Premier Dynasty of Era? Red Wings Making Case

CHICAGO -- They are a mind-numbing machine, really, almost monotonous in their dominance, discipline and staying power. Sport in the 21st century isn't conducive to a dynasty lasting a dozen years, but the winged-wheel jersey and slimy octopus of the Detroit Red Wings have been lodged in our consciousness since 1997, good for four Stanley Cups and maybe a fifth next month.

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Is it boring to see them in the conference finals eight times in the last 14 seasons, including the last three? Yeah, I detect a nationwide yawn. A little dull to see the same Euro-procession of Zetterbergs, Franzens, Filppulas and Lidstroms? Yeah, I got a lot more jazzed watching Alex Ovechkin duel Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin. But in the city where the American automobile died, this hockey engine is in position to do more damage than the New England Patriots, San Antonio Spurs and any other team in the same span. I believe we're looking at the premier sports franchise in this country, and if you doubt that, you should have seen how the Wings systematically rubbed out the NHL's darling upstarts, the Chicago Blackhawks, and reduced the restored roar in the United Center to a resigned hush Sunday.

They would have been excused if they'd struggled in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals. Having suffered a bad overtime loss two nights earlier, the Wings were without two of their best players: Nicklas Lidstrom, the six-time Norris Trophy winner, who sat with that uniquely vague hockey injury known simply as "lower body;" and Hart Memorial Trophy candidate Pavel Datsyuk, who has scored only one postseason goal and missed the game with a foot problem. They also were without Kris Draper, meaning coach Mike Babcock had to use replacements who have spent most of the season playing for the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League. Meanwhile, the 'Hawks were charged up after a crushing Game 3 hit to the head of their leading playoff scorer, Martin Havlat, by Detroit's Niklas Kronwall. "I thought it was gutless all around," said 'Hawks defenseman Brian Campbell, who is known around the league for his own history of cheap shots.

But it was the Wings who showed up with the energy, speed and savvy, teaching lessons to enemy lads who came out chippy and antagonistic -- and paid for their errant priorities in a wicked 6-1 loss. "We just tried to play with poise. We knew they were coming," said Henrik Zetterberg, who scored twice. "They basically didn't have anything else they could do. I think the refs did a good job and made the right calls. We just pay attention to ourselves and play the way we want. We don't care so much about what they're doing."



'Hawks coach Joel Quenneville wasn't so fond of the officiating, delivering a postgame rant that sounded more like whiny sour grapes and utter frustration than anything rational. At the end of the first period, Chicago's Matt Walker was whistled for roughing Darren Helm during a tussle. The penalty left the 'Hawks short-handed at the start of the second period, and Filppula took advantage with a power-play goal a minute and 13 seconds later that gave Detroit a 3-0 lead.

"I think we witnessed the worst call in the history of sports," Quenneville barked. "They ruined a good hockey game, and they absolutely destroyed what was going on on the ice. We tried to find a way to fight through it. That call, I've never seen anything like it."

He also moped about not getting a couple of other calls when the real issue was his substitute goaltender, Cristobal Huet, who wound up being yanked after allowing four goals on Detroit's first 17 shots. Huet had replaced Nikolai Khabibulin, who was out with -- all together now -- a lower-body situation, and Huet was replaced with 15:55 left in the second period by Corey Crawford, who allowed another goal before Huet returned for the third period. Yes, Chicago has a goaltending problem, which Quenneville realizes but didn't want to address because there's still at least one more game.

Look, Joel, if we're going to discuss the history of sports, let's talk about the Red Wings and their place in it. It's a system that started when Scotty Bowman, now with the 'Hawks in an administrative role, was coaching the Wings in the mid-90s. With owner Mike Ilitch never afraid to spend megabucks, the Wings bought the best talent. But even when the league has had salary-cap restrictions, they've still won because of their scouting and philosophy. The system centers on sacrificing one's self for the greater good, with veterans leading by example and teaching the Hockeytown way and tradition to younger players. They've been the one Original Six franchise that has boomed consistently for two decades, and though the city of Detroit has fallen into despair, the Wings remain a prime destination for elite free agents, including Marian Hossa.

