Ugh

I just...

I just can't. I hurt. In my heart, in my soul, and by morning, in my head. After I finish off this bottle of Scotch.

Ville-nization

Yes, this post may make it seem like I have some sort of personal axe to grind with Ville Leino, that I dislike him as a human being and think that he tortures kittens and leers at small boys and lights nursing homes on fire in his spare time. So, to be fair, let me state that I don't think any of these things. What I think, is that it's time for him to "nut up, or shut up."

A lot of people seemed to think that Leino would be a big part of our success this season, that he would step in for the loss of a player like Hudler, or at least Samuelsson, and make the off-season defections nearly a wash in terms of production.

Yeah, hasn't happened.

PHOTO: REUTERS IMAGES

So why did people think this? Well, Leino played with us last season, and man, he was on fire. In 13 regular season games, he put up 9 points (5G, 4A) and was a +5 with only 6 penalty minutes. His shooting percentage was 29.4. Yes, you read that right. He followed this up with 7 playoff appearances that cleared no goals, but managed 2 assists, a +2 rating, and no time in the box. Pretty respectable for a new kid. So was that what we should be expecting from him now that he's permanently up with the big boys? I'd like to think so.

But...

I haven't seen it yet this season. Trust me, I was looking. Especially at the beginning. I wanted Ville to succeed. After all, the more success he had, the more success we could expect the Wings to have. What's not to love about that? But instead, I've seen the 25 year old Leino being out-skated, out-shot, and out-efforted (Yeah, I make up words. Suck it up.) by two 22-year-old kids who only the die-hard fans were talking about during the off season, one of whom wasn't even supposed to make the roster this year: Darren Helm and Justin Abdelkader.

Consider the evidence:
In the same number, or fewer, games than Leino, Helmer and Abby have each put up the same or better numbers in terms of production. They've been better defensively. And just from watching them play game-in and game-out, I've seen better and more consistent effort out of each of them. The only things Leino has to show for himself are the ability to stay out of the box and a slightly higher shooting percentage. Yet the younger kids have anchored the 3rd and 4th lines, while Leino has been mostly hopping back and forth between lines 1 and 2.

Helm has actually totaled more TOI than Leino, but that's likely a reflection of the fact that his line has consistently been the hardest working on the ice and Babcock had been willing to recognize that. But Abdelkader's equal or slightly better stats have come while he averaged just under 12 minutes per game to Leino's 15 (11:57.6 vs 15:01.8). So who is it we should be looking to this season? The kid who was supposed to slide right into a solid support role, or the kid who was supposed to spend the season in Grand Rapids?

Don't get me wrong. I'd love it if Leino went on a tear, pumped up his numbers, and proved me to be a total nimrod. That would be great, because the Wings would likely wrap up a few more wins in the process. But I'm looking at Leino's play this season and his stats back in GR, and I'm comparing those to Helm's and Abdelkader's play this season and their stats back in GR, and frankly, I think that painting Leino as the Hope of a New Generation might have been a tad premature. His run last year was phenomenal, but was that what we should expect to be his norm, or was it a fluke? At the moment, I'm leaning toward fluke.

Go ahead, Ville. Prove me wrong.

Please.

Hallelujah

I'm just beyond relieved that we won. And in regulation, too. Will wonders never cease? Okay, so I'm bitter, but that's okay, because I'm happy. I am a conundrum.

Here's what I saw:

• I am so glad Ville Leino was benched. Hell, if I were Babcock, I'd bench him AND call someone up from Grand rapids (Tatar, anyone?) just to scare the shit out of him. Or into him. Whichever works. Frankly, I think just getting him off the ice helped our game.
  
