Ken Kal, the voice of the Detroit Red Wings, will be join us for a live pre-game interview, inside Joe Louis Arena, tonight at 5:00 on WOOD-TV 8.  Ken has called all four of the Red Wings Stanley Cup Championships during the past 11 seasons.  Kal was in the locker room with us this morning, but as a member of the team, he will have access to any late breaking information that the rest of us, may not.  Hope you’ll join us for that.

Go Wings!

Grand Haven native and Pittsburgh Penguins head coach Dan Blysma took a different approach to the “morning skate”, than Mike Babcock and the Red Wings did.  While many of the Red Wing regulars, and the coach himself, skipped the morning skate, all of the healthy Penguins were on the ice with Bylsma late this morning.

The Pens hit the ice, shortly before 11:25 a.m.  The Pens seemed very relaxed and at ease during the skate… even more so than the Wings… who were pretty at ease themselves.  Photographer “Eli the Penguin” and I had a chance to do interviews in both locker rooms, and attend both coaches news conferences today…. the second of which… Dan Bylsma’s… just ended.  As a group, everyone involved seems to be embracing the situation, much more than fearing it, or at least being overly nervous because of it…. at least that’s what there saying publicly.  As Blysma just said, “It’s going to be good for one team at the end of the night.  The other is going to wish it was a (best of) nine game series.”

“Eli the Penguin” and I are headed back to the satellite truck to begin sifting through an hour of tape of so, to cut a few of the best bites (interview segments) for tonight’s 5:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. shows on WOOD-TV.  Hope you’ll join us.

Go Wings! (Regardless of what Eli says)

To finish off my previous post… “Getting Taunted By Penguin Fans” in Pittsburgh…..

While I didn’t get to get sprayed with champagne by the Wings THIS year in Pittsburgh, , I didn’t get doused in beer, by Pens fans, either.

During game six of the 2008 Stanley Cup Final I purposely wore my “RED”  WOOD-TV 8 shirt to cover the Wings clinching in Pittsburgh.  During the second intermission I made my way with much of the rest of the crowd, to the restroom.  It wasn’t until I was well inside the VERY crowded facility, standing shoulder to shoulder with dozens of Penguin fans, that I realized I was the only person in the restroom not wearing a white shirt.  Suddenly one of the fans asked me, “why in the hell are you wearing Red, man?”  Without giving it any thought , I simply blurted out, “I’m from Michigan, I’m a Wings fan.”  I then immediately thought…. that probably wasn’t very smart.

Needless to say I was hit with a chorus of  BOOOOOOs that would make Marian Hossa proud.  Not only that, but I was showered with flickers and small splashes of beer.  The boos then turned into chants of  “Red Wings suck!  Red Wings suck!”  I found it all to be in good fun, until some “f-bombs” starting being fired in my direction, at which time I changed lines and made my way to one of the few enclosed stalls. That too seemed like a good idea at first, until someone decided to donate what was left of his beer to the cause…  dumping it over the door,  on my shoulder and down my back…. enough to put my shirt over the legal limit.  When I came out of the door a couple of different Pen fans apologized for the “drunk” in the crowd.  But as I made my way, shoulder to shoulder, through the crowd and back to the concourse, the chants resumed… a mixture of “Let’s go Pens” and “Red Wings Suck”.  

When I finally reached the exit, the first thing I saw on the concourse was a trio of Detroit fans, all in Red Wing uniforms, clapping as if to say, way to take one for the team man.  Suddenly the beer soaking seemed well worth it… especially when the Wings began spraying champagne, a period and a Cup hoisting later.