A Neuie Perspective

yes, I still exist

2012-02-07T14:09:00.002-05:00

In honor of Joey Mac's birthday, here's a motivator I posted last season. Happy Birthday, Joey.

What's Your Perspective?- volume 2

2011-11-27T14:55:00.007-05:00

Today's pictures come from another good friend of A Neuie Perspective, Liz of Chicks Who Give a Puck. This is just the first half of the pictures she put together for me from games and training camp in Traverse City, the second half will follow at a later date. Enjoy!

If you want to see your pictures on here, send them to itsmyperspective@gmail.com

Wait, I have a blog?

2011-11-13T10:14:00.007-05:00

So... it's been a while. School and work have kept me busy, but I'll try to get a few posts up here before the holiday shopping season tries to take over my life, as any of you who have worked in retail will understand. Next week I'm reintroducing What's Your Perspective with some awesome pics from the equally awesome Liz, so here's my shameless plug reminding you that if you want to see your pictures on here, send them to itsmyperspective@gmail.com. Remember, they can be of any team at any level, I just ask that they are yours and not pictures you found on the internet.

And with that, here are some pictures from the October game against the Canucks.

What's Your Perspective?- volume 1

2011-10-16T21:45:00.006-04:00

Only one person submitted photos this week, so they get all their pictures in. Norm very kindly allowed me to borrow his pictures for the first installment of What's Your Perspective. Enjoy.

You can also submit less conventional pictures, like these he took with the Paper Camera app.

Don't forget to send any game pictures you'd like to share to itsmyperspective@gmail.com

What's YOUR Perspective?

2011-10-09T20:03:00.003-04:00

You've been looking at my Neuie Perspective for quite some time, so now I'd like to know, what's your perspective? I'll still run the usual posts, but I'm starting a new feature next Sunday called "What's Your Perspective?" featuring pictures sent in by readers. Every other week (unless I get a ton, then it will be every week) I'll post at least one picture from each person to submit photos, depending on how many I get that week. The only thing I ask is that they be your photos, not ones you found on the internet.

If you're interested in participating, send your pictures to either my email here or itsmyperspective@gmail.com with your name and the game the pictures are from so I can give you proper credit. Ideally I'd like to post Red Wing pictures, but if you have some from minor league games or college, feel free to send them in too.

First post game

2011-10-08T14:48:00.017-04:00

First post game of the season, so we're gonna do this up in style. As in lots of pictures. First, by special sarcastic request of Norm, here are a few of Hudler. This was going to be a joke, but then Huds decided to show up and play last night, so it's only partially in jest.

Now that I've taken care of that, how about someone less... Hudler to look at?

Much better. Or what about a large, grumpy Swede?

I like to post pictures of those newer to the Winged Wheel, especially when they score...

And then there's these fellas...

Finally, here's some love for Jimmy.

GAME DAY!!!

2011-10-07T10:49:00.005-04:00

After what was a rather rough summer for hockey, the Red Wings home opener is finally here! Time to celebrate with whatever remaining clear pictures I have from the last preseason game.

First, here's one of the guys we'll be seeing more of this year.

A not so perfect moment for the Perfect Human...

Jimmah!

And finally, a new motivator... can't promise these every time, but I'm working on making some new ones.

Days 41 and 42

2011-10-06T11:47:00.005-04:00

I'm using two pictures again since I missed yesterday while I was cramming for an exam. Enjoy.

Day 40

2011-10-04T09:51:00.002-04:00

40? Ok, let's go with that... Here's something you'll only see in preseason. At least this year.

Day???

2011-10-03T21:27:00.003-04:00

School and work have caused me to lose track a bit... on the plus side, I have fresh photos to draw from. Here's one from the game yesterday.

My camera batteries died, but I've got a few more new ones to post before Friday, stay tuned...

Day 32

2011-09-26T15:04:00.002-04:00

Since we won't see him again for a little while...

Day 31

2011-09-25T22:21:00.002-04:00

Late post = fuzzy picture

Day 30

2011-09-24T10:55:00.006-04:00

I felt like posting two pictures today, one I picked, one was chosen at random.

Day 29

2011-09-23T15:47:00.002-04:00

It's the 23rd, so here's Brad Stuart.

Day 28

2011-09-22T10:30:00.002-04:00

More from preseason last year, chosen at random...

Days 26 and 27

2011-09-21T13:03:00.005-04:00

In honor of the Wings preseason game tonight, here's Homer arguing during the preseason game against the Pens.

And in honor of Mike Modano's recently announced retirement, here's one of him from the same game last year.

Good luck, Mo.

Days 23-25

2011-09-19T11:02:00.001-04:00

Whoops, time to play catch-up... since it's still training camp, that's what you're getting from me. I wasn't able to make it up to TC this year, so these are all from last year. Enjoy...

Sorry about the awkward spacing, still getting used to the new blogger format...

Day 22

2011-09-16T12:34:00.002-04:00

Day 21

2011-09-15T14:47:00.000-04:00

Are you as excited for training camp as Homer is?

Enjoy TC, you lucky folks that get to go.

Day 20

2011-09-14T15:32:00.001-04:00

Day 19 (and 18)

2011-09-13T19:43:00.005-04:00

My computer decided to be dumb and not work yesterday, so today is a double post. I received a double request, but couldn't find a picture with both players together, so here are the two pictures to fulfill it.

Day 18: Drew Miller

Ok, it's not just Drew, but I love the potential awkwardness of this picture. If you don't know what I'm talking about, zoom in on Helmer's face.

Day 19: Everybody's favorite Hobo

Day 17

2011-09-11T14:51:00.005-04:00

The requests will have to wait one more day. All of you have your own way of remembering the events of ten years ago, I won't pester you with mine. If you want to know where I was and what I felt, we'll do coffee sometime. Life moves on, but we need to take time to remember.

Day 16

2011-09-10T22:20:00.004-04:00

While I'm still searching for a picture to properly fit the request I was sent, feel free to talk amongst yourselves...

If you have any requests of your own, comment, send me an email, or let me know on Twitter

Day 15

2011-09-09T13:23:00.004-04:00

My 100th post is, once again, in memory of a life lost in that terrible plane crash. This one was much harder to prepare for- I don't often take pictures of the bench and if I do, it's usually of a silly face or Babcock making his famous death stare. Also, although I've been told some very nice things about the man, I never had strong feelings either way for him. Brad McCrimmon was on the periphery of my mind, as he often was in my pictures. Still, he was one of us and that can't be ignored. From all accounts, he was a good man and a good teammate. Nicknamed Beast, he hoped to break into the NHL as a head coach after establishing himself as one in the KHL. I don't have many pictures of him, but here are two I found.

Rest in peace, Brad.

Day 14

2011-09-08T17:37:00.012-04:00

In shock over the tragedy that struck the hockey world yesterday, I simply could not find it in myself to post, consider Day 13 as a pictorial moment of silence. Today belongs to Rusty. I was skeptical of him at first, but before the preseason was over, Ruslan Salei was quickly moving up to become one of my favorites of the "other guys" (people not named Nick Lidstrom or Pavel Datsyuk). Breaking a Duck's fist with his face cemented that place in my mind, I was officially a Rusty convert. Sure, he didn't score often and he only broke the fist of one player, but he was a handy fella. From every account I've read or personal testimony I've heard, Rusty was an all around good guy who loved his family and loved hockey. He was also hilarious, any interview will show you that. I may have started a campaign to post goofy pictures of him until he scored, but this blog, this hockey fan, has been behind him the whole of last season. He moved on to other things, but, unlike some players I've seen leave the roster, I genuinely wished him well and hoped he would find what he was looking for. In remembrance of Rusty, today's post contains pictures of him. You might see repeats from earlier posts (and some aren't of the best quality) since I'm using my favorite pictures.

Rest in peace, Rusty, you'll be missed.

Day 12

2011-09-06T16:44:00.002-04:00

Surprised this guy hasn't come up yet in my picture a day project... Time to fix that.

Day 11

2011-09-05T19:19:00.003-04:00

I'm feeling uninspired today, so here's the first picture that I clicked on to make sure it wasn't blurry...