• Is it me, or did we spend a good chunk of the 1st period just looking...confused? I mean, we looked like we were trying, but just had no idea what the other guys on our team were doing.
• One of these days Mickey and Ken are going to give up the pretense and just hit the bong right there in the announcers booth.
• Ericsson, SERIOUSLY! Okay, I'm going to take a deep breath here. I don't think Ericsson lacks potential. I think he could become a decent player. Be he needs to stop being an idiot.
• Another night where I yelled over and over "That should have been IN!!!"
• Wow, our power play sucked at times tonight.
• About time, Pasha! Thank you!
• This seemed like a fairly lackadaisical game. Because I lack the motivation to come up with a better excuse, I'm going to go with Mickey and Ken and blame it on bad ice because of the earlier basketball game.
• Damn it, Pasha, SHOOT THE DAMNED PUCK!
• That empty netter was fun. Winning was more fun.
  

All in all, I have a hard time arguing with a win. I thought we were a little slow, but so were the Rangers, so I'll blame the ice. I think keeping Leino off the roster made us better, and what does that say? I think finally benching him might have helped Uncle Mike feel more comfortable shaking up the top 2 lines, and that seemed to help, too.

No matter how you call it, I'm just going to pocket the win and put away the booze before my liver explodes.

Less Painful than It Could Have Been?

Well, we didn't win, but at least we played. And we managed to get 1 point, so it could have been worse. And lately, often has. I burn with impotent rage at having to settle for that.

So here is my free-form recap. I vow that I will attempt to come up with a format as soon as the Wings win 3 in a row. (Ha. Suckers.)

• How pathetic is it that I'm excited to be able to write we made it a whole minute without giving one up? Especially with Ozzie in net. And I've always been an Ozzie supporter. *sigh*
• Bertuzzi is still annoying me. Was that his first touch that he gave the puck away on?
• Holmstrom showed some nice hustle early. I like that. I love that he's playing like five years ago again.
• If Helm could pocket 1/2 of the sots he makes, we'd be at the top of the league right now.
• Is Babcock proof of your mother's assertion that your face would freeze like that?
• God, I almost died when Helm got hit in the leg. My life flashed before my eyes. You can't take my Helmer!!! I'm convinced he's currently the only thing keeping up from getting whipped like a red-headed step-masochist.
• And then Eaves went down, and I began to savor the taste of gun metal.
• Can we stop falling down, now? Please?
• Apparently, it's cheap shots on the Wings night. Have the Devils been throwing punches as a form of defense, or is it just me?
• Lovely. Bullshit calls once again. If that was a hand-pass, I'm a six foot tall black man with a full beard and lobster claws for hands.
• Love that Draper goal. There's another player this season working like he's suddenly five years younger.
• You know, I think that even if I weren't a Wings fan (impossible, I know, but bear with me here) I'd still want to watch FS Detroit broadcasts of the games just to listen to Mickey Redmond. The man is out of his mind, but funny.
• I see Ericsson is back to tripping over his own feet. Or, rather, his own ineptitude. I think he proves the fact that being big is not necessarily all it takes to be a defenseman.
• Shoot, Pavel! Just SHOOT DAMN IT!!!
• Holy shit! A Power Play Goal! I thought we forgot how to score those!
• Mickey called Homer "Mr Demolition Man." I like that.
• I know you can get away with a lot on Holmstrom, but sitting on his back will thankfully still get you a penalty.
• And bless Patrick Eaves' little soul. I love that our kids are really making a place for themselves. Also, I am so far liking Kindl. He can stay. For now.
• Wow. "Let's go Devils" sounds just like "Let's go Assholes" when chanted at top volume.
• Damn it. I hate OT, but not nearly as much as I hate shoot outs.
• Why, OH WHY, would you put Leino, who can't bury the puck with a shovel so far this season, on the shoot out?
• And that's why I hate shoot outs. *sigh*

The wine* I drank during the game helped dull the pain, but I was braced for a lot worse. We at least looked like we cared for most of the game, and that does count for something. My new theory is that someone has placed a curse on Lidstrom. I mean, look at his play so far. This is not The Perfect Human we know and love. No, he doesn't suck, but he isn't playing like we know he can, either. I think the curse on him is holding him back and spilling over on the rest of the team. Once he breaks it (by scoring) the evil witch doctor will die and we'll climb out of the basement and sing the soundtrack to the new Disney flick. Or something. Christ, what do you want from me? I'm grasping at straws, here!

