6\28 Steve Duchesne decided not to exercise the $1 million player option for next season. The 
Wings can still sign him, but Monday morning at 12:00 A.M. he's a free agent like everybody 
else. Pavel Datsyuk was named Rookie of the Year by the Detroit Sports Broadcaster's Assoc. 
  (Freep)Chris Chelios was back home in Chicago Thursday and was the guest soloist for "Take Me 
Out to the Ballgame" during the seventh-inning stretch of the Cubs-Cincinnati game at 
Wrigley Field.
 
6\25 Hasek has retired. I'm a little dissapointed, but he was a rental and we all knew that. My 
guess for his replacement is Ed Belfour. He'd be much cheaper than CuJo and I think a better 
fit. We'll see if ken Holland agrees with me. 
  In addition to looking for a new head coach for the Wings, Ken Holland will also need to find 
one for the team's new top farm team, the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffiths. The former coach, 
Bruce Cassidy, was hired to head coach for the Washington Capitols.

6\24  Shanny was on Regis this morning with the Cup. Also, there are rumors all over the place 
that Hasek will indeed retire. Some are saying CuJo is coming, some say Belfour. Truth is, 
nobody knows yet.

6\23 Although they had no first round draft pick (it went to Buffalo for Hasek)the Wings did 
pretty well in the Entry Draft on Saturday. They picked twice in the second, picking up two 
Czechs, center Jiri Hudler, who many had listed as the 13th best player and 3rd best european 
skater in the draft (58th overall), and left wing Tomas Fleischmann(63rd overall). In the third 
round (95th overall), they selected the captain of the Finnish U-18 team, Valtteri Filppula.
   Old friend Slava Kozlov was traded from Buffalo to Atlanta for a second round pick. He will
likely be a first liner there.

6\20 The Wings' did well at the NHL Awards tonight. Nick Lidstrom won his second consecutive 
Norris Trophy and he, along with Chris Chelios, were named to the NHL First Team All-Stars.

6\17 Sounds like all the unrestricteds want to come back, just a matter of signing them. No 
new news on Dom or the coaching situation.

6\16 Fredrik Olausson is returning to Sweden for next season. He did his job and he did it 
well. Good luck Freddy.
   However, during the party at the Joe Sunday night for season ticket jolders, Freddy said he 
has NOT retired. Igor Larionov also hinted that he will return.

6\14 Player reviews: (this will take me a week or so to complete, so check back for updates.)

2 Jiri Fischer: Fish made huge strides this season, largely because of his pairing with the 
master, Chris Chelios. He will indead be an impact player in the very near future. He shot the 
puck more this year as well. He commited a bone-headed cross-check to the face in Game 4 and
was suspended for Game 5, and he learned from it. 

4 Uwe Krupp: Finally came back and wasn't worth a poop. Was minus 5 in the Wings' first two 
playoff games vs. Vancouver, both losses. He was replaced in Game 3 of that series and the 
Wings began to roll. Coincidence? I think not. His $16 million, 4 year contract is finally 
over and we won't have to see him again.

5 Nicklas Lidstrom: What else can you say about this guy except he's simply the best 
defenseman in the world. The Conn Smythe was a surprise, but only because it rarely goes to 
defenseman. He played more minutes then every player on either team in every game in every 
round of the playoffs. He had 2 penalty minutes. He's a finalist for the Norris and Lady Byng 
Trophies.

8 Igor Larionov: Igor continues to be the smartest guy in hockey. At 41, he is the oldest 
player in the league and the oldest in playoff history to score a goal. He's also in the best
shape of anyone on the team. His Triple OT winner in game 3 of the Finals was a classic. 
Hopefully he'll return for another year.

11 Mathiew Dandenault: Dandy also had a kind of breakout year. His speed continues to dazzle 
and he was exceptionally steady in the playoffs.

13 Pavel Datsyuk: The Wings plucked this guy from the rookie camp the NHL holds every year for 
unsigned players. He's going to be a gamer when he learns to pull the trigger after he makes 
opposing defenseman look like school girls. He has some of the best moves in hockey. Paired
most of the year with Brett Hull and Boyd Devereaux. At times it was the Wings best line. He 
needs to get better defensively, on faceoffs, and as I said, pull the trigger.

14 Brendan Shanahan: Shanny had another great year, as he has every year since he came to 
Detroit in 1996. He was unfairly blasted by the media after his stick went cold in the final 
two rounds of the playoffs. He had 3 goals in the final two games, including the Cup winning 
goal. Enough said.

17 Brett Hull:

6\14 From the Free Press:
                       June 14, 2002

                    The broadcast calls at the end of the Red Wings' victory: 

                    Ken Kal, with Paul Woods on WXYT-AM (1270): "Brendan
                    Shanahan has done it for Detroit. . . . I'll tell you what, Paul, he
                    missed an open net in triple overtime, but he didn't miss that one
                    from center ice, right smack-dab in the middle. . . . The Cup,
                    Paul, is back in Detroit. . . . The game is over and the Detroit
                    Red Wings are the 2002 Stanley Cup champions, and what a
                    mob scene in the end to our right as the Red Wings mob
                    Dominik Hasek, and here comes the confetti raining down. It's
                    red and white confetti from the rafters here at Joe Louis Arena." 