Day 10

2011-09-05T00:14:00.003-04:00

We're going to pretend that I'm updating from Central Time today, so this is still Sunday's post and I haven't accidentally skipped a day because of work and family functions. In honor of my mom's birthday, here's a guy she'd love to tell to cut his hair and stop hiding behind all that scruff. Also, he was specifically requested by JennHo...

Day 9

2011-09-03T09:48:00.003-04:00

Today is my cousin nursenitz's birthday, so we have a special post for her. I was going to post a Zetterpic, but I couldn't find one with just him in my short-ish search, so I threw in a bonus picture of another of her favorites.

Day 8

2011-09-02T14:50:00.002-04:00

Today we have another edition of Sara getting busted while taking pictures.

As usual, if you want to see anyone or any type of picture, leave a comment or let me know on twitter and I'll do my best to get it done for you

Day 7

2011-09-01T11:15:00.002-04:00

When I saw the signs in the background, I knew this had to be today's picture. Enjoy.

Day 6

2011-08-31T16:01:00.003-04:00

I'm in a weird mood today, consider yourself Janik'd.

This is what happens when you don't leave the fighting to Abby and company...

Day 5

2011-08-30T14:42:00.001-04:00

This one just makes me smile.

Day 4

2011-08-29T10:24:00.003-04:00

I know it's not really the case, but it kinda looks like I got busted by everyone but Ozzie and Miller in this one.

Day 3

2011-08-28T20:21:00.002-04:00

It was requested by JennHo of Hockey Blogette that I use pictures in which I was busted by players while getting their picture. Here's one for today:

Day 2

2011-08-27T11:27:00.001-04:00

For my scrappy hbff...

Day 1

2011-08-26T12:00:00.003-04:00

School just started up, so I can't promise anything, but I've decided to try something new. I'll be posting one picture a day until the season starts. This first one was chosen at random, if you have a player you'd like to see or a game you'd like represented, leave a note in the comments and I'll do my best to hook you up. If not, I'll just keep picking them at random.

Is it time for hockey yet?

2011-08-25T23:53:00.001-04:00

Cuz I could use a little of this right about now...

Random Picture Tuesday

2011-04-26T10:47:00.011-04:00

It's been too long since I've posted anything, time for a random picture Tuesday :)

These are all taken from the last regular season home game against Chicago. The fans around @nursenitz and I were horribly annoying, but the seats were awesome.

First from warmups:

And from the game:

It's a little blurry, I don't care...

Pregame: Wings vs Hawks

2011-03-28T12:39:00.009-04:00

It's my birthday today, which means I get to post whatever I want and you have to deal with it. Luckily, I want to post about Red Wings, so it's not that bad.

You know who should really score a goal for me tonight? This guy. I think it's time for him to rack up another one.

Also, although I want to Newfie Stomp, I wouldn't say no to one from this fella. (edit: after writing this I found out Miller was a healthy scratch. Bump this to whenever he plays next)

And you know what would be awesome tomorrow? A trip to Arby's. Hear that, Hobo?

Although I'm not pleased with the circumstances that have led to the current McCallup, it will be fun to see his ridiculous helmet again.

Speaking of goalies...

However...

I wish this one was a little clearer. Or that I had an awesome fight picture to put up instead.

And finally, this one isn't mine but it's just pure awesome.

Pregame: Wings vs Canucks

2011-03-23T18:08:00.009-04:00

In lieu of motivators, I scrolled through a ton of pictures from the home opener and picked ten at random again. Enjoy.

Poor Nick's hair looks awfully sparse here...

Random Pictures Again

2011-03-20T12:19:00.010-04:00

I have no postgame to write, but I wanted to do something so I picked ten pictures at random from the November 2010 game against the Oilers. Here's a sampling of what I captured that night:

You're About To Get Tuzzi'd

2011-03-19T17:58:00.004-04:00

Don't say I didn't warn you.

Pledges and Motivation

2011-03-05T14:55:00.006-05:00

In case you haven't heard, tonight is the final night for TPL's pledge drive for H2H2. This is your last chance to make an outrageous wager in the name of helping out the kids! Plus, for every $5 you donate, you get another entry to win one of the fabulous prizes being offered up, what more inspiration do you need? How about these pictures?

Kindl looks really worried in this one. Not sure why, but he does...

Rig looks very preoccupied. I think he's trying to figure out what to do without Raffy around to direct him.

And if those pictures don't inspire you, how about the prizes you could win? Here's just one of the many:

I'd post pictures of the donated bacon, but alas, I have none.

Jimmy and Jakub

2011-02-28T15:18:00.007-05:00

As everyone and their uncles now know, Jimmy's been locked down for another two years and that's about it for news today. In light of that, here's some Jimmy from a few games when I remembered to bring my camera.

Here's to two more (official) years of Jimmy

Finally, I really wanted to make this one into a motivator but just couldn't work it out. So, I'll explain it instead. I'm nearly positive that's Hank in between Kindl and TPH and even more certain that Kindl is checking with Hank to see if he's matching Nick's movements correctly. You can tell he's concentrating on it because he's sticking out his tongue. Enjoy.

Angry Nonsense and a Happy Birthday

2011-02-25T12:51:00.011-05:00

Neuie Perspective is not a soapbox kind of blog at all. In fact, I try very hard to let all those of you who have played the game and probably have a deeper understand of it make the tough points because I will generally concede it. One thing I do know, however, is how to be a fan. I was raised to be fiercely loyal to a fault and maybe it's not right that I expect my personal version of fandom from others, but I do from time to time. We cheer for the greatest franchise in sports and are all on the same side here, but we seem to have very different opinions on what went on last night. To everyone defending the booing that went on: you're totally within your rights to do so, but I'm totally within mine to get pissed over it too. You can't have one without the other. When the man behind me claimed 23 SECONDS INTO THE FIRST that we had already fallen apart and were already "playing to lose," I'm allowed to get peeved. When I have to listen to a jackhole scream "YOU SUCK" at the team again and again while wearing a jersey signed by several of the players he's berating, I'm allowed to judge. And I did. And I have no problem with that whatsoever. Judge me if you want, tell me in the comments how wrong am I- really, go ahead. If booing to jumpstart your team is ok and leaving en masse is ok, why isn't staying until the end and applauding them even after a less the stellar effort? All I'm trying to say is that our arena shouldn't look like we're in Glendale.

In the elevator at Greektown, all the fans in red and white asked me how I fared at the casino after I left the game early, just guessing that everyone did the same thing they did... react to the game however you want, but realize we aren't all reacting the same.

No that I've got that out of my system, anyone still reading, please enjoy some pictures from warmups.

Cleary looks like he's getting ready to do a fist pump during the national anthem...

There was a nice ceremony for Tuzzi before the game too.

Finally, Justin Abdelkader's birthday is today, Happy Birthday Abs!

Random Pictures

2011-02-18T13:26:00.008-05:00

I'm feeling a complete lack of creativity today, but felt like posting pictures anyways. What's that equal? Completely random picture post.

Let's start with one from my cell phone (left my camera at home) from the last home game against the Bruins. I'm up high enough that the players look like ants in that picture, haha.

Here's one from a little closer up against the Preds.

For hbff Natalie of The Scrappy Octopus, here's some Homer...

You can't tell from the picture, but Rusty's tapping his skate to the beat of the music they played during warmups.

Since I don't know when we'll see it again, here's Kindl on D.

And, finally, there's no real reason for this one except that Huds looks like a munchkin and that makes me laugh.

HOMER!!!

2011-02-09T12:16:00.005-05:00

The goalies of the NHL begrudgingly extend a hearty "welcome back" to Tomas Holmstrom. This time I didn't have to rely on the internet, Homer himself told me at the signing yesterday that he would be on the ice today. He also told me his butt is not as big as this picture (a slight variation on an earlier motivator) makes it seem:

What's that you hear?

Oh yeah, it's the collective pads of about 58 goalies shaking in fear. Welcome back, Homer.

Pavel Returns to the Joe

2011-02-07T14:00:00.006-05:00

Word on the street (and by street, I mean twitter) is that Pav is back. I'll be serving coffee to people who are completely unaware of the importance of what I'm missing, but I'm hoping the rest of you will be treated to some amazingly Datsyukian moves tonight.

And since the nice pictures of Rusty haven't gotten anything started, let's try a not so flattering one:

So take that. You know, as inspiration.

