The Red Wings have advanced to the second round of the playoffs, but unfortuantely, the Capitals fell in a terrifically action-packed game seven to the Habs (vomit), even after being up three games to one early on. It made me have a sad.
Overall, in honor of the playoffs on Versus and Jacques Martin's excellent coaching style, I have made a list. In the last three games of the Habs' series against the Caps, Martin decided to dress seven defencemen instead of the regulation six. After Versus announcers pointed this out, I constructed a list of the seven defencemen I'd like to undress (in no particular order):
Larry Murphy: I have honestly had a crush on Larry Murphy since he began playing for the Red Wings in the early nineties. Now, the fact that he's a commentator (that doesn't even sound like a legit word) for the Wings, on top of four Stanley Cups in twenty-one seasons, just adds to the flavor. He's played for six teams and been traded on deadline day numerous times. Murphy, whom I affectionately refer to as MuMu, was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2004, and thus has earned a place on my list.
Jonathan Ericsson: He called me a thief! To my face! Besides that, he's the next generation of Red Wings defencemen. Tall, dark, and handsome, The Big E was drafted 291 in the 2002 draft, making him the last overall player that year. He originally started out as a center, but was permanently placed on defensive duty by Wings scout Hakan Andersson. Ericsson won the Cup with the Wings in 2008, and is never afraid to show his scrappy side. I love myself a bad-boy.
Shea Weber: As a Wings fan, I hate Nashville with a burning passion. But as a secret Canadian, I love this Preds' defenceman. He won us the gold medal!
Sergei Fedorov: Okay, okay. I know that technically, Feds is a forward, but there were a few years in his heyday in the nineties in which he played defense for the Wings under coach-extrordianaire Scotty Bowman. Thus Uncle Tennis (don't even ask) is one of the defensemen I'd like to undress. With three Cups, two Selkes, a Pearson, a Hart, three gold medals, and a bronze and silver each under his belt, Fedorov is one of the most decorated Russian players in NHL history. Too bad he abandoned us to play with his little brother for the Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the KHL. I've been crushing on Feds since 1995, and I don't think I'll be stopping anytime soon. He is, and probably will always remain, my favorite hockey player of all time.
Mike Green: Oh boy. As far as I'm concerned, Greenie should be knighted or something. The Caps blue-line Adonis has the record for consecutive goals scored by a defenseman. Green doesn't have any awards to his name yet, but he's still got many years ahead of him in his hockey career.
Kris Letang: This should be against the law. No Wings fan should ever think about undressing a Pen. But come on, it's Tanger! Swoon! In 2009, the Penguins won the cup, and Letang also has two gold medals from the World Junior Championship. What a sensitive, soft-spoken cutie.
Duncan Keith: Rounding out the end of the list his Hawks d-man Duncan Keith. Me and my forbidden fruit, I tell you what... Keith has a gold and a silver medal to his name, and is in the top blue-line pairing in Chicago. As a part of the Hawks revival, Keith has tons of talent and the perfect place to display it.
Runners Up: Marc Staal, Chris Chelios, Ray Bourque
On another defenseman-esque note: Happy Belated 40th Birthday to Wings captain Nick Lidstrom. Now go get the Sharks, bitch! Round two starts tonight at nine sharp. Be there, or be a Sharks fan.