Last summer, Hossa left the Penguins to sign a one-year contract with the Wings. If he keeps performing as he did Sunday, he could be the tipping point in the Pittsburgh rematch. Chicago's best chance to win and tie the series came on a power play eight minutes into the first period, when the puck got past Detroit goalie Chris Osgood and rested tantalizingly about two inches from the goal line as a couple of seconds ticked by. As we've seen through the years, the crisis was averted when a Detroit defenseman flicked the puck away from danger, and seconds later, Hossa took a sweet pass from Valtteri Filppula and scored his first of two goals. To follow a close call with a short-handed goal is vintage Wings. It explains why they now lead the series 3-1, with a chance to close out the 'Hawks on Wednesday night in Joe Louis Arena. Assuming they do that, they'll likely meet Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins in a rematch of last year's Stanley Cup finals, with the Wings trying to become the first team to repeat as Cup champions since their double in 1997 and 1998.

"The big thing here today was, as people leave your lineup, you're very conscious of the fact you'd better not play catchup," said Babcock, who didn't know about Lidstrom's absence until he received a call while riding a cab to the arena. "I told the guys that I thought we showed we're a great team. Great teams find a way to overcome anything. I said, 'Let's find a way to dig out of it.' People talk about skill, but at this time of the year, it's all about will, determination and execution."

"We were missing key players on our team. We had to step up," said Hossa who also has struggled to score in the postseason. "I knew I just had to drive to the net more, be more dangerous, be a little more physical. I told myself to play more relaxed and with my instinct."

Regardless of whether you think the Kronwall hit was dirty -- Havlat's head was down, and NBC's Mike Milbury was among those calling it a good, clean hockey play, if also a bit wicked -- the 'Hawks showed their inexperience in allowing it to bother them. Of all people, Campbell demanded a suspension for Kronwall, the same Campbell who leveled Philadelphia's R.J. Umberger in the 2006 playoffs with one of the dirtiest hits imaginable. "It's a head shot," Campbell said. "Or it's just an illegal hit all around. Hit with your shoulder, that's how you're supposed to hit, and finish guys. We've talked about it as a league and as players. I'm on the competition committee, so we've talked about it. We did a league-wide vote, the players want it stopped; they want the fines and suspensions to be there. I don't know what the percentage was, at least 70 percent of players that wanted it addressed with a stiffer penalty. But it keeps happening."

Replied Babcock: "I thought it was a great hockey hit. So far from being gutless, it's not even funny. He did it right. He didn't leave his feet. The puck was right in between the guy's feet. I mean, no way."

The league stood by its officials and didn't issue a suspension. If commish Gary Bettman and the boys are interested in protecting the head and brain, yes, there should have been a suspension. Havlat played Sunday and was among those looking for retaliation at times. The tactics were ill-advised, clouding the 'Hawks' focus in the defining game of the series. Of the 231 teams that have fallen behind 3-1 in an NHL playoff series, only 21 have come back to win. The 'Hawks won't be the 22nd.

That isn't to say they haven't been overly impressive in the big picture. if you want a blueprint on how to resurrect a dead sports franchise, the 'Hawks have provided a masterpiece. Two years ago, when Old Man Bill Wirtz was running the franchise into the ground, the team sold only 3,400 season tickets yet continued the dumbest marketing practice in the history of sports -- no home games on TV -- because Wirtz was protecting the season-ticket holders. Not until Wirtz died could his son, Rocky, save hockey in a major market. He immediately arranged for home telecasts, then hired John McDonough to be president -- the same marketing guru who created the mystique of Wrigley Field as a global shrine and fun zone. In the same time frame, general manager Dale Tallon drafted Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, who have become instant cornerstones for the franchise. The 'Hawks will win a Stanley Cup soon, maybe next year, and they deserve some sort of prize for what Forbes.com calls "the greatest sport-business turnaround ever."

But for now, they must wait and walk the gauntlet. The Red Wings won't relinquish what is theirs until another team is legitimately better. Chicago is not better, and, in all likelihood, Pittsburgh is not better.

"Let's not get carried away here," Babcock warned.

Sorry, I can't help it. This is the best ongoing dynasty in sports. And it's time we appreciate the winged wheel and what it defines, even if the octopus thing is kind of dopey and sick.