Franzen Fries

2011-02-04T10:44:00.006-05:00

Poorly done screencaps make up today's pregame post. If you haven't already watched this video, make sure you do at some point today, even if you don't watch past Mule putting the fries in his locker.

Here's what you'll see: Rusty tells Mule he deserves curly fries...

Rusty gets surprised by the arm taking fries out of the bag...

Mule gets his free curly fries...

...and then Johan feeds the Mule.

I'm not saying you need to score five yourself, Rusty, but it's your turn. Make it happen.

Happy Birthtuzzi!

2011-02-02T13:07:00.005-05:00

It's Tuzzi's birthday today and in his honor I'm putting glitter on all my food. It's all used up now, so he'll have to provide his own for that kitten...

And since Rusty is still searching for that first Red Wing goal...

Don't make me run out of pictures, Rusty.

Donuts and Rusty

2011-01-26T12:44:00.006-05:00

I'm starting a new feature today and I'm asking for your help. Rusty needs a goal and to inspire him (he reads this, right?) I'm going to post a picture of Mr. Salei in every pregame post until he gets one. This is where you guys come in- I have a decent amount of pictures of Rusty, but I'd be crazy to turn down help. If you have a good picture- particularly if it's one of Rusty making a weird face- and want to contribute it to the cause, send it to aneuieperspective [at] gmail [dot] com. You will absolutely get credit for anything you submit.

With that taken care of, let's get to the game tonight. Everyone knows the big question tonight- will Brodeur get distracted by the smell of Timbits? Will he leave his post to get some of those little bits of heaven? To further distract and tempt him, here's what he's up against tonight:

If they make me want to eat my computer screen, what chance does Brodeur have?

And to kick off the Rusty inspiration, here's one I took during the home opener. Let's hope it doesn't inspire him to break someone's fist with his face again.

Look Rusty, while I've got some nice shots of you, I've got a knack for catching strange faces. Think about it, do you really want those posted? I'll let you mull that over between now and the game.

Pregame: Wings vs Blackhawks

2011-01-22T08:49:00.006-05:00

This first one isn't meant as a criticism, it's just what I came up with when I saw the picture. No hating of the guys in red and white allowed here (feel free to hate on anyone who adds black and yellow to that mix).

Now that Kindl has scored, it's time Rusty got one...

I wouldn't mind if Abby got one either.

Finally, I just like this picture, that's all.

Pregame: Wings vs Blues

2011-01-20T16:28:00.004-05:00

So it's been a while since I've done a real pregame post and I decided some catch-up work was needed. First off, we have the traditional "I caught you making a face" motivator...

I was wondering if anyone else noticed during his brief time with us that Thomas McCollum has a moose holding a gun on the back of his helmet. Am I the only one who noticed?

And one last motivator, picture by me and caption by Jenn of HockeyBlogette.

H2H2 Update

2011-01-19T15:06:00.003-05:00

As some of you know, there is a pickup game that's in the works for the H2H2 festivities. If you're at all interested in joining in on the fun, click here to fill out the form and get your name on the list. In the meantime, enjoy me getting busted taking a picture of TPH

You get to choose

2011-01-18T11:56:00.003-05:00

Is it a post-goal celebration or a mini huddle to Rock, Paper, Scissors who has to be the 3rd string goalie?

Here's hoping we only see one of those options tonight!

Get your rest

2011-01-10T15:01:00.004-05:00

So, with all the injuries right now, some of the team has been asked to step up more than they otherwise would have this season. In light of this, they might need a little more rest in between games... I'm fully in support of this:

...just be ready come game time, ok?

Backwards post

2011-01-09T10:23:00.004-05:00

I know these normally go up in pregame, but in light of the attitudes of both goalies last night, I felt the need to show Jimmy a little love...

Prepping for the game

2011-01-07T14:14:00.013-05:00

Skipping the usual pregame, we're going in a different direction today. Presented by someone who has never played any hockey more organized than "grab your rollerblades, the kids are starting a game on the tennis courts" is how to prepare for a game.

Step One: Explain to the foreign kid the importance of good eyebrow grooming...

Step Two: Stretch

Step Three: Do the Homer! (not my picture, obviously)

Step Four: Get death stared at by the coach for goofing off.

Step Six: Be required to trail one of the coaches as punishment for having goofed off...

Step Seven: Warm up in traditional Datsyukian fashion.

Step Eight: Stare down the net

Step Nine: National Anthem

Step Ten: Faceoff (not the opening one, but you get the idea)

I'm pretty sure you can figure out the rest of where the game goes from there. Let's hope we get to see this face when it's over...

Wings vs Hawks Mini Pregame

2010-12-17T19:01:00.002-05:00

I think this says it all...

The Big Chill

2010-12-12T12:29:00.014-05:00

I know I'm really behind in posting and this is kind of off track, but how could you go to this event and not want to post about it? I'll save my Spartan friends the pain of a recap (5-0, Go Blue! State's coaches did have much better hats though, very Babcockian) since I don't do those anyways and stick to the pictures. My little brother and I were in row 90 of the end zone closest to the Michigan bench. Something like that... we were surrounded by drunks, one of whom kept harassing the girl next to me because she'd never seen porn and yet still called herself a college student and another one picked up my hat and threw it into the crowd (still angry about that... luckily a nice State fan took pity on me after I pleaded with him and Jeffy death stared him into tossing it back to me) but it was still one of the coolest hockey experiences of my life.

For those of you who haven't seen it yet, here's what the stadium looked like.

The nice, not drunk guy two rows behind us offered to take a picture of us in front of the field...

Michigan skating out shortly after fireworks went off around the ice

And the Spartans skating out, sans fireworks...

Both teams, lining up before the game.

And some shots from the game. Pretty sure almost every shot has the same line on the ice for U of M, not sure how that worked out...

In the corner...

And shaking hands after the game...

And finally, my favorite goalie ever. Or at least of the Big Chill :)

Pregame: Wings vs Sharks

2010-11-30T22:15:00.009-05:00

As anyone who works in retail will tell you, it's been a very busy weekend and my brain is fried. So, I haven't made motivators. And what's funny to me right now might just be stupid, but it's about time I did a hockey post again, so this is what I could come up with...

Take this one- it looks kinda like the ice is tilting and they're all trying to stay on their skates. Or it just looks kinda cool since they're all fairly in unison.

There's nothing really that interesting about this next except that Tuzzi is a pretty big fella, and Rig makes him look small.

How about a shot of Jimmy's new helmet?

Much cooler than Joey Mac's...

This one looks like Raffy and Mule were laughing at something about Cleary. At first I thought it was about his lack of eyebrows...

...but after seeing this next one, I'm not so sure any more.

Let's Try This Again...

2010-11-25T10:32:00.003-05:00

So I tried writing this earlier today and wound up posting a blank post, oops. Anyways, let's try this again:

Happy Birthday! Wait... that's not it. (seriously, I just typed that, Sara shouldn't post on 3 hours of sleep) Ok, one more time-n

Happy Thanksgiving!

Back in second grade, my class was put into small groups and paired up with pen pals from a second grade class in Phoenix. My group, in addition to telling them about our school and the state bird, wrote to our pen pals about how the Red Wings are the greatest hockey team ever... it was at that point that I learned a valuable lesson: as Kyle and Amber will tell you, I cannot draw a Winged Wheel. I tried, and I doubt the kids in Phoenix knew any better, but after a 5 minute argument over whether my drawing matched Amber's necklace I knew the truth, I can't draw a Winged Wheel and I probably shouldn't try again.

One lesson I have never learned, however, is to stop tracing my hand with marker to make a turkey. And that turkeys don't wear top hats. Enjoy...

Det. v. Minn. Pregame-ish: Little Bro.'s Split Post

2010-11-19T17:54:00.010-05:00

(Bro. Note: Sara was rather busy today and couldn't make a post for the game. So, because I was doing nothing and have the "Neuie" name, I was asked to post. Be very afraid.)

In case you've missed the past week and a half, Colin Campbell has gotten in trouble with the public, Brett Sutter was traded by his father, and....

**:Dude, real bloggers have already covered those issues to exhaustion.

Bro.: Who the heck are you?

**: I'm the Anti-Brother. I'm the opposite of everything you are.

Bro.: So you're short, skinny, and have a girlfriend?

