Detroit Red Wings & the NHL

[Optimus Prime]

Final word....

For champions, if you're not hoisting the Cup at the end of the season, it's often viewed as a dissapointment, the Pens entire team has much to answer for and soon.

As for now, let's count Crosby's hardware haul.

1.) Captain of his second consecutive Gold Medal , brilliant!
2.) Another NHL Art Ross scoring championship, brilliant!
3.) Another Hart Trophy NHL MVP award, brilliant!

Enjoy the summer Sid, well done! Greatest player in the world, indeed.

[Ghengis Jon]

Despite being bounced from the playoffs one series late, the extra time this summer will allow "the greatest player" to end world hunger and poverty, cure cancer, and find the real killer of OJ's ex-wife. :^) I look forward to watching the biggest vanishing act of the playoffs provide his team with another early exit next season, hopefully at the hands of the Red Wings!


Fans of Original 6 teams have had lots to cheer about this season, eh?

[Optimus Prime]

Careful, wouldn't surprise me to see Pens' owners Lemieux & Burkle land Babcock to replace the soon to be fired Bylsma.

Disco Dan lost the dressing room this season, Malkin & Crosby tuned him out.

Habs upset Boston!!!!

[Hannibal]

Epic collapse. 3-1 series lead squandered.

Bylsma gone.
Fleury at 5M, gone.
They need a PROPER winger for Crosby!

Tyler Kennedy? Cooke? Kunitz? Dupuis?

I could score 50 on Sid's line!

Welcome to the world of the salary cap.

Gotta win your cup while your stars are on their rookie contracts basically. Or, you have to have a 100% success rate when it comes to long term, big contracts. If you've got one guy making a bunch of money who doesn't perform then you are screwed.

Blackhawks are the only team that made it to the finals after the salary cap squeeze hit. Ducks got hit by it, Red Wings got hit by it, Penguins have been hit by it. Not sure about the Bruins but they did lose Tyler Seguin.

[Hannibal]

Soccer on ice is back. Wheee!

[Optimus Prime]

I don't know Hanni, there are a few smart GMs that make it work under the CAP, LA, Boston, Chicago and a few others are ligitamte contenders perennially, including Pittsburgh. Playoff goaltending is a must, without it, good luck over 4 rounds.

Jonathan Toews, arguably the 2nd greatest player in the world, scored only 3 goals and 14 points over 23 games in the Stanley Cup playoffs last year, Chicago won the Cup anyway.

Depth doesn't hurt either.

[Optimus Prime]

Looks like Ovie found his calling over at the Worlds in Latvia....where's Datsyuk, is he too good to reinvade Poland?

Red Army Hillbilly tank training, sure beats his NHL floating.
[youtube]BbmRfWXBts4[/YouTube]

Putin thanks Ovie for his machine gun training for Mother Russia.
[youtube]Ocwg8wsRegI[/YouTube]

BTW
Russia has yet to lose in the IIHF world championships, an indication that the tournament is both (a) essentially meaningless and (b) not being played in Sochi.

[Optimus Prime]

GM Shero fired by Pens, Bylsma to be evaluated by new GM. Oh look who Lemiuex is targeting:

One more year for Disco … before Babs? We have to at least consider that Bylsma won’t be fired before next season, because that appears to be what Mario Lemieux is telling people. A new general manager might come in and kick him to the curb, or perhaps feel that Bylsma remains the best coach available for this team.

Key word: "Available."

If the Penguins are trying to go from “good” to “great,” there are few coaches that can get them there.

The talk is that they covet Mike Babcock. He has one more year left on his deal in Detroit. If Bylsma’s given one more season and the Penguins don’t win, Babcock will be available – if he doesn’t sign an extension and wants the gig, of course.

Whatever the case, we're sure it all comes down to what Pat Brisson, er, the Penguins think is best for their team.

[Ghengis Jon]

Babcock going to Pittsburgh is a wet dream hallucination. All the Penqueens have to offer is money.

The culture of winning, the facilities, the owner support, the quality of the team, the input into player acquisition/retention, the lack of owner micromanagement, the respect of both fans and media, the structure and pecking order of the organization/front office, and the proximity of being able to pop across the border in a couple of minutes make Detroit the last stop on the career train. The Pens might equal the Wings on some of those characteristics, but not exceed on any of them. The only thing they have to entice Babs is money. Its not like Mr I has been a scrooge.

Dream on Pittsburgh, Babs goes nowhere. Oh he might eventually, but on his own terms and because he WANTS to. He may decide to go back to Canada to go fishing and maybe coach in some kids league as his personal retirement plan, who knows. But all Pittsburgh has to offer is money and Babs has no need or reason to jump ship for the relative chump change difference. He's financially set as it is, so its really all about hockey and personal satisfaction. Babs doesn't strike me as a "money is the only thing that's important" kind of guy so I think he stays until retirement.

[Optimus Prime]

Appears to be setting up quite nicely Actually.

Of course, Babcock is under contract for one more year in Detroit, but that doesn't seem to be an obstacle to movement, in some people's minds. His lame-duck status and apparent indifference toward signing an extension give a level of credence to the assumption that the Wings might be willing to let him go and promote Grand Rapids Griffins coach Jeff Blashill to the big stage.

[WingsFan]

My last note after the Wings are eliminated. OP has Cindy, and sadly I have to pull out my Probert card.

This one is fairly new though and shows more than fighting. RIP Probie and Shawn Burr who is also in this video.

Highlights - Probie with the Hanson brothers of the movie Slapshot - Probert vs tough guy Kevin McClelland of the Edmontonton Oilers.

At 14.15 - I'll never forget Stevie Y's scream after getting cross checked into the boards by New York's Michel Petit. I watched this game when it happened, Probie - Not my Caption Pal! (Mickey Redmond lol!)



[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wesXipKv1C0"]Bob Probert # 24 Detroit Red Wings - YouTube[/ame]

[Optimus Prime]

Thx Packy, Yzerman and Probie were my favs, not the current United Nations crap!

[Tony G]

Are you cool with Clarke gooning it up and breaking an ankle to win the first Canada Cup

[Optimus Prime]

Appears Ovechkin's tank & machine gun training was of little use today against the Jerries as Ovie blows his knee out while battling Germany at IIHF "Worlds".

Now the Washington Capitals will never find a trading partner, oh well.



In other news....Canada's " D" team pimps Sweden again, 3-2 in OT.

[Ghengis Jon]

There's a great clip (someone help me out) of Putin (yeah, that joker) playing hockey in Soschi recently. His team won 21-4 with Putin leading all scorers, getting 6 goals. It was hilarious watching the opposing goalie fall down out of the paint as Putin approached to shoot.

Gosh, he's such a manly man!