Sunday, March 28, 2010

Detroit Anteaters Shut Out the Nashville Peckers

The first three periods went something like this:

The ice was bad, and I have to believe that the conditions altered the Wings' game plan. It was often described as a chess match, a waiting game, and it made for a very boring game. There were portions of the game over in the game thread on WIM that were just silent, There wasn't a whole lot to talk about. The goalies made amazing saves when they had to, but that kind of goes without saying, considering it was a 1-0 shoot out win. Obviously, if a game ends like that, the goalies were coming up big when they had to.

The shootout was insane. I didn't really have faith, considering our previous outings in the shoot out, AND the fact that we played last night. I thought the team didn't really stand a chance. When Bertuzzi scored, I hoped with everything I had that that would be the game winner. When Sullivan scored, I lost all hope. Momentum shifted, and I didn't think a tired Wings squad had what it took to come back.

Sometimes, I don't mind being wrong.

The shootout went for about 5 more months, and Babcock was running out of forwards to put out. Either that, or he knew that Kronner's been staying after practices and working on his shootout moves. I don't care which one it was, because he scored on his one and only career shootout attempt. And Yimmy came up with the stop he should have made about 435 shooters before and won the game.

So, in the past week, the Wings beat the Penguins, complete with Yimmy owning Rosby after he went after Zetterberg in the waning moments of the game. They beat their old goalie who had shut them out the last time they played each other. They had a scorgy against Minnesota with some very special audience members in attendance. Then they shut out a team above them in the standings in sub-par ice conditions on a huge game from Yimmy and improbable goals in the shootout.

If I'm any team in the top 8 in the conference, I'm not happy with what I'm seeing coming at me in red and white.

Update: Phoenix took care of Colorado so we at least have 7th place locked up. Dallas is beating LA 4-1 in the third, so it looks like 6th place might be safe, too.

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Making Amends

Detroit Hangovers Vs. Nashville Bananas

 Refer to this picture.

Our beloved Wings are playing another game tonight after that amazing game they put together for the Herm to Hockeytown gang and Herm himself.

Let's hope they came out of last night feeling better than the crew from last night did.

The Wings have been having strong games against the Nanners this year, the last coming on March 5th when my very own Helm-based performance pledge accounted for 2 goals from him en route to the Wings' 3rd straight win against the Plantains this year.

Just in case the Wings need a little help getting up for this game, like the entire H2H crew this morning, here are a few things they can swish around their mouths... I'm sure it'll leave a bitter taste

  • The Puddings are sitting just 2 points ahead of the Wings as of right... now. How much is a regulation win worth? 2 points. Oh, that makes things interesting.
  • It's been mentioned that certain member of the Breads believes that certain members of our team doesn't deserve his full paycheck.
  • Also, before that March 5th game, Dan Ellis said some things about Detroit as a city. I've been to Nashville, Dan. It's not all roses there, either. And you used to play in the GAYLORD Center.
  • And my friend Jess lives in Trashville (How do YOU like it, Dan?), so my very own personal bragging rights are on the line tonight.
 The Wings are currently riding a season best and current league best 4 game win streak. They've been hot since the Olympic break, with Franzen, Filppula, and... and... Dammit! I love alliteration, but we don't have any other F players on our team. Anyways, Franzen, Filppula, and a FEW other players (Ah-HA!) have come back from that break with a whole new passion for the game. Zetterberg, Bertuzzi, Datysuk and Holmstrom have been benefiting from being paired with them, because they probably wouldn't be as good without them, right?

Press box regular Jonathan Ericsson is riding a scoring streak of sorts, going one game with at least a goal and an assist. Can he keep up his sordid pace tonight? But seriously, the kid was a +4 last night and had a goal and an assist. That has to be good for the ego, a little bit.
Yimmy's playing again tonight. He better have celebrated his birthday the way most 26 year olds do on their birthdays, and by that I mean going to sleep directly after coming home from work to get ready for the day ahead.

Bertuzzi's been hot and cold lately, sometimes on the same damn shift. He's clearly benefiting from playing with Z and V, but he's clearly Bertuzzi, too. So there's not really much more we can expect from him.

The puck drops in a little under 2 hours. Hopefully the H2H crew will wake up by then. Sources claim there's a get together happening at somewhere, so I'll be expecting more pictures.