Anti-Bro.: Well, ye.... no.

Bro.: As I figured. Now sit in the corner and shut-up. As I was saying, a number of things have happened, including the Wings having a four game winning streak. So, with some highlights...

Anti-Bro.: You don't have highlights.

Bro.: Well, they're not lowlights.

Anti-Bro.: How about interesting-lights?

Bro.: Okay, we have interesting lights, particularly from the Detroit Edmonton game last week.

Anti-Bro: Can I help?

Bro.: (sigh) Fine, just don't off the handle.
And here we go...

Bro.: First of all, thanks to all the veterans, whether they went to war or not.
Anti-Bro.: But what is with the additional flags? And they don't bring in a Canadian flag for a Canadian team at the Joe? Color Guard FAIL!

Anti-Bro.: Drew tells everyone that he's gonna score when a goalie double hits a puck into the net.
"Yeah, whatever Drew."
"That Drew Miller is crazy."
Bro.: Yeah.....wait a minute...

Bro.: Anit-Bro., why do you choose this picture?
Anti-Bro.: Just look at the top corner.
Bro.: The thing that looks like ROB the Robot's head?
Anti-Bro.: No, Rafalski picking his nose.
*headslap*

Bro.: Speaking of Raffi, Larry Murphy is very impressed by his balance.
Anti-Bro.: ...while Brad McCrimmon is thinking, "Big deal, I could do that if I wanted to."

Bro.: Ladies and gentleman, the Red Wings own Cristy Lee with a Jersey Foul.
Anti-Bro.: You just dissed the greatest goalie ever, *****.
Bro.: And finally...

Bro.: I really should stop trying to play hungover.
Anti-Bro.: I just knew Darren didn't cook the eggs long enough.
Bro.: That pizza eating contest was definitely a bad idea.
Anti-Bro.: Hey Ref, that guy just speared me in the nads.
Bro.: I think I had some bad weed. That's the last time I visit Ann Arbor.
Anti-Bro: That's the last time I eat Mexican before games again.
Bro.: Thanks again and Go Wings.
Anti-Bro.: Wait I got another one...
"Hey guys, look. I'm mooning you guys."

Beyond the Game...

2010-11-11T12:14:00.005-05:00

Plenty of other blogs have told you about the genius, Robert Tychkowski of the Edmonton Sun, and his opinion of Detroit. While I support you emailing him at robert.tychkowski@sunmedia.ca, I am going a different direction. Unfortunately I did not plan this out in advance, so there will be no pictures accompanying today's message.

I have known many people who have served or are currently serving their country as a member of the armed services. My father served in the Navy (thankfully not during combat) and my grandfather's brother who was in the Army is still listed as MIA. It kills my grandpa that he doesn't know what happened to his brother, but he is still so proud of him.

Many people I went to high school with have served in every branch of the military including my friend Chirag who was in the Marines and Casey, also a Marine.

My friend Jilian's step-brother Brian is an MP with the Army. From what I've been told, it is really dangerous for MPs to spend a lot of time in Afghanistan, so they rotate them out quickly (as in a few months at the most) between Afghanistan and a base in Germany. I haven't seen Brian in a few years, but as far as I know, he is still stationed in Germany/Afghanistan.

The deployment I know the most about, however, is my older brother's best friend Dave. Had I thought this through ahead of time, I would have asked Dave, a Wings fan, if I could put up a picture of him either in Army gear or Wings gear. Oh well, maybe next time. Anyways, Dave joined the ROTC to help pay for college. Through some weird circumstances, he went from being told he wouldn't see action to being called up to serve a few years ago. Recently, Dave decided he wasn't done with the Army and, after discussing it with his wife, went through whatever procedure he had to and is now back in Afghanistan with his unit. They have a dog with them for right now that they rescued from some boys who were torturing it just outside their base. He asks for letters and emails, but also for things like beef jerky. That request makes me laugh because he could always pack away an impressive amount of food.

So yeah, there's an idiot writing for the Edmonton Sun and, even more importantly, there's a game tonight. But there are also a lot of men and women all over the world putting their lives on the line to serve their country and we can't forget that.

Raffy and BizNasty Return to the Joe

2010-11-08T12:17:00.008-05:00

I have been counting down the days until Raffy was slated to come back...ok, not really since I wasn't sure of an exact date, but I have been waiting very impatiently for this day to come ever since it was announced that he was having knee issues. I have annoyed the people sitting around me with comments like "Raffy would have kept that onsides" or "UGH! Brian Rafalski you are not" and the most common one "I miss Raffy..." generally followed by an exaggerated frown thrown at my brother who proceeds to mock me. I know, it's kinda pathetic, but c'mon, that man is the king of keeping the puck in at the blue line and you all know it.

Ok, enough of that, time for pictures... I kinda stole this idea from someone else (don't know who) but in that one it was Raf expressing this opinion about Hank. Anyways, pretty sure that's not what's going on, but when do I ever fact check?

Not the direction I meant to take that picture, but I couldn't help it... anyways, here's a few more.

This one doesn't need explaining, it's pretty obvious when it was taken...

And one last one...

I know I mentioned BizNasty coming back to the Joe too, but I really don't want a picture of him in a Speedo on here, so we're just gonna leave him out, ok? Good.

Instead, how about a view of what happens after Pav decides to get in a fight?

Stuey's fight didn't seem to leave the same path of destruction...

Don't take that as a sign that I'm asking you to fight tonight, Abby, you can wait until I'm there to see it if you want...

Our Twins Can Take Your Twins Any Day

2010-11-06T18:15:00.010-04:00

(Bro. Note: This was intended for a few hours ago. Unfortunately, the power went out and Sara had to leave for a previous engagement. I would torture you guys with my wit but Sara has a half decent entry for you guys. Enjoy.)

So the Wings are finishing off their Western Canada road trip tonight in Vancouver... Aside from Ken Daniel's favorite Livonia native (sounds wrong without the name after it, right? Ok, Ryan Kesler...feel better? Good.) Vancouver apparently has a set of twins. I'm told they're actually quite good and I suppose the fact that they are Swedish twins makes them even better. And to that I say: Our Euro Twins can kick your Swedish twin butts anywhere, any day. Since I'm not feeling overly creative just this minute (ie, not in the mood to make motivators) and am a bit rushed, I borrowed pictures from JennHo and Lizzle. Thanks ladies :)

You might notice a theme, these were all taken at training camp at pretty much the same time...

Here we have Hank showing Pav the cool logo on his skates. Pav is impressed.

And I'm pretty sure they're either making dinner plans, or discussing when to have the next meeting in their tree house.

Also, for those of you who haven't noticed, it's everyone's favorite hard-hitting lumberjack from a mining town's birthday today. Hopefully that means plenty of big hits and maybe a goal or two as a gift to himself. Here's a few (again, not mine) of Brad Stuart...

And with Homer...

And, since I do tend to take a few photos now and then, here's one of my own I managed to find.

Finally, if you haven't noticed (and if you haven't, kindly go read another blog) Abby is back in the lineup and certainly not playing like someone who belongs in the former haunt of Lebda and Leino. Consider yourself on notice, Huds.

That's Not What I Designed!

2010-10-30T14:34:00.008-04:00

We need a better first period than we had on Thursday. Everyone knows this and if they didn't, I'm sure some other blog informed them of that fact before they got to mine. What those blogs don't have is a visual representation of what Babcock was thinking when he saw the plays on the ice...

Not to bash Helmer, he played hard on Thursday, but pictures like this make me laugh...

And, finally, instead of loss eye candy, here's what could be loosely interpreted as motivational eye candy. Look at the skates if you're not sure I'm right about who it is...

Wings vs Yotes

2010-10-28T16:50:00.004-04:00

This is a bit of a rush job (when isn't it here?) so I'll get straight to it...

Mostly for hbff Natalie of The Scrappy Octopus, but partially because I recently read an article about how Aaron Downey made the Griffs do yoga because he believes his 10+ years of practicing it have kept him relatively injury-free, we have the following:

And, because it amuses me greatly, there's this...

Heading out for a physics test and the game :)

Mule's Back...

2010-10-21T16:21:00.006-04:00

...get it?

