Message sent, Message delivered

Well, I think the message from Mike Babcock truly got through to the Wings, and they in turn sent a message to the rest of the league Sunday.

It may have only been one win, but to take down one of the top teams in the entire league should have the rest of the NHL taking notice.

Detroit’s 5-4 win against he Blackhawks in Chicago was HUGE!!!

Not only did it earn them two valuable points, but it could also be the springboard that gets this team back to playing like the Heroes of Hockeytown should. The victory reminded me of the 1997 Red Wings’ win over Colorado. You remember, the one where Darren McCarty made the big bully Claude Le-puke turtle one year after he turned Kris Draper’s face into a jigsaw puzzle. In that same brawl Mike Vernon took on Patrick ‘Roy-ng (pronounced Wrong) at center ice.

In that game, the wings earned their first victory over the Avs since the regular season of 1996. For most Wing fans and the players themselves, that win was the official start of the Red Wings run to their first Stanley Cup since the 1950′s.

The signficance of that win 13 years ago was that it showed the Wings that they could beat their hated rivals, and it brought them together the way they needed to be to make a serious run at The Cup.

Although there was no huge brawl Sunday, the win has to be a confidence builder for Detroit. It’s kind of like in Rocky IV during Rocky’s fight against Drago. At one point in fight after Rocky seems to be the one taking all of the punishment, while his punches seem to have no effect on the big Russian, the Italian Stallion finally busts Drago open with a shot under the eye. That’s when during the break between rounds, Rocky’s trainer Duke says, “You see? You see? He’s not a machine, he’s a man, he’s a man.”

Of course, like in every movie of the series, Rocky goes out and does the impossible, beating a seemingly stronger opponent.

I think after this win on Sunday, Mike Babcock can play the role of Duke and tell his team that the Blackhawks are a team just like themselves, and not the unstoppable machine many may think they are.

Now lets hope that the Big Red Machine can keep chugging along over these last remaining games and ,regardless of where they finish, make another memorable playoff run.

Wingnut5013