*Normally, I believe beer goes better with hockey, but I also find it much more filling, and I anticipated needing a LOT of alcohol.

Do Over

That's right. I'm calling it. I want a do over on this season. Tomorrow I will wake up, it will be a new day, the sun will shine again, and perhaps an ember of hope will rekindle in my heart.

Maybe.

But for tonight, I'm just going to crawl into my bed, pull the covers up over my head, cradle a bottle of Scotch to my chest, and decide that this season isn't happening. It's a nightmare. A painful figment of my imagination. I got home late from an unexpectedly arduous hike with my dog just in time to see that the score was 4-1. That's when I turned off the TV and reached for the Dalwhinnie. And found out Ericsson is now "day-to-day" with an injured left knee.

And that's when I called for a do over. I want to stop this season right here, erase the record, and start over. With a healthy roster, a consistent goalie, and a burning need for the cup. Until that happens, I'm going to go to sleep.*

Night, y'all.


*Technically, I'm only going to sleep til about 8 AM tomorrow, December 4, 2009. But with luck, that will mark the beginning of our new upswing. Please god.

Dear Lord, What's Next

Jakub Kindl has been recalled to "potentially" replace Rafalski, who's apparently battling a bad back. Maybe if Rafi hadn't made this move back in September...

PHOTO: via http://hockeytown.tumblr.com/page/2

If one more defenseman gets hurt this season, I think we'll deserve a rules amendment that allows us to place landmines under the ice in crucial spots of our defensive zone. Just to even the playing field.

Man, I need a drink...

Don't Mean A Thing If It Don't Wear the Wing(ed Wheel)

Damn it, now I'm getting songs stuck in my own head.

Okay, so rest assured that this will remain a Red Wings blog. I have no intention of dignifying Little Gary's League by spouting off about just any ol' NHL news that happens to come along. But once in a while, every once in a while, I'll have to take a short detour away from Motown to mention something about something other than the Wings.

Rest assured, this will almost always be prompted by an upwelling of bitterness and vitriol in what passes for my soul.

Today's rant--Alexander Ovechkin Received a Two Game Suspension.

I'm fine with the suspension, which I believe fits perfectly in the grand scheme of the NHL's official suspension policy. Ovechkin deserved it. When Kronwall got hit on the 21st, I think we all agreed that a suspension in a similar situation was necessary, since it's not at all cool to stick your knee out on another player.

What I'm not fine with is, a) that the reason Ovechkin got 2 games probably has more to do with the fact that he's Ovechkin than that the guy he hit managed to skate in the next game, and b)his own damned coach was quoted in print talking about how he "admires" Ovechkin.

Why do these things piss me off? Because players like Ovechkin (who I realize is talented, don't get me wrong) seem to be growing more and more common in the NHL. Players who are treated like rock stars so often that they begin to believe their own shit doesn't smell. Gary is determined to make the NHL into a league of superstars instead of a league of teams. He pimps players like Ovechkin and Rosby until their damned dicks must be chapped, while real, talented stars like Datsyuk and Zetterberg and Lidstrom have the class not to read their own press aloud before bed every night, thus preserving their modesty and getting about 1/100th of the accolades.

One of the reasons why my love for hockey took root so deeply and so fast was because the hockey I love is a team sport. It's not basketball with a bunch of rich assholes showing up on the society pages as often as the sports pages. It's not football with idiots going to prison for running dog fighting rings out of their backyards. It's hockey, and it's about hard work and skill and sweat and communication. And I, for one, don't want that to change.

Yes, I realize that sounds ridiculously idealistic. I mean, we have Patrick Kane getting arrested for punching cabbies and Sean Avery choking on his own damned kneecap when his stupidity works faster than his mouth, but those incidents seem to happen a lot less often in our sport than in the other major American sports. And the NHL at least has the courtesy to express disapproval most of the time.

And how often do you ever see a Red Wing involved in that kind of garbage?