Flip Trips Blackhawks on Red Carpet in Wings Win

Now that was some fine party-crashing!!

The Red Wings came into the United Center and brought the raucous crowd down to earth with a 3-2 victory over the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks.

The game has only just recently ended, thanks to the longest, most drawn-out banner raising ceremony in the history of mankind (puck-drop wasn't until around 9PM EST or later). The Wings, however, were apparently fine with waiting patiently to spoil the festivities. Valtteri Filppula netted two goals, including the game-winner in the third period, to help push the Wings past the Cup-drunk champs.

A couple of key players were in the spotlight tonight: Jakub Kindl made his first start of the season, replacing injured Jonathan Ericsson. Also, Chris Osgood got the nod in net--a move many were ready to chastise coach Mike Babcock for making.

Let's take a closer look at tonight's match by breaking down The Geek's Winning Formula from earlier:

1.) Hold Onto the Energy - Would I pass the Wings on this test? ...Yes, but not with flying colors like last night. The Wings showed spurts of intensity, but there were times when it was sorely lacking. I know it's hard to play two nights in a row, but that doesn't excuse going easy on the boards and losing puck battles that players would normally have no right losing. One spot where Detroit picked up the pace well was on the penalty kill. It was rough to see the Wings down a man so often tonight, but considering the frequency I feel we got proof of a very effective PK corps.

2.) Plug That Hole - Defensive gap? I didn't really see one. Jakub Kindl, in my mind, played admirably in his season debut, and really...would Ericsson have done any better? If Kindl can keep playing like this, improving all the while, I'd like to see him overtake Big Rig for the 6th spot on the blueline. Maybe it would help drive the Big E to improve his OWN game. The rest of the team also played quite well defensively, so that was a big help to keep Kindl's confidence high.

3.) Keep the Ship Afloat - Ozzie...did you read my last post before the game? Seriously, despite the score, I think that was one of the best games Chris Osgood's had in a while. Chris played a solid game while keeping mistakes to a BARE minimum (that turnover behind the net was scary...!). This is more like the Osgood that we love and, more importantly, want to see more of. Any sort of effective tandem between Osgood and Jimmy Howard is a very good thing.

Overall, here is my final grade for the Wings in this contest:

Team Offense - B+: One was pretty, one was lucky, and one was flat out ridiculous. I'm pretty sure Flip jedi'd that last goal past Marty Turco, as he got no power on the release at all. They can't all be beauties, they just have to go in.

Team Defense - A-: While most of the game was played defensively sound by the Red Wings, one area concerned me tonight: turnovers. Too many times I found that our boys were not paying close enough attention to where the Hawks were set up, and errant passes started coming in bunches as the game wore on. Chicago got far too many opportunities for scoring chances, and it showed based on how many bad penalties Detroit took tonight. The saving grace here was the PK--the penalty killing units ran some great damage control.

Team Intensity - B+: Don't want to dive too deeply into this again, but like I said: I know it's hard to play consecutive nights, but you can't play soft tonight just because you played yesterday. The Wings did a decent job of staving that trap off, much more so than the team of last season would have.

Overall, I thought it was an awesome party.

The next tilt will be with the Colorado Avalanche on Tuesday.

Till then, Wingnuts!! Let's Go Red Wings!!!

Preview: Wings Look to Help Blackhawks Botch Banner Night

Detroit will look to ride a wave of momentum into the Windy City and put the hurt on the defending Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks.

Jakub Kindl will get an early start to the season due to Jonathan Ericsson's back spasms and Chris Osgood will start what many may feel needs to be a road to redemption after the disappointing performance from the veteran netminder last year.

The Wings will have to wait for the start of the game until after the Blackhawks raise their first Stanley Cup banner since 1961. After that, though, Detroit will have a chance to ruin the celebratory evening for their division rivals.

So without further ado, here's The Geek's Winning Formula for tonight's game:

1.) Hold Onto the Energy - Detroit put an absolute clinic against Anaheim last night, and that intensity needs to carry into tonight's match as well. Everyone knows it's no fun playing back-to-back games, so the Red Wings need to keep themselves highly motivated this evening.

