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Right, and according to 95% of the Jets fans online, they are all very pleased with this deal. And since they watch the guy play every night, im gonna go ahead and agree with them. Good move for the present and future of the Jets blue line.

Brendan Smith at 1.26 is genius. Best contract in hockey. Bogosian deal bad now, probably good in 3 years.

A professional athlete losing his temper like an infant and entering the stands to fight spectators is not "totally awesome." I believe the term you're looking for is, instead, "completely inexcusable."

Of course we should keep Sammy who couldn't stay healthy at all last season and pay him $3 mill. While we get rid of any actual muscle we have, going into a more physical division. I hope these are only rumors.

Tootoo serves a purpose. He brings something no one else on the team does.

Honestly man, who throws a shoe.

That system wasn't in place until major expansion and pandering to the lowest common denominator took effect. Lock outs were a direct result of expansion, as is the salary cap and revenue sharing. It's negatively affected the sport just as much as positively, if not moreso. I was a much happier hockey fan 10 years ago. I find myself watching fewer games outside of ones the Wings aren't playing. And I'm not the only one - many fans I know just don't feel the same as they used to, and it's having a direct effect on the bottom line. I'll bet dollars to donuts Wings fans spend a lot more on merchandise than Columbus, Nashville, Florida and Phoenix fans, or at least used to before 2006.

I read this and was stunned and entertained by it. I honestly had no recollection/knowledge that he was a former coach. I'm 31, and my hockey interest kicked in during the mid-90's, but I certainly didn't follow much outside the Red Wings until later in the decade. And with no real internet coverage, that was mostly whatever The Deuce (ESPN2) was showing. If you really look at NBC's lineup, it's just littered with guys that have been more or less discareded by the game of hockey. Compare that to the NFL, where the same network employs legendary, accomplished coaches like Cowher and Dungy. Milbury's one of the worst GM's in NHL history. Pierre was a pompous brat and a terrible coach. Roenick betrayed his own union and the fans after the 2004 lockout. And Eddie Olczyk is f$%&ing Eddie Olczyk!

This was my biggest problem with him. I thought Babcock did him more justice placing him on the 3rd line with 2 talented players that could compliment him. He couldn't handle top pairings, it was just that simple. The same inside leg to outside while coming along the boards within the zone. He did it every single time and it was poked or he just got pushed off the puck. He needs to learn his timing and space within the NHL and Babcock was allowing him to do this against the bottom 4. It was smart. He had a great playmaker in Nyquist and Andersson who could play hard in the corners and battle the crease. Both of those players play a great 200 ft game and could make up for Brunner's defensive game. Brunner did step it up defensively later in the season. He could actually account for men decently in the zone and pick whom he needed to cover. He started to finish checks, play the body, and overall I thought he was putting in some damn good effort for his first season (we know the other excuses). I guess I just underestimated his personality. I thought he was comfortable and wouldn't want to move out of a new locker room in a league that he just came to. Not to mention, he came to a decorated franchise with lots of love from the fans. Not only that but he has one of the best coaches teaching him how to play the game and some of the most talented players. Oh well though!

I thought this was going to be an article claiming that Pierre actually was, in his past, what he looks like and what many (most?) people think of when they see him...a creepy pedophile.

No reason for him to be anywhere near the Wings dressing room.

Tuzzi cannot play top 6 minutes anymore

As impressed as I am and how much I like Abdelkader, if Tuzzi is healthy, he's a better option for the top line to play with Dats and Z. That would give Abs the chance to get back to grinding and hitting on a line that does that and Tuzzi would bring everything and more than Abdelkader on the top line.

Who are Bettman's teams again? I'm having a hard time keeping all of these conspiracy theories straight.

I still want brunner @ 2.5 mil.

er...I guess. But didn't half of those guys get chased out of the NHL for being lazy? I also didn't see Afinigenov or Zherdov among the invitees. Maybe I am blind... I think any combination of the remaining Canadian options are much better.

Hockey is by far the best sport, though it has the worst officiating which is probably due to so many rule changes all the time and deciding what's a penalty. Football is 2nd, but I mainly stopped watching cause it gets old quick when every play some overzealous ******* just NEEDS to celebrate the play, no matter what it is. Holy crapballs!...I ran for 2 yards, here's a pre-cursor to my end zone dance in another 80 yards. Baseball...home runs are cool, that's about it. The rest of the game is so painfully boring that if I had to suffer watching an entire game, I'd peel my skin off like a fiending drug addict. Basketball. What can I say. You want a sport that's so much hype... You can win a championship with 3 good players. 3! Oh no you di'int just slap my wrist. Foul! Look ref, you can see where he slapped me. Soccer. They play dead every time someone slide tackles you. If a football or hockey player (not named Mike Ribeiro) saw that, they would be completely disgusted. Which brings me back to baseball. Synchronized swimming is pure excitement compared to that s***. I'd take the Westminster dog show if given the choice.

States they are going to re-sign him, but haven't yet as they have to clear roster space. So this is pending. Anyways, looks like Brunner is donzo