Go Wings.

For the Bloggers

This post is going to be all over the place. I don't have a real point or a direction I want to take it beyond the overall theme of what I want to say. But we'll get there.
I first started my personal Twitter page on April 27th of last year. I chose the user name EtchedInCold because it was something I've been using for years now on Facebook and MySpace, and other social networking sites. Those words, etched in cold, come from the lyrics of my favorite song, 198d by At the Drive-In. The chorus goes: "Walk away, born in hearts, etched in cold." That was it. My favorite song, from a somewhat obscure band, and nothing terribly cliche. So I latched on to it and made it synonymous with me. But it would lead to more than that, but that comes later in the story.
Anyways, back to Twitter. I tweeted occasionally throughout the playoffs, but mostly put my thoughts and rants onto Facebook. When the playoffs ended, it laid dormant for about 5 months because I had no one to really talk to, and therefore no reason to be on it.
But what happens in October? The new season started. And I was looking for people I could actually discuss hockey with besides the people that I was stationed with in Beaufort whose hockey expertice extended as far as their hometown loyalties allowed. I knew someone from Tampa saying that the Lightning were going to win the Cup this year. There were people from New York saying it was the Sabre's turn this year (a little more realistic, but clearly biased).
There were only 2 people I knew that not only liked, but followed the Wings. Mind you, they did not follow nearly as religiously as I did, they watched the games on NBC and Versus when they were showing a Red Wings game, but that was it. I was the only person watching every game online and following ESPN to see what the 'experts' were saying.
But as long as I've been reading the game recaps and the analysis of the team on ESPN, I've always felt it was lacking a certain something. Something I could relate to, something I could buy in to.
Passion.
It always seemed that the writers on ESPN, while no doubt knowledgable, were just too bland and too politically correct. They never said anything about "bullshit calls" or openly criticized the refs, coaches or players. They never struck me as real fans. Just people who got paid to write about the game without offending any one side, any demographic.
So I started looking into a more unmonitored conduit to get my news, analysis, and recaps from. The first site I stumbled upon was Snipe Snipe, Dangle Dangle. I loved the structured aspect to the site with the cookies and cupcakes and golden facepalm sections, along with the humor and personality that came through in the writing. It was definitely what I had been looking for, and pretty much needing. So after I read through a post on there, I looked at the other blogs listed on the page. I still have them all bookmarked in my favorites folder for Red Wings. I went from SS,DD to Babcock's Death Stare to Fight Night at the Joe to Hockeytown Static to Motown Wings to Nightmare on Helm Street to On The Wings to The Production Line to The Scrappy Octopus to The Triple Deke. In that order. And each one had it's own distinct voice and personality.
I had died and gone to a Red Wings blog heaven.
Eventually, I stopped bookmarking them because I realized that they all linked to each other, so I really only needed one to find my way to the others. But a lot of them also had links to their Twitter accounts. So there I was, thinking "Oh, hey, I have one of those Twitter things. Why not follow them?"
So I added. And I read. And I laughed. And I waited. I was admittedly afraid to jump into the conversations I saw happening on Twitter, because you all were just so good, so funny, and so close-knit that I thought I never stood a chance, that I'd never be taken seriously. (Little did I know at the time that nearly nothing is serious among you guys...)
I forget the circumstances behind it, but one day, I decided to say something, half expecting a "Yeah, okay, but who the fuck are you" type response. But it never came. I was immediately given a warm welcome into the little online community that was cropping up on Twitter. I was elated. I finally had people who shared my sense of humor, my taste in writing, and my love for the Red Wings. All in one place.
I used to have to deal with those cookie cutter game recaps they'd offer up on ESPN... Now, I've got jailsexing and movie posters and limericks and photoblogs and ladders to titties and beer and golden facepalms and (now) me singing Huey Lewis and the News in my bathroom.

I was ecstatic when I actually got credited on someone's blog for 'breaking' a story about someone being scratched from a game. To feel like these elite writers, these people I looked up to as bloggers, listened to me, was something big for me at the time.

Now, a little personal bit about me. I've always liked writing, and I've always been told that people like to read what I wrote.

