Red Wings' cuts...

Jordan Pearce,Tomas Tatar,Brent Raedeke,Jamie Johnson,and Francis Pare were sent to Grand Rapids Griffiths(AHL affiliate)... only Tatar was expected to be called up by Red Wings,this season...

NHL history...

in 2006-2007,Montreal Canadiens were accused of making "bad ice",when Zamboni drivers scraped badly,on opponents' side of ice,when shootouts happened,that year...

NHL history...

Gordie Howe won the Hart Trophy(MVP)six times(1951-1952;1952-1953;1956-1957;1957-1958,1959-1960;1962-1963)...

NHL news....

Chris Osgood has won 396 games,as a NHL goaltender....

Red Wings' history...

in 1951-1952,Detroit had a hundred point season,and swept both Montreal,and Toronto,in eight games(the minimum),to win Stanley Cup...

commentary...

to tell the truth,Chicago Blackhawks do not impress me at all... gutting a team's back end of talent tells me that the Blackhawks will defend their Stanley Cup,with gusto,but they will not win Stanley Cup,this season,because they simply do not have enough talent overall on the team... Detroit impresses me more,but the Red Wings have one major weakness,and that is in goal,because,even though Howard had a great season,as a rookie,can he come close in having that kind of season again,and improve on his shootout performances,from last year... if he does,Detroit will be one of the top teams in NHL this season...

Red Wings' game score...

Cleary,Rafalski,Zetterberg,and Holmstrom each had a goal,and an assist,in a 5-3 victory,as Red Wings beat the New York Rangers,in Detroit,for their third game in three days... they play New York Rangers,in New York,on September 29th,next game...

game score,and commentary...

Blackhawks beat Red Wings,4-2,but honestly the only player,who impressed me was Marian Hossa,for the Blackhawks... Chris Osgood had a very competitive game,playing most of the game,and made some great saves,for the Red Wings... the question for the Blackhawks,will be in the playoffs... are all the moves that they made during the off-season going to pay off for them... it is a long season,and the lack of depth,on back end of roster,makes them look like the weakest overall team,to defend their Stanley Cup,since the Tampa Bay Lightning had to defend their 2004 Stanley Cup Championship,in 2006,after their 2005 strike wiped out their best chance at defending Stanley Cup... in 2006,the Lightning missed the playoffs after the 2005 strike,so what does Chicago do,this year? play like defending Stanley Cup champions,or like the Lightning,in 2006... i believe somewhere in between.... a playoff team,no doubt,but they do not impress me,so far...

commentary...

Blackhawks are playing most of the regulars,and Red Wings are playing very few regulars,but game is very competitive,after first period... Osgood has had a very good first period,for it being an exhibition game... i am mostly looking at the Blackhawks tonight,to see how well they play with basically their opening game lineup... most of the regulars are not playing for the Red Wings,and i honestly expected that tonight,but a few are,like Filppula,Stuart,and Bertuzzi,but Datsyuk,Holmstron,Lidstrom,and Zetterberg are not playing tonight... have to give Blackhawks respect,in their home exhibition opener,and i expected them to play most of the regulars in front of home crowd... they play for real,on October 9th,when Chicago raises their Stanley Cup championship banner,in front of the Red Wings,in Chicago...

Red Wings' exhibition...

Chicago plays Detroit,in Chicago,tonight,in second game of home and home series... analysis tomorrow,and score tonight...

analysis of game...

Red Wings played very well for an exhibition,against Chicago... Chicago played mostly youngsters(AHL talent)in game,but was limited to eight shots,and one goal,by Howard,and the Red Wings,through two periods,but did come on in third period,against Joey MacDonald... referees did disallow a goal because of goalie interference by Tomas Holmstrom,in third period,but referees do need training camp too... Holmstrom,Zetterberg,and Mursak scored for Detroit tonight...

Red Wings' exhibition...

Red Wings beat Blackhawks,3-2...

Red Wings' play tonight...

Red Wings Play Blackhawks tonight,in Detroit... will give analysis tomorrow,and score tonight...

historical trivia answer...

January 16,1936,when Bert Connelly,of the New York Rangers,beat the Toronto Maple Leafs,1-0
March 19,2006,when Chad Kilger,of the Toronto Maple Leafs,beat the Pittsburgh Penguins,1-0

NHL history...

when was the two times that a NHL game was decided,on a penalty shot?

trivia answer...

