11/7/13; Dallas Stars

The first period, it was pretty boring. Neither team really acted like they wanted the two points. There was only one penalty and that was given to Detroit's Cleary. 

The second period was a lot more exciting. Both teams came back and began playing like true NHL teams. Detroit picked up the first goal by Bertuzzi, assisted by Zetterberg and Datsyuk. Second goal, a special goal, was scored by Almquist, making it his first NHL goal. 

With 20 seconds left of 2nd period, Dallas scored, making it 2-1 Detroit after the 2nd.

Third period is when the Stars started really coming after the Wings and vice versa. Players from both teams were tripping on each other and just making themselves look funny out on the ice. Dallas scored two goals and tied it up. About half way through, Detroit scored with Datsyuk, making it 3-2. 

1:10 left of third period, Abdelkader was in the box and Dallas pulled their goalie to put an extra guy on the ice. That's when they scored, sending the game into Overtime.

18 seconds left of overtime, Dallas scored and won the game.

At least our guys got one point out of this game. That puts us at 2nd in division just above the Leafs and under the Lightning. 

Hopefully they do better in their game against the Lightning on Saturday. 

Updates

Well! 

Our guys had a tremendously awesome start of their road trip in western canada the past week or so. Until Winnipeg. 

But that's okay because they are going to kick Dallas to the curb tonight!

A couple of things I wanted to talk about in this post both include changes to the playing roster.

First: Darren Helm.

November 2. The day before my birthday. I was actually celebrating my birthday that night at my parents house. I especially wanted to watch the game against the Edmonton Oilers. Darren Helm was to be debuting after 19 months of not playing.

Before the game started, I opened my presents.

A HELM JERSEY!!!!

Ohh man was I so excited! I was freaking out.

Then the game. I saw Helm on ice. Freaked out some more.

And then, in his first shift back...

A GOAL!!! 

Of course I freaked out so very much!!!!

So yes, he really IS back to play and his injuries have subsided for the time being...enough to allow him to play. Babcock is keeping him at short shifts on the ice more so than the other guys, but that's what he needs until he gets his wind back and used to being back in the game.

Tonight is his first home debut. And of course, I'm going to be there in my Helm jersey. :)

The other roster news is Jordin Tootoo. He was placed on waivers Wednesday night and cleared on Thursday. He is not scheduled to be sent to Grand Rapids Griffins. 

I am sad to hear and report this news. Tootoo is a very good player, he just hasn't really produced much since before last seasons playoffs. He never played in the playoffs for unknown reasons. I like to believe that Babcock did that to avoid unnecessary penalties in the tough series we had with the Ducks and Blackhawks respectively. 

I hope for the best for Tootoo and can't wait to see him play again! 

I will be doing some game coverage during or after tonight's game. 

Have a good one until then!

League Standings as of 12:52 am ET

League Standings

1. Avalanche

2. Sharks

3. Canucks

4. Ducks

5. Blackhawks

6. Bruins

7. Penguins 

8. Maple Leafs

9. Coyotes

10. Kings

11. Predators

12. Red Wings

13. Wild

14. Blues

15. Lightning

16. Canadiens

17. Islanders

18. Hurricanes

19. Blue Jackets

20. Senators

21. Flames

22. Capitals

23. Jets

24. Stars

25. Oilers

26. Panthers

27. Devils

28. Sabres

29. Rangers

30. Flyers

The top five in the league are all in the Western Conference. The bottom five are all in the Eastern Conference. 

Draw your own conclusions from that!

Division Standings as of 12:40 am ET

Division Standings.

Eastern Conference

Metropolitan:

1. Penguins

2. Islanders

3. Hurricanes

4. Blue Jackets

5. Capitals

6. Devils

7. Rangers

8. Flyers

Atlantic

1. Bruins

2. Maple Leafs

3. Red Wings

4. Lightning

5. Canadiens

6. Senators

7. Panthers

8. Sabres

Western Conference

Central

1. Avalanche

2. Blackhawks

3. Predators

4. Wild

5. Blues

6. Jets

7. Stars

Pacific

1. Sharks

2. Canucks

3. Ducks

4. Coyotes

5. Kings

6. Flames

7. Oilers

Disappointment

Sorry for the lack of posts! My computer took a crap on me but I have finally got a better phone and have the app to allow me to post once again. 

