55fan

Isn't it customary to give the number to the guy who has been in the league longer? It's looking less and less like Cleary will be back, so it likely won't be an issue anyway.

A quick search of Red Wing players named "Steve" leads me to believe that you are right. The only others, aside from those already mentioned, are: Black (49-51) Coates (76-77) Hyrmnak (52-53) Maltais (93-94) Martinson (87-88) Richmond (85-86) Short (78-79) Thomas (02-03) Wojciehowski (44-47)

...and Bettman's already learning how to pronounce Phaneuf so he can invite him to come get the Cup. I wonder if this was inspired by overhearing Lebda rehearsing his HHOF acceptance speech?

Arbitration can be an advantage for both parties. It stops other teams from putting in offer sheets, which allows the team and player to focus on themselves and not worry about others. It is a sign from both that they are serious about staying together. If a player goes to arbitration, he is saying that he's not interested in going to another team. If the team doesn't want him, they can set him free and he can talk to other teams. It also keeps both parties honest about how much/little they will offer. The team can't say, "We have your rights so we're going to pay you peanuts." because they might end up paying more than the guy is worth if it goes to arbitration. By the same token, the player can't hold out beyond what is reasonable because he might end up getting less than he's worth from an arbitrator. I generally look at it as a good sign if a guy files. It's like a promise ring between people waiting for agreement on the pre-nup. You know the wedding's coming soon.

The Power of Positive Thinking. Welcome to the Grand Illusion. Both great titles. Take your pick. On one hand, it makes sense to dream big and have faith that you will see your dream to fruition. On the other hand, it is much easier to plot a course for the parade than to plot a course for winning the cup.

When your last name becomes synonymous with hard hits... <-------

Can't blame him. It had to be a tough decision.

Works for me. Let's see what this kid can do with two full seasons.

You know what? I'm glad he did it. Him and Lou too. We lost a full season so that the league could get a cap and all of the stupid rules that went with it. Then when Holland figured a way around it and signed Z to a long-term deal, I was worried that Z might have issues with his back, and everyone reassured me that it was ok because if Z retired, it would come off the books. Those were the rules that Z signed the contract under. Retire and your team is off the hook. Then we get another lockout, miss another half of a season, and all of a sudden... "OOPSIES! We don't like how people figured out how to get around that. We're going to change the rules. Now if the guy retires before the end, there's a penalty. So what if we're changing the rules in the middle of the game? We're the league and if you don't let us do this, we won't let you play hockey." I can see them changing the rules for future contracts, but they have now changed the rules for existing ones. When teams and players sign contracts, they abide by the rules set by the league. If they find a loophole, we admire them for it. If you don't believe me, go back and find the thread where Z was signed. Kenny was a genius to the point of being a saint on this board. Lou and Kovy played by the old rules and got the carpet yanked out from under them. Instead of crying over the lack of carpet, they went with linoleum. Good for them. The league stuck out their tongue, and Lou and Kovy flipped them off. I feel some satisfaction knowing that Bettman is probably sitting in his office throwing a Rumplstiltskin-like tantrum yelling, "Curses! Foiled again!'

I'd be on board with Huds as the Flames captain just to watch the interviews and press conferences. Comedy gold right there, folks.

They aren't done yet. Ask me again in a decade or so.

It's entirely possible that Holland offered him the money Jersey is rumoured to be offering but Brunner thought he could get more and now, with the additional signings this summer, the original offer is no longer on the table. I don't know if this is the case, but if it is, I am terribly disappointed in Brunner's agent. I really wanted that boy back here.

He seemed like a good kid. He got his cup, and he gets to do what he loves for a living. Can't beat that. I wish him nothing but happiness.

Can't help but like that guy. Beats plunging toilets for a living. All the best to him.

Not so much a joke as a funny pic, but it made me laugh.

I burn quite easily so I don't go out in the sun much- actually "burn" is generous. I get red blotches in stupid places whilst the rest of me stays pasty white. Burning would be a bit better. It would hurt just the same but wouldn't look as dumb. The person below me has at some time gone by another name.

Not around here. We just have an excessive mosquito population. Trade ya. The person below me has eaten a potato in the last 2 days.

Nah, He's more like a little puppy. Not a bad boy bone in him.

They wouldn't trade for him. Elvis, Bigfoot, and Tupac are all right-handed shots who play the point on the power play. He'd be redundant there. The best they'd trade us is Jimmy Hoffa, but he tends to disappear during the playoffs. Back to Brunner... I'm starting to come to terms with not having him back next year, but I hope he comes back someday. I'm also noticing how peculiar it is that he seems to have quite a following with the females around here despite not having the standard good looks. Maybe we hockey chicks are not as shallow as we thought.

Thank you. I was hoping this hadn't also changed in the new CBA. There are too many things for me to keep track of as it is. Smith will develop. I'm not jumping on the He's-the-next-big-thing bandwagon, but I'm certainly not ready to write him off either. Given that he only had a part of a season, they might just want the extra time to figure out what he is worth and how many years to give it to him. He's young, so he might not want really long-term so that he can go out and kick some butt and get himself a bigger contract sooner, or he might just be willing to take a lower number for job security (such as it is in the contract world). We need to hang on to these d-men or we'll have to use some of our forward surplus on defense. Hey..... Sammy plays the point on the PP... maybe in a pinch...

You're right. I was thinking of Rob. Scott deserves it. I just can't bring myself to laud a DevilDuck in the same breath as Cheli and Shanny.

I figured it out, but it's too late. We could have solved our roster problems had we acted on this before the amnesty buyout window closed. STEP 1. Have the Samuelsson and Zetterberg families move in together. STEP 2. Buy out Zetterberg. STEP 3. Sammy plays on the top line and has the best year of his career; Zetterberg babysits the Samuelsson children. STEP 4. Next summer. Sign Zetterberg to a new contract; Samuelsson (coming off a career year) signs a hefty contract elsewhere. STEP 5. Zetterberg and Samuelsson remove the Mission: Impossible masks they've been wearing for the last year. It would have worked, I tell you. It would have worked. Curse the small buy-out window!

Shocking! Unbelievable! Amazing! Cheli actually retired in his own lifetime! All three are deserving (even though Needaweiner has an Ick factor).

I'd give a ******** to play for Detroit too. I just haven't decided whose. I hate the waiting game.

Dallas Drake, although we did get him back as a UFA. That's the only one that I can think of. The rest of the guys whose names come up when I think of "traded away" were ones who had their best years in Detroit (Sawchuck, Lindsay etc.) EDIT: Wow. Walk away from the computer for 5 seconds and 6 replies appear ahead of mine!