I had wondered before last night’s game if it the be as chippy and intense now that Pronger has left the Ducks.  Clearly, he was a big part of their identity (particularly given that they’ve been something of a mess this season).  They do still have guys like Perry and Getzlaf though, to pick up the slack when it comes to taking stupid penalties.

I’m short on notes today because honestly, I can’t remember everything I was planning to say last night.

Pluses
+ Henrik Zetterberg was un-friggin-believable.  A hat trick and a 5 point night for Zäta, he was a force all night.  Mick kept calling him “Curly Fries” towards the end of the game, and he got the empty netter to grant the wishes of Detroiters everywhere.
+ Cleary’s continued to play strong.  In fact, that whole line of Leino-Zetterberg-Cleary has looked good.  Leino’s looked much better since being bumped up.
+ Stuart was a defensive beast.  Except for when I guess he just slid into Howard’s net towards the start of the second and couldn’t get out for a moment.  Murph had a riot over that.
+ Jimmy’s started three in a row, and has won all three.  Gotta be a confidence booster for the kid.  That being said, there were still some negatives regarding his outing.

Minuses
- They looked really tired in the second period, and Ericsson’s gift-wrapped turnover gave Anaheim their first goal.
– What the heck happened to the Rahmani commercials featuring Pavel?  I’ve only seen ones with Ben Gordon this season, which are decidedly less awesome.
– The 3rd was a bit of a barnburner, which I expected.
– Jimmy’s returned to planet earth, having let in 4 goals.  Still, it’s to be expected with him having started 3 in a row.
– Love how the referees called the too many men penalty after Helm came off the ice.  Because, you know, don’t see why the same call couldn’t have been made in last year’s SCF against the Penguins.   

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