Well, John Mapplethorpe went to Chicago this week for a conference and in the meantime all hell broke loose in Detroit sports.  The Red Wings dropped games 3 and 4 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in Pittsburgh, and the Tigers have lost 4 straight to the Red Sox and Angels with today's 2-1 loss to the Angels at Comerica Park.  Speaking of which, our old pal Fernando Rodney blew today's game by giving up 2 runs in the 9th inning after Justin Verlander threw a scoreless gem in 8 innings of labor.  But hey Bobby B, at least Fernando didn't get credited with a blown save, right?  The Tigers are holding onto first place by two games with Minnesota playing tonight in Seattle, but they need to start hitting if they are going to be in contention down the stretch, even with the Central Division as weak as it is.  (The Tigers are currently the only team above .500, and they are only three games above .500 themselves.)

So the Stanley Cup Finals got very interesting with the Pens evening the series up in Steel Town.  The series shifts back to Detroit tomorrow night for game 5, tied up at 2-2.  With the Wings losing their vice grip on the series and Marian Hossa struggling, a lot of attention is being focused on Hossa and his decision to sign a one-year contract with the Red Wings for this season after playing with Pittsburgh against the Wings in the Stanley Cup Finals last year.  People in Pittsburgh were expectedly upset about this, and saw the move as a slap in the face.  Now people are jumping on Hossa and chomping at the bit to throw it in his face if the Red Wings lose to the Pens in the Cup Finals in the ultimate of ironies, and in the really ironic way, not in the stupid Alanis Morissette way.

Now, I realize that Marian holds onto the stick with one hand a lot; he is definitely the Rickey Henderson of the NHL.  This gives some folks the perception that he is a hot dog.  He also takes a lot of shots from horrendous angles, which is really annoying.  And I recognize that he doesn't have Gretzky-type career playoff numbers by any means.  But when he is surrounded by a bit of talent, he has posted pretty good numbers, numbers certainly not deserving of earning him a reputation of disappearing in the playoffs.  First of all, his teams have made the playoffs in 9 of his 11 seasons, despite playing for the non-powerhouse Ottawa Senators and Atlanta Thrashers in his first 9.5 seasons.  He has 75 points in 95 career playoff games, including 31 goals, 6 of which were game-winners.  His teams are 9-8 in playoff series, which is definitely respectable.  He's a +4 in the playoffs despite being on a handful of Senator and Thrasher teams which were completely overmatched, being swept out of the first round on three separate occasions.

Consider that Hossa had his talented centerman, Pavel Datsyuk, taken away from him in the middle of the playoff run, as Datsyuk has missed the last seven games due to a foot injury.  Yet, Hossa has still managed to tally 14 points in 20 playoff games this postseason, and is a +5.  Datsyuk is a Hart AND Selke Trophy candidate, and is debatably the best two-way player in the NHL.  Red Wings coach Mike Babcock announced a few hours ago that Datsyuk WILL play in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals tomorrow night.  This will be a huge boost to the Wings and to Hossa.  Oh, and by the way, I haven't heard anything about the beloved Datsyuk being a "playoff choker".  And how many playoff points does the talented Datsyuk have in his career, you ask?  How about  61 points in 95 career playoff games, (does that number of career playoff games sound familiar?), with 4 game winners.  Things that make you go, "Hmmmmmmm."

So John Mapplethorpe is pumped up about tomorrow's game 5.  He will be wearing his patented Wings Chelios shirt, that Bob and Dupree got him for Christmas, at the Detroit sports bar the Tin Lizzie in Lincoln Park after watching the White Sox hopefully drop one at U.S. Cellular.  And he's expecting Hossa and the Red Wings to shine.

Go Wings!

A fan at today's Nationals/Giants game shows his support for Randy Johnson. His sign says it all.  Congratulations to Randy Johnson who picked up his 300th (rainy) win today.

[hype]

There's no denying that the Pens' Sidney Crosby is extremely talented.  In fact, I'm willing to go as far as saying he's the most talented player in the NHL.  You'd think it'd be pretty tough to pick on a guy like Crosby, but with his pubic beard and Eric Lindros-like demeanor he's actually a rather easy (and fun) target.

Here's a message from Sid the Kid.

(Hat tip to Drew for bringing this video to my attention via Twitter.)

Pavel Datsyuk, a candidate for this year's Hart Trophy which goes to the MVP of the NHL, has been held out of the last five Red Wings playoff games due to a foot injury he suffered when he blocked a shot. Well, he appears to be doing a lot better and will make the decision himself tonight on whether or not he will play.  I think it's obvious that having Datsyuk drastically improves this Red Wings team, so even a 50% Datsyuk might be better than 0% Datsyuk.

