Tonight: Pittsburgh vs Detroit (7pm VERSUS)
Tomorrow: Calgary vs Anaheim (9pm EST)
Tonight will prove how badly Detroit wants to be in the top eight. Although the Pens have comfortably secured their spot this is a necessary win if the Wings want a chance. The Pens are not the Wings biggest rivalry tonight; throwbacks to Stanley Cup contests may stir the Wings, but they mean nothing when the Calgary Flames are chasing you in an air combat dogfight for 8th. The Flames have played 72 games and are now two points behind the Wings.
Detroit is playing their 72ND game tonight. They need to be in the mind set of this is all or nothing, no leads, no advantages, game over and the fat lady has sung. If the Wings need to pretend that this is game seven of last year to get them motivated and pissed off then so be it, sometime old memories die hard (and who could forget that game).
The choice is theirs. They can win tonight and gain two points to secure their spot or they can play like a bunch pansies and hope that Calgary has one too many Kokanees and throws an egg in tomorrow’s game. Detroit has 11 cups, Calgary has 1. The Flames still have a great coach they don’t want to see filling boxes with pictures of his wife and kids in his office. To even have their eyes on the chalice Calgary needs to fight like hell for 8th and they need to blowtorch the Ducks and eat them for dinner tomorrow night.
Now is not the time for the Wings to squander their one game advantage by sitting back and sipping CC and Coke while they wait for Pittsburgh's charter flight to land. There will be plenty of time for that when the season is over. Tonight is yet another opportunity for them to bank right and get out of the Flames crosshairs. It is up to them when they want their season to end.
Versus, 7pm tonight... Be there! And for those of you without Center Ice, thank GOD theres a network that gives a crap about hockey.
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