GoWings1905

Holland has the worst day, Stevie and Nill probably improve their two teams the most. I think it's pretty clear now Holland surrounded himself with very intelligent people and got most of the credit. Not to mention, the scouts and coaches in player development making him look even better.

I have a feeling it's going to get worse even. Holland is either going to panic and trade away assets now for someone like Myers or sign some leftover free agent (probably Quincey because that's Holland) that won't make any impact going forward.

If the Wings knew Niskanen wasn't coming here before free agency, then what the hell has Holland been doing otherwise?

Wouldn't that fall directly on Holland?

Me too. I want to know if Holland wasn't willing to pay that much per year because it seems fairly reasonable. The reports all along were that seven years wasn't scaring Holland away from Niskanen. Unfortunately, I probably know the answer. Holland more than likely got outbid again.

I don't even like soccer in the least bit and now I'm more excited for the game than anything Holland has delivered today. I hope Babs just death stares Holland every time he passes him for the next year.

Oh I agree entirely. If Holland wanted to trade for a d-man, it should have happened at or before the draft. Now the Wings struck out on all their free agent targets, will have to give up serious assets to acquire anything or just do nothing and say "we kicked tires and failed miserably again." At this point, the Wings should just stand pat and play the kids. All of them. Mantha, Sproul, Ouellet, Pulkkinen. Leftover free agents from the scrap heap aren't worth the money for a team that needs impact.

Now isn't the time to trade. If Kenny thought prices were high a week ago at the draft...

Unless it's Nick Lidstrom, I don't even care.

I feel so bad for Z and Pav. Winding down their careers on a middling, borderline playoff team stuck in mediocrity. They deserve better for everything they have given to the organization. Babs is already packing his bags. Why would he stay in this situation?

Well, this day turned out even worse than expected, which is saying something lately with Holland. Don't even bother signing any scraps or second tier waste of money free agents now. Play the kids and build for the future.

Wow, that's a steal for the Pens. But the Wings will have no issue giving multi-years to a 38 year old Boyle.

Exactly. Even if you give Ehrhoff five years, he would still be younger at the end than Dan Boyle is now. But he shoots right handed, so apparently that trumps pursuing a far superior player overall.

The Wings won't give Ehrhoff more than three years, but are willing to give Boyle two and Nisakenen seven? Yeah, let's get out of the running for the best player of the three just because he isn't a righty.

He would become the Wings #2 right away and I'm not sure there's a huge gap between Ehrhoff and Kronwall. Niskanen was a #4 last season too and he has proven far less than Ehrhoff in comparison. Ehrhoff is a good hockey player and top pairing d-man.

I would take Ehrhoff for those terms in a heartbeat. Not gonna get my hopes up, but seems like the Wings are linked to all of the big names heading into tomorrow.

Why would the priority be Boyle over Ehrhoff? That doesn't make any sense to me. Getting a righty at the expense of pursuing a better player is a pretty questionable strategy. I am fine with getting both, but not sure how feasible that actually is unless they move Kindl soon.

Because Boyle is approaching retirement. Condition number one for Kenny to overpay.

I personally prefer Ehrhoff over Niskanen. At this point, I want the d-man with a more proven track record. Niskanen does have the advantage of being younger and right handed, but I think Ehrhoff is a superior hockey player. Niskanen has one solid offensive season to this point moving the puck to the likes of Crosby, Malkin, Neal and Kunitz. Maybe Niskanen is entering his prime now, though that's a massive risk to take considering the commitment is going to require seven years. Ehrhoff is better defensively, comparable offensively and has been a consistent performer throughout his career. I know the emphasis is on adding a d-man that shoots right, but that alone isn't enough for me to want Niskanen over Ehrhoff.

She's a mouthpiece for the front office, so unfortunately this will probably be the case. I'm fine with Boyle, but would much prefer Ehrhoff or Niskanen even if it means overpayment.

I think the Wings could afford to do the same with Niskanen too, even though he is going to get paid like a first pairing d-man. DeKeyser seems like an ideal complement to Niskanen as a defense partner and that would really solidify the Wings top four on defense, assuming Babs still intends on utilizing Kronner and E as the shutdown pair. Then Kronner/Niskanen on the points of the first PP unit. I honestly wasn't a huge fan of signing Niskanen going into free agency, but I'm pretty much aboard now and have come to grips it's probably going to fall in the necessary overpayment category should it occur. I want to win now because Pavel and Z are still here, yet also continue the transition into building for the future as well. Niskanen gives the Wings the opportunity to accomplish both of those goals.

No kidding. Free agency doesn't start until Tuesday and people have already deemed Holland a failure for doing nothing. I'm not the biggest supporter of Holland, but my goodness, at least let him try and do his job.

The road jersey is particularly awful. The orange sleeves are atrocious looking. I'm glad Corey Perry has to skate around in those.

Of course. Tallon is always there to bail out the Hawks when they have cap issues.

I would love to get Yandle, but I have a feeling any deal would require Mantha going the other way.