The Big Chill at the Big House...

I couldn't have asked for a better Saturday. I began the day in Ann Arbor for the Big Chill, and finished it at the casino for a Wings viewing party. Both of my teams won big, and I had a great time. Here are some quick notes from the Big Chill:

• I knew the day was going to be great when my car's shuffle started playing Bob Seger's “Mainstreet” just as I turned onto Ann Arbor's Main Street. Technically, the song's written about a place on Ann Street, but I was close enough.
• The atmosphere in Ann Arbor was incredible leading up to the game. I've never tailgated before a hockey game before, so that was a new experience. I had a good time, even though I was surrounded by Spartan fans.
• We were ecstatic to discover the Arby's curly fries mascot at the fan fest before the game.
• I'd already seen the ice when I was there earlier in the week, but I'd only been on the field that night. Walking into the stadium through the stands was a whole different experience. Over the years, I've gotten used to the spectacle that is the Big House on game days, and seeing the stadium full had kind of become routine. Seeing the rink laid out in front of me in the middle of the field was a completely different experience, though. It was kind of surreal.
• Liz and I had great seats (well, spots to stand, really—nobody sits). We were in the seventh row at the faceoff dot in the Spartans' end.

• I really, really, really love fireworks. I don't know why, but I suspect it has something to do with Disney. I also love hockey and the Big House. Combining all three in one epic event was pretty awesome. The fireworks at the end weren't necessarily spectacular, but seeing them launched from the new towers over the stadium with the lights dimmed was very cool.  Here's a short video I took of part of the show.
• I looked like an idiot during the second intermission because there was only one other person near me dancing along to the Blues Brothers. I was across the stadium from the student section, so I shot a quick video of the beginning of the dance. It's not very long, because I wanted to put the camera down and join in.
• I was, of course, standing on the bleachers as I danced, and it wasn't until halfway through the song that I realized the guy behind me had taken a seat and, well, you figure it out.
• I've seen other flyovers before, but the stealth bomber before the game was really neat to see. It seemed more like a glider than a jet.
• I got a close-up shot of Mickey Redmond and his hat. I had no idea what it said at the time, but I remarked to Liz that it looked like he was a Russian submarine captain. It wasn't until I got home that I could read that it said “Redmondov.” This has sparked so many questions. Why? Why does that exist? Please tell me that there was an explanation somewhere in the broadcast that I missed.
• After the fourth goal, Liz was just hoping for an MSU goal so that she could celebrate with her “Go Green/Go White” mittens. I was hoping for another UofM goal so that my “Go Blue” mittens could be used to their full effect for the “more goals” cheer when number five was announced. I got my wish. She didn't get hers.
• The only thing that could've made the day better is snow. I was really hoping for some, but I'll have to settle for the short flurry that we saw during the skate last week.
• I loved that the student section got the wave going. The Big House is the only place in which I approve of the wave, and the slow wave holds a special place in my heart.
• The announced attendance was over 113,000 people, but Guinness is only certifying 85,000 people. I'm not sure how you lose almost 30,000 people, but I guess they make the rules. The Big House didn't look full to capacity, but it was pretty darn close. I call shenanigans.
• The NHL would be insane not to bite on the chance to try to one-up the event with a Winter Classic there. Which, actually, is a pretty good reason for not getting your hopes up about it happening.
• The last thirty seconds on the PK were incredibly stressful. I wanted Michigan to hold onto the shutout so badly. Little things like that make me like hockey even more. What other sport gets your heart pumping like that in the dying seconds of a blowout? There's always something on the line.
• Everything was perfect, from the weather to the score to the enormity of the event. I'll never forget it.

All of my pictures are over at Photobucket.

Skating at the Big House...

I was lucky enough to win some passes to a private skate at the Big House tonight (Thanks, Olympia Entertainment.  That's the only connection this post has to the Red Wings, so feel free to move along if you're not interested in college hockey.). I made the trek to Ann Arbor with Liz to check out the set-up for the Big Chill. It was amazing. I was already excited for the game on Saturday, but after being there and seeing the set up, I absolutely cannot wait. It's going to be epic in every way imaginable. Seeing the ice surface right smack in the middle of the Big House is surreal. I can't even imagine what it's going to look like when the stadium is full on Saturday.

I got to skate on the ice for about 45 minutes, which is one of the cooler things I've gotten to do. I hadn't skated in over a year, so it was nice to put my skates on and get back out there. There weren't very many people at the skate, so the ice was free and clear and I had a good time. I shot a couple of videos as I was skating, and I have to say that it's pretty impressive that I didn't fall while taking them.

Another highlight was the free Tim Horton's donunts and hot chocolate. I was in the process of determining how many cups of hot chocolate it would be socially acceptable to take on my way out, but they packed it up and I didn't get one for the road. You can see in this picture here how excited I was about the Timbit I was eating:

It was a gorgeous night out there and it even snowed for a few minutes. The word “picturesque” comes to mind. It was very cold, and there was a strong wind coming out of the north. If you're heading out to the game, dress warmly, especially if you find yourself with tickets in the nosebleeds. It gets ridiculously cold up there even when it's not December. I personally plan on showing up looking like I stepped out of “A Christmas Story” based on my experience tonight. Luckily, with over 110,000 people in the Big House, there should be plenty of body heat to go around during the game. I suggest getting to know your seat neighbors. I can pretty much promise that I won't be tweeting from the game because it just isn't worth it to take my gloves off to use my phone.