The Wings fanbase breathed a collective sigh of relief when it was announced that Mule will be back today after that lame blow to the head... Seriously, who would want to hurt this guy?

Clearly he's just a big, stubborn softy, right?

Oops, sorry Mule...

...riiiight. Whatever that means...

(I need to start planning these things in advance)

Wings vs Stars pregame

2010-10-14T16:54:00.004-04:00

It's Mikey's first game back in Dallas since the Stars decide he was obsolete. Let's show them how wrong they were, Mo.

And on to the motivation... Homer may call Mule "the grumpy" but we all know he can get a little irked himself.

And just because he's awesome...

Don't Panic

2010-10-13T01:47:00.015-04:00

Remember last year when we were dying for points? When, at least in my case, going into overtime was a relief because at least we'd get one point instead of none? Sure, we'd almost definitely lose the shootout, but we'd get something out of it. Well, it sucks that we lost, but we've managed to get at least one point in every regular season game so far. No need to make this face yet

Something else we don't need? Any more of this...

I get that you want to make an impression, Dougie, but seriously? The only good thing about that fight was that I got to laugh at all the clueless fans around me that kept asking "who is that guy?" and when I told them, replied "huh?" Seriously though, if we can't get Abby back to drop the gloves, I'd rather have Pav playing enforcer or Salei going around breaking hands with his face while losing fights.

Some things that worked? Tuzzi's hair. I think he was inspired by the glorious mane Teemu was sporting Friday and decided to put a little effort into his tonight.

Also awesome? Helmer seems to have spotted a pretty bird flying around...

Homer and Kindl don't seem as pleased about the bird as Helm was...

The crowd is still really behind Mikey, so he gets a picture too.

Drew Miller seems to have put in another night of hard work. Even on a night when pretty much everyone phones it in (not saying that's what happened tonight, just that I've seen it before), this guy is always out there working hard, throwing his 170 (down from last year's 178, someone get that boy a sandwich) pounds around as if he weighed 20 pounds more.

And Homer got to spend some time in his office, making my motivator from earlier come true...

So what didn't work? Well, there was that "fight" in the first. And Danny Cleary made this face during warmups, not a good choice, C Bear.

Hank looks like he dropped his equipment and is upset with himself for it.

This poor little guy made it out to center ice where he promptly fell on his butt. It earned him a hand up and pat on the head from Pav and a stick tap to the shins from Nick so maybe it wasn't a total loss...

Also, it seems Nick doesn't like that I posted that picture of him midfall.

Watch your backs, Avs, we'll get you next time.

Wings vs Avs Tonight

2010-10-12T16:48:00.007-04:00

When the puck drops tonight, I'll be doing some kind of experiment with water to determine something about mechanics in physics lab. Lame. Before that happens, how about a little inspiration for tonight?

Not sure who that applies to tonight, but we all know what this next one means-

You what would make up for me having to miss at least part of the game? Kicking some major butt while I'm measuring the effects of whatever it is we're working on.

Also, I wouldn't mind if this guy (not armadillo) potted one tonight. You know, as a late birthday gift to himself.

Chicgao Pregame

2010-10-09T18:13:00.005-04:00

I feel a bit out of order here, there will be a post-game post for last night, but I haven't done it yet. In fact, I hadn't even looked through my pictures until about half an hour ago... you all know what happened and you all know what's coming up today, so let's get straight to the motivation. I only made 2 again today, I'm still getting warmed up for the season (maybe some day I'll plan these in advance, probably not though)

I think this describes how we all feel about Chicago, minus the violent hatred of course...

Awesome old timey feel to the game means old timey treatment of the picture...

Not that I don't trust Pav, but can someone else drop the gloves tonight? Somehow I think Chicago will fight dirtier than Corey Perry

Alternative expectations

2010-10-08T12:00:00.005-04:00

So, I'm sure that since the season starts tonight, lots of people out there are giving you predictions for how the season will go, how players will perform and what they expect or want to see from them on the ice. I'm taking you in a different direction. Yes, if I had to just pick one d-man for my team, it would be Nick. But what if you had to pick on Red Wing to paint a mural with, or one who makes a really great ham and swiss sandwich? Here's what I've got so far:

Which Red Wing would I pick to...

go with me if I had to walk down a dark, scary alley? Gotta be Brad Stuart.

go to a frat party and introduce me to all the bros? Abdelkader

go to a circus? Meech. Not sure why, but I think we'd have fun

help me move into a new house/coordinate everything? Draper. I hear he likes to make lists...

train me in the fine art of pick-pocketing? Of course, Pavel Datsyuk

help me pick out an old man sweater? Zetterberg

teach people how to tie their shoes? Miller (he's got enough kids to know how to do this)

help me pick out a new hairstyle? Filppula (he'd also pick out some killer new heels too)

go to a comedy festival? Ozzie

go to a baseball game? Jimmy

work on a farm? Franzen. He'd also be good for commiserating over sunburns after a long day in the field

go on a long train ride? Kronwall. No idea why, just go with me here.

go to the DIA? Kenny Holland

go to a support group meeting? Tuzzi. "Hi, my name is Todd..."

go to a zoo? Hudler. He'd have fun with the animals.

help me find a way out of a corn maze? Modano. He's tall... that's all I've got...

chase geese around a field? Helm

run/work a charity car wash? Eaves. I can see this guy starting a soap fight.

eat gross looking food with me? Salei

go apple picking? Ericsson. He could reach the tall branches.

play laser tag? Kindl

play sharks and minnows/pompom? Abby again

give me life advice? Nick

build a killer snow fort and kick some major butt in a snowball fight? Holmstrom

throw a bbq? Babcock

set up a haunted house? Cleary

watch stupid tv shows I would never admit to having seen? Ilari Filppula

shop for seasoned cheese with me? Rafalski

This isn't my most creative set, but it's something...

Day Three of Training Camp

2010-09-20T20:11:00.022-04:00

(Written on day 3, not posted until today)

Today at training camp made me feel like a pro at this whole camp thing. Yesterday, sitting in the stands felt incredibly natural. Today it felt like I could totally do this as a career. Not that I think I'm all that good at this whole going to practice and taking notes thing, I just could do this forever. It's so interesting to see the public side of behind the scenes work. Today was a lot more relaxed in the picture department, I only took about 2350 instead of yesterday's 3600+. Here are a few of my favorites:

There's no real reason for this one other than all the Camptown Ladies keep calling this poor fella Armadillo.

Speaking of pictures that have no real purpose, here's another. I really have no opinion on Zanetti, but it amuses me greatly that Babs is holding him so tenderly.

Here's something we're all familiar with- Malts chirping at a ref...

Eaves seems to have an aversion to barbers.

Maybe it's just a summer thing? I'll keep an eye on the situation over the course of the season and keep you all updated. The hair of Eaves is most definitely vital news.

Danny Cleary has also grown out his hair a bit, you just can't tell in this picture.

For all the lovers of The Answer out there...

Stretching is taken to a whole new level at camp, there is giggling all over, largely from the guys in the crowd and it really becomes an event in itself. Nick understands the importance of stretching.

There are a lot of bromances going on too, here's just one of them.

We got to see a lot of the Flying Circus today...

The Euro Twins were adorable, goofing off with each other between and even during drills. They looked like two best friends meeting up at school after going to summer camp in two different states.

Homer got to spend some time in his office again...

The Swedes were really going after each other in drills and the scrimmages.

This next one has no real story behind it, the girls in the condo just thought it looked interesting... kinda like the zebra is parting the Red (and White) Sea...

I'm still a little worried about Kronner's knee, but he looked really good out there all week.

Pretty much all the top d-men looked good out there...

Ozzie was hilarious to watch during practices. He looked pretty good out there, but he was totally doing his own thing whenever Babcock would call the players in to talk between drills.

I'll put up more pictures from camp when I get the chance.

Day One of Training Camp

2010-09-19T01:01:00.004-04:00

Don't get too excited by the title of this post...