I have been to a couple of Red Wings games: the pre-season game against the Toronto Maple Leafs and the regular season home opener against the Buffalo Sabres. We won both games thankfully. 

Lately, our guys have not done so well! We managed to uproot the Colorado Avalanche and give them their first regulation loss, almost gave the same to the San Jose Sharks. With the Sharks, both teams' defense were good enough to hold off any scoring from anybody, ending the regulation periods 0-0, causing overtime. At the end of overtime, there was still no score and a shootout was required. Shooters for the Red Wings were Datsyuk, Alfredsson, and Bertuzzi respectfully. Unfortunately, Dats and Alfie were not able to make goals and the Sharks' second shooter made a goal and it was up to Bertuzzi. He did not make a goal and the Sharks won 1-0, still giving the Wings 1 point for going into overtime. Howard was still able to call the game a shootout. 

Now to the embarrassing part. Mostly talking about our loss against the Ottawa Senators! It was the first game the Senators have played against their former captain, Alfredsson. And try showed their anger, playing ruthlessly to hand us a 6-1 loss. Howard allowed in 3 goals within the first 14 minutes and was pulled from the game and replaced by Gustavsson. He also allowed 3 goals in and our only goal came from Bertuzzi. 

On the Grand Rapids Griffins side, the farm team of the Wings, they had been doing fair on defending the Calder Cup. Except for tonight. They lost at home 5-0 against Charlotte. 

I hope our guys can pull it together and win the game on Saturday against the New York Rangers. I will watching the game at my parents house on their TV while my father and youngest sister are at the game.

Until then!

Thoughts on Pre-Season game against Pittsburgh 9/25/13

Well. That game wasn't the best. There was a couple of funny moments that happened, like Miller's goal and Abdelkader's fight. But overall, I could have gone without seeing that game I think.

Pittsburgh brought their full line up. They had their good players, including Captain Crybaby Crosby. It was their good players against our not the best players.
I do think it was unfair in the lineup...but hey, its only a pre-season game. It doesn't count.

It was good for the younger guys to get out there on the ice and play against good NHL players, though. Mrazek also got more of a taste for the speed and intensity of NHL playing level. He stopped 31 of 36 shots which is decent for someone not used to this level. He is definitely a prospect to watch and it will be exciting to see him grow as a player.

I am just a little disappointed that Tatar and Nyquist weren't able to play their magic last night.

Well...we will see how tomorrow night's game goes. I might possibly be going to the game myself so that will be exciting!

REGULAR SEASON STARTS NEXT WEDNESDAY...JUST 6 1/2 MORE DAYS!! :)

Miller's goal 9/25/13

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNjKbl0AKE0&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Hasek flip in 2007

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5u0khFnHUg&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Sorry!

Sorry about no updates on the latest Pre-Season games! My computer took a crap. Well, I just need a new battery. But for the moment it is out of commission. I do have the Blogger App on my phone but for how I do the game updates...its hard to do with just my phone!

I may be able to do tonights game but not certain for sure!

Pre-Season Game 3: at Boston 9/19/2013

"Everybody is asking how the Red Wings are going to adjust to the East. I'm more wondering how the East are going to adjust to the Red Wings."

I agree with that statement.

Going into tonight's pre-season game, Boston Bruins are at 2-0 and Detroit Red Wings are at 1-1.

1st period penalties for Red Wings:
Fighting (5 minutes)- Kindl (17:29)

1st period penalties for Bruins:
Holding (2 minutes)- Iginla (3:53)
Fighting (5 minutes)- Fraser (17:29)
Hooking (2 minutes)- McQuaid (18:43)

Detroit scores 1st goal in 1st period @ 5:01 Power Play goal scored by Justin Abdelkader, assisted by Kindl and Datsyuk.
Detroit scores 2nd goal in 1st period @ 16:07 Scored by McIntyre, assisted by Glendening and Lashoff.

1st fight! Detroit's Kindl against Boston's Fraser. In my opinion, the kid is going to go home and brag to his friends that he got into a fight with Kindl.

