Detroit Red Wings

Video leaking out of the Red Wings ghastly new playoff pre-game ritual: Sacrificing a Goose. That's our lovable Swiss Sniper gone straight K-31 (Karabiner...7.5x55, a real beauty) on a fellow rookie and Game 3 hero, Gustav Nyquist. If this turns out to be the winning formula, Nyquist may retire at the end of the year. Huge thanks to @WorldofIsaac on twitter for the .GIF. That guy is famous now. LGRW

Someone at NHL.com read what is turning out to be my favorite article ever and has taken our suggestion of mocking Dan McNeil to a new level - take a look. Just to be sure, here's how the story begins: The hammer and the nail don’t have a rivalry anymore. Says who? After 87 years and 800-plus games, a columnist seemingly based the Game 1 outcome – which happened to be the Blackhawks’ eighth straight win over the Red Wings in the all-time series – to declare the Wings-Hawks rivalry dead. Well, the nail is seething and it should have the hammer’s attention by now. The nail was never on life-support and after a convincing 3-1 victory Monday night the nail made it abundantly clear that this Western Conference semifinal is going to be a long, contemptuous series. Period. I love it. By the way, coward Dan McNeil hasn't responded once since Detroit's victory Saturday - not making a peep on Twitter once. Really owning that aren't ya Dan? LGRW.

I found this gem on Brunners Twitter feed and I was wondering if you guys have any other funny ones. I've run into a couple from the Ducks series but I bet there are some hidden gems out there. If this is what Brunner and Nyquist do before big games then it must be helping (see Goose's move on Crawford) Thanks for all your help and hopefully future laughs as we continue the playoff run. http://i.imgur.com/ZOJV9dk.gif I found this gem on Brunners Twitter feed and I was wondering if you guys have any other funny ones. I've run into a couple from the Ducks series but I bet there are some hidden gems out there. If this is what Brunner and Nyquist do before big games then it must be helping (see Goose's move on Crawford) Thanks for all your help and hopefully future laughs as we continue the playoff run. http://i.imgur.com/ZOJV9dk.gif

Detroit weathered a storm early in the second period. Gustav Nyquist and Drew Miller then scored 31 seconds apart to give the Red Wings a lead they did not relinquish.

Red Wings News Datsyuk, Miller, Nyquist score to help Red Wings beat Blackhawks 3-1 to take 2-1 series lead - The Hockey NewsJust soak in the glory boys. Soak it in. Discuss: Detroit takes 2-1 series lead vs. Chicago | ProHockeyTalkGreat game. Now on to game 4. Wings beat Blackhawks to take 2-1 series lead - Sportsnet.caTaking back what is rightfully ours. Rapid Reaction: Red Wings 3, Blackhawks 1 - Chicago Blackhawks Blog - ESPN ChicagoReferees. No goal. Wings are dirty. Detroit sucks. Blah blah blah blah blah... Red Wings ride Motor City mayhem to victory over Blackhawks - The Globe and Mail This is Hockeytown, and this is what we do! Swede-est Day: Ericsson, Kronwall play together - The Macomb Daily I keep telling you, the Swedes are the best. Detroit Red Wings' Pavel Datsyuk a longshot to win Selke Trophy for fifth time, says online gaming site | MLive.com I have a hunch that he wins it this year. Just a hunch. Big E energizes the Wings' defense - Detroit Red Wings He's been solid every game. Move to wing has been good for Wings' Abdelkader | Hockey | Sports | Toronto Sun No player has changed more this season than Justin Abdelkader. Maybe Kindl, but you get the point. Did You See That? Gustav Nyquist's patience pays off | Hockey | CBC Sports Did you see that? The guy in the purpleish shirt is going bonkers. NHL News NHL 14 cover vote: Datsyuk, Brodeur, Tavares and Bobrovsky are final four | Puck Daddy - Yahoo! SportsIf Datsyuk beats Brodeur he will be on the cover. I doubt Tavares and Bob have enough fan support. Buffalo Sabres re-sign rugged fourth-line forward John Scott to 1-year contract - The Hockey NewsJust the man the Sabres need. Report: Predators part ways with assistant coach | ProHockeyTalkPeter Horachek had been with the team since 2003. NHL Tooth Watch: Cataloging all the lost fangs in the 2013 playoffs | Puck Daddy - Yahoo! SportsJohn Moore lost 6 teeth after taking a puck to the face! That's a real hockey face. Darnell Nurse – The Next Ones: NHL 2013 Draft Prospect Profile Did you know that Nurse is Donovan McNabb's nephew? Iginla: Stanley Cup or no, I’m not retiring | ProHockeyTalkNot that anyone realistically thought that he was going to. 2013 NHL Draft Rankings – War Room May Edition Top 30 (Round 1) | The Hockey Writers Draft info. Sharks look to build on dramatic Game 3 win to tie series | TSN Not trying to get ahead of myself here but if the Wings advance, I would much rather face the Sharks than the Kings. Bettman: ‘we probably do better than the Dow’ | ProHockeyTalkHe is preparing himself for another lockout next season. It's all apart of the plan. Ducks D Beauchemin to be ready for season after knee surgery | TSNWill be ready to lose to the Wings yet again. Rangers coach John Tortorella thinks that goal was pretty huge - SBNation.com Haha. Pierre's quick "thank you" is amazing. Ducks sign Swedish League rookie of the year Karlsson | ProHockeyTalk This guy is really good. I have seen him play a few times for Sweden and he looks like a very good player. Mark Messier Leadership Award Finalists: Alfredsson vs. Brown vs. Toews | Puck Daddy - Yahoo! SportsDustin Brown and Patrick Kane: the greatest leaders to walk this earth. Lecavalier says he wants to stick with Lightning | ProHockeyTalkI don't see him being moved. He is a good leader for a rebuilding club. Let's Go Red Wings!