1904,when John "Doc" Gibson,formed what was known,as "The International"... it lasted three years,until 1907,when it succumbed to spiraling player salaries...

hockey history...

when was the first professional hockey league formed?

Red Wings' news...

in the Red and White game(last training camp game played every year),the Red beat the White,5-3,on Henrik Zetterberg's game winner,at Center I.C.E. Arena,in Traverse City,Michigan...

NHL history...

of his 894 goals,Wayne Gretzky scored 73 short-handed goals,in his career...

Red Wings' news...

first preseason game is against Pittsburgh,in Pittsburgh,at Consol Energy Center(their new arena)is this Wednesday night(September 22)...

Red Wings' odd,but sad history...

during Detroit's 1942-1943 Stanley Cup celebration,manager Jack Adams was informed that his mother passed away...

ironic twist...

in same 6-5 overtime win against Colorado Avalanche,on March 26,1997,Darren McCarty(who had the infamous brawl,with Claude Lemieux,earlier in the game)scored the game-winner 39 seconds,into overtime,and gave Mike Vernon his 300th win,as a NHL goaltender...

Red Wings' history...

on March 26,1997,Detroit beat Colorado 6-5... why note a meaningless regular season game? a severe score was settled,in the eyes of the Avalanche,and the Red Wings,when during a brawl between the Red Wings' Darren McCarty,and the Avalanche's Claude Lemieux,when McCarty pummeled and beat the stuffing out of Lemieux,for a brutal hit on Kris Draper,during the 1996 playoffs... Patrick Roy,of the Avalanche,said that night,"Detroit won the Stanley Cup that night..."

Red Wings' history...

Ebbie Goodfellow had 324 points,in 557 games,from 1929-1930,to 1942-1943,played as a Detroit Cougars',a Detroit Falcons',and a Detroit Red Wings' player... in his playoff career,he had 16 points,in 45 playoff games... had ten penalty shots,made only two,in his career... was inducted into Hockey Hall of Fame,in 1963...

NHL news...

2012 NHL All-Star Game will be in Ottawa,Ontario,NHL announced,today...

tiebreaker news....

tiebreakers among teams with same points,at end of season,and during the season,will be most regulation wins,and overtime wins,not shootout wins,as of 2010-11 season NHL Board of Governors decided... it is to increase interest in winning in overtime,when in overtime...

commentary...

the blogs that i have done with love of two sports(hockey,and football),but this blog is done for love of hockey,in general,and the Red Wings,in particular... i watch all levels of hockey,from high school(mostly played in cold-weather states,but to tell the truth,there are some very good high school hockey teams,in Southern California,because of the Gretzky trade,and the NHL teams,in California),to the NHL,and international leagues...i watch all the teams in NHL,because i learn about pure hockey,and i see some amazing play,in NHL... i am a big fan of the Red Wings,but am a bigger fan of pure hockey... seeing Ovechkin,and Crosby play is a honor,and a true thrill... why do i love,"Hockey Night in Canada",every Saturday night,on the Canadian Broadcasting Company,and especially,"Hockey Day in Canada"(which is February 12,2011,this season,in Whitehorse,Yukon)? it is because of the history of the game,and last year,they had a feature on one of oldest hockey rinks in North America,for a small town,in one of the towns they used to air HDIC,in last year... i believe that it(the hockey rink) was in Stratford,Ontario,but do not quote me... even though i hated both the Blackhawks,and Flyers last year,i watched every game,of the Stanley Cup Finals,last year... the Red Wings only have 82 games a year,but i watched over 1,000 games(one year,i watched parts of all 1,230 games),last year... why do i do that? it is because of the love of the game of hockey... we may disagree on facts,and on the games that i have watched,but never believe that i do not love the pure game of hockey...

trivia answer...

neither... both won 27 games apiece... what balance!!!!!!

Red Wings' trivia...

in 2007-2008,the Red Wings won 54 games and the Stanley Cup... Dominik Hasek and Chris Osgood were in goal,that year... who won more games in goal for the Red Wings?

NHL,and Red Wings' history...

in 1942-1943,Johnny Bowers had six shutouts for the Red Wings,one more shutout than every other NHL team,combined...

