Leaderboard

Put him in on the Maltby plan. Sign him, but let him retire if he doesn't make the team at camp, and give him an office job. If he makes it, we have someone who can be counted on to fill in if there is an injury and is a good motivational person in the dressing room. If not, best wishes and we'll see you in a suit.

The hangover is strong with this one

Lol. I kind of want it to happen just to see people lose their minds.

I don't hate Dan Cleary, but he's starting to remind me of that guy who just sort of invites himself to everything.

Id rather have bert

I've watched a lot of games the last couple years, I understand people have different opinions, but I like the the Smith plays. Yes, he makes mistakes, but I like how he takes risks, and he's always stirring things up. I like to have a few players like Smith on a team, because he disrupts the opposition and keeps them on their toes. Just pair him up with a more responsible defensive partner, and things should be fine.

How many of those risks did he turn into points?

Step 1: sign Mike Reilly Step 2: trade for Ryan O'Reilly Step 3: profit?

And everything indicates that this is due to the Lightning's sales/marketing/business people. Not the GM of the team.

No comment.

If there is doubt and discussion about whether a jersey should be retired, it's not going to happen. As you can see, plenty of doubt about 91 and 30 here. No one here was posting threads to discuss whether 19 or 5 would go up in the rafters.

The only way missing the playoffs make sense is if we go all Buffalo with it. f*** that. I'm drunk again so pardon my f***ign ***** ass french, but jesus. We have the deepest prospect pool in the league. We are in a position where the team can compete, and we have the depth to now make trades to fill holes in the roster. Tanking a season gives us one potential instant high end player. Key word: POTENTIAL. The streak will mean that much more once we make a run again. Let Chicago be the next team to win 3 cups in 6 years. Let us be the team to win one again without ever missing the playoffs. THAT is something that would never be done again. Patt those mother ******* butss.

The pre-Chelsea dagger days. Lol. Hawks fans now remind me of the Avs fans back in the 90s who believed the NHL began in 1995. Many Hawks fans believe the NHL began in 2009. Then again I'm just jealous. Yeah that's it. Lol

Never understood why people don't understand this... The RFA compensation system completely favours the team who initially drafted the player. In Dougie Hamilton's case (a player drafted 9th overall) seeking upwards of $7,000,000 annually - we would have to give up two 1st Round Picks, a 2nd and a 3rd Round Pick plus overpay him in the first place to prevent Boston from matching the offer. Here is a look at the most recent players we drafted (with the same picks) that would be forfeited to acquire Dougie Hamilton: 2013 1st - Anthony Mantha 2014 1st - Dylan Larkin 2013 2nd - Tyler Bertuzzi 2014 3rd - Dominic Turgeon The problem is that he's seeking $7,000,000 from Boston, meaning he probably wouldn't sign an offer sheet with Detroit unless it was for $8,000,000, but Boston would probably match up until $9,000,000 - see where I'm going? So you have the highest paid Defenseman in the NHL, and it now costs you four 1st Round Picks. Would anyone trade Mantha, Larkin, Sheahan and McCollum for Hamilton? Not me.

We gotta make room in the top six for a 20+ goal scoring power forward, who's big, gritty, and plays in the hard areas. Once we get Abby out of there the only problem will be finding a guy like that. I'd trade half a dozen guys on this team rather than Abby. The NHL is a man's league, and Abby plays a big boy game. Trade Nyquist or Pulkkinen before you trade Abby. He's practically the only guy on our team who A) can score goals, and B) isn't a complete pantywaist. If anything we need more guys like him (Drew Stafford anyone?), not less.

I was all set to argue and then I saw this. Now my heart hurts a little bit.

Yeah, because Mike Babcock loves those three guys. Might as well thrown Kindl in there too. That'll really sweeten the pot. Any potential trade for Phaneuf went right out the window the second Babs went to Toronto.

That's why I have no opinions on the civil war.

There really isn't any reason to take this discussion too far afield. Anybody who's been around LGW for a while knows the kinds of reactions that Franzen has received around here. And the criticisms have definitely gone pretty far beyond observations of his play. If people genuinely feel bad for him, that's fine. Who am I to say how you should feel about the guy? I was just making an observation that there were an awful lot of people who had nothing good to say about him and wanted him gone at any cost. Many went so far as to feminize his name (because chicks are lame bro! durrrrrr). And some of those same people now act like they really give a crap about the guy...so long as he still leaves, of course. I wish the guy all the good health in the world. And if he wants to continue playing hockey, or trying to play hockey, who the hell am I to wish otherwise? He and his doctors certainly know better than I do whether he's subjecting himself to anything unwise. And he and his family are far more capable of weighing the risks and rewards of playing than any of us.

I understand shouting at the TV in the privacy of your home when a player doesn't perform. Anything goes. I understand ranting among friends in a private setting when a player doesn't perform. Anything goes. Taking the time to compose and post a message calling a player a "homosexual" on a message board where strangers, children, and quite possibly actual homosexuals can visit is oafish and dull. Use your adult words. Act like a decent human being. Slurs are best left to middle school boys who think using "naughty" words makes them cool.

I think you missed some pretty relevant contextual information. I'm talking about the fans, on this site, saying those things about him. Not other players, on the ice. I think it's trashy for fans to attack the guy personally, and then pretend to have sincere concern for his person later on. Regardless of his work ethic. I don't care what other players say to him on the ice.

So because he doesn't play up to his potential we should all expect, and participate, in the pejorative speculation about his sexuality, mental health issues, and criminality? He's been accused of everything from being a homosexual to intentionally defrauding the Wings by faking the severity of his injury. It's over the top. And the fact that he's "polarizing" is no excuse. Wings fans LOVE to go on and on about how classy they are. And how loutish and ignorant other teams' fans are. But in the case of Johan Franzen, quite a lot of Wings fans have been completely and totally trashy.

Its kind of sad to see the way he is treated by many on this board. Sure the guy is streaky, but some people make him out to be the worst forward to ever play the game. If he didnt have his concussion issues, I would love to have him back in this lineup.

Report: Red Wings, Kings, Predators among teams interested in Cody Franson http://www.thescore.com/nhl/news/690882