I had good intentions, really, I did. I was going to take a reasonable (for me) amount of pictures, get back to the condo where I would review them and post daily on here so you all had a taste of what we experienced here. It all worked out so well in my head, made so much sense, seemed so achievable a goal- then I got here. See, when you put a big group of crazy girls together, plans go out the window sometimes. We haven't even done anything that crazy, aside from coming up here in the first place, but we feel like we've done a lot. And haven't had a lot of sleep or reasonable food either (chips and donuts for lunch anyone?). So, yeah... lots of hockey, LOTS of pictures (total for the day? 3256) and not a lot of sleep = falling asleep after practice and not looking through pictures at all. In place of a post, please enjoy Tuzzi looking like he's about take a bite out of Malts. Hopefully I'll get a lot more up tomorrow

And since you're such awesome people for reading this non-post, here's a bonus of some d-men

Question Time

2010-08-29T13:03:00.013-04:00

Bloggers tend to be crazy people, that's why we spend all the time it takes to run one of these things. We like to know how many hits we're getting, how long people actually spend on the site, where people are coming from- all of that data can easily be found using one of the many types of trackers for websites. What I really want to know is how you found this blog and what you want to see in it. Naturally I can only do so much, I can't get behind the scenes shots and what I capture during games is dependent on what games I go to and where I sit, but I'll try. Promise.

Along the lines of how you found this blog and where you're from, I'd like to know about where you're from. Since I'm asking for so much, let me start by explaining how I found A Neuie Perspective (cheesy, I know) and maybe a bit about where I'm from. Over two years ago I thought about starting a blog but had no idea what to write about. I just wanted a place to put my thoughts down in writing, maybe somewhere to offer my take on everything going on around me since I didn't see my point of view represented in the blogosphere. Still, I did nothing because I didn't feel I had a catch to get people to read what I wrote. Then one night it hit me- the title of the blog. For years my friends have called me SaraNeuie and it just seemed to fit. I wasn't offering just my opinions, I was offering a new way of looking at things, a Neuie Perspective on life. Now that I had my perfect title, I was able to start... except I didn't. Because perfect title or not I had nothing I felt belonged on here. For a long time I ignored my blog, even forgot it existed briefly, and then I started going to Red Wings games last season. And taking pictures.... and wanting some way to share them with the world. Or at least the Commune that was taking shape as the bloggers and readers got closer and started forming genuine friendships.

The real catalyst, however, came in the form of Jiri Hudler. They put him on the calendar being sold in stores. For my birthday month. It just couldn't be allowed to stay that way, so I made a collage of some of my favorite pictures the way I'd done for The Scrappy Octopus a few times before and took pictures of it to share with the group. Then I remembered my poor, lonely blog and it clicked again, photo blog. That's the short (ha!) version.

Now on to where I'm from. I grew up in the hometown of Henry Ford and birthplace of Brian Rafalski, Dearborn. We're known for a lot of things in the metro area, but the main thing would have to be Ford Motor Company. Henry Ford lived here, helped set up areas of the town for his workers to live in...

like that one, taken from the passenger seat of a car, so it's not that great a view... we're also the location of the Ford World Headquarters. We have a ton of public schools, dozens more than some of the surrounding cities, as well as Henry Ford Community College and University of Michigan- Dearborn. We're also known for having the largest concentration of Arabic people outside the Middle East. That might not seem important, but it really shapes the community in terms of food, culture, music, all kinds of different ways. If you go to the East side of Dearborn, you'll see tons of stores where the writing is in Arabic first and then there's tiny English print below it. (sadly, I have no pictures of that...)

We're also the site of a Cheli's Chili (the only one with the kitchen regularly open)

You can get the best burger I've ever had at Miller's Bar...

...produce from all over the country and around Michigan at Westborn Market...

...walk around the "downtown" area, noticing all the little improvements they made to try to create a more realistic and walkable downtown (we have 3 or so pseudo-downtowns)...

...relax in one of the many local parks...

Oxford Park actually has a small ice rink/pond thing in the winter for as long as they can keep it frozen. I've never gone skating on it (can't really skate) but it's awesome to drive by and see little kids- or older kids and adults- playing hockey, practicing their shots, or just skating around.

So, now that you know more than you ever wanted to about my blog and hometown, tell me about yourself. Where are you from? How did you find this site? And, most importantly, what do you want to see on here?

Abby's Contract Celebration

2010-08-24T12:24:00.016-04:00

As anyone who knows me was quickly able to guess, the news of yesterday's signing made my day. I've been waiting (not so) patiently all summer for yesterday's news and when it happened I never got to celebrate the way I wanted to. It's time to celebrate the signing of this scrappy fella...

in proper Neuie Perspective style... with way too many pictures!

He was, after all, part of the Shark trapping expedition...

...and he plays well with others...

He made friends with that foreign kid no one knows yet...

...he even hangs out with the weird kid...

As nice as all that friendship is, he isn't afraid to drop the gloves when needed

and on top of that, he does well in awkward situations...

True, there are things he needs to work on,

but this hard-working scrapper is up to the challenge. Here's to two more years, Abby

He's Back...

2010-08-04T16:52:00.019-04:00

Ok, that might be a bit misleading since he was never gone, but I had the back picture, so why not? As we all now know, Helmer is now signed to wear the Winged Wheel for two more years and (inspired partly by the joy of Lizzlefoshizzle, author of the fabulous and informative Primer on the Lebster) I plan to celebrate that fact, even though most of us (fairly) sane fans knew this was coming.

Yep, this guy. My jaw would probably drop too if I realized twitter had exploded over something I did the way it did for him today.

Then again, his mouth is always open...

It's almost closed here, but not quite.

Here I think he's trying to whistle, though I may be wrong

He's starting to look a bit suspicious-

Why? He knows what you're thinking!

Yep, he knows and he's amused. Anyways, back to the pictures...

Even vets lose track of the puck from time to time, here Helm shows some of them where the puck went.

Here's a more long-distance shot

and another...

Goofing off with Ozzie

Practicing making dangle behind Pav...

Two more classic Helmer faces...

Here's to two more years with our speediest youngster

Shark Week

2010-08-02T13:33:00.010-04:00

I am, in fact, alive. My blog is still active too, for that matter. I am also, however, busier than I've been in years and thus haven't been able to start my summer series I had planned on doing. Instead, since it's shark week, I've decided to go through my pictures and do a tribute to Sharks getting owned by some of our favorites in Red and White.

Here we have a lonely Shark trapped and scared. I'd feel sorry for the fellow, but hey, he's a Shark and he was playing the Wings, so...not so much.

Watch as Danny Cleary stretches to touch his toes, completely unafraid of the Shark lurking on the ice behind him. He knows this beast poses no threat to him that night...

Next we have another Shark with his back turned, clearly aware that his stupid face (and really, who here doesn't think Pavelski has a stupid-looking face?) is no match for Hank and Nick.

It would seem that these Sharks are so fearful of the Winged Wheel that they just give up and fall to the ice, even in the presence of former press box seat warmer Brett Lebda...

Why, you and an amused Pav might ask, are these Sharks so fearful?

It seems the kings of the ocean are no match for the King of the Ice

Ville Leino ruins pictures...

2010-06-03T10:46:00.011-04:00

Beware Ville Leino, he'll ruin your pictures.

Back when he was still in the Winged Wheel, it seems Ville wanted attention in the worst way. Most people would play hard, take what the coach gives them and try to win the fans over by being as awesome as they know how.

Not Ville, he decided to at least appear to be lazy, uninterested in working within the system and instead popped into a LOT of my pictures.

He probably did it to you too... Ville Leino likes to ruin pictures, he thinks it will make you like him.

Last night Ville looked like a real hockey player again, here he is pretending to be one...

I'm not trying to bash Ville, not really, he was very nice when I met him and I wish him all the best, I just didn't when he was a Wing and drove us all crazy.

Stevie

2010-05-27T11:47:00.005-04:00

Pretty much everyone has already done a tribute to Stevie, there's nothing new I can offer but I feel the need to say something. Like all of you, Stevie is larger than life in my head. I believe he can do things normal people can't, even to the silly point of once asking: Who would win in a fight, Gordie Howe or flying Steve Yzerman? This led to a whole belief in my family that Stevie can, in fact, fly and that he uses this power to guard the Red Wings and straighten the banners during games. Crazy? Yes, but that's the power Stevie holds over us.

I had to wait until today because I couldn't even read a blog tribute or an article about him without tears coming to my eyes. The really good ones or ones that echoed my exact feelings actually made the tears flow freely down my face. Melodramatic? Probably. But again, the power of Stevie.

