It's going to be a depressing Spring. We've become accustomed in this area to endure the dreary winter months on the hope that Spring would yield exciting, lengthy playoff runs by the Pistons & Wings. In recent years, we've even had reasons to be hopeful about the Tigers. In fact, the Tigers had the entire city decked out in Tiger caps and uniforms for opening day '08. I hadn't seen that much excitement for April baseball since '84.
This year will be starkly different. Opening Day will have its share of patrons, but they'll be there for tradition, not to see the baseball team. Any bullpen with Rodney as closer has to be considered a candidate for last place. The team is back to early-2000 levels of poor contract management. Following the buy high, sell low practices that once yielded the albatross contracts of Damion Easley and Bobby Higginson, Dombrowski now wakes up every morning staring at $14million for Sheffield (released), $10million for Dontrelle (anxiety disorder), $7million for Nate (long reliever?), and $6.3million for Inge (.205 BA). All that would be forgotten if they actually won. It'll take a miracle (or an actual closer).
Last year's Stanley Cup champions the Red Wings find themselves losers of 4 of 5. In the past two losses, they've given up 3 goals in the 3rd period. They are 20th in the league in Goals-against - though, to be fair, they're first in the NHL in goals-scored (by quite a significant margin). But it's not goals that win the Stanley Cup. They'll never escape the first round with the defense in its current state. There's hope they'll flip the switch and somehow provide the suffocating defense of years past, but they've shown no signs of that level of commitment this season. And Osgood and Conklin look about as reliable as my Buick.
On to the sorriest state of affairs - my beloved Pistons. The franchise simply attracts drama. Yet, this season, instead of a championship run, followed by a summer of drama, it's going to be a sub-500 finish and perhaps a major implosion at 5 Championship Lane. We all know Curry should be let go, but is Dumars job safe? The hiring of Curry, followed by the disastrous trade for AI, and the continued mismanagement of Richard Hamilton would be grounds for dismissal for a lesser GM. I'd say Dumars deserves another year. Can he parlay the cap space into a big man? Does he have the cajones to fire his bud, Curry? Can he find a coach to actually help Stuckey improve? The team is in shambles, and, for the first time since George Irvine, the players look like they hate their job.
So, let's hope for sunny weather this Spring, cuz there aint no reason to stay inside!
Great posting, doctor sports. I have to admit, that while I'd like to get all my Detroit sports information from the great folks at www.thatballdontlie.com, I occasionally visit other news sources. It was during one of these rare excursions that I perused an espn.com article on the Wings. Babcock appears to be getting more vocal in his opinion that the current play of the Red Wings is disappointing and unacceptable. Thus far, it appears that he's shouldering the blame -- or pointing the finger at himself and the staff for the disappointing product on the ice. How that translates to the locker room remains to be seen. He came out and said that there's no "switch" you can flip when the puck drops on the second season. Let's hope he can light a fire, I think that's one thing he can do better than the men he followed.
ReplyDeleteAll that said, at some point the Wings' season is going to end (hopefully late in June with the Cup driving down Woodward). When that happens it looks like they have to address what to do with the Mule. I think the dude is amazing, but then again, I thought the same thing about a certain wearer of the 55 jersey many years ago. Your thoughts?
It wasn't too long ago that the Pistons fell prey to the same criticism. They'd take the first three quarters off and then "flip the switch" and eke out a win in the 4th. I have no doubt that championship-caliber teams simply can't motivate themselves for all 82 games. Yet, instead of taking portions of games off, the wings defense has been absent all season. Even the greatest defenseman of my generation, Nick Lidstrom, has committed awful turnovers and is not even in consideration for the Norris.
ReplyDeleteCan they flip the switch? Definitely. Yet, I'm not convinced they have the mental fortitude to commit to defense for an entire game, let alone an entire series. If they run into a hot goalie (which is a guarantee), their frustration may lead to defensive lapses. If Osgood can't bail them out, they'll be done quickly, especially if they have to play the likes of Anaheim in the 1st round. For such an amazing hockey season - can't argue with 49 wins - nobody in the D believes they'll win the Cup. Nobody has faith in Ozzie.
As for the Mule, the latest I heard is that he's close to signing. I had a feeling Holland would pursue the Mule first and then try to finangle a way to keep Hossa in town. Depending on who they have to give up, it's imperative they keep at least one of the two. Huira mentioned all season long that the Mule is just as valuable as Hossa, because the Mule gets those sloppy, gritty playoff goals. When Holmstrom retires (he's 35), the Wings will need a Mule to muck up in front of the net. He's invaluable. And how about that goal from last night? Speaking of which, I think I'll put it up on the site...