Nov. 20 :: Feelin’ Down ‘n Dirty

IT’S TIME I HAD A GOOD TIME, AIN’T GOT TIME TO WASTE
The Wings close out their first Western road trip by playing old friends, the Ducks. Puck drops at 8pm Eastern. If the Wings can play like they did yesterday, they should be able to handle the Ducks, who are struggling in the early going as well.

IT’S ALWAYS NEW TO ME
:: Detroit beat Los Angeles, 4-1, last night.
:: Anaheim played Los Angeles on Thursday, dropping it 5-3.
:: This is the second game of the season between these two clubs. The last, on November 5th, ended the Wings’ six-game slide and introduced a four-game win streak. Jimmy Howard earned his second shutout of the season, and your five goals were scored by Lidstrom (two), Franzen, Zetterberg, and Kronwall. I was spared from being slandered.

SEEIN’ DOUBLE DOUBLE
If you don’t think Devante Smith-Pelley has the best name on this squad, you’re a Commie. And not the shitty hockey player the Red Wings signed this summer for some reason.

I WANNA STICK AROUND TIL I CAN’T SEE STRAIGHT
Red Wings coach Mike Babcock was behind Anaheim’s bench between 2002 and 2004 before saying “enough of this shit” and headed to greener pastures. Both Todd Bertuzzi and Drew Miller spent time as members of the Ducks.

NO DISGUISE
There are currently no former Wings in Anaheim.

LITTLE HISTORY LESSON
It’s been two years since Niklas Kronwall’s knee exploded in Montreal. And three years since Andreas Lilja’s appendix nearly exploded.

TONIGHT’S THE NIGHT I’M GONNA PUSH IT TO THE LIMIT
By post time, there was no announcement with regards to the lineup, so I’m just playing the odds here.
Todd Bertuzzi :: Pavel Datsyuk :: Johan Franzen
Valtteri Filppula :: Henrik Zetterberg :: Dan Cleary
Justin Abdelkader :: Darren Helm :: Jiri Hudler
Drew Miller :: Cory Emmerton :: Patrick Eaves

Nicklas Lidstrom :: Johnny Shitbox
Brendan Smith :: Niklas Kronwall
Jakub Kindl :: Brad Stuart

Jimmy Howard
Ty Conklin

SCRATCHES
Jan Mursak [left ankle]
Ian White [face!]
Mike Commodore
Tomas Holmstrom
Fabian Brunnstrom

The TPL Name Game “Three Stars”
Just like last season, submit your nickname suggestions (follow the theme!), and we’ll use our Facebook page to allow people to vote for the best… the winner gets a free TPL t-shirt!
PETRELLA: Darren “I Live All of My Years in a Single Minute” Helm
HOLLIS: Johan “I’ve Been From One to Another Extreme” Franzen
DISCH: Todd “Feelin’ Kinda Mean” Bertuzzi
STEVIE: Darren “My Mind Is Racing But My Body’s In the Lead” Helm

NEVER KNEW MORE THAN I REALLY NEED
:: All Eyez on Z: Pavel answered the bell yesterday, scoring a pair and generally looking like he’s tired of not knowing what the team’s identity is going to be. Hank, on the other hand, has left a lot to be desired. The focus will be squarely on the other alternate captain (the other two scored against LA), and coach even put him on notice.
:: It’s the second half of back-to-back to games. Traditionally, Coach Babcock likes to rotate his goalies in this situation, but both halves of the last two back-to-backs have been started by Jimmy Howard. No word yet who will start against Anaheim, but if it’s Howard, it’ll be the third time he’s played both halves of a back-to-back since Ty Conklin’s last start (October 25th).
:: Todd Bertuzzi had a strong game yesterday, despite not getting onto the scoreboard. He’ll need to bring the same kind of energy, and hopefully the rest of the team will follow his example (yeah, I just wrote that).
:: Brendan Smith stays in the lineup after a much stronger second game than the first. He’s learning quick and he’s taking advantage of his amazing on-the-job training opportunity. Here’s hoping he continues to show why he’s been the blue chipper in the system for a few years.
:: If I were a betting man, I’d say that Eaves is back in and Holmstrom comes out, since it was essentially decided that Homer won’t play both games in back-to-back situations.

MUSICAL INSPIRATION