What they appear to need is a good butt kicking. But coach Dave Tippett is not that guy and the next Star who comes into the locker room and kicks over the Gatorade cooler will be the first this season. After that gut-wrenching loss, captain Brenden Morrow was actually talking about the positives.

Uhm, Brenden, you do know the “C” does not stand for cheerleader?

A2Y staffers will be closely following this development.

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Update: An A2Y reader’s letter to Engel, and her response, is below.

Dear Ms Floyd Engel,

As a ardent Detroit Red Wing fan I find your description of our goalie as “Chris Flippin Osgood” to be offensive, flippant, and arrogant. Osgood is in the top 15 in lifetime wins in the NHL, led the NHL in goals against for much of this season, and most importantly he has his name on the Stanley Cup twice.

Please feel free to beat up on your own team but try to show a little respect for their opponent. You would never read such characterizations about an opponents player in either of the Detroit newspapers. While I am certain that you are an excellent hockey reporter and work for a respected publication, I am also certain that such disrespectful comments have no place in an article such has yours.

Whatever point you were trying to make it missed the mark. As I read your “editorial” I interpret it to mean that with Ozzie in goal you expected the Stars to waltz over Detroit. Since it did not happen you aren’t satisfied with slamming your team but you have to take a shot at one of our players as well.

You would do well to check out Marty Turco’s lifetime record versus the Wings and focus on that rather than attempting to belittle our goalie. While you are doing that you might want to look up Ozzie’s record against the Stars as well.

Best of luck to you and the Dallas Stars for the rest of the season.

Engel’s response:

Thanks for reading and taking the time to email.

If Chris Osgood had played for anybody except the Red Wings, he’d be out of the league. He is not a great goalie. He has had amazingly great teams in front of him.

And I am not a fan, I do not have a team. I am a reporter and thereby unencumbered by pom poms. Osgood is a beatable goalie and was just OK on Thursday but he was better than Marty Turco and that can not be good enough for the Stars.

All the best,
Jen
FWST

Was she out of line throwing Osgood under the bus in the midst of her pyschotic rant about the Stars? Maybe. Is her response above accurate? Partly. Chris Osgood would not be “out of the league” if he played elsewhere. The first half of this season proves she’s exaggerating there.

Part of me respects the fact that she says she’s not “encumbered by pom poms”. But that claim’s debatable considering her comment that the Stars were guilty of a “gutless-pig meltdown.” Sorry Ms. Floyd (no hyphen) Engel, but those are the words of someone heavily weighted down with pom poms.

It’s refreshing to see a reporter/columnist who writes what she sees and feels. Can our Diggers do that? Not their job, not in their game stories anyway. On their blogs? Maybe. Risky stuff though, considering the access they need to do their jobs.