2nd period penalties for Red Wings:
Holding (2 minutes)- Kronwall (4:29)
Hooking (2 minutes)- Cleary (5:39)
Illegal check to head (2 minutes)- Tootoo (10:05)
Fighting (5 minutes)- McIntyre (19:33)

2nd period penalties for Bruins:
High-sticking (2 minutes)- Chara (10:13)
Boarding (2 minutes)- Bartkowski (16:32)
Fighting (5 minutes)- Krug (19:33)

Detroit scores 3rd goal in 2nd period @ 3:32 Scored Zetterberg, assisted by Datsyuk.
Detroit scores 4th goal in 2nd period @ 9:17 Scored by DeKeyser, unassisted.

So far in tonight's game, I love how it's going! The players are really on it. They are giving the Bruins just a little taste of what is to come with the rest of the season.

Boston score 1st goal in 2nd period @ 11:43 Scored by Iginla, assisted by Bartkowski

2nd fight! Detroit's McIntyre and Boston's Krug.

3rd period penalties for Red Wings:
Hooking (2 minutes)- Almquist (9:10)
Boarding (2 minutes)- Caron (12:09)
Boarding (2 minutes)- Campbell (16:03)

3rd period penalties for Bruins:

Detroit scores 5th goal in 3rd period @ 4:36 Scored by Cleary, unassisted.
Boston scores 2nd goal in 3rd period @ 11:32 Scored by Johnson, unassisted.
Detroit scores 6th goal in 3rd period @ 12:56 Power Play scored by Kronwall, assisted by Abdelkader.
Detroit scores 7th goal in 3rd period @ 13:28 Scored by Andersson, unassisted.
Detroit scores 8th goal in 3rd period @ 14:13 Scored by Datsyuk, unassisted.

Kindl may not be in the game for the rest of the night. He was not on the bench or the ice. No reports have been told about why not just yet. It could be related to his fight with an injury or equipment problem. By the end of the game, still no report.

And the game ends with a Detroit Red Wings victory over the Boston Bruins 8-2!

3 stars of the night are:
Pavel Datsyuk
Henrik Zetterberg
Jimmy Howard

Pre-Season Game 4 will be on Saturday 9/21 at the Joe Louis Arena against the Boston Bruins.

Pre-Season Game 2: at Chicago 9/17/13

I'm writing this post as I'm listening to the game.

So far, it's just started the second period with 0-0. However, the Blackhawks are out-shooting the Wings. The Wings are also spending a lot of the game in the box.

1st period penalties to the Wings are:
Misconduct (10 minutes)- Pulkkinen (2:16)
Boarding (5 minutes)- Pulkkinen (2:16)
Interference- Athanasiou (3:26)
Closing hand on puck- Weiss (9:26)
Hooking- Ericsson (19:22)

1st period penalties to the Blackhawks are:
Roughing- Stanton (2:16)
Holding- Nordstrom (2:42)

2nd period penalties to the Wings are:
Boarding (5 minutes)- Callahan. (2:20)
Misconduct (10 minutes)- Callahan (2:20)

2nd period penalties to the Blackhawks are:
Roughing- Bollig (2:20)
Holding- Sharp (12:37)


Half way through the second period, there are already so many penalties but also so many penalty kills. Tonight in the net are Crawford for Chicago and Gustavsson (the Monster) for Detroit.

Chicago scored the first goal at 16:37  in 2nd period, by Patrick Sharp, snap shot, assisted by Morin and Seabrook.
Chicago scored a second goal at 17:46 in 2nd period, by Smith, wrist shot, assisted by Hayes and Kruger.

End of the 2nd period brings us to a scored of 0-2 Chicago.
End of game leaves us at 2-0 Chicago victory.

Pre-Season Game 1: at Pittsburg 9/16/13

So pre-season games have started!!! That means the regular season is soon to follow and there's hockey to follow and report on! This post isn't going to be much, as I'm listening to the second game right now against Chicago and I'll be posting that soon.

Wings 4, Penguins 1.
Tatar scored the first goal, Almqvist scored the 2nd and 3rd one, and Datsyuk (another amazing goal) scored the final.

Because this game was not televised or on the radio, I was having trouble trying to follow along. I finally was able to watch because of a stream link and got to see Datsyuk's goal.

This team is just absolutely amazing and I'm very much excited to see to makes the cut, since they have to get rid of 3 forwards after signing Daniel Cleary for another year, and how they do in the Eastern Conference.

