Preview: Mo Come Home, Wings Visit Dallas

It's okay Mike, you're on our side now!

All joking aside, tonight's matchup is going to be another game with at least someone bringing some emotional baggage to the ice. It's likely going to be difficult for Mike Modano to skate on Dallas ice for the first time and not be playing for the home team, but it's also something that he knew was coming and needed to prepare for.

Also, other veterans on the team probably have #18 in the back of their minds as Kirk Maltby's retirement continues to sink in. Watching the press conference, my only thought was how odd it seemed to see Malts having such a hard time to say something. Kirk never had a lack of things to say on the ice, and his absence could potentially weigh on some of his former teammates.

Through all of this, the Red Wings look to get back to their winning ways and keep getting points, having started strong (2-0-1) and taking an early lead in the division standings. Let's check The Geek's Winning Formula to see how they can do that:

1.) Drop the Baggage - This is such a key point. I know the Wings are professional players, but stepping on the ice knowing that a 16-year comrade on the roster is gone and not coming back can be haunting. Also, for Modano, I think the best cure for any jitters he might get coming back to the big D would be to get on the scoresheet early. In booth cases, the Wings cannot lose focus if they want the 2 points tonight.

2.) Tighten the Gaps - I watched video from the Colorado game, and there were some bad defensive botches on many of those goals. We need to get back to the smart play we saw in the first two games and keep opposing chances to a minimum. This team is too deep to be getting outshot, which we have been the last 2 games.

3.) Oz Needs to be Good - By the sounds of things, Ozzie is getting the nod. This is a perfect time for him to show whether or not his head is back in it: help the team get the W after a disappointing SO loss the game before. I like that Osgood and Howard are a tandem this early on, there's no excuses now. Both goalies are getting their starts, and both should keep rested enough to win consistently.

I'm afraid I'm going to miss this match due to work again. I need to switch to days...

Enjoy the game, Wingnuts! Let's Go Red Wings!!

Preview: Detroit Looking for Snowball Effect, Host Avs

Lots to talk about today in Red Wings world, and surprisingly the Wings/Avs game is nowhere near the top of the list! Let's get a few things out of the way before pre-game:

First, word has been confirmed that longtime Red Wings forward Kirk Maltby will be announcing his retirement today. It has also come to light that he will be taking on a job as a scout for Detroit, some sources claiming he will be taking over Pat Verbeek's position.

Second, the news has gotten out that Kris Draper has been placed on injured reserve, and that Doug Janik will be filling in for a scratched Brian Rafalski. The word is that Raf needs a knee scope performed, which means we now have two top 6 defensemen on the mend.

And finally, as most everyone has heard, head coach Mike Babcock has signed a 4-year extension with the Wings, meaning that Babs isn't going anywhere for a good long time.

Now, onto the pre-game:

It's kind of sad that this former rivalry has died out so pathetically that the mentioning of the matchup barely makes anyone bat an eye anymore. I get that most of the players from the 97 brawl era have moved on, but these two teams were also the cream of the crop in that same time period: 5 of the 7 Stanley Cups between 1996 and 2002 went to Detroit or Colorado, the Wings taking 3 of those 5.

While the Wings have remained a dominant force, the Avs have seen some decline in the last few years, but are looking to make it back with the rest of the front-runners with prospects like Matt Duchene leading the way.

Detroit will be looking to help derail that notion tonight when the Avalanche come into the Joe. The Wings have a chance to go 3-0 to start the season, which would be leaps and bounds better than their start last year. How can they do it? Let's check The Geek's Winning Formula to find out:

1.) Minimize Time Defending - With both Kindl and Janik suiting up tonight, I really do not want to see a lot of Avs puck possession in our end. Even moreso than in Chicago, Colorado will be looking to overwork our defense, and the Wings need to keep the puck out of the defensive zone. Get the puck out fast, try to keep icings to a minimum, and trust Babs to make sure we don't get caught with third-tier D-Men against Colorado's first-tier forwards.

2.) Nothing Fancy - To help the defense, it'll be critical for the Wings forwards to stop trying to make cute plays with a high risk/reward factor. The talent on this team is good enough to make magic out of basic fundamental plays. I didn't like how often we started turning the puck over in Chicago, and Flip's GWG was a fluke, no matter how you slice it.

3.) Play on the Fatigue Factor - We were able to pull off consecutive games for two wins, but Colorado lost their game last night and are likely tired and frustrated at their early season misfortunes. Detroit should try to press that to their advantage--agitate the Avs and run them hard, try to force some bad penalties and get some quality time on the PP. We need to work our man-up units anyway, as they've been less than stellar so far this year.

Unfortunately I won't be getting home for this game before work, so I expect everyone to cheer twice as hard in my absence!

Go get 'em, Wingnuts! Let's Go Red Wings!!

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!!!