Detroit Red Wings: True Rivals

I like to think it takes a lot for me to whip out my condescending “Goalier than thou” Red Wing Fan-itude. Oh make no mistake, it’s always in the holster. But as Lidstrom’s sermon from Mt. JLA, chapter 5:11, in the Book of Holland reminds us: It is better to speak softly and slap in a one-timer from the blueline, than to spear someone in the nads with a Sharp stick.

I really try to make aneffort not to constantly remind everyone that the Detroit Red Wings are the best team to ever grace a rink, ever. At least not without gushing my particular brand of unwavering adoration, energetic enthusiasm and sass that I like to think makes it palatable. I also try very hard to maintain a classy Wing Fan persona, because the team holds itself to an impossibly high standard of class as evidenced by the existence of Steve Yzerman, Nic Lids and Pavel Datsyuk.

Accordingly, I expressly, purposefully and knowingly reserve most of my condescension for those who truly deserve it. In other words, it only pours out onto the Anaheim Thucks, CryBaby Crosby and now, the Chicago Blackhawks, their bandwagon fans and most particularly the manufactured rivalry between the two teams that some marketing fop somewhere in Toronto or the Windy City keeps trying to make stick.

At the drop of a puck I will draw a bored, “knowing” smirk whenever someone tries to perpetuate the myth that there is a rivalry between Detroit and Chicago. It’s a sad, absurd premise as pathetic as the league’s continued attempts to engineer a Pens-Caps rivalry. There simply is no existing or recent rivalry between the Wings and the Hawks. The Hawks have been a terrible team for so long, and their fan base has been non-existent even longer (a fact particularly offensive to me). Any rivalry between the Red and the Black -that may at one time have existed- died 30-40 years ago. One Stanley Cup doesn’t change this fact, no matter how many quarters, dimes and nickels Buck Twenty Kane donates to the Taxi Driver Defense Fund of Buffalo.

The Imaginarium of Dr. Bettman’s Emporium

History is on my side on this one. Sure they are both Original Sixers, but even in the 1920-30’s, when Chicago was “good” they were never really our rivals, nor were we their rival. Since the days of the Original Six, the Wings and Hawks have not matched up against each other during a period were they were both on the rise/at the top. 

Fact is, Chicago’s real rivalry is with the St. Louis Blues and it spans decades. Can you say “St. Patty’s Day Massacre”? Jeremy Roenick can. Seems kind of pathetic that the Blackhawks are willing to bury their true rivalry history with St. Louis, and what for? Just so they can get their name mentioned in the same sentence as the Detroit Red Wings? So sad. Anyone want to bet that once the Blues become contenders again, Chicago will try to embrace that rivalry like nothing ever happened? I’ll wager a Buck Twenty and a used mouthguard…

The only facts that lend themselves to the pipedream of a Detroit-Chicago rivalry is a shared division, geographic location and the fact that we stole the prodigal son from under their noses when he finally, painfully had to admit that the only way he’d see his name on a Stanley Cup was to bring his chili and his Hollywood friends about 400 miles east. Even though he once vowed that he’d never play in Detroit.

Sorry Cheli- you know we love ya. And I hear your chili is quite good.

And finally, Detroit fans barely acknowledge a Blackhawk existence, and forget about the bandwagonners they call fans. Respect has to be earned people. That Stanley Cup seems more a fluke and anomaly than reality, and it certainly doesn’t spark jealousy or anger or any sense of injustice.

So if not the Hawks, then who, you ask? Come on.

Really?

Snow me the Money- (A Buck Twenty won’t cut it)
Detroit’s All Time Greatest Rival

For my $1.20, there is and has been only one modern Wings rivalry of any note in Detroit Red Wing History.

Wings- Avs.

Sure, sure Wings fans have developed special degrees of loathing for the fighty fighty Thucks and Sid Crosby, but these things don’t go to eleven.

Nothing more poignantly highlights the farcical basis of the imaginary Wings-Hawks rivalry, than a look at the history of Wings v. Avs.

The Detroit-Colorado rivalry has everything any good historic rivalry should. It’s arguably in the all time top 3 of hockey rivalries, and I’d bet in the all time top twenty of sports rivalries.

Even before the Nordiques were uprooted to Colorado, entered into witness protection and forced to change their name this rivalry was brewing. Patty Wah held a special brand of hatred for the Wings, even before he got to Colorado. Nine goals on 26 shots will do it to you...

These two teams fiercely battled for league and Western Conference dominance from 1995 through 2002, meeting in the confy finals 3 of those 7 years, and meeting in the semis for another 3 of the 7. More often than not the winner of this match up would eventually take the Stanley Cup home during this period. But the fight for athletic supremacy was just the tip of the iceberg fueling this great rivalry.

There were heroic goaltender battles, Statue of liberty smackdowns, and intense dynamic back and forth triumphs and losses over an exciting 7 year period; HHOF team captains both wearing No. 19, bench clearing brawls at any given moment and of course there was Darren McCarty pummeling future “Skating with the Stars” winner, Claude Le Pew, into turtle soup.

There existed such a deep hatred of opposing players and opposing fans that even Yankees/Red Soxs fans give deference. Rumor has it there is a Gordie Howe Sweater cemented under the Home Goal at the Pepsi Center.

The injustice all Detroit Fans continue to feel with respect to Claude Le Pew’s vicious attack on Kris Draper will take generations to dissipate. Maybe even longer now that you can pull Darren McCarty’s retribution up on You Tube and watch it over and over.

Not that I know anyone who does that…

And it all occurred while Detroit and her fans patiently and loyally hoped and fought to end a 41 year Stanley Cup drought. 41 years between championships and yet some will argue that the win over Colorado on March 26, 1997 was as sweet as Game 4 of the 1997 SCF.

Sure Colorado looked absolutely pathetic in the 2008 Semis, so much so that I vividly recall watching that series with my brother with a fair degree of sentimental shock, punctuated only by a quiet uttering the following sentiment: “It’s the end of an era.” while our Wings deftly dominated an underwhelming and clearly demoralized Colorado team. And of course the next year when Joe S. broke his fingers on the snowblower, the rest of the world started to echo that sentiment.

Then the Avs quietly and quickly began to rebuild. I wish I could say I had an in depth analysis, but I don’t. Fact is though, since mid-season last year, Colorado has looked like contenders again. And after last night’s game at the Joe, there is no question in my mind, Detroit's true rival is on the way back, cannot be taken for granted and  ain’t going anywhere, anytime soon.

Score 5 goals on Jimmy Howard one time- shame on me. Colorado scoring 5 goals on him again? It will never happen. And if it does, I will dress in goalie gear, assume the statue of liberty stance in net while Patrick Kane takes slap shots from the blues.

Now you know I am not an advocate of fighting, but there is one exception that clearly bolsters my argument that the Wings-Avs rivalry is the greatest in the history of our franchise: