Mental Breakdown

What can I possibly say about that game. They played two phenomenal periods. The best hockey I have seen in quite some time. I actually said to the people watching with me, this is the first real Red Wings game I have seen all season. Honestly. They dominated play. They were quick through the neutral zone, they drove the net, they killed some fucking penalties, everyone backchecked......well until the third period anyway. Then they had some sort of mental breakdown....

Here are a few random notes from the game....not that it actually matters I suppose:

Leino has turned out to be a surprisingly gritty player. He fights for the puck along the boards and in front of the net. Now if only he would stop hesitating and shoot the puck quicker...

Helm and Abdelkader have quite a chemistry on the ice and worked really well together during the first goal.

Kronwall had a nice hit on Quincey....sure he wasn't Kronwalled, but that kid fucking bitches about everything I can only imagine the crying that would have taken place had Kronwall really gotten a piece of him.

In my novice opinion, May won his fight with McLeod....however McLeod won overall with a two goal game

This was one of the first games where I did not yell something profane and inappropriate at Brett Lebda...

And then well, the prolific mental collapse takes place. Pathetic. They need to find some way to stop blowing leads. To put together a full 60 minute effort. If I had a dollar or a shot for every time I wrote "a full 60 minute effort," I would be either incredibly rich or piss drunk....

Both George at Snapshots and Matt at On the Wings make a strong argument that this road trip may be exactly what the team needs. There are many new, and some young faces, on the team and this may be a chance for them to bond. To braid hair, have pillow fights, play light as a feather stiff as a board, learn the magical secrets that Filppula's hair contains, begin to finally understand what the fuck Homer is saying, and really just bond as a team. Form their own identity. It isn't something that they have had to do as a team in quite some time....and they better do it fast.

Next game is Thursday. This gives Babcock and the team a chance to figure out what the fuck is going on, it gives Datsyuk's sprained shoulder a chance to heal, and it gives them the opportunity to prepare for a surprisingly competitive Phoenix team. Oh that's right, what keeps me going during these dark, challenging Red Wings days...knowing that I will FINALLY get to see them play live again...can't wait.