So one day, I decided to give a little bit of Wings blogging a try. I couldnt think of a smart title that I felt would be both reflective of me as a person, but also my rookie attempt at blogging. But what was that line that I mentioned earlier? Etched in cold? Kind of like... skate blades and ice? Like... hockey? And At the Drive-In? DIBS.
So I had a title. Now all I needed was posts. I still feel that the best piece I've written was the first Wings and Sharks game back on my brutal little Tumblr site. (I should probably transfer those over here...) I don't know how many people actually read it there, or how many people even read what I say here. But for me, it's more of a release from the day I've had working as a Marine, to just emerge myself completely into my love for the Wings. I know my blog right now is a little halfassed and, well, lacking. Did you know that the Wings played the Blues this past week? It's not on my blog...
Things will change. Once I get somewhere that I can get a hardline internet connection to see the games and post my blogs, expect a complete overhaul of my site.

As I've always said, I've never expected to be considered at the same level as all those blogs I first stumbled upon so long ago. And I'll never expect to be mentioned during a Wings game and spur a record breaking scorgy. So I'm honored that you consider me a friend and an equal.

Thank you.

For the Tweeps

Last night was H2H. If you're reading this right now, you know what that means. And if you don't, you're probably reading the wrong blog.
I was reading The Original Rob's post over on TPL, and it got to me. Like, a tearing up in a public place surrounded by people kind of got to me. Let's not even talk about what happened when I read myself mentioned in that post.
As many -if not all- of you know, I am a Marine. If you didn't know THAT, you're still on the wrong blog. There are a few things that I've done that I'm proud of within the past few years. Finishing the Crucible in boot camp and actually spanning that gap from recruit to Marine is one of them.
Ranking above that, yes, above that, is just getting my dirty little fingers into this whole H2H movement. Being a part of it, spreading the word, just doing what I could do in my limited capacity, brings such a sense of purpose to the choices that have brought me here.
I feel like me joining the Marine Corps brought me into this crazy, dysfunctional, off-the-wall, -but so amazingly beautiful- little Red Wings internet community, and that's worth all the literal blood, sweat, and tears I've put into this.
And being in the Corps, I've been through 5 different bases, 5 different groups of people, 5 different jobs. In a little under 2 years. That doesn't leave a lot of room for consistancy. It doesn't leave a lot of room for making friends and lasting relationships.
However, no matter where I go, I have you guys to talk to. Not just about Bertuzzi's latest failed spin-o-rama and Jimmy for President of Space and all that stuff, but I can talk to you guys about things like my pay issues, my Achilles, crab rangoon, Jurassic Park and Marlboro Reds.
And it was instant. I started off just lurking around and reading your blogs and your collective tweets, afraid to speak up because you guys were so good and so close knit, I was in awe of the little community I'd stumbled upon. Eventually, I got the guts to send a tweet to one of you, half expecting some sort of "Oh, yeah, that's great, but who the fuck are you" response. (Now, keep in mind... Marine Corps. This was the equivalent of a Private going up to a Sergeant Major in my eyes.) Instead, it was a warm response. It was an "Oh, I hadn't heard that, thanks for sharing" or a "Yeah, you might be right about that". And I felt accepted. So I kept it up. I met more and more of you. And you all have become the family that I don't have here on the bases I'm stationed on.
There's also the added sense of belonging within the group because a lot of you are just like me, relocated out of Michigan for whatever reason it is, family, job, school, witness protection. But we had that same tie in to each other. As much as I'd really love to that that we all bleed red, it would just be silly, because we all really do bleed red. Damn.
You are all wonderful. Wonderful fans, wonderful minds, and wonderful people. Some of the smartest, wittiest, most clever (I really wish I could say 'cleverest') people I've known. I can be having a shitty day, and without even expecting it, reading one of your blogs or seeing some of your tweets or a couple comments can have me laughing and forgetting why I was in such a bad mood before.
And, of course, there are the games. In my Marine Corps career, I have only met 2 people who even cared about the Wings. One is from Ohio, and grew up BEFORE the Blue Jackets, so his loyalties remain in Red and White. The other is from the hockey mecca of Savannah, Georgia. But his mother was from Michigan, so he was bred into it. But neither of them were as die hard as I was, following every game on the internet like me.
So who was I going to talk to? Not only that, who was I going to talk to that actually knew what they were talking about and would make it fun?
I spent the majority of last season following on ESPN mobile. Every thing there was so bland and so PC that it got boring.
Now, I've got jailsexing and movie posters and limericks and photoblogs and ladders to titties and beer and golden facepalms and me singing Huey Lewis and the News in my bathroom.