I think the Pens got a taste last night. ;)

RIP Lokomotiv

Two years ago today, the tragic plane crash that took the lives of the entire Lokomotiv team happened. On board were previous Red Wings; former assistant coach Brad McCrimmon, ex-defenseman Ruslan Salei, and goaltending prospect Stefan Liv.

Any true hockey fan, no matter what team one is dedicated to and no matter what league, understands the meaning of September 7, 2011. It is truly a tragedy and affects each one of us in one way or another, be it a fan of the team, a fan of a player, or just by being a fan of the sport.

Today, thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims as they made it through this sad day.

Rest In Peace, dear Lokomotiv team. <3

51 days

Hey all!
Sorry for lack of posting. It's been a busy week for me, but slow week in Red Wings hockey!
It's only 51 days until season home opener and I can't wait!
After the pre-season starts, this blog will become more active as I will give reviews about the games and find quotes that a player may say about the game played.
Soon, I will also start doing a post about a player once a week. I have done a Darren Helm post a while ago, and will start getting that back up again.

I hope the past week has found everyone good!

Remember to smile! :)

Is it October yet?

I ask myself that question all the time lately! I am so excited for the new season to start...it's making this summer go by kind of slow. Not to mention, where I live in Michigan...it has been a heck of a lot cooler summer than I hoped. :( So to me, I think if it's going to have these lower than normal temperatures...there better be some hockey.

Today, I happily learned that the new girl I am training is also just as much into the Red Wings and hockey as I am. I asked our co-workers Cheree and Libby if they remembered how I was during last season. They looked at each other, laughed, and rolled their eyes. I just smirked and said "Double that." And pointed to Brandi. They stopped laughing and started muttering how bad it's going to be.

I was usually in a good to great mood the days after games the Wings won (depending on how intense the game was) and in a pretty crabby mood on the days the Wings lost. Plus they always had to hear me going on and on about hockey and they all have no idea what I'm talking about. At least NOW I will have someone understand what I mean if I say slashing or cross-checking.

The joy and feeling that run through my veins when I watch hockey...the aggressiveness, the energy, the spirit...so much that give me such a natural high. I am too excited for the new season to start with new rivalries and new players to the team. It's amazing to see so many guys from all over the world play on the same team for the ultimate prize.


LORD STANLEY'S CUP!

Darren Helm

To start out my posts on current players of the Detroit Red Wings, I chose to talk about Darren Helm. His my absolute favorite player. A signed and framed picture of him in action is currently above my bed where I lay my head. To the left of my bed is a Red Wings banner and to the right of that is a picture of Pavel Datsyuk (my second favorite player) from a Red Wings Calendar I gave my father for Christmas one year. The picture is put onto a wooden circle with clear film. My dad made it for me for Christmas 2012. I love it. Sydney got Johan Franzen and Gabrielle got Jimmy Howard...their favorite players.

Unfortunately, Helm did not skate with the Red Wings in the 2012-2013 season (except for one game) because of a back injury he obtained at training camp right before the season started. During the season, Helm had been doing therapy and taking it slow to ensure a better back for this coming season. Good news! All that therapy and taking it easy sure paid off, as Darren can be expected in the line up and skating in the 2013-2014 season!

That news had me soooo happy!!!

As #43 on the Detroit Red Wings, Darren Helm was 5th round pick at 132nd overall pick in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft. He hails from Winnipeg, MB, Canada and was born on January 21, 1987 (26 years old). He plays Center on the team, is a one time Stanley Cup Champion (2008), won Gold with Team Canada in the 2007 IIHF World Junior Championships, and won a WHL title in 2007 when he played with Medicine Hat.

Fun Facts:
Hockey hero: Joe Sakic
Favorite Food: Steak
Favorite Sport (besides hockey): Volleyball
Favorite Off-season hobby: Fishing

I am completely looking forward to bragging about Helm in the future games that I am pretty sure I will be attending. ;)

As always, thanks for reading!

New blog!

So I have finally started my new blog just about the Detroit Red Wings. 
I have created this blog to help express my love and passion for the Red Wings and hockey. I will be posting cool facts about players, the team, traditions of the team...and when the season starts...about the games that I am sure  I will be at. :)

I hope you all enjoy and can even begin to develop an interest in the sport that I consider to be the BEST!

As always, thanks for reading!