12/15 :: Pretty Little Thing Lemme Light Your Candle Cuz Mama I’m Sure Hard to Handle Now

HEY THERE, HERE I AM
The Wings crash into Smashville, and you can catch the game on FSD and FS-Tennessee which will be taking a break from their usual programming: noodling, NASCAR, punkin’ chunkin’, oil prospectin’, wife beating, Bible reading, and the Racism Olympiad.

The shiny black disc drops when the little hand is on the eight, y’all.

TAKE MY HAND, DON’T BE AFRAID
:: Detroit put a spanking on Pittsburgh, 4-1, on Tuesday evening for their third win in a row, and tenth in the last twelve.
:: Nashtucky squeaked one out against the Flames, 2-1, also on Tuesday.
:: This will be the second meeting of the season between the Central Division foes. The first was on November 26th — a 4-1 victory for the Red Wings on the strength of goals by Dan Cleary, Henrik Zetterberg, and a pair from Val Filppula. You may remember it as the game that Patrick Eaves took some rubber to his beautiful, beautiful kisser.

MR. PITIFUL
Anders Lindback is the best name nominee (displacing Francis BOOYAH!), the backup goaltender for the Predators, and was also the guy whose face melts off in Raiders of the Lost Ark.

I KNOW YOU GOT ANOTHER MAN…
No one in Nashville has ties to the Red Wings, but David Legwand is a native Detroiter.

…BUT I CAN LOVE YOU BETTER THAN HIM
Likewise, no one in Detroit has ties to the Predators. At least until next season when Shea Weber is blasting pucks through nets in red and white. And no, not Team Canada, suckas!

BOYS WILL COME A DIME BY THE DOZEN
Todd Bertuzzi :: Pavel Datsyuk :: Johan Franzen
Jiri Hudler :: Valtteri Filppula :: Henrik Zetterberg
Dan Cleary :: Darren Helm :: Justin Abdelkader
Tomas Holmstrom :: Cory Emmerton :: Drew Miller

Nicklas Lidstrom :: Ian White
Brad Stuart :: Niklas Kronwall
Jakub Kindl :: Jonathan Ericsson

Jimmy Howard
Ty Conklin

THAT AIN’T NOTHIN’ BUT DRUG STORE LOVIN’
Jan Mursak [left ankle – two weeks]
Patrick Eaves [jaw – over a month]
Mike Commodore
Tomas Tatar

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: Jiri “When I Get Done Throwin’ It On You, You’ve Got To Come Back For More” Hudler
HOLLIS: House Huntin’
DISCH: Brad “Try a Little Tenderness” Stuart
STEVIE: Calendar Makin’

FIVE HOLE
:: J.T. Howard in the nets again after rocking a stellar campaign against the Penguins. The League leader in wins will go for #19 tonight and is on pace for 51 if he continues to start and win at the same rate as he is now. The record is 48.
:: In a move that has gone larger unnoticed, Jonathan Ericsson was dropped to the third defensive pairing, joining Jakub Kindl. Some are hypothesizing it’s to reunite Stuart and Kronwall, but I’d like to pose another theory: Jonathan Ericsson fucking sucks and everyone else is finally noticing.
:: Continuing a theme we’re tracking… of the twelve forwards in the lineup as of last game: ELEVEN have scored at least once in the last three games. The only straggler? Justin Abdelkader — who has gone twelve without potting one. Just so we’re clear, that’s amazing.
:: In a flip-flop of an earlier-season storyline: the defense has cooled off nearly completely. After being responsible for more than 50% of the teams’ goals in the early going, it’s been five games since ANY blueliner got on the board (Jakub Kindl). The goal-less streak for the six: Kindl (5), Ericsson (6), White (9), Stuart (10), Kronwall (11), and — finally — Nick Lidstrom (16)
:: In what can be called a “shocking” development, Chris Conner was placed on short-term injured reserve with a fractured hand sustained in the Penguins game. There’s a second unnamed player who may not be able to go tonight, with an undisclosed injury, and as a result, Tomas Tatar was called up from the Griffins. If said player can play, Tatar will be returned to Grand Rapids.

MUSICAL INSPIRATION