This post is probably jumpy as hell. It probably lacks real structure or flow. But I'm just typing what I feel, as I feel it and as I think it. It's crude because it's honest. I could have just sat here and thought out what to say when and where to place it in the context of my other points to make and all that other stuff they taught when I was asleep in AP English. I don't really even have a closing paragraph prepared or anything (that THAT, Mr. Jackson!).

All I really want to say it that I appreciate everything you've done for me, everything that you do for me. Even the little things count. Hopefully next year, there will be another big shindig, and the Sad Face Group can show up and meet you all like so many people did this year.

I'm getting my paperwork ready now.
I have a feeling 2011 is going to be nuts.

The H2H Game

First, I'll address the game. In the first period, the Wild thought they had scored a goal. The puck was on the line for about 3 months until it was swept away. The play went to review, and the first thing I thought of was, "Welcome to Hockeytown, Herm. This is what it's come to these days." Luckily, the refs didn't bend us over the bench boards and have their way with us. The first period ended tied up at nuts.
The second was reminiscent of the Chicago game a while back. 4 goal blow out in the frame, with every kind of goal you can think of being scored. There was Homer's power play goal, there was (apparently) Ericsson's shorthanded goal, and there were even strength tallies. Diverse scoring. This is key, and it's something we expect from our Wings. And it's coming back.
Okay, yes; Frickin' Franzen had 2 goals, Pav scored, and Homer scored, and they're who we expect to score for us. That's not diverse. But like I just said, you can have 3 kinds of goals in this game of hockey. Man up, man down, or even. We got them all. Then we had Miller adding his goal in the 3rd. And shorthanded specialist (seriously, 25% of his goals are with someone in the box) Ericsson scoring. I like seeing this.
To be completely honest, I didn't really pay much attention to most of the 3rd period, I was mostly chatting it up with Sad Face Group Team Leaders and stalking the H2H tweeps online for pics and other things to give me something to pretend I was there.
I guess Yimmy gave up a flukey goal to make it 4-2, and for all of .00003 seconds, I was concerned about the game. If the Hockey Gods cursed us and threw this game to the Wild, I personally would have gone all Kratos on them and destroyed them all. Pandora's Box and all. But I really didn't see that happening. The Wild's first goal was a PP goal. And the second was a strange, improbable goal. There was nothing in the Minnesota game that was more than the Wings had been handling all night.

Friday, March 26, 2010

H2H Bar Tab

Date Opponent Result Goal Money Goal Differential Money Grand Total


Mon, Mar 1 @Colorado W 3-2 G = $6 +1 (+1 = $1) $7
Wed, Mar 3 Vancouver L 6-3 G = $6 -3 (-2 = $0) $12
Fri, Mar 5 Nashville W 2-5 G = $10 +3 (+1 = $1) $23*
Sun, Mar 7 @Chicago W 5-4 G = $10 +1 (+2 = $2) $34
Tue, Mar 9 Calgary L 4-2 G = $4 -2 (0 = $0) $36
Thu, Mar 11 Minnesota W 1-5 G = $10 +4 (+4 = $4) $50
Sat, Mar 13 Buffalo W 2-3 G = $6 +1 (+5 = $5) $57*
Mon, Mar 15 @Calgary W 2-1 G = $4 +1 (+6 = $6) $62
Fri, Mar 19 @Edmonton L 2-3 G = $4 -1 (+5 = $5) $65*
Sat, Mar 20 @Vancouver W 4-3 G = $8 +1 (+6 = $6) $74
Mon, Mar 22 Pittsburgh W 1-3 G = $6 +2 (+8=$8) $82

Show Your Math

Judging from my trusty, dusty H2H Bar Tab post, I have myself slated for $82 in team performance pledges, $19 for Helm goals, and $10 for defenseman goals from below the circles. That comes to $111.

However, certain people who shall go unmentioned have notified me that the total adds up to only $106.

I blame Bertuzzi.


