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The only problem with this deal is that there's not TWO Abdlekaders for Holland to re-sign.

Wow, seven years? That's a long contract.. But I have thought of Abby as a future assistant captain. And I think his game will steadily improve over the next few years. I figure Kenny either had to give him an expensive short term contract, or a lot of term. 4.25 will seem like nothing by the time he's nearing the end of that deal. Can't blame the guy for wanting a long term deal.. here's to hoping he keeps honing his game.

I've been extremely high on Athanasiou for quite some time now, but everyone should temper their expectations just a little. He is a young kid riding a high right now, but you have to remember he is just 21 years old. Remember how awesome Jurco was when he first came into the league? Remember how fast fans turned on him as soon as he showed any signs of struggle? Athanasiou will at some point go through similar struggles, I just hope they manage this kid better than they did / still are with Jurco...

PVD, that was my exact thoughts on the disallowed goal as well. Holtby seen the puck pass the goal line and scooped it out, either in frustration because he let in that weak side goal, or tried to scoop it out in hopes that they wouldn't be able to determine it being over the goal line... Otherwise you would think he would have covered the puck rather than scooping it out with the chance for another scoring opportunity... The Caps got away with one there, but fortunately we were able to win the game anyway. I'm a firm believer that changing any single play in a game, changes the entire outcome of the game. So who knows, if that goal stood as a good goal, we could have won the game 4-0, or we could have just as easily lost the game 3-2 or 2-1 or whatever...

I feel the same way as most people here. Somewhere around $4-4.25M is fair value for Abdelkader, but I would prefer shorter term than 7 years, somewhere around 4-5 would do, even if it raises his AAV another half million or so... Abdelkader is a huge part of this team, and it would only take a week long injury for people to realize this. Lucky for us, he has been fairly durable over his career so far, and we haven't been without him for to many long stretches. He brings an abrasive element that is lacking in almost every other player on this team. I would think that Abby wants to stay in Detroit. I can't imagine him bolting to a new team over a half million or so. I'm not saying Holland should play hardball, but he should have a little leverage there. Pay him fairly, but no need to overpay on salary or term. Get er done Kenny!

Abdelkader has had one season of scoring, while playing with future hall of famers, of top 6 scoring. Holland is going to give him 7 years of 4+ million? This just proves the terrible complacency Holland and this organization has found itself in. This makes the team less able to make moves for the elite defender they terribly need, and with Howard and Franzen still on the books for the foreseeable future free agents won't be coming here.

At least 3 of OV's 15 shots would have gone in on Jimmy. FLAME WAR!!!!!!

If its closer to 4 then 5, I am ok with it. Longer then I was hoping for, but worth it if he is a top 3 forward for us.

I'm seeing shades of a David Clarkson type signing here with Abs.

If Franzen never plays again which I'm guessing is the case, his salary is off the books. If Howard keeps playing like a top tier goalie, I dont think they will have a problem moving him at all. Agreed though that 7 years is a long time, unless he takes a lower salary per year.

Abby is not going to get any better. 40ish points is his ceiling. He does a lot of good things that go unnoticed but he's not suddenly going to emerge as a Backes. Hopefully his body stays together and he can be a good veteran for this team. We're banking on it

I'm not going to say you dont make a good point Frank...you do. Like I said, I like Helm as much as anyone, but its a big contract for a guy playing on the 4th line who does have some red flags. Gritty players have a tendency of declining in their 30's. It wasn't that long ago that Cleary was everybody's darling. If he signs for 2mil/year, I would do it in a heart beat. 4 mil for 4 years, that worries me and seems like bad cap management.

That's assuming that the red line in parallel with the top of the photo. We can't see what angle the red line is or the other post so all we can see is the puck beside the post. There's a video that I posted that I think shows the puck in the net so there's no real need to argue about the photo, but it's certainly not a clearcut shot despite Bill's attempts to try to mock SDavis35. The other bit of common sense on this one is that goalies don't flip the puck out of the crease - they cover it or pick it up. If you flip it out you're just offering up a rebound. You flip it if it's in the net as an Oh f***! As for the strategy of letting Mrazek see OV shoot - I thought it looked like that too. It could be a good idea - cover every other option and they'll go to him and your goalie's prepared. But....in Blashill's postgame, his criticism was that they gave up "way too many PP shots to OV" (paraphrase) so it seems that this probably wasn't the plan, haha. I was a little rediculous for the Caps to keep going to OV in the same spot. I know he's one of the best goal scorers, but there was the one segment where he took 3 identical shots with identical setups in a matter of seconds. Everyone knows it's going there - why not switch sides or something, skate around with it, try to throw it in front. But, hey, it usually works for them.

Come on. If it's behind the red post tucked under the padding and you can clearly see space in between the goal post and the padding where the puck is, then it's across the line. I cant tell if this is a picture. I cant tell if this is a picture of hockey. From an unbiased perspective, this image does not conclusively tell me this is a goalie, a goal post, and a puck inside the net that the post is part of. Give me a break. Farking thing was in. Overly obvious it was in. Not debateable. Horendous call.

...or give Marchenko a minute to see if he's capable of filling that role before you bury him back in GR.

both our goalies are top 10 in the league in save% for goalies who have started in at least 5 games. Pretty awesome stuff

Because you need checkers and PK guys

I see Kopitar is being put on this ridiculous pedestal around here. First of all he's most likely far from being available and secondly we're a better team holding on to the pieces it would take to get him. We'll get like 3 or 4 prime years out of him anyways. He's a comparable to Z in the type of player he was in his prime and Z didn't win the cup every year and couldn't win without some solid support Trading a guy like AA would be a terrible idea at this point in his career. Most teams wouldn't put much value in him until he's proven something. There's a lot of Mantha, Larkin and Mrazek hype. These are the guys teams want. We're better off waiting for these secondary prospects to develop with us because you're way off on their value around the league

It was all teed up for Ovechkin. Fedorov was in the building. 15 shots. What happened?

Coaches have been re-hired with three year extensions http://www.tsn.ca/mondaymustread-flint-firebirds-re-hire-coaches-after-player-protest-1.390508

Abdelkader is a decent player, but nothing special except that he's the only really physical guy the Wings have with any amount of skill. Depending on how long and how much, this could either be a decent contract or terrible. If he gets close to $5 mil for 6 years, I'm going to be pissed. If it's 4 or 5 years at $4.25 mil a year, I'll be ok with it. Pros: He scored 44 points last year and showed he has the skill that made him a 2nd round pick. He's the only Wings' forward who is big, plays like he's big, and has shown NHL level skill. Cons He has one year where he scored at a good rate, other than a 20 game stretch where he was hot the previous year. He's approaching the age where physical players start to tail off. Lots of guys could score 20+ goals playing as much as he does with Datsyuk and Zetterberg.

While I love the idea of Larkin and Dats together, Z and Larkin have been developing some pretty chemistry so far. Not sure I'd want to break that one up. How about a Larkin-Dats-Z line, just for kicks?!

I mean, the guy does everything. He's defensively responsible, he's physical, he can play in the corners and in the crease, he can put up goals and assists, he can play on any line and be effective. Abby isn't an allstar in any capacity, but he's versatile and for one player he brings a lot to the table. 4M+ is fair for both sides.

I'm not surprised either..and he's definitely earned it. He's an absolute steal on his current contract. If Kenny could pull some hometown discount esque magic and get him on a 4x4 contract, I'd be ecstatic. It'll likely be around what zombo posted and worth every penny.

I could live with 5-6 years at 4.25 - 4.5M