The Red Wings have a lead in a series that isn't over yet after taking a 3-1 win in Detroit on Monday night. This one was a back-and-forth affair that could have gone any number of ways. Thankfully, it went the way I wanted it to. People are going to complain about penalties for the next seven weeks after this one and they're all going to be right, no matter which side they're arguing. The refs made any number of mistakes. Neither team scored on the power play in nine combined opportunities (Detroit 5/4 Chicago). Overall, the Hawks put 40 shots on net compared to the Wings' 30. CSSI Methodology Explanation here Goalie Ratings Jimmy Howard may have had his best game of the playoffs here. He was very good at rebound control for most shots and scrambled exceptionally well when the puck came back off him. Howard will win the head-to-head battle. Overall, I'm going to hand him a +2 rating and I'm very much fighting the urge to bust out the rare +3. I think his teammates did him a few favors in net-front scrums, but damn was I impressed. The Goals 2nd Period 07:49 - Detroit Goal: Gustav Nyquist (wrist shot) from Damien Brunner and Joakim AnderssonThe Wings get on the boards first with a great hustle to turn into a great zone entry and then a great move across the middle and then a great job outwaiting Crawford before Nyquist pots it home. Overall...great. Brunner will net an extra half-plus for the hustle to get to the puck that he flips over Leddy. Nyquist will get a bonus plus for his hustle and great work to score this. 2nd Period 08:20 - Detroit Goal: Andrew Miller (tip in) from Patrick Eaves and Cory EmmertonThe Wings score again 31 seconds later as the fourth line creates a turnover high in the zone. Eaves wastes no time putting a shot on goal that Crawford can't corral. Eaves puts the rebound back on and it gets through. The puck is sitting behind Crawford when Miller pokes it home. I'm going to give Eaves a bonus assist and a bonus plus for all of his work here. He does most of the legwork moving the puck around the zone and is the reason for the Rozsival turnover. Colaiacovo was in good position and will earn half an assist on the work to keep the puck in. Kindl will also earn an assist for a clever move at his own blue line to move the puck up ice on the faceoff win and also a well-timed pinch to prevent a clear. 3rd Period 04:35 - Chicago Goal: Patrick Kane (wrist shot) from Duncan KeithChicago breaks the shutout on a bit of a controversial call. Johan Franzen gets hit in the numbers in the corner of the Chicago zone, allowing the Hawks to break the forecheck. Keith dumps it high over the Wings' defense to break Kane in all alone for the finish between Howard's legs. The no-call aside, Quincey and Smith have to have this play covered better. This is a desperation move by the Hawks that pays off because Q misses a jump and Smith isn't back far enough to deny Kane the break. Both Quincey and Smith will pick up coverage minuses. Datsyuk, Franzen, and Filppula will be cleared. 3rd Period 06:46 - Detroit Goal: Pavel Datsyuk (wrist shot) from Johan Franzen Brendan SmithThe Wings reclaim the two-goal lead on a transition play just over two minutes (and one waved-off goal) later which leads a puck to the very end of Datsyuk's reach as he crosses into the zone. Pavel collects it and slings the puck on net. Crawford watches helplessly as the puck is in and out faster than Andrew Shaw on prom night. Datsyuk will get a self-assist for starting this play in his own end while Abdelkader gets the third assist for helping make sure the Wings make it out of the zone. Smith will get a bonus half-plus on this play for good body positioning and a quick turn to hit Franzen in stride out of the zone. Franzen for his work will also get a half-plus. Penalty Adjustments (pluses and minuses only) 1st Period 16:12 - Justin Abdelkader (holding the stick): The only obvious penalty of the first period which wasn't also let go at some othe

Detroit gets second-period goals from Gustav Nyquist and Drew Miller and a big third-period goal from Pavel Datsyuk. The Blackhawks clearly are frustrated as they trail the series 2-1.

Jonathan Toews is a broken little boy. The past couple of days he has gone to bed muttering to hiimself, when not biting his pillow, and waking up needing to change his sheets. He is haunted by his personal boogeyman, Henrik Zetterberg, whose defensive coverage of Toews has been so suffocating, the lack of oxygen affecting "Tazer's" brain and emotional stability so badly, that he finally snapped. As time expired in Detroit’s win, Jonathan Toews took the faceoff and immediately began to cross check Henrik Zetterberg. Again and again as the seconds ticked down, he went after Zetterberg who was trying to actually play defense. As expected, the Red Wings weren’t too happy. Zetterberg went right after Toews, Bertuzzi got a couple of requisite shots in and then Jimmy Howard stepped in and did his part. Continue reading "The Twenty-Cent Opera And Not-So-Secret Biases"

Syd Crosby earned his first Messier Leadership Award Nomination in 1998 at the tender age of 11. Naturally, his glorious NHL career wouldn't start for another 3 years, but Gary Bettman felt his future endeavors warranted the nomination. The fact that the award hadn't been invented yet was inconsequential to the diminutive commissioner. Ten years later, Crosby lost his "C" after a then-future Red Wing captain emasCulated him.Continue reading "Burn Down The West"

Updated at 2057 PST because I forgot something really important at the end of this post. No...not down. Hammered. May 16, 2013|Dan McNeil Right now the Blackhawks are the hammer and the Red Wings are the nail. That will not change during the duration of these Western Conference semifinals. The Blackhawks are too fast for Detroit. They're too deep. The Hawks are much more experienced, especially at the blue line. They're too well conditioned. Chicago is too everything for a Wings team that appeared out of gas after going a full seven games against Anaheim in the first round. Continue reading "Blackhawks Down"