The power of Stevie has kept fans who might otherwise have turned to other teams faithfully supporting the Wings for years. Stevie took the weight of our collective hopes and pain and skated with that on his shoulders until he finally led the team to the Stanley Cup. The power of Stevie led us to not just that first Cup, but 3 as a player and he was there for another as an exec. There are achievements he reached that I probably don't even know because, and I admit this hesitatingly, I'm more of an emotional hockey fan and the kind who remembers stats. I do know the awards he won, and was in complete awe of them when they were placed next to each other on Steve Yzerman night earlier this year. It was amazing to be in the presence of those trophies, yes, but knowing that Stevie had touched and won each of them? So much better. I stayed with my cousin and brother for five minutes just staring at the Stanley Cup standing proudly among the others. Amanda and I had to go back to see them again, and the next trip got us a view of Stevie's gold medal. I felt so honored that he would share that with us. I have a neighbor that's actually won an Olympic gold for weightlifting and have seen it before. That was cool but seeing Stevie's gold was almost a religious experience. That's what he means to me.

Actually, that doesn't cover half of what he means to me. I don't know the words to describe what Stevie means to me but I don't have to, you all feel the same way. I doubt any one of us could be his biggest fan, we all love him so much that I don't think any particular person could be singled out as the biggest one.

I only have one good picture of Stevie that I've taken and it's kinda blurry, but I'm sharing it with you guys. It was taken during a pregame ceremony honoring the Olympic medalists when we played Vancouver in March, I hope you like it.

I've now lived two days without Stevie as an official Red Wing and it's weird. I refuse to call him a former Wing, you can't un-Red Wing someone like him, not when the Winged Wheel is in his heart. Tampa Bay, I hope you know just how lucky you are.

A really late recap of pictures

2010-05-15T12:10:00.018-04:00

Game 4 against the Sharks was amazing. It was also a long time ago. Since I have pictures from that game that need to be shared, we're gonna ignore the delay and pretend I didn't take forever to get these up. Sound good? Thought so. We're also going to skip over the fact that our season is over. If you need a season recap, I can recommend some wonderful blogs that will take care of that for you. Pretty sure you already read those, and you should.

Before the game I asked if Ritola would be the Answer, I don't know if he was or not, but here's one of him just in case.

How about some more Swedes? Here's Lilja looking like an angry Viking.

For Natalie, how about some Homer?

Dena can't think straight when Kronner is too close. I think he's remembering her reaction and smiling, kinda creepily, about it here:

According to Amanda, I was a lovely shade of green before the game started (I was a little nervous...) and I think Miller was worried when he saw me.

This next one just makes me laugh, probably because it looks like the puck is about to hit Abby's butt...

Here are some random pairings of guys...

I'm sure Danny Cleary is a sweet guy, but he sure looks like a creeper in pretty much every picture...

Nick was very happy in warm-ups, this is the closest I got to a picture of him smiling though.

And now, since Mule was on fire, here's some Mule pics

Pretty sure he's concentrating on all the shoot he's going to make in this one.

Also, I'm nearly positive Mule's thinking about Dena here :)

Almost forgot this one- Raffy sporting his playoff hair. Or just Raffy and his beard, you can't really see his fuzzy head with the helmet on...

And to finish up, here's Mule practicing making shoot.

Nothing new...

2010-05-11T22:20:00.002-04:00

I can't bring myself to do a recap of my pictures from game 4 or a wrap-up of the season just yet, but I promise one will show up soon. I've got some player tributes planned for the summer too, just need to make them. Also, next week I'm having some minor surgery so I'll be on IR for about a week or so making posts even more sparse than they are right now. Hope everyone enjoyed the season while it lasted, I'll be back soon :)

#42

2010-05-06T13:45:00.008-04:00

Unless everyone is wrong, Mattias Ritola will be in for J-Willy tonight. Andy has believed for months that he is The Answer, even calling him that for reasons any Hitchhiker's Guide fan will quickly realize. In the spirit of hoping The Answer will be the kick/shake-up/insert-phrase-here that we need, here's basically every picture of him that I have from the game the half Griffs/half Wings played against Chicago in December.

And from the game itself...

This last one, borrowed from @DetroitRedWings, sure makes it seem likes he's been ready and waiting to be The Answer since the Black Aces first got called up. Let's hope everyone's right about this

Random Game 6 pictures

2010-05-05T01:20:00.009-04:00

Tonight's game plus a bunch of stuff I found on the internet has left me feeling down and I'd rather not go to sleep feeling this way. I won't have any new pics for a few days, but I thought I'd share some random ones from Game 6 against the Coyotes, aka the last game I was at. Sorry if this all seems a bit disconnected, I'm really tired right now.

To start things off, here's a frustrated-looking Mule and angry-looking Nick with a little bonus Homer head.

Sparty on. That's all that needs to be said about this picture.

Stuie looks intrigued by Fil's stretching...

My picture of Pav decided it wanted to focus on Drew Miller instead.

Finally, Tuzzi is looking a bit rough in this last one...

Here's hoping for a happier ending on Thursday

For anyone who hasn't heard...

2010-05-04T15:43:00.002-04:00

There is going to be a tin foil flash mob tonight at 6:45 on the steps of the Gordie Howe entrance to the Joe. You don't need tickets- I certainly have none- since we're meeting up somewhere later to watch the game. You don't even need a tin foil hat, we have at least 200 and are making more by the minute. Just show up, have fun, and join in the dance if you're feeling brave, which you should be. More details on twitter, comment if you need a link.

This event is meant totally for fun, so just ignore all the haters trying to call us crazy. Yes, we probably are crazy, but not because we're donning tin foil and dancing the hustle outside the Joe. That just makes us awesome.

Part Two: Fun Times with the Commune

2010-04-29T17:11:00.003-04:00

Ok, before we meet up again, how about a little fun with the Red Wings Commune?

Unfortunately, I can't remember all the names, but you might see some familiar faces.

Here are some of the guys who showed up to the commune

And some of the ladies of the commune, Greta, Sara, and Kris...

Our table won quite a few prizes, here's one lucky winner with his Danny Cleary signed puck

Nicole has been a huge supporter of the commune. Here she is with Sara

Finally, we have Kris and Rob.

Although Sunday was not the best day for the Wings, I had a really good time with some awesome people- starting with scoring some student rush tickets. I was pretty excited, especially considering how early it was and how little sleep I had...

Here's everyone's favorite octopus :)

And, finally, my little brother with Al after jumping to try to touch a tentacle...

Fun Times

2010-04-28T22:22:00.007-04:00

So it's time for a little celebration/reminiscing on good times before we all begin freaking out tomorrow. I meant to post this yesterday, since that would make these pictures/videos one month old, but I ran out of time. Instead, let's think of it as a Happy Birthday to our favorite perfect human, Nick Lidstrom.

These pictures are all from one day after H2H and into the morning of March 28th -aka my birthday fun with crazy Wings fans :)

Here's Brian of TSO with Petrella of TPL and Ellen of Big Red Machine in the background

And your favorite Scrappy bloggers, Brian and Natalie

Now for some nursenitz in her awesome Snipe Snipe shirt, Kris of Snipe Snipe, Dangle Dangle making a goofy face, and some more Brian (we sat next to each other, he's in a LOT of pictures, haha)

And now for the first installment of Brian dancing...

Ok, how about some more members of the cool kids' table? Say hi to Serven, Jenny, and Ellen

Dena and Natalie look awfully happy, I think they enjoyed the party...

One more of Brian dancing, joined this time by Kris

Game 6 Pictures

2010-04-26T10:56:00.003-04:00

I should have known this was gonna be ugly... Nick didn't smile at all in warm-ups. Given his future-sight, if Nick is smiling, you know you'll be smiling come the end of the game.

And just look at what Eaves thought of it...

And Mule? I think we all can see how he feels

It wasn't all bad though- in fact, here's Big Rig looking kinda like a Giant (that's for you, nursenitz) doofus to cheer you all up

Nick still looks grumpy, but Ozzie and Helmer are having fun

For @lizzlefoshizzle and any other Helm lovers out there, here's another one of him...

Here's Homer having words with Lepisto

For Dena, Kronner being awesome...

