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One of the most dramatic of sports stories gets the expert film it deserves in “The Russian Five,” a documentary that is moving in ways you won’t see coming. The sport is professional ice hockey, specifically the saga of the Detroit Red Wings, who in the 1990s changed both their professional trajectory and the way the game is played in the National Hockey League by boldly adding Russian players to the mix. The intensely human situations revealed by director Joshua Riehl will captivate you even if you don’t know a puck from a ping-pong ball. The key to “Russian Five’s”...

Mike Ilitch, the owner of the Detroit Tigers and Red Wings, died Friday at age 87, his representatives confirmed. "My father was a once-in-a-generation entrepreneur, visionary and leader, setting the tone for our organization and our family," Ilitch's son Christopher, the president and CEO of Ilitch Holdings Inc., said in a statement released by the company. "He made such a positive impact in the world of sports, in business and in the community, and we will remember him for his unwavering commitment to his employees, his passion for Detroit, his generosity to others and his devotion to his family and...

Link here: http://www.clickondetroit.com/sports/hockey-legend-gordie-howe-dies-at-age-88

WINDSOR, Ont. - A new bridge between Windsor, Ont., and Detroit will be named after hockey legend Gordie Howe. Howe, who is now 87, was born in Floral, Sask., and came to be known as "Mr. Hockey." The still-to-be built Gordie Howe International Bridge is expected to be operational in 2020. The Windsor-Detroit corridor is the busiest commercial land crossing between the two countries and the border has long been a bottleneck. Prime Minister Stephen Harper made the announcement today along with Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder at the river separating Canada and the U.S. Harper praised Howe as a proud...

We’ve all heard about Detroit’s bankruptcy as bleeding-heart “economists” plead for a bailout from Uncle Sam. Yet, the city of Detroit intends to move forward with its contribution to the Redwings’ new hockey arena. According to CNN, the city plans to spend $444 million of Michigan taxpayers’ money on the facility, despite hour-long police delays and shutting off 40 percent of its street lights to save money. To borrow from The Simpsons character Mr. Burns, Detroit plans to use taxpayer funds to help a billionaire build a private playground for millionaires. Team owner Mike Ilitch is only worth $2.4 billion...

DETROIT (WWJ) – A new hockey arena for the Detroit Red Wings got another step closer to reality Wednesday with Michigan Strategic Fund Board approval of $450 million in bonds for the structure. State officials said the overall project, which includes a total of $650 million in arena costs and retail, residential and restaurant development around the arena on 45 acres, would create 4,380 construction jobs. The city’s bankruptcy is not expected to interfere with the project, which backers said consists of 56 percent private investment from Olympia Development and 44 percent public financing from tax capture in the Detroit...

Next year's Winter Classic could set an attendance record. The Detroit Red Wings will face the Toronto Maple Leafs on Jan. 1 at Michigan Stadium, a matchup of two Original Six teams at the iconic college football facility that drew more than 104,000 fans for a college hockey game in 2010. [...] The centerpiece will be the Winter Classic at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor, 45 miles west of Detroit, and it will include a Canadian team for the first time. "It's Hockeytown versus the center of the hockey universe," said Brian Burke, the Toronto general manger who was at...

In the third period against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday night, Detroit Red Wings star Henrik Zetterberg put a glove on the back of defenseman Nikita Nikitin as they raced for the puck. That was enough to knock Nikitin off-balance, as he crashed awkwardly into the end boards and writhed in pain on the ice. As a result, Zetterberg was given a major penalty for boarding and a game misconduct. According to NHL.com's stats history, it's the first major and ejection for Zetterberg in his 634 career games: [...] (Video and comments at link.)

AP A lot of people think that it’s unfair that the playoffs can make or break players’ legacies. It’s reasonable to feel uncomfortable about that since the sample size is so small, but there’s no doubt that lasting memories are made when everyone can focus on one game. The fact that tonight’s Detroit Red Wings-San Jose Sharks match is a Game 7 only intensifies that scrutiny.The fact that Game 7s are still technically one game means that lesser known players can often steal the spotlight. Maxime Talbot scored two goals against the Red Wings in Game 7 of the...

Retired hockey enforcer Bob Probert, as adept with his fists as with a stick in a 16-season career with the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks, died Monday after suffering chest pains while boating with his family. He was 45. "Bob lost the fight of his life this afternoon," said Probert's father-in-law, Dan Parkinson, a police officer who performed CPR before Probert was rushed to Ontario's Windsor Regional Medical Center. Probert was on a boat in Lake St. Clair with his wife, children and in-laws when he "developed severe chest pains" Monday, family friend Rich Rogow told a Monday evening...