Red Wings' history...

the Red Wings moved into the Olympia Stadium,in 1927-1928,and moved out into Joe Louis Arena,early in the 1979-1980 season...

historical trivia answer...

Jack Adams,coach,from 1927-1928,to 1946-47(coach of the year trophy named after him)...
Sid Abel,coach,from part of 1957-1958,to 1967-1968,and part of 1969-1970 season...
Scotty Bowman,coach,from 1993-1994,to 2001-2002(won nine Stanley Cups,with Montreal,Pittsburgh,and Detroit;tied with the great Toe Blake,who coached Montreal)...
Tommy Ivan,coach,from 1947-1948,to 1953-1954....

Red Wings' history...

what are the coaches,in longest tenure,for the Red Wings?

comments from Mike Modano...

after 20 years,Mike Modano said,"it was just strange",to walk out a different tunnel... i have known them for years,and always had some good battles with them,over the years,and they have been competitive and very hard to play against...",speaking of his current teammates,after 20 years,of being a Dallas Stars'/Minnesota North Stars' player,and coming home(born in Livonia,Michigan),and playing for the Red Wings...

Red Wings' history...

Normie Smith had a record of 25-14-9,with a G.A.A.,of 2.05,and the Vezina Trophy,in 1936-1937...

Red Wings' news...

Derek Meech cleared waivers,and he will fight for spot at training camp,in Traverse City... if he does not make team,he will be eligible to be sent to Grand Rapids,with going back on waivers...

Red Wings' history...

in pre-70 game season,the Red Wings won 34 games,in 1948-1949

Red Wings' news...

Kirk Maltby signed an one year,two way contract,with Red Wings;a two way contract is one that is signed to have a "two way",between the NHL club,and the AHL affiliate,in the case of Detroit,it is between Detroit,and Grand Rapids... Maltby will make $500,000,if he makes the Red Wings' roster,or $150,000,if he starts in Grand Rapids...

commentary...

on my rankings,i basically could not put Detroit,or Chicago,below number five to ten,because Chicago Blackhawks are Stanley Cup Champions,and Detroit impresses me to really fight for the Central Division,because Detroit had won eight straight division titles,before Chicago won the Central Division,last year,and both teams may fight for division up to last day of season,this year...

personal rankings of NHL teams...

i will more into detail tomorrow,but here are my rankings:
1)Washington Capitals
2)San Jose Sharks
3)Detroit Red Wings
T)Chicago Blackhawks
5)New Jersey Devils
6)Philadelphia Flyers
7)Phoenix Coyotes
8)Colorado Avalanche
9)Montreal Canadiens
10)Boston Bruins
now we can disagree...

trivia answer...

Ottawa Senators,who scored thirteen fewer goals(225-238),then gave up in their own net,and still won 44 games,and was fifth seed,in the Eastern Conference,and the Montreal Canadiens,who scored six fewer goals,then gave up in their own net(217-223),and was the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference...

NHL trivia...

last season,what two teams had more goals scored against them,then scored for the team,and still made the playoffs?

NHL.com ranking of best players by number-Red Wings ranked

NHL.com ranks the best players by the number on their sweaters... hockey jerseys are known as sweaters,because they used to wear sweaters,when playing hockey... they ranked Nicklas Lidstrom(number 5),Gordie Howe(number 9),Steve Yzerman(number 19),Henrik Zetterberg(number 40),Sergei Fedorov(number 91),Tomas Holmstrom(number 96),as the best to wear their number... they added Brett Hull(number16),Dominik Hasek(number 39),and Larry Murphy(number 55),to the list,and all played for the Red Wings,but the last three names,grew to fame,on different teams... Hull played for the Calgary Flames,St.Louis Blues,and Dallas Stars,early in career,before playing for the Red Wings... he finished with a handful of games in Phoenix... Hasek played for the Chicago Blackhawks,and Buffalo Sabres,before playing in Detroit,a six time Vezina trophy winner,before winning Stanley Cup,in Detroit... Murphy played in Pittsburgh,with Mario Lemieux,and won two Stanley Cups(1991,and 1992),came to Detroit,and won two more Stanley Cups,in 1997,and 1998... besides playing for Detroit,and Pittsburgh,he played for four other teams:Los Angeles Kings,Washington Capitals,Minnesota North Stars,and just before coming to Detroit,he played for the Toronto Maple Leafs,in a 20 year career...

update on rankings of NHL teams...

i will rank the top six NHL teams on Tuesday,and you may be surprised on my rankings... i may extend it to ten teams...

special thank you for fans...

