firetruck? Full of puppies and hookers?
Posted by AndrewFromAnnArbor from Fortress Europe on 11/18/08 at 01:54 PM ET
Wings certainly did look good (except for the two straight 2-on-1s they gave up on the power play… what the hell happened there?). Oilers certainly made it easy on them, though.
The Wings still have a chance to be the final nail in MacTavish’s coffin. In fact, after Thursday’s game, the Oilers will have five days off. If I were going to make a coaching change… Just sayin’.
Speaking of Thursday, what happens now if Osgood lets in 3+ goals again?
VooX--Datsyuk was never benched. I mean, it just never happened. Other than changes on the fly, where Datsyuk came off a few seconds before Hossa, the only time Hossa and Zetterberg played together was right after Zetterberg’s penalty, because Hossa was killing it and Zetterberg came out of the box. Check the shift chart.
Nate A--I’m not sure if you’re saying this, but Filppula didn’t play with Zetterberg. Samuelsson was the third guy on the second line with Franzen.
Posted by Ryan from Toronto on 11/18/08 at 02:03 PM ET
I’m not sure if you’re saying this, but Filppula didn’t play with Zetterberg. Samuelsson was the third guy on the second line with Franzen.
No, he’s saying he liked seeing Fil with Kopecky and Hudler; hence, the Grifs line.
Hasn’t this conk thing run its course? I mean it will be hard to keep it up forever, at least that’s what she said..
When I began reading that sentence, I thought I was going to have to pee on you. Then, you recovered. Good to go for another round.
Posted by Osrt on 11/18/08 at 02:13 PM ET
Ty Conklin now has three kids after he and wife Erika welcomed a bouncing baby boy to the family roster Saturday but, so far, Ty hasn’t named any of them Win.I’m no Ed Murrow...but that’s just idiotic.
Yeah, “Big” would be much better.
Posted by monkey from Waiting for the lambs to stop screaming on 11/18/08 at 06:27 PM ET
Against 3 teams that are currently non-contenders.
3 teams with a combined goal differential of (-35)
3 teams with a combined record in the last 10 games of 11-15-4,
and disregarding little gary’s numbers game that becomes 11-19.Posted by HockeyTownTodd on 11/18/08 at 01:35 PM ET
Now HTT is making a run at “Deepest Thinker” of The 19 along with JJ of KC.
Nevertheless, beginning with the Vancouver game I thought they started playing better D, although there were still some odd mans and sloppiness. I think their commitment to team D is coming around.
Posted by RWBill from jabbing a six inch sewing needle into my eye. on 11/18/08 at 07:20 PM ET
NO MORE COACHING FOR MELROSE: Barry Melrose is done with coaching. The former Tampa Bay Lightning bench boss is likely to return to the broadcast booth after he was fired last week. “It was really perfect. My last game was against the Detroit Red Wings, the organization I started with,” Melrose said. “I think God was trying to tell me something.” Melrose told the paper the biggest dispute he had with Lightning management centered around the lack of playing time he gave to Steve Stamkos, the top pick in the 2008 draft. “It was a constant battle between me and the owners,” Melrose said. “They wanted Stamkos to play more. They wanted (Radim) Vrbata to play more. They wanted (Gary) Roberts to play more. Every day was a constant battle.”
Posted by w2j2 on 11/19/08 at 08:42 AM ET
so Melrose decided not to listen to his bosses, and gets fired. the whole world is upside down! wow, what a dope.
Posted by PaulinMiamiBeach on 11/19/08 at 05:55 PM ET
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Couple of hunting references in there.;. good on ya.
‘Cept the Sharks are in the scope not on it?
Agreeed, much better concerted effort last night but not the cure all of the woes and implosions to date. Back to work boys.
Posted by MOWingsfan19 on 11/18/08 at 08:52 AM ET