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Why bang your own head when you could get Neal to do it for you?

So today via Twitter The Penguins asked fans to submit questions for James Neal. Hilarity ensues... Some examples... Flyers Nation ‏@FlyersNation 3h James, do you get the biggest thrill out of kneeing someone in the head or cross checking them in the head? #AskNeal John Forsyth ‏@blackbear93 1h #askneal if you could go back in time and end the career of any player in NHL history who would you choose? Steph ‏@myregularface 1h Is it more rewarding to score a goal or concuss another human? #AskNeal Greg ‏@GDubs10 2h . @penguins Hey James, long time fan first time tweeter. What's your favorite hockey play? The Flying V or the Flying Elbow? #askneal Jeff Mehmel ‏@ThaBKeeper 2h Have you ever cross checked or kneed your grandma in the head? Stupid question. Of course you have, you're James Neal #askneal @penguins Steph ‏@myregularface 2h If you could have any super power, how would you use it to hit opponents in the head? #askneal Mike From Attleboro ‏@MikeFromATown 2h How does one go about playing as dirty as you do while fighting less than the Swiss? #AskNeal Steph ‏@myregularface 2h If Crosby wasn't your teammate, would you try to knee him in the head or use a different body part to contact his head? #askneal

Probably not, he just cross-checked his computer.

I would love a big goal scoring power forward, but not if he was a cheap shotting dirtbag like Neal.

Datsyuk just posted to his FB page that he has started skating again and hopes to be back in the lineup soon Pavel Datsyuk ‏@Datsyuk13 1m Dear All, I started skating. Hoping to play soon. Thanks for your support! Also on Twitter!

[PANIC INTENSIFIES] ‏@panictehnawt 11m If I could #AskNeal anything: If you owned a bar, how cheap would your shots be? #AskNeal @jneal_18 Jake ‏@jakeMa85 3h If you could go anywhere in the world which city would you knee in the head? #askneal This is absolutely awesome, love it. They should do ask Malkin, or Crosby next

Hopefully he comes in like a wrecking ball.

Backes has always been among my favorites in the NHL, he defines what a well rounded hockey player should be. He's the captain of one of the most offensively explosive teams, doesn't get pushed around, doesn't let his team mates get pushed around. He skates well, plays a sound two way game, he hits hard, he has a good attitude and is consistent. What isn't to like? He currently has 50 points in 66 games with 5 game winning goals, is a plus 11 and has nearly 250 hits. I would overpay to have him play for Detroit just because of what he brings to the table. A hockey player that can be used in any situation on the ice is hard to find.

I can't speak for everyone else but my fascination with him has a lot to do with the fact that he's a huge powerforward who's a stud defensively, chips in 20-25 goals and 50+ pts. a season, hits like a truck, plays hard every shift of every game, is a consummate leader, and doesn't seem overly douchey as a person. But that's just me.

He's also delusional, I guess all those hits to other people's heads have taken a toll.

Thing is, with guys like neal you need to have 4 so that you always have 2 or 3 in your lineup. Others are on suspension.

I Know. I have so many enlightening questions to ask. Like: If a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to see it, does it mean that you got away with an elbow?

Nobody is acting like he is a nobody prospect. You're making that up. People are being rational and saying he, like almost every other prospect, is never a sure thing. Both teams got what they needed out of this trade. Just accept it and move on. Regardless of how he turns out, there is absolutely no chance he would have stepped in and filled the role Legwand is filling RIGHT NOW. That is what the trade comes down to. Stop assuming everyone is saying Jarnkrok is a nobody prospect. Nobody has said that at all. There is a difference between being happy with the trade and thinking Jarnkrok is a nobody. You're acting as if there is no middle ground here.

Someone should give Mitch a quick run down of Blake Comeau's behaviour last game against the Wings.

Yeah, I feel about Backes the way I always felt about Shane Doan. The guy's awesome as hell but I cringe everytime I think about our guys going on the ice with him.

Agreed. Frankly I kind of hate him because of how he plays when it's against the Wings, but he's the kind of guy who plays on the edge that I'd like to have on the Wings.

That's as big a gift as anyone could hope for

Okay was confused maybe this was Kenny's plan all along haha

Yes, you can. Cap does not apply in the playoffs. And teams can't do that on purpose every year. We can do it because we had people on LTIR all season long that kept us under the cap.

Are they being showcased? Yes....but for US out of necessity. WE get to see what we have for the future but not for other people's benefit. At this point the only player I would be ok with us trading is Ferraro. He has no future with this team.

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that the two lines of thinking aren't mutually exclusive. Chances are we did overpay for Legwand because Poile would be the worst GM in the world to not make us overpay. He had us over a barrel and he knew it, why not try and get more than you would under normal circumstances? If we weren't so injured he'd likely have asked for less rather than lose Legwand for nothing in July. However, that doesn't mean that Legwand is bad, or wasn't worth the price, or that he isn't playing a huge role in our recent successes. There are a lot of instances when a team overpayed for someone AND it turned out to be a good move. I bet Columbus isn't regretting the Wisniewski signing right now, nor Toronto the Kessel trade. So congrats, everybody is a winner in this debate.

Lol I was being a bit sarcastic, I'm glad he's had at least a good start so far for them

My dog is very effective playing defensively with Glen and Miller. I think Franzen and Quincy are very underrated here and Bert is overrated. Poor D skills and very minimal O skills. Essentially a SO specialist at this point in his career.