Also, in unrelated related news, as some of you already know, I've come across a little bit of financial hardships, with money not being paid due to paper trail screw ups related to my recent move from MCAS Beaufort to MCAS New River.
But I'm a man of my word, and the money will be donated. It just isn't going into the big mass donation.

Sunday, March 21, 2010

Contingency Plan


I can't even begin to explain this right now.
But if things go bad at The Joe tomorrow night, THIS WILL HAPPEN!
You can ask Nick about it.

I Want a New Drug (For the Kiddies)

Never one to back down from a challenge, and always willing to do my part in earning money and pledges for H2H. So when the new challenge came over on Twitter, regarding TPL's Huey Lewis and The News themed post, who was I to say no?



Yeah.
That's me.
In my bathroom.
Singing Huey Lewis and The News.
For the kiddies.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Calgary, The Game I Didn't Follow.

Rob
Pavel Datsyuk.
11:15pmSherolyn
very nice goal but we are still going to win
Zetterberg is being especially hostile tonight
11:16pmRob
He has to be.
I can't watch, though...
11:17pmSherolyn
how come? Not televised
11:17pmRob
Not in North Carolina.
11:17pmSherolyn
Ah I see
11:17pmRob
And my internet's not good enough to stream video.
11:18pmSherolyn
It's been a great game...pretty physical. Could you stream radio?
11:28pmRob
It's not working either.
11:28pmSherolyn
crappy
you guys just got a 4 min penalty
11:29pmRob
AND my phone service here sucks, so I'm not even getting the text updates.
11:29pmSherolyn
ugggh
such an important game too
11:29pmRob
I know.
But so was that last one
11:30pmSherolyn
yes
11:30pmRob
You're not making the playoffs, though. Sorry.
11:31pmSherolyn
I have faith
11:31pmRob
I'm not sure if you've noticed, but the Wings are looking good since the olympics.
11:33pmSherolyn
We have only lost one since then as well...we shit the bed a it last night
11:34pmRob
Well, you held Vancouver to 0 SOG in the 3rd, but still couldn't win.
Ha.
11:36pmSherolyn
I know, I actually gave up watching that game between extreme tiredness and watching them not even show up in the first period it wasn't worth it.
11:36pmRob
At least you had that option.
11:36pmSherolyn
true
11:36pmRob
I haven't watched a full Wings game since the Chicago game with the 5 goal 2nd period.
11:37pmSherolyn
really, this must be making you crazy.
11:37pmRob
Tell me about it.
I started a Wings blog, and I can't even update it!
You'll like the Calgary recap.
11:39pmSherolyn
Ha
11:53pmSherolyn
fuck you guys just scored and there is a 1:19 left in the 3rd
11:53pmRob
Yeah!
11:55pmSherolyn
taking time outs...we're pulling Kipper
11:59pmSherolyn
You won, good game
12:01amRob
Huzzah!

Sunday, March 14, 2010

Red Wings v. Sabres (The 1/2 Minute Review)

Datsyuk scored. It was pure Datsyuk. Bad angle, through the defenseman, in the net.
Then Eaves scored, while getting tripped and on his knees. Miller with a bad pokecheck. (...it WAS a poke check, right?)
Jimmy gave up some rebounds and, with the help of officiating non-calls, the Sabres tied the game in the 2nd period.
The third period was negligible. No one scored.
30 seconds into OT, Rafalski ripped one from my favorite position on the ice, the $5 zone.
Afterwards, the Miller family ate at an IHOP.


Damn, I wish I could actually watch these games.

Monday, March 8, 2010

Who's This Cromwell Guy? (AKA The 20 Minute Win)

The Red Wings played the elite Blackhawks yesterday, we all know this.
The Wings won 5-4, we all know this, too.

But almost didn't.
I've been putting off writing this post for a number of different reasons, the biggest of which is because I didn't want to piss on anyone's parades. Yes, it was a big win. Yes, it was nice to finally smack down little brother on national television. Yes, those  2 points were huge, considering the lack of dearly needed help around the league to lock up that 8th (or higher) spot. So I decided to wait. Let everyone sing the praises of the Wings for a good day and a half.