                    Gary Thorne and Bill Clement, ABC: Thorne -- "The Detroit
                    Red Wings . . . the third they have won in six years, the 10th they
                    have won in history . . . the Detroit Red Wings have won the 2002
                    Stanley Cup!" Clement -- "The Detroit Red Wings had proven
                    too much for any team. And they deserve the Stanley Cup." 

                    Bob Cole, CBC's "Hockey Night in Canada": ". . . Nine Stanley
                    Cups. He shared the record with Toe Blake. Scotty says, 'Don't
                    ever compare me with Toe Blake. He was the very best. He won
                    his eight Stanley Cups in just 13 seasons, this is my 32nd, Bob.'
                    Tonight is Scotty's 36th finals win -- another record. I say to you
                    William Scott Bowman: Take a bow, Scotty, your numbers may
                    stand forever." 

6\13 Well folks, they did it. Brendan Shanahan scored two and Homer got one and the Wings win 
the Stanley Cup 3-1. Nick Lidstrom won the Conn Smythe Trophy. He's the first european to do 
so. Scotty Bowman announced his retirement. Scotty won 9 Cups as a coach (record), 36 Finals
games(record), and another Cup as a GM. Hasek promised an answer on his future in the next 
few days. He is the first european goaltender to win the Cup. There are other personnel 
questions to be answered, and we'll get to them in time. This is Detroit's 10th Cup. I have 
much more to post but it can wait until morning. 

6\12 As expected, Jiri Fischer is suspended at least one game for cross-checking Carolina 
forward Tommy Westlund in the face 7:44 into the third period Monday night. He wasn't 
penalized. Westlund lost a tooth cap and took five stitches.(Freep) 

6\11 Brett Hull scored his 100th playoff goal and Dominic Hasek made 17 saves for his record 
6th playoff shutout in a single season as the Wings flew by the 'Canes 3-0. Also scoring were 
Larionov and Shanahan. Sergei Fedorov continues to dominate games, even though the score sheet 
doesn't show it. He's a viable candidate for the Conn Smyth Trophy. Unfortunate for him, so 
are Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull, Dominic Hasek, and Nick Lidstrom. Wings lead 3-1 and Game 5 is 
Thursday back at the Joe. Jiri Fischer may be suspended following a cross check to the face.
  Brett Hull's 100th playoff goal pushed him into some elite company to reach the century mark. 
He is behind only Wayne Gretsky(122), Mark Messier(109), and Jari Kurri(106). Brett is the 
current scoring leader for this year's playoffs.
  Scotty Bowman has 35 Stanley Cup Finals wins, putting him in first passing Toe Blake.

6\9 Igor Larionov scored at 14:47 of the third overtime to lead the Wings to a 3-2 win in 
Game 3. It was Igor's second of the game. He is the oldest player to score a goal in the 
Finals. Brett Hull scored with 1:14 left in the third to knot it up. This was the third 
longest game in Finals history, only 30 or so seconds short of the record. Ironman Nick 
Lidstrom logged 52:03 of ice time. Cheli was second with 46:38 Hasek made 41 saves on 43 
shots. Arturs Irbe made 51 saves on 54 Detroit shots. Steve Duchesne lost 6 teeth after 
getting hit in the chops with a puck and he didn't miss a shift. Wings lead the series 2-1. 
Game 4 is Monday night in Raleigh.

6\7 Kirk Maltby and Rod Brind'Amour traded first period short handed goals. After that it was 
all Detroit. They peppered Irbe and won it 3-1. Also scoring were Lidstrom and Draper. Series
is tied 1-1. Game 3 is Saturday night in Raleigh.
   Right here in good old Maumee, Ohio, a couple named their newborn son Joe Louis Arena.

6\5 The Wings played a sloppy game and paid for it, losing 2-3 in OT. Scoring were Fedorov
and Maltby. Carolina leads the series 1-0. Game 2 is Thursday.

6\1 Well folks, I was wrong. The Wings saved their perfect game for when it counted- a 7-0 
Game 7 victory. Scoring were Holmstrom(2), Fedorov, Robitaille, Hull, Olausson, and Datsyuk.
Patrick Roy was chased midway through the second period when the score was 6-0. This is the 
largest goal differential ever in a game 7. Dominic Hasek is the first goaltender to record 
5 shutouts in a playoff season. Detroit wins the series 4-3. Game 1 of the Stanley Cup 
Finals is Tuesday at the Joe vs. Carolina.
  I have a lot of respect for this year's Colorado team. They are extremely talented and the 
series could have easily went the other way. This Avs team played hard, smart, and crafted.
They were not the dirty bastards of Colorado teams past.
  Brett Hull said this of the Wings' young players, "They're wonderfully talented," he said. 
"Their hearts are bigger than their brains." 

Conference Finals Wrap-up:

West                                 East
(1)Detroit over (2)Colorado 4-3      (3)Carolina over (4)Toronto 4-2