2.) Plug That Hole - Jakub Kindl needs to prove himself early by having a solid game tonight. Likely the Blackhawks will look to exhaust our top defensive lines if only to get Kindl on the ice as much as possible, trying to exploit his inexperience in the wake of the Ericsson injury.

3.) Keep the Ship Afloat - The biggest factor to this game in my mind is #30. Chris Osgood needs to make another one of his fairytale-like comebacks this season if he wants to see much time on the ice--and if he wants to keep his job in Motown. I've been a huge Ozzie supporter in years past, but after the events of last season I think Chris needs to prove he's over this latest hump and ready to get back to his winning ways.

Hour and a quarter till puck-drop, Wingnuts!! Let's Go Red Wings!!!

Red Wings Pluck Ducks in Detroit Home Opener

Want Pavel Datsyuk's advice? Say no to thugs. The deceptive Detroit forward dodged and deked his way through the worst of the assault led by the Anaheim Ducks--including standing up to and bringing down the oh-so-manly Corey Perry in a tussle between the two--to help the Red Wings cruise to a 4-0 victory over one of the ugliest (in so many ways) teams in the league.

I was fortunate enough to get out of work early for this game, only missing a little bit of the first period. A huge thank you goes out to @uclajenn for helping get me setup part-way into the game when I was raging over trying to find a TV stream!! Everybody be sure to give her a follow on Twitter when you get the chance, she's a real sweetheart and a passionate Wingnut.

As for what I saw in this game, well...let me say that I simply could not stop grinning. This team is going to be scary--very, very scary.

I know it's only the first game, but look at how much we have to take away from this. The play I saw from this Red Wings squad tonight was the stuff of champions past. I really believe this team is as deep as it's been in years, maybe even more so than the '08 Cup team. These lines are ridiculous! Hank and Pav on the top line, Franzen and Bertuzzi leading the 2nd line convoy, a 3rd line center named MIKE MODANO? Are you kidding me?? This team is so deep they'll need to hand out life preservers before every game so people don't drown!!

And just look at the results: Modano scores in his first game as a Wing, we already see production from the top line, and defensively we put on a great show. Most importantly (to me), however, is the fact that this team went out tonight and showed 29 other teams that they are taking guff from no...bo...dy. Pav takes on Corey Perry and takes the win--however slight, Jimmah then shows Perry where he made Crosby kiss his equipment, and the Wings just all-around dealt with AND dished back the physicality. We dominated puck control, neutralized the opposition's physical game and were a defensive bulwark.

You know what this means, guys...? Detroit played a complete game. From start to finish. Full 60 minutes of hockey. I haven't seen THAT in years.

And that has to be the biggest reason why I'm excited this year.

Tomorrow night we go into Chicago to watch the half-banner go up for the full team...no no wait, sorry, the FULL banner go up for the HALF-team that won it last year, and I think we have the kind of team this year that can start carrying momentum from game to game, so if I were you Blackhawks, I would be mighty worried about the showdown a little less than a day away.

Final Grade

Team Offense - A+: Got the job done and saw production across the roster.

Team Defense - A+: Shutout for Howard and kept the Ducks to less than half of the Wings shot total.

Team Intensity - A+++: It's been a long long time since I've seen the Wings this revved up, and it looks so, so good.

A better opener couldn't be asked for.

We'll see you tomorrow night Wingnuts!! Let's Go Red Wings!!!

New Season Starts Tonight for Red Wings

We waited all summer for this moment.

Ladies and gentlemen, it's finally here.

The Red Wings 2010-2011 season starts TONIGHT!!!

...and I have to work! ARE YOU KIDDING ME!??

Yeah, so I'm going to miss the opener due to work, so you can imagine how pissed of I am right now. I'm not going to get too deep into things tonight, as it's the first game, but here's what I DO have to say: Nothing I say, nothing anyone else says, can summarize this feeling every year of starting the hunt for Stanley anew. Boys, go out there and start this season strong, and I'll be with you in spirit with my Wings shirt on at the office!!

For the first of many times this season Wingnuts: Let's Go Red Wings!!!