One of the more surreal aspects of the whole thing was seeing a zamboni drive through the end zone.  I've got a thing about zambonis (not that kind of thing), so this fascinated me.  I mean, there was a zamboni driving around the field at the Big House.  It's not that this was unexpected since there's a hockey rink there at the moment, but...there was a zamboni driving around the field at the Big House.  That's not something you see every day.

After the skate, the club teams from UofM and MSU took the ice for a scrimmage.  We stuck around for warmups to take some pictures, but didn't stay for the game.  I was personally a fan of the Wolverines' goalie who was wearing a ski hat over his helmet.  It doesn't take much to become my favorite random, non-Wings goalie (Hi, Jordan Pearce) apparently.

Long story short: if you're a hockey fan in Michigan and you're not jacked for this game, there's something wrong with you. This is going to be epic.  GO BLUE.

Red Wings vs. Sharks GP...

1. Are the Wings going to show up tomorrow, or is Jimmy going to be standing alone again?
2. What kind of impact will Homer’s return have on the offense?
3. Much has been made of the Wings’ lack of killer instinct this season. Blown chances, sitting back on leads, lack of intensity, you name it… Can the Wings for once look like a team that knows what it’s doing?
4. Two games ago, the problem was the defense. On Sunday, it was the offense. What part of their game is going to give us fits against San Jose?
5. The powerplay has been looking more functional lately, but it’s still not converting as regularly as we would like. While they boys are able to establish control and cycle in the zone, but the pucks just aren’t going in. Getting Homer back should help in that regard theoretically. Can they start to get that sorted out tonight?

LA just went on a 5-0 roadtrip and managed to pull away from the Wings. The Wings are on their own five-game trip right now. They’ve already dropped one point, but there’s absolutely no (logical) reason that they can’t win the rest of the games on the trip. If they’re serious about making the playoffs this year, now would be a really good time to show it.

On a non-hockey related note, because this is the most public forum to which I have easy access, I need to thank UofM Health Services. When I hurt my ankle last weekend, I was more worried about being able to pay for treatment than the actual injury. I somewhat grudgingly headed over to UHS (our free clinic for students), making the usual wisecracks about it being...well, UHS. They took x-rays there, but still couldn't tell if it was broken or not. The only way to know for sure was to do a CT scan, which I flat out told them I wouldn't/couldn't pay for. The next day, I got a call from their Managed Care department saying that they had found University funding to pay for me to have the scan done at the hospital here. The Rackham school here apparently runs an emergency medical fund for grad students, and while I hardly think my bum ankle qualifies as an emergency, I'm extremely grateful. Now that we know for sure that it's not broken, I can continue "cheating" by not using my crutches and not worry about making it worse. Anyway, the point of this story is that several people went out of their way last week to make sure that I got the best possible medical care, and they were really under no obligation to do so. Since I'll probably never meet any of them, thanking them here is the best that I can do. I've said it a million times before, but it really is great to be a Michigan Wolverine.

And now back to your regularly scheduled Red Wings nonsense...

Belated UofM-Western Pictures...

This is a little bit late (and not at all Wings-related), but I drove out to Kalamazoo last Friday night to watch UM play Western. I have to say that it was a fantastic place to watch a hockey game. My friend hooked me up with her roommate’s student ID, so I got in for free. Not only that, but we ended up sitting right on the glass at the faceoff circle in the end that UM defended twice. The game was fantastic all around. UM ended up winning 4-3, and the game was exciting right up until the final buzzer. The game winning goal came on a 5-minute powerplay after Western took a boarding call. I happened to be leaning forward with my elbows on the dasher at that point, and he got boarded right in my face. I was upset because a UM player could’ve gotten hurt, but it was pretty sweet as a hockey fan. The next step is finally finding time to make it to a game at Yost.

The only downside was the fact that when I excitedly pulled my camera out to capture the awesomeness, I discovered that I had forgotten to take the battery off of the charger. I have a feeling that this is going to be a recurring theme in my life now that I’ve gotten my first camera that doesn’t run off of AAs. Anyway, that didn’t stop me from testing out my new phone’s camera, and I got some pretty fantastic shots. Some of them are a little blurry, but they were cool in their own way. This is by far the best shot. He actually looks like he has Wolverine claws a la X-Men. The rest of them are on Photobucket.

Okay, and now back to your regularly scheduled Red Wings nonsense.

Wings vs. Canadiens GP...

Wings vs. Canadiens @7 PM

1. I really dislike the Canadiens. Despite the fact that they rarely face the Wings, I always take great joy in seeing them lose. I was thrilled to see their 100th anniversary season end in a first-round sweep. There’s something just absurdly arrogant about their fans. And that’s saying something coming from a Wings’ fan. So what antics are they going to come up with to make me want to throw things at my TV?
2. Jimmy Howard’s back in net tonight. I have to admit that he’s earned the start based on his performance during Ozzie’s illness. So will we see good Jimmy or the Jimmy who needs a dog shock collar to keep him in the crease?
3. Like the Wings, Montreal played last night so there’s no excuse for anyone about being “tired.” Who is going to have legs left for tonight?
4. Can Datsyuk follow up his strong game last night with another one?
5. Can the third line keep up the torrid pace it had in the game last night? Will Darren Helm manage to capitalize if he gets a breakaway?
6. Most importantly, will I have any voice left with which to yell at my TV or energy with which to care after the UofM game? It's my last in the Big House as a student, and let's face it, what this weekend's really all about. So, one last time: GO BLUE!!!

It's unclear if I'll be able to watch the game tonight or not, so no promises about a recap.