Keep that hate coming, Pens fans

So far, so good.

The Wings are playing well, and the Penguins are playing well. From my standpoint, the series has been very even so far. Oh, except for the fact that the Red Wings have scored more goals.

Last night's 3-1 win to take a 2-0 series lead was almost identical to the opening game. I can't believe Justin Abdelkader has two goals already in the series (when he had 0 NHL goals, playoffs or otherwise, prior to Saturday), but I'm ecstatic that he's played so well. Darren Helm continues to dominate play when he's on the ice and everyone in a Pittsburgh uniform is taking to iron as if it were steel. Ozzie has been solid, but he's had some major contributions from his maroon friends, the posts.

If I were a Penguins fan, I can see myself being pretty pissed in this situation. They played well -- certainly much better than they did in games one and two in last year's Finals -- but they have had poor goaltending and some unlucky bounces that have let Detroit get out to a 2-0 lead. As a Wings fan, I know that those "unlucky bounces" have come at the hands of hard work and Pittsburgh turnovers, but I can see some hatred stemming out of that from the other side of the coin. However, I will completely disspell the notion that the Penguins are being shafted by the officials, since hardly anything has been called on either side. Pissed about the "no-call" on Hossa that led to Filppula's goal? Shut up. How about the lack of a suspension for Malkin after his instigator fighting penalty in the last minute of the game? I don't think it's a good rule, but it's in the NHL rulebook nonetheless (thanks to A2Y for the info). But, the rules don't apply to everyone. Nice work, Gary.

A player who is deemed to be the instigator of an altercation in the final five (5) minutes of regulation time or at any time in overtime, shall be assessed an instigator minor penalty, a major for fighting, a ten minute misconduct and an automatic one-game suspension. The length of suspension will double for each subsequent offense. In addition, the player's coach shall be fined $10,000 -- a fine that will double for each subsequent incident.

Yep, that's straight from the NHL, rule 56a. I think the Malkin-Zetterberg fight was an awesome way to end the game and neither player did anything wrong, but Malkin was penalized with an instigator minor penalty. Colin Campbell said the suspension was rescinded because Malkin wasn't trying to "send a message" or "seek retribution for a prior incident." Hmm. Alrighty. Well, I don't reeeally care if he is suspended or not, but Penguins fans don't have much ground to stand on when their star should be in the luxury box for game three.

Basically, the Wings are awesome. They can taste it. They can taste the sweetness of Cup #12. Pittsburgh is on their heels, and under some major pressure to win games three and four to stay in this series. Excellent. See ya Tuesday. Go Wings.

Final note: Awesome live twitter updates during the game last night, Jake. I enjoyed them very much. He does some fine work, that new UNH graduate. Find him here or here.

Encouraged.

En-cour-age. transitive verb. meaning to inspire with courage, spirit or hope. Straight from Merriam-Webster.

I've got a lot of thoughts after game one's 3-1 victory over Pittsburgh, and all of them are just what I said above: encouraging. The speed, the toughness, the physicality. The Wings and Pens both brought it tonight, but the Wings came out on top in relatively convincing fashion.

I may have picked the Wings in five, but that doesn't mean I think it'll be a walk for Detroit. I thought all of those five games (including tonight) would be tough as nails and come down to the last minute. Tonight's game wasn't exactly like that, but it wasn't close to being out of hand either. The Penguins are a great team, but like I thought, Detroit is just that much better. I expect more of the same in the next week.

A few notes specific to tonight's victory:

• The Pittsburgh defensemen played slower than Kenny G at a senior center. I watched Helm, Hossa and Franzen (heck, even Maltby!) fly by the standing statues that were dressed in Hal Gill and Rob Scuderi jerseys. I nodded and agreed with Buccigross as I read his note about Hossa and Franzen creating horrendous match-up problems for Pittsburgh, but I never considered how right he was. Those defensemen need to start eating their Wheaties or something, because if they keep skating like they did tonight, they are going to be in huuge trouble.
• This entire season, I've wondered to myself: does Kirk Maltby have anything left in the tank? Is there any reason whatsoever to keep him on the team, other than the obvious experience and leadership role he plays? Tonight, I got my answer. A definitive yes. He was awesome tonight. I haven't seen him skating around like a madman since the late '90s. His line with Leino and Abdelkader (and sometimes the rotating Helm) was unbelievable. They got more minutes than anyone expected, but they completely earned it. The "Staalshank Redemption" line had no answer for the Wings fourth unit. Very pleased with that.
• Abbadabbadooooooooo! I love Helm so much more, but I've been waiting to see this kid perform and he came through tonight. Big game. Great for him. I look forward to seeing some more Abdelkader on the ice in this series.
  
• The Penguins can complain all they want about Detroit's first two "fluky" goals (and I'm sure they will), but they were both created by hard work and Pittsburgh turnovers. So, suck it Pens fans, those were legit. Get your goalie to start playing in position.
• Hossa was left off the scoresheet, but it's worth noting that he was showing all-out effort a lot tonight. Diving to get pucks, playing strong defensively and churning those legs past Penguins left and right. Hossa is a beast, and he'll show these Penguins why they should regret losing him.