Game 7 of the Final is hockey's ultimate contest For a hockey fan, Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final is like waiting for Christmas: It seems like the big day takes forever to get there, but when it does, it's well worth the wait. Of course, Christmas comes just once a year. A Final series that goes the maximum seven games comes along infrequently. Since the NHL expanded from the Original Six teams in 1967, the championship round has gone the distance just eight times, including this year's Final between Detroit and Pittsburgh. If the Stanley Cup Final is...

DETROIT (Reuters) – The Detroit Red Wings edged the Chicago Blackhawks 2-1 in overtime on Wednesday to set up a Stanley Cup finals rematch with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Darren Helm's overtime goal sealed the Western Conference title for Detroit, the defending NHL champions, who will now host Game One of the Stanley Cup finals against the Penguins. Pittsburgh booked their return to the finals on Tuesday by completing a 4-0 sweep of the Carolina Hurricanes.

For anyone who's a hockey fan esp. of the Blackhawks or Red Wings there are some excellent pictures up at bleedcubbieblue.com of the construction. Looks like they have a lot done already. And is it just me or does Wrigley look spooky? And I found these by accident. I need another Cubs site like I need a hole in my head. But this looks like a good one.

Congratulations to the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins! Two great teams who have earned the chance to hoist Lord Stanley's Cup! There are a multitude of stories on the NHL website - http://www.nhl.com/ And on the Red Wings website - http://redwings.nhl.com/ And on the Penguins website - http://penguins.nhl.com/ This promises to be one of the greatest series in NHL history! Something for those who don't usually watch! So spread the word, and do your part to recruit a new fan or two!

Posted by George James Malik April 19, 2008 08:29AM According to the Free Press's Helene St. James, the NHL has banned Al Sobotka's classic twirling of octopi at Joe Louis Arena: April 18, Detroit Free Press: Just a little tidbit from Joe Louis Arena: The NHL has decided octopus twirling doesn't fit in with league image, or something to that effect. The Wings have been told by the league that if Al Sobotka (or anyone else) twirls the octopus that's thrown onto the ice before playoff games, it'll cost the team $10,000. I know opposing general managers have complained of...

The magical tale of the hockey hero and the sick little boy came to an end on a warm spring day in Detroit in 2006. Braxton Davis, the sick little boy, stood silently inside the Red Wings' locker room as the players streamed out, the day before a first-round game against Edmonton. The room was empty, save for one man, Steve Yzerman, who lingered in khakis and a long-sleeved shirt. The Captain, holding a stick in his hand, walked over to Braxton. The boy reached up, took the stick, held it tight. He looked so happy, so blissfully unaware. Maybe...

Just starting an open thread for stanley cup discussion for the remainder of the playoffs. Are the games beamed over to the other side of the world to our guys and our Canadian brethren?

DETROIT (AP) -- Steve Yzerman, the Red Wings' 41-year-old captain who has played his entire NHL career with Detroit, is hanging up his skates. Yzerman, who was 18 when he joined the Red Wings in 1983, ended months of speculation about his future Monday when he announced his retirement at a news conference. "My intention throughout the season was to retire, play one last year," Yzerman said. "This is the right decision for me at this time. I really have no doubt about that." Yzerman led Detroit to three Stanley Cups and playoff appearances in each of the last 15...

DETROIT (AP) -- Hockeytown or Hoopstown? Detroit is both. The top teams at the end of the NBA and NHL regular seasons are from the same city for the first time, with the Pistons and Red Wings combining to pull off the feat for the Motor City. "It's always cool to be a part of anything that hasn't happened before," Joe Dumars, the Pistons' president of basketball operations, said Wednesday in an interview with The Associated Press. "This is a great sports town, and the fans around here are about to really have some fun following both teams." The Red...

DETROIT -- Red Wings defenseman Jiri Fischer had a seizure on the Detroit bench late in the first period of Monday night's game against the Nashville Predators and was listed in stable condition at a hospital. Fischer was given CPR at the bench by team physician Dr. Tony Colucci before the 25-year-old native of the Czech Republic was removed on a stretcher. The game was called off with no makeup date immediately announced. "His heart was stopped," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said. "They hooked up the auto defibrillator and shocked him." Team spokesman John Hahn said Fischer was taken...