VM1138

The thing I don't get is why Jagr wants to come back to the NHL. He's never been all that attached to it, or else why leave for the KHL to begin with? Hudler did it just to get his big payday, but Jagr was already highly paid. I guess I don't understand why he would want to end his career on the other side of the world in a league he already left once. I would have concerns about his hunger to win. EDIT: And part of me wonders why he keeps talking about playing Datsyuk and Zetterberg. On the one hand, it's obvious why anyone would want to play with them, but on the other he's automatically assuming he'll be on the top two lines and I wonder if he's just thinking it'd be an easy coast to a Cup having them do all the hard work. I only say that considering his past.

He might do okay playing with Datsyuk, but only on the principle that everyone plays well with Datsyuk. Honestly