That's about all I got. The Wings looked good. And with the second game tomorrow, I think they can keep the momentum and turn it into a two-zip lead. At least, that's what I'm pulling for. See ya tomorrow. Go Wings.

Done deal. Bring on the rematch.

So, my new apartment in Gloucester, Mass. that I'm living in while I complete my summer internship has neither cable nor internet. Thus, this post is a bit delayed from what it would have been had I been able to post last night.


But, as you can see, all is well in Red Wing land. I watched from a nearby bar and received many awkward looks when the Red Wings scored and I jumped from my seat with a loud cheer of excitement. I didn't care; the Wings are back in the Finals! With an overtime goal by HELM no less! God, I just love that guy. He never disappoints.

The game itself was great. Somehow, Cristobal Huet actually looked like a real goalie in regulation (especially on that unbelievable pad/skate save on Franzen with 22 seconds left) and Osgood was phenomenal once again; I'm growing more and more confident in him with each passing game. The Wings could have won in regulation, but that damned Patrick Kane had to make something happen with that ridiculous backhand shot over Ozzie's shoulder for a goal to tie it. I was slightly worried at that point, but I was very happy to see the Wings pull it out. A game six in Chicago would not have been too ideal, even if it eventually meant more rest for the Wings.

And on that note, why did the NHL all of a sudden move up the Finals to start this Saturday? AND have game two the very next day on Sunday?! I don't understand that at all, especially since they originally said the Finals would start on June 5th. It makes me angry only because I know the Wings will need both Datsyuk and Lidstrom (and Draper too, hopefully) back and healthy to win another tough series against their best opponent to date. Don't get me wrong; I'm not scared of the Penguins, but I know they present a strong challenge if we don't have Captain Lidstrom to shut down Crosby and/or Malkin. I think it will definitely be a tougher series this year. The Pens won't be scared or jittery in games one and two like they were last year, that's for sure.

I need to actually write some real work, (which you can find at the Gloucester Daily Times), before the day starts to get hectic, but I'll use some more time where I should be working tomorrow to write a more in-depth Cup Finals preview and prediction. See you then. Go Wings!

H-E-L-M!

Helm! I need somebody,
Helm! Not just anybody,
Helm! You know I need someone...Heeeellllmmmm!

I just love that guy. So awesome to see Helmer score (finally!) after all his hard work and 150% effort. And to have the goal be the finishing touch on a game that Anaheim had no business being in was just icing on the cake. What an awesome way to end the game. Huge win. A 3-2 lead and a chance to close out the series and move on to the Conference Finals on Tuesday. I'm lovin' it.

I'm psyched, mostly because I was a little worried that the typical Wings-Ducks playoff crap would happen where Detroit outplays them but can't finish and ends up tied and losing in overtime. I don't like those.

But this wasn't one of those games.


Helm, Hudler and the Wings weren't going to let that happen. This team is just too good, too full of talent. They allowed the Ducks to hang around a bit in the second and third, but as whole, this game was all Detroit. They played exactly how they have to play to win this series.

The line changes were just as good as game four, and I hope they stay the same for game six. That Helm, Hudler and Cleary line is just too good to pass up. As is the unstoppable Franzen, Hossa and Filppula line and the always amazing line of Dats, Z and Homer. The addition of Justin Abdelkader at Kopecky's expense worked out nicely too; I like that ex-Spartan. Amazing how quick my loyalty switches with a simple fashion change. Red looks better on him anyway.

I'm sorry to hear about Kopecky, but I don't really think the team will miss him. Abbadabbadoo and Leino are both better players, both guys I'd rather see on the ice anyway. I think Leino will make an appearance sometime in these playoffs...probably in some sort of rotation with Abbadabba. Sounds awesome to me. Now we just need Raffy back and the pieces will be set. I say sit him for game six; we can finish the Duckies without him, but we'll need him for round three. Give him another few days of rest to get healthy.

Game six is Tuesday. I'm very glad the game doesn't start until 10pm because I'll be gone for most of the night at our annual staff dinner and I kinda want to watch the game. I'll be back with a possible preview and definite recap then.

Last couple weekend notes: the Killers are amazing in concert and casino poker sucks. I already knew the Killers were good from when I saw them last year, but they were just as good last night at the Mohegan Sun Casino Arena. Awesome songs, awesome time. Our time before the concert was not so awesome. The casino's version of Texas Hold 'Em was dumb and expensive; I lost $15 bucks by playing one hand (6-7 unsuited) because it costs five bucks to get cards and 10 more to see the flop. And that was the cheapest table they had! Ridiculous. There's too much smoke there too...not a big fan of holding my breath, having my eyes burn and throat dry up for an hour. I don't know how people stand it in there. Can cigarettes be globally eliminated? I think that'd be pretty good for everyone.

Last but not least...Happy Mother's Day! Love ya Mom.