Babcock, Players Eager To Start Defending Stanley

Mike Babcock said it as if he needed to remind all of us.

"It's hard to win the Stanley Cup," the Red Wings coach said. "It was hard to win it last year, and it'll be hard to win it again this year."

But, contrary to what is sure to be trendy belief, it won't necessarily be because of the so-called "Cup hangover" that sometimes inflicts the defending NHL champions.

Babcock and GM Ken Holland were speaking in an NHL-coordinated media conference call yesterday afternoon, and as usual when anyone from the Detroit organization sits down to talk hockey, the event takes on an almost professorial/student tone.

One of the themes was how Babcock would approach his job this season. Because what inevitably comes after you win the Cup for the first time as a coach is coaching a Cup-defending team for the first time. When the media merry-go-round stopped at me, I asked Babcock about it -- wanting to know if he'd spoken to anyone in the league, including Scotty Bowman, in a tone of, "What do I do NOW?"

But lest I forget, these are the Red Wings, and that means there is no shortage of champions to seek out for advice.

So Babcock talked to Nicklas Lidstrom. He talked to Steve Yzerman. He talked to Kris Draper. And he talked to Bowman. And he spoke to some people from other orgs, like Ron Francis and Jim Rutherford of the Carolina Hurricanes, Cup champs in 2006.

"I asked everyone I possibly could. The list goes on and on," Babcock said.

"I'm a big believer in each year is different, and I don't think there's much carry over from year to year anyway," Babcock said. "We have a great opportunity here. This is our big chance. We don't know when a chance will come this good again. I hear Kenny talk about next year (when the Red Wings have to make some tough decisions based on impending free agents), and so I'm already nervous about next season."

Earlier, Holland had spoken about a "one-year window", referring to the addition of superstar forward Marian Hossa as a free agent. Hossa signed a one-year deal in July. And that accounted for Babcock's nervousness. But there shouldn't be any nerves shown by his players.

"We're in shape. We're ready to go. The players know what kind of an opportunity we have. I'm excited about this year, and so are our players, so let's get at it."

It almost made me want to lace on some skates.

Holland said, to give an idea about how the Red Wings will wear the bulls eye this season in an era of parity, "I figure out of 82 games, about 70 of them will be playoff-type games. I figure there might be 10-12 games where it'll be decided after the second period -- either we're out of it or we have the game put away. But beyond that, I think the other 70 games will be like playoff games -- going down to the last three or four minutes.

"And that's before the playoffs even start," he added.

Babcock figures to need all of the depth at his disposal under such a scenario -- depth that he put into perspective this way.

"This is easily the best group of players I've ever sent to the minors. Ever," he said of the moves that sent forwards Ville Leino and Darren Helm to Grand Rapids.

For the record, Holland says he's trying to trade defenseman Kyle Quincey, but he won't rush a deal. The Wings have some time, with Darren McCarty, Chris Chelios, and goalie Jimmy Howard all starting the season on injured reserve.

"We can start the season without any moves, but when our people get back (from IR), we'll have to make some decisions," Holland said.

Someone asked Holland if the Red Wings would be interested in power forward Brendan Shanahan, who's an unrestricted free agent.

"We're so close to the cap," Holland said. "Not unless Brendan wants to play for the minimum salary." Then he added, laughing, "I don't anticipate that happening."

I don't, either.