And speaking of action shots, how about some of Abby?

Growing up, fights, big hits and scrappy players made me fall in love with hockey. In the spirit of that, I'm just gonna finish off with an Abby tribute, given that he fought, had big hits and was generally scrappy tonight...

Here's a bit of his fight... My shots stopped just before he gained the upper hand, but I still like this one

Even when the refs had him in a headlock, Abby still tried to get in a few more while Mule stood watch.

And he wasn't done chirping when the fight was over...

One more for good measure

Here's hoping we have a better game 7

Just be awesome

2010-04-20T10:59:00.004-04:00

Ellen over at Big Red Machine gave me an idea today. I was going to write a letter that basically said:

Dear Red Wings,

I'm going to the game tonight, please be awesome.

She said she hopes I will either be good luck or a swift kick in the pants to the guys tonight. So this is what's gonna happen boys. You all know how much I love you, I'll even root for you, Lebda (especially if you're giving an interview wasted)... but you need to give a little something back or this relationship isn't going to work (as if I would ever give up on you). What you might not know, my dear Red Wings, is that I have a TON of pictures in which many of you are standing like you have to pee. So play awesome, or the pee pics go up tomorrow after work. I don't like threatening you, but you need a win and just maybe I need to be that swift kick that gets you going.

Here's a very happy Nick (unfortunately, not my pic) to remind you how good winning and being awesome feels.

Game 3 motivation

2010-04-18T12:17:00.004-04:00

Sorry I haven't done one of these in a while, but I think it's finally time again for a little motivation. I still haven't seen all of game 2, but there were some definite bits of sheer awesome and we need to keep that going.

I love the little girl's face in this first picture. And Danny Cleary doesn't look like a complete stalker or an alien...

Next, it seems we aren't the only people who are happy to see Abdelkader back in the line-up.

Finally, in what doesn't seem like a very original motivator, even hockey players get excited to see the stars out on the ice...

Viewing party in the little d

2010-04-17T18:20:00.004-04:00

One more time, just in case I missed someone out there...

Tomorrow, for anyone still looking for a place to watch the game, a group of us are getting together in Dearborn. The plan is to go to Bailey's at the corner of Michigan Avenue and Mason. If, for some crazy reason, Bailey's is closed, the backup plan is to meet at Buffalo Wild Wings across the street. BWW is on Michigan Ave near Howard.

I plan on staying there after the game to meet up with anyone (Dena, Baroque, and anyone else they wrangle up) who wants to join us. So if you're going to another party that ends before you're ready to go home, feel free to join in the fun!

If anyone needs directions, let me know and I'll try to get them to you :)

A letter to Babs

2010-04-15T03:32:00.010-04:00

(written last night at 3 am, saved until now to make sure it makes sense...)

Dear Coach Babcock,

You need someone who is not afraid to throw his big butt (your words, Mike, not mine) around and get scrappy for scrappy's sake. Perhaps someone young, someone born and raised in Michigan, someone already with you in Phoenix...

Make it happen, Mike. Please.

Sincerely,
saraneuie

Important Update

2010-04-12T19:21:00.003-04:00

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted, I promise to have more pictures up again soon. In the meantime, I have a very important question. Anyone want to meet up in Dearborn (or somewhere close-ish) to watch the game on Sunday? Or, if you're going to the game (Dena and anyone else I don't know about) want to meet up after the game and hang out for a while? I'm thinking Bailey's on Michigan Ave would be good, but the Cheli's in the little d (unlike the one in the big D) actually keeps its kitchen/doors open until a reasonable hour too. There are a bunch of choices on Michigan Ave, so I can find someplace else if people aren't too keen on the first two choices...
Please comment or e-mail me at aneuieperspective@gmail.com if you plan on going so I know if this is actually going to work :)

Last Regular Season Home Game Motivation

2010-04-07T01:46:00.014-04:00

We need some proper inspiration after the last few games. Before we get to that, however, I have a bit of business to take care of. Stuie hits the puck at me, Amanda, and the friendly camera guy we talk to during warm-ups. Hard. It could be the "more shoot" shirt I wear, it could be that he found an open spot and practices there... or it could be that he's mad at us for whatever reason. He has shown up here, but not often enough, it would seem. This picture is for you Stuie, sorry it's not better. Be as awesome as we know you can be, and you'll show up in my post-game pics, simple as that. For my part, I promise to try to get some pics to reflect that awesomeness during warm-ups today.

Ok, now to the motivation... You all know I love the Perfect Human, especially when he isn't looking perfect.

In honor of Homer's nod from the Wings, here's one (taken by Amanda) of him. If anyone missed it, apparently Homer can't go a day without candy. I think he's thinking about it right now...

Now on to something that surprised us all- Meech is a decent fourth line forward. Seriously, he is. I realize Danny Cleary is the better player of the two and want to see him on the ice, but I had to give Meech some recognition.

As most people will tell you, without Lilja to keep him in line, Big Rig is not always the best player. As TPL Mom will tell you, Big Rig is always a very pretty player. Part one of two motivators from two of our D-men...

Part two of two- no further explanation required...

Finally, one more of Homer.

A Tribute to Sunshine

2010-04-04T11:27:00.010-04:00

Inspired by last night's twitter conversation, I've decided to do a tribute to Sunshine, also know as Valtteri Filppula.

The first one is also features Homer making a classic Homer face as well as my favorite Finn.

Next, since we're facing Philly today, here's Sunshine (looking like he's on a cell phone) with his former teammate and fellow Finn, Ville. That guy found his way into so many of my pictures this year that I could do a feature on him at least three times this summer if I get desperate for ideas...

For the guys who are all sick of seeing Sunshine after last night, here's one of Helm being awesomely fast. You know you have mancrushes on him, and you should.

And the Perfect Human, just because who doesn't love the Perfect Human?

For anyone who is tired of looking at guys being pretty, here's Malts clearing his nose out by the bench. I miss that guy...

One more of Fil, just for fun...

Only one motivator today, one that happens to be my current background. I think it was Kris over at Snipe Snipe, Dangle Dangle who said Fil is so man-pretty that it makes guys start to question their sexuality. Especially when around the bathroom with his picture on the pillar. That's basically the inspiration for the following motivator.

The Story of Bebismulor

2010-04-01T18:10:00.017-04:00

Before the game against the Wild last Friday, something important I've referenced/already explained here happened. And that something was Johan Franzen coming face to face (sign?) with the baby mules sign held by Dena. Here, with pictures of course, is the whole story.

Back when Franzen was about to make his comeback, I asked Andy for a few phrases in Swedish to put on signs for him. Andy, being awesome, gave me things like "vote Johan Franzen President of Space" and lots of other great ones. My favorite? Yep, "Johan, I wanna make small baby mules with you." I made the sign, but didn't have the guts to hold it to the glass during warm-ups, although I did wave it like a maniac after Franzie scored for the first time at the Joe and screamed "BEBISMULOR" because that's what you do... Then came Dena and H2H. I brought it with me, wondering if she wanted to hold it to the glass herself. And she did. What follows is probably the best way to show it, pictures taken and titled by NurseNitz with a few of mine thrown in to round it out.

First we have the sign being displayed by Dena...

Franzen saw this and started laughing.

It didn't stop there, the other Swedes saw it too. Pretty sure Kronner and Lils read the sign next. Here it looks like they're talking about it...

For a closer version, here's my pic of pretty much the same thing... it looks like Kronner is asking Lils if he saw the sign.

Next we have more of them (from Amanda) discussing the sign, perhaps in disbelief.

Back to another of mine, you can kinda see the boys react to it. It was hard to capture, I was busy laughing...

Amanda had more luck capturing the moment...

Meanwhile, on the other side of the rink I caught Fil as he sees the sign and thinks about how cute baby mules would be... ok, not really but we can pretend for today...

I can't quite tell what Franzie is thinking here, but I had to throw this in...

From the non-Swedish part of the team, Tuzzi tries to read the sign and fails. He probably follows it up by blowing a bubble with his gum...

Mule is still laughing...

And one last picture from Amanda, quite possibly the best taken by anyone that night- Kronwall lovers beware (and click on the picture, you need to see it on a larger scale...)

Finally, two quick, baby mule-inspired motivators to get you ready for the game.