A Win's A Win

This one wasn't pretty, but you know what? I'll take it, especially after the dismal game in Dallas on Thursday. I ended up having to turn that one off just a few minutes into the 2nd. It had been a bad day around here, and we just didn't have the emotional bandwidth to cope. Tonight, I stuck it out and we got the win. So good for us. But I'd like to mention a few things:

• After the loss in Dallas, Babcock said, "The big thing for me, in all four games we're not dangerous enough offensively...I'm not talking about hitting people, I'm talking about hanging onto pucks and grinding and working with the puck in the o-zone." He was totally right, but we still didn't bring the danger tonight. We're trying to get too fancy, passing when we should be shooting, trying to set up the perfect shot when we ought to just take it to the net and bang it in. Remember, guys, a goal doesn't have to be pretty to count. In fact, sometimes the dirty ones count more.
• We have GOT to address the turnover situation. It's just unacceptable. Part of it comes from the fancy-schmancy plays we've trying to make, but some of it is laziness and/or lack of focus, and we need to change that. Stat.
• What the FUCK has happened to our Power Play? Seriously, where did it go? I know we used to have one, but I sure haven't seen it this season. It's been bad for all 5 games, but against Phoenix, we're talking abyssmal. 1-in-8? ONE-in EIGHT???!!! That's insane. That's pathetic. That's completely unacceptable.
• I don't know if Hank is having a crisis of confidence or if he'd wasting too much energy knocking his newly-wed boots with Emma, but he does not look like himself. I'm used to Pasha being a slow starter, but Pasha looks better than Z at the moment. So Hank needs to step it up.
• Kindl looks like a rookie sometimes, but even then I'm still thinking he looks better than Ericsson. I'm not in a hurry to see Big Rig step out of the press box.

Those are the night's observations. Now I'm going to celebrate with a nice big bottle glass of wine. Night, all!

Homer's in His Office, All's Right with the World

Because if there had been Red Wings in Browning's time, I swear he'd have been a fan.

Ah, October! That most glorious on months. The month where the weather cools, the leaves turn, and men start leaving their teeth on sheets of polished ice (fortunately for Kopitar the tooth was fake; fortunately for the fans, the blood was real). And all I have to say is...

IT'S ABOUT DAMNED TIME!!!

The Wings played their first two games, winning 4-0 over Anaheim and 3-2 over Chicago, leaving me with a warm, fuzzy feeling of contentment. Though I got to see both games, I unfortunately have yet to be reunited with Ken and Mickey, since I had to put up with the Anaheim feed on Friday and the NHLN coverage on Saturday. Still a win's a win, and I'll take both of these and summarize my thoughts here:

• 1 game = 1 shutout for James Tiberius. How awesome is that? Keep it up, pal, and the media will be eating the word "slump" along with a great big side of "too old."
• Pasha is the man. No only can he deke and score and humiliate opponents on the ice, but he can kick their asses when it's called for. Good going, Pasha. Now don't ever do that again.
• Franzen made it through the Chicago game, and in a week or so, I expect my nightmares to fade as the relief sinks in.
• Modano scored his first goal as a Wing and looked like a solid presence on the 3rd line. I like Mike. So far.
• On Saturday, Bambi was the man. With his big doe eyes fixed on the net and his luxurious locks flowing in the wind (well, their would be if he hadn't been wearing a helmet), Filppula sank 2 around Turco. I love it. This is his year. I can feel it.
• Ozzie looked good. He gave me a moment or two of nail-biting anxiety, but over all, he got the job done. 1 of the 2 goals he let in was entirely not his fault but rests on the shoulders of Dan Cleary and the defense for hanging him out to dry while the puck was banged out of the corner. The other goal, maybe he should have had, but he came up with the save he needed to when we needed them. So, go Oz!
• I like Jakob Kindl 100 times more than Ericsson. He might not be as pretty (by like a factor of 100) but he was solid and steady out there in a way Big Rig hasn't been in a year. He gets my vote for the 6th D-spot.

So next game is tomorrow v. Colorado. Since I'm both a traditionalist and a sentimental fool, I'm looking forward to a couple of hours of  vitriol and hate in my living room.

Ah, hockey! How I've missed you...

Let's Go Red Wings!