But here it is: The Wings were way too close to another Phoenix to be too proud of that game. The Wings got downright lucky to win the game, but I'll tell you the only reason we won that game. First, however, I'll rule out the different reasons.
5 goal 2nd period.
Yes, it helped. Especially giving up a hat trick to Ladd. You do that, and you need at least 4 goals to win. And technically speaking, scoring 5 goals IS the reason we won. But it's not WHY we won.
Datsyuk's dagger to end the 2nd.
If I'm Chicago, and I'm playing any team BUT Detroit, that goal with 2.7 seconds left makes me want to just quit right there. But the Wings are just about as good at holding a lead this season as Patrick Kane is at making sound decisions in public transportation.
And that's not very good at all. And it showed.
Diverse scoring.
If you're like me, you're thrilled that the Wings roared back from being down 2-0 to being up 4-2 with out a player named Datsyuk, Franzen, Holmstrom, or Zetterberg putting a puck in the net. And having 8 players notch points was nice, too. Again, it's a nice stepping stone on the way to a win, but is it WHY we won? No.

I'll tell you why we won.
According to the closed captioning in the gym today, it was some guy named Cromwell.

Towards the end of the third, with Chicago surging for the late, tying goal, Hossa slipped a puck behind Howard from the left side of the net. It went trickling back toward the front of the crease where Kopecky was waiting. Kronwall jumped in from his right defense position, smacking the puck out of the crease. However, Kopecky still got 2 whacks at it. Both shots blocked by Kronwall.
Kronwall made 2, if not 3 saves to save this game.

Kronwall is the only reason that the Wings played less than 20 minutes and walked away with a win.
Kronwall is the only reason that the Wings were not embarrassed on national television by little brother.
Kronwall is the only reason that the Wings are still in a playoff spot right now.

And the fuck of it is that he's getting nearly no recognition for it.
Only Ellen at Big Red Machine and Andy over at Fight Night at the Joe mentioned it. Well, besides me.

Don't worry, fellow bloggers, I'm not calling you out. Not even ESPN gave him credit for anything. Not even the first blocked shot, let alone the follow up.


I feel like I've ranted enough. All in all, what matters is what the scoreboard says at the end of the third period. Which apparently was 11 - 2:00 because, while ESPN was not giving Kronwall any credit for his (at least one) blocked shot(s), they did let me know that Cleary took a holding penalty after the final horn sounded. But the scoreboard also said 4-5. In the Wings' favor. They might have been ugly, undeserved 2 points, but they're our 2 points now.
And it's about damn time WE got the breaks.

Friday, March 5, 2010

Wrist Shots

- We're playing Nashville tonight. I liked it better when they played in the Gaylord Center. Every game against Nashville's important to me, because I have a good friend who lives in Nashville. Bragging rights are at stake here.

- Once again, I'll be unable to WATCH the game tonight, as the wireless internet on this base cowers in fear in the face of any kind of video streaming. The radio feeds seem to do okay, but they generally lag somewhere between 45 seconds to a minute.

- Jimmy's starting tonight. My completely professional opinion is that while Ozzie's sitting on the bench with his clipboard, he should be keeping track of the team's H2H performances, too. Take a little weight off of our shoulders.

- Having little else to offer in terms of actual, thoughtful analysis, I'm going to formally announce my 2 new performance pledges for H2H.
The first regarding Helm: For every goal he scores from now until March 26th, I'll match his season's goal total with cash. Right now, he's sitting at 8 goals. His next goal (9) will be worth $9. The next goal will be worth $10. And so on...
My second new pledge is going to be $5 for every defenseman's goal from in or below the faceoff circles. I'll need a little help with keeping tabs on that one, though, so if someone could kindly volunteer to keep track of that for me, it'd be much appreciated. Here's a pretty little diagram to help the scorekeepers out there:
SHIT'S CASH! (At least $7 for this goal alone.)
NO BUENO! (Only about $2.)
 
(This isn't worth any money, but totally expected tonight.)






- That having been said, go Wings!

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Trade Deadline Thoughts

Of course this would happen. The day my brand new Newbury Red Wings jersey shows up*, he gets traded to New York for Terrell or Jesse Owens or some shit**. It gives me the mental image of Ken Holland and Glen Sather sitting in a gymnasium picking for teams, and they were the last two kids left.
*not true.