Here is a transcript of the Q & A session Datsyuk had with the media.  This is taken from Puck Daddy, one of the best hockey blogs on the 'net. Before you read on, take a look at this video and say a few prayers that we'll be seeing our lucky #13 on the ice tonight.

Q. Can you tell us how you feel?

DATSYUK: I feel much better today. I think I'll go in the pregame skates and make a decision for sure. But it's more better.

Can you put a percentage on it?

Percentage? ... I don't give a percentage.

Why did you skate so long this morning?

I just feel it, more confidence. I don't skate for two weeks and I needed to pick up more ice, feel it. Just do more dangle, shoot it. I just tried to.

Are you encouraged?

Yeah, yeah. I don't skate two weeks, it was a little bit hard for me.

Are you going to play?

I don't know. Not sure. I just go for sure in the pregame skate and then make a decision from there.

Has coach told you it's up to you to make the decision?

Yeah.

You skated so long to test it?

Yeah. During the game, it's longer [skating], so I wanted to feel more like it's going to be [skating] a little bit longer.

You skated a little extra yesterday. How did it respond?

It's better. Better in the morning. But it's one long practice. I needed more. I feel more confidence now.

How is your conditioning?

Condition? Eh, it's close. It's a different condition off ice than on ice. It's different, especially when it's the Final and you're on the ice with a good team. It's a little bit tough for starting.

What problems are you still having with it?

I don't score for like 12 games. This is problems. (Laughter)

No, with the foot.

Foot, OK. It's more better. Can more turn. What I need is quick turn, give and go.

Has there been improvement, even from yesterday?

Yeah. Every day, better, better and better. Today, much better. More [feeling] now. More smile, more happy. Still a little bit sore, but it's fine.

If you play, will you have a more limited role on the ice?

It depends how I feel. Like I said yesterday: If the game is 60 minutes, I want to play 60 minutes. I try to keep every shift short.

Was there any other injury besides the foot?

Yeah, I don't score 12 games and it hurt me. (Laughter)

Has there been any indication on who wouldn't play if you play?

I don't know. No idea.

Any beer last night?

No game. No beer.

You only drink when there's a game?

Honest, yes. (Laughs) No.

The Detroit Lions No. 1 overall pick, Matthew Stafford joined the Fox Sports Detroit and the ESPN booths for half an inning each on Wednesday during the Detroit Tigers/Boston Red Sox game.  As you can see from the photos, he was donning the Detroit Tigers orange Old English D road cap, a Detroit Tigers windbreaker, and holding an official NFL football that he probably carries around with him at all times.  Matt did not deny that he carries a football around with him all the time, answering Mario's question with another question,  "I guess you could say that, right?"

During his time in the booth, Mario and Rod took care of all the tough cliche questions.  What are you doing right now?  What's the transition from college to the NFL like?  Do you have a girlfriend?  Mario and Stafford joked about Georgia beating up on Mario's boys, the Michigan State Spartans, in this past year's Bowl game while Rod Allen managed to somehow work in "bra" and "little itty bitty boy" into his questions. (Above, Stafford looks amused while Mario is embarrassed, or giving his le tigre look to the camera). 

The Detroit News says that Stafford has been a quick learner of the Lions offense and has impressed his teammates with his "unassuming demeanor."   He talked about how things were going with the OTAs and other workouts.  He seems eager and excited to start playing quarterback for our Detroit Lions.

At the end of the short, but sweet stay with the esteemed FSN Detroit broadcasters, Stafford was obviously thanked for his precious time and shook both Mario and Rod's hands.  In case you were wondering ladies (and men), Rod Allen made it a point in the next half inning to mention "that boy has some mitts on him."  You know what that means, right?

About an inning later, Stafford met up with the ESPN broadcasters.  They had a much more interesting talk as they asked about Stafford's baseball background and how many keg stands he does on the weekends.  It's of no surprise that Stafford revealed he could probably pitch over Zach Miner and Brandon Lyon in the Detroit Tigers bullpen while drunk.  In all seriousness, apparently Stafford rocked three pitches and threw 90-91 MPH in high school.  Forget the Detroit Lions, let's get Stafford working with Rick Knapp in that Tigers bullpen.

Despite the Tigers frustrating loss, it was exciting to see Stafford supporting them last night.  He also mentioned how he has quickly become a Red Wing fan and that he plans on helping out in and around the Detroit community.  Obviously, I have no problem with any of that as long as he throws a lot of touchdown passes and stops fraternizing with Kevin Youkilis and Dustin Pedroia during batting practice.

Let the Matthew Stafford era begin.

At Comerica Park during the Tigers/Red Sox game yesterday, one lucky cameraman happened to catch an unusual streaking daredevil.

What you're about to see is a Detroit4lyfe News exclusive.