What The Hell Happened Last Night?

By Adam W Parks

Tuesday, January 26, 2010 Coyotes 5 @ Red Wings 4 OT

Mike Babcock should change his name to Bob Lawblaw.



Blah, blah, blah. I love Babs. I love his stoic demeanor, how he keeps his emotions in check with the media. But after Tuesday's bumbling and crumbling defeat to Phoenix, a part of me was kinda/sorta hoping to see a bit of a meltdown. You know, NFL style.



After the loss to the 'Yotes, this is how my dream press conference with Babcock would have gone:

Adam: Coach Babcock, why did your team even play that game?

Babcock: You play to win the game.

A: Why have you lost so many two-goal leads recently?

B: I resent you bringing it up.

A: Is it because your team is unable to match the intensity of their opponents?

B: You don't know what you're talking about. You're a jerk.

A: What did you say to the team in the locker room?

B: What do you care?

A: What couldn't your guys do in the last 90 seconds to prevent the Coyotes from scoring two goals?

B: We couldn't do diddly poo.

A: How do you think Wings fans reacted after this loss?

B: I'm sure people vomited in the stands.

A: Where does this leave your team in terms of the playoffs?

B: Playoffs? Don't talk about...Playoffs? You kidding me? Playoffs? I just hope we can win another game!

A: Why are you so highly critical?

B: I'm highly critical because of the way we give games away.

A: In your opinion, what was your opinion of that game?

B: In my opinion: that sucked.


All Joking Aside, I'm Still Pissed

Do I really want to see Babcock have a meltdown? No, of course not. That is not constructive behavior. Do I think that Babs should rip his players, starting with his leaders? Yes, absolutely I do. They deserve it.

This recent complacency that the Wings have demonstrated is enough to drive this writer bananas. If I were in that locker room I'd be tearing it apart, destroying random inanimate objects, and blaming myself before encouraging everyone else to look in the mirror and do the same. Henrik Zetterberg had a different, calmer approach:



Again, like Babcock, it would be nice to see a little more fire in those eyes, hear a little more venom in those words, if only to satiate my own anger and frustration.

A 'What If' Scenario That Pisses Me Off Even More

Here's the skinny over the last six games: Detroit has one victory. They have given up third period leads in four straight and five total. Of those five they won one in a shootout (Minnesota). Of the other four they lost two in regulation (Los Angeles and Washington), and two in a shootout and in overtime (Dallas and Phoenix).

Now let's break down the point dispersal for these five games. The Wings earned two points with the victory over Minnesota, and one point in each of the losses to Dallas and Phoenix. That gives them...2 + 2 = 4...out of a possible ten. Dallas, Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Washington each came away with two points a piece. Minnesota got one. Take Washington out of the equation since they are in the Eastern Conference, and that is still seven total points handed over to in-conference rivals.

Vancouver currently holds the coveted non-divisional winning fourth seed in the Western Conference, while Phoenix retains its grip on the fifth spot. Here is what the standings from the Canucks down to the Wild look like after last night:

4. Vancouver (66)
5. Phoenix (65)
6. Los Angeles (63)
7. Nashville (61)
8. Detroit (59)
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9. Calgary (58)
10. Dallas (55)
11. Anaheim (55)
12 Minnesota (54)

Okay, so here comes the 'What If' scenario I alluded to in the title of this segment. What if the Wings won all five of those games, in which they held the lead in the third period, in regulation? Instead of four points they would have earned ten. Subtract two points away from the Coyotes, Kings, and Stars, and take one away from the Wild. Now look at the 'What If' standings:

4. Vancouver (66)
5. Detroit (65)
6. Phoenix (63)
7. Los Angeles (61)
8. Nashville (61)
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9. Calgary (58)
10. Anaheim (55)
11. Minnesota (53)
12. Dallas (53)

Be honest. That is about where you expected the Wings to be at this point, with all the guys coming back and all. A month ago I would have guessed the seventh or sixth seed at least. As interesting as it is frustrating, this type of analysis surely does not slip by the attention of coaches, but it must be lost on players who have to remain focused, look forward, and learn from, not dwell on, past. Could the Wings have won those four games? Sure. Should the Wings have won those four games? Yes. Does it do any good to spend a bunch of time thinking and writing about it? No. It only pisses me off more. 'What Ifs' should remain relegated to the realm of fiction.

So...Why The Collapse To The Coyotes?

Reasons to answer that question were tossed all around after the game. Here are the top four. The theme is what were the Wings lacking?

1. Confidence:

“You got to do good things over a long period of time in games to earn confidence, and tonight, the last few minutes killed us.” ~Babcock

2. Execution:

“It’s unfortunate, we had won the draw on the tying goal and didn’t execute. Thought we were going to the half-wall and Pav (Datsyuk) would be there to get it out. That never happened, never got it out. Then, they got a bounce when they threw it off Stewie’s skate, came right out front and scored.” ~Babcock

3. Aggressiveness:

“But tonight, when we were ahead 4-2 with about five minutes left, we got a little tentative instead of going after them.” ~Babcock

4: Desperation:

“We got to play with a little more desperation out there.” ~Jimmy Howard

Peace.