Ken Holland is a smart man, and one of the best GMs -if not THE best GM- in the league. You have to believe he had other players available for trades. I doubt he was sitting up in his office answering his phone calls with the opening line "Ken Holland, it's Newbury or nobody." It kind of makes you wonder what the league's other GMs were offering in return for your hypothetical Ericsson or Ledba trades. Over at the TPL Trade Deadline chat, I mentioned that I wouldn't even give the Wings a draft beer for Lebda, let alone a draft pick. Apparently I wasn't the only one thinking that.

Also, if this hadn't been the season from Hell, what kinds of moves could have been made? I think the team's overall lackluster performance greatly decreased anyone on the team's trade value. There have been big, bright spotlights all over everyone's shortcomings and liabilities. But I still figured someone would want one of these pieces of trade bait. I mean, someone took that one Leino guy. Maybe Holland lost Paul Holmgren's phone number today.

Meanwhile, while Ken Holland was sitting behind his desk eating a Hot and Ready, with a mouth too full to answer the phone, Carolina's Jim Rutherford and Washington's George McPhee were amassing huge overage fees on their wireless plans, making 5 and 4 deals respectively. I believe we had the expendable bodies to come out of the day with a transaction sheet longer than that. With the injuries we've been through causing some of our AHLers to get a decent chunk of NHL experience via trial by fire, and even our regularly dressed players acting like they've already booked hotels for the middle of May somewhere, I expected more than just Newbury to be traded.

Personally, I had Abdelkader, Williams, Draper, and Lebda on my "If-I-Ran-Shit" trading block. Kindl being a "definite maybe". I'm sure there were many others out there with their own dream trade scenarios. And reasonable ones, too. None of the "Bertuzzi-Janik-Draper" to Columbus for "Nash-Commodore" like you could pull off on NHL 04 (although, how awesome would that have been?). So for us to walk out of this with just another player that will probably never see the Winged Wheel across their chest (raise your hand, Ole-Kristian. No, your hand! Not your elbow!), it kind of leaves you confused.

I see it being one of two things. Someone in charge somewhere feels comfortable enough with this team as is, and didn't see us needed that extra help to make a playoff run/Cup run. And I really, really hope that that was the discussion leading to the 3pm deadline. Because the alternative in my head is that the team as a whole just cashed in their chips and is waiting for free agency.


**I would just like to say that when I was writing this blog, I had only read about the Newbury trade on Twitter and a few articles online. I didn't really look into it that much (you guys did a lot of it for me, I admit.) With the Terrell/Jesse Owens line, I was only trying to make a joke because TO played in New York this past season (albeit with the Bills), and with Jesse Owens having the same initials as Jordan Owens. At the time, I had no idea what Jordan looked like or what race he was, and was not trying to put any racist or inconsiderate comments out there at all.

Monday, March 1, 2010

We've Created a Monster

Michael and Rob, the criminal masterminds over at The Production Line, came up with a twist on the bet for the USA-CAN gold medal game. $2 for every Wings goal scored in the upcoming 12 games. They urged others to match their pledges, much like I matched the original bet.
And they came a-callin'.
To keep tabs on all the people and pledges (there are some damn good, original ones in there, too...) follow TPL's seemingly ever-changing post here.

Funny thing happened when I was reading that post, though...
For every Red Wings goal from now until we get on the plane, Rob and I will donate $2 to the fund.
I read that and was just a little confused. My name also being Rob, my first thought was "when did we discuss this?"
But then I decided to match it regardless. So, much like I threw my hat in the ring on the original Olympic bet, I'm also donating $2 per goal for these next 12 games.
But with a twist.
I'm also going to add an ADDITIONAL dollar for the Wings' overall goal differential in these next 12 games.

For instance, at this very moment, our beloved Red Wings are playing the Avalanche with a 3-2 lead. So with this game alone, it's currently a $7 donation. The next goal would add another $3, 2 for the goal, and 1 for the +/- rating.

Apparently the game just went final, Wings 3, Avs 2. So, my bar tab, if you will, is sitting at $6 for goals, and $1 for goal differentials. $7. (On top the $60 I just donated today.)

A Marine Never Lies, Cheats, or Steals

This Payment will appear on your credit card statement as "H2HDONATION"

Confirmation Number: Placed on Mar 1, 2010
Purpose Donation
amount
H2H Children's Hospital of Michigan Donations $60.00 USD

Total Amount: $60.00 USD