Motor City or Land of the Lost?
April 27th, 2010, 12:02 pm
One more win for Dave Tippett before Derek Morris turns into a pumpkin
The waiting will be over tonight. We’ll soon know who the Sharks will be hosting for the next round of The Road to the Cup – will it be our long time nemesis, Detroit, or the upstart Home of the Players No One Else Wanted, Phoenix. I know who I’m rooting for tonight.
Phoenix.
The Red Wings carry a mental hurdle for the San Jose Sharks players and fans – and I know we saw in the first round that this team is strong enough to overcome adversity and they should be commended for it. Key players had some extreme ups and some lowly lows and rebounded nicely, but some never snapped out of it (I’m looking at you Patty). Thanks to mental toughness and a little paranormal intervention, the Sharks won – but here’s the real reason why I want Phoenix and it’s simple. We had a hell of a time with Detroit this year, 1-2-1 in four games, and while Phoenix gave us a hard time the first two games, the Sharks have beaten them four times in a row.
It’s just that simple. If I ‘m trying to get to the giant plate of delicious prime rib, I’m not going to climb eight flights of stairs- I’m going to take the elevator….or something like that. The goal here is to win the Cup, not take the most honorable journey towards getting it. No one remembers who you beat in Round 1 or 2 or 3 – they remember the image of the player holding the Cup high in the air and the championship banner. Do you remember who Detroit beat on their way to winning the Cup in 2008? The #8 seeded Predators, the #6 seeded Avalanche and the #5 seeded Stars. They didn’t have to play the Sharks or the 2007 champions, the Ducks – both were already gone. I don’t remember any Wings fans begging for Pronger and the Ducks, do you?
So – Can we beat Detroit? Um….I think so…I hope so?
Can we beat Phoenix? Absolutely.
Bring on the Land of the Lost and let’s hope the Coyotes pull off an upset befitting of their Cinderella season – and then we’ll smack that ho-bag all the way back to Winnipeg. I’ll be rooting for Phoenix tonight and Vancouver for the next two weeks and I’ll hope the Penguins and Capitals sink like the Titanic too. I want a Cup and I don’t care if we take the elevator to get it.
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I know who I’m rooting for.
It’s been a good series and it’ll all hinge on Jimmy Howard tonight. If he plays well, the Wings win. If he doesn’t, then Phoenix will take it home. The Coyotes have put themselves in a good spot and have fought hard for this. I can’t take anything away from what they’ve done this season or in this series. It should be another good game.
Doug I agree only to a point. Sure i’d like an easy route to the cup, but that isn’t going to happen.
For me at this point it is a win-win situation for us. Either way we get at team that will have played a 7 game series, Hopefully a triple-OT game 7..;)… If Detroit loses then win! Love to see them lose in the first round! But if the Wings lose, then great again! We get to kick motown right in the nuts!
Tom, both your win scenarios involve the Wings losing, which I agree is the greater win. I’m really not interested in slaying any dragons when we can walk around the outside of the moat and battle, well, a coyote. enough said.
To elaborate more on the march of the Wings in 2008.
They beat the 8th seeded Predators in the first round.
They beat an Avs team that was riddled with injuries after getting beat to a pulp against the Wild. Everybody was hurt.
They beat a Stars team that just came off a 4 OT loss to the Sharks and didn’t get their feet under them until game 4.
Then they beat an inexperienced Penguins team from the east, who were really good, but still had some growing to do.
If the Sharks do draw Detroit, I may have to cover my eyes every time Murray is on the ice with Datsyuk or Zetterburg. COnsidering how tough of a time he had with Stastny et al, it could be brutal.
In the end, Sharks have the talent to beat either team. As has been shown, I don’t think Detroit is markedly better than Phoenix, and beating Detroit would be a huge boost to the Sharks psyche. To me, the downside of playing what is perceived as a better team is outweighed by the positive confidence boost and the fact that Detroit isn’t the juggernaut they used to be. Mystique and Aura are strippers, not advantages in a hockey game.
And, yes, Sharks fans will definitely remember beating Detroit on their way to their first Stanley Cup final. It would be a post season of total exorcism (assuming HTML don’t continue to screw the pooch).
P.S. That is not to say Detroit isn’t very very good. Its more that I think Phoenix is just as good and the Sharks are better.
End of 2nd… 4-1 Detroit. We can and will beat them.
Now will the NHL screw us and go with a Sunday game one, allowing Detroit to rest up and prepare? If so, how much will we Sharks fans hate The Eagles? And what the hell were the schedule makers at HP Pavilion thinking booking them on a two night gig this time of year?