Not to jinx anyone or anything at this very early stage... but this is encouraging:
Note that four of the top ten in ESPN's power rankings are in the Central Division, which is shaping up to be the usual, customary, and reasonable dogfight. Only poor Columbus fails to make the top ten... coming in at number 16, which is pretty danged respectable, actually. The Central is tough. And Chicago? Wassup with them 'Hawks?
Further on the Wings... The injury bug hasn't bitten down hard on them as yet, but it has taken a nibble. Well, a bit more than a nibble:
- D Brian Rafalski (knee) had arthroscopic surgery on Oct. 12 and will be out until early November.
- RW Kris Draper (groin) was injured Sept. 19 in training camp. He had surgery for a sports hernia on Oct. 21 and is expected to miss an additional four-to-six weeks.
- C Justin Abdelkader (ribs) was injured during a preseason game on Oct. 2. He is practicing and hopes to return on Thursday.
- D Jonathan Ericsson (back spasms) was injured on Oct. 8. He hopes to return next week.
Losing two of your top four D-men would literally kill most teams but the Wings seem to be keepin' on keepin' on. We're holdin' our breath, so to speak, coz staying healthy is the key to the Wings' season. I have an immediate grasp of the obvious... it's one of my better qualities. (Injury report from Yahoo! sports)
Here's what the Western Conference looks like today...
That ain't half-bad as far as the Wings are concerned, either. But it ain't too good if you're a 'Hawks fan. Or a member of the Chicago sports press, who are not amused. Already. Sometimes it's NOT good to be the king, no matter what Mel Brooks sez. Heh. We SHALL rag on those guys for more than a little while. We'll close with the usual disclaimer: there's still a lot o' hockey to be played. 75 games for the Wings, in fact. So far so good!
Let's Go Red Wings!
I'm into being contrarian today:
ReplyDeleteAside from Rafalski, I don't see any interesting injuries on that list.
And I ask, though my common sense BEGS me not to: If you could be even remotely impartial for a minute, wouldn't you agree that Kronwall gets an almost Ovechkin-level pass from critics when it comes to hitting? He consistently leads with his elbow and leaves his feet. That hit on Selanne - I'm watching him jump off the ice and into Teemu's grille, and reading people - including Babcock, who I really like - saying he didn't leave his feet. That's just plain denying reality.
Now...GO!
Bruins are off to the good start, notwithstanding Rask being winless. Could be a fun season :-)
ReplyDeleteThe vid of the Kronwall - Selanne hit is here. I've watched that hit several times and Kronwall did NOT leave his feet when he hit Selanne, and he led with his shoulder. He (K) came off the ice AFTER he made impact, but his skates were on the ice when he hit Selanne... with his shoulder. So Babcock was right: it was a hockey play. And that's about as objective as I can get.
ReplyDeleteJim: Your B's are gonna be in cap trouble soon.
I like that hockey still recognizes ties. It make things more interesting than some lame sudden death thing.
ReplyDeleteAh, but hockey doesn't recognize ties any longer, Moogie. The third number is for an OT loss, in which a single point is awarded. We go to a five minute OT, four-on-four, and then a shootout if the OT doesn't resolve things, to determine who gets the two points. It's still sudden death, and it's still lame.
ReplyDeleteI'll watch it again when I get home - firewall at work here hates the videos.
ReplyDeleteHeck. Now I'm disappointed.
ReplyDelete