Jaroslav Halak had a very special autograph signing,for about 5,000 fans,in Montreal,to say thank you and good bye,to the fans of the Montreal Canadiens,yesterday,after being traded to the St. Louis Blues,earlier in the offseason... What a class act!!!!!!!

NHL news...

Antti Niemi signed with San Jose,for one year... 16-6,with G.A.A.(goals against average),of 2.63,a save percentage of .910,in Stanley Cup Finals,with two shutouts,and a G.A.A. of 2.25,and save percentage of .912,and with a record of 26-7-4,for Chicago,in the regular season,last season... San Jose has upgraded their goaltending for this season,but it will be mental for them,until they win Western Conference,or make many serious runs at the Stanley Cup,in the coming years,like the Red Wings have done in last 20 years,or so...

NHL news...

the collective bargaining agreement(CBA)have been amended,in terms of long term contracts(five year, or more),and investigations into long term contracts,signed in 2009(Chris Pronger,of the Philadelphia Flyers,Marc Savard,of the Boston Bruins,Roberto Luongo,of the Vancouver Canucks,and Marian Hossa,of the Chicago Blackhawks)have been stopped,and approved,by the NHL... they now conform to the CBA salary cap restrictions...

feature of players that you may not know...

Ruslan Salei,new free agent signed with Detroit,played with Anaheim,Florida,and Colorado,from 1996-1997,to 2009-2010,and is known basically for his toughness,has scored only 194 points in his career... brings a edge to defense that was basically too soft in areas(with the injuries,early in season),at critical times,and in especially the third game,in series against San Jose,which Red Wings had a 3-1 lead,in third period,and basically gave up two goals to tie game,and game winner,which was a beautiful hockey play,have to admit,but basically sunk Red Wings,notwithstanding the heroics of Johan Franzen,with his four goals,in game four,of that series...

NHL news...

NHL approved Ilya Kovalchuk's contract,with New Jersey Devils,but also amended CBA language to deal with long term contracts... terms will be coming tomorrow as i look at NHL.com,and articles...

NHL news...

in an article,in the New York Post,Larry Brooks has said the NHL may want to have contracts looked at,for players over 40 years old,saying that many of the long term contracts may not be legal,in terms of salary cap restrictions... they have,as of this posting,just under eleven hours,to accept Ilya Kovalchuk's new Devils' contract,and that may allow the NHL to look into long-term deals,to void the current player's contract(even signed one,or two years ago),or accept them... scuttlebutt says that the NHL wants to look at Marian Hossa's twelve year contract,with the Chicago Blackhawks,and Roberto Luongo's long term deal with Vancouver Canucks,so they may reject Kovalchuk's new contract(for second time),to give the NHLPA rules to control long term deals with players... if they void Hossa's contract that he signed last year,with Chicago,that will open up a real nasty can of worms,because Chicago won Stanley Cup,with illegal player(in that case,Hossa)... NHL headquarters,and the people,who run the NHL,are real scummy creatures,who want what the NHL want,and screw everybody else,including the fans... sorry,but i would not trust Gary Bettman,and company as far as i can spit,and NHLPA do not have clean hands in this charade...

commentary...

Red Wings will be better this coming up season,than last season,and will be fighting for 2010-2011 Stanley Cup Championship... bring on,NHL!!!!!!!!!!!!

NHL news...

Former Red Wings' coach Jacques Demers faces a third operation,after human error caused two operations,when doctors botched a simple hernia operation,by cutting his intestine,too... may he be blessed... Demers led Montreal Canadiens,as a coach,to 1993 Stanley Cup...

NHL news...

New Jersey Devils' management have submitted a contract to NHL,for Ilya Kovalchuk... when officially approved,and i mean if,because you never know with NHL,terms will be posted on blog...

commentary...

as season approaches,i will have a commentary,and many other things to say on blog... i am a very big fan of the Red Wings,and i analyze the team,as the offseason goes on... i can not wait until October 1st,because i get pumped up,with season,only days away... this season,will be exciting to be in Detroit... the Red Wings will be in the fight for Stanley Cup this season,maybe all the way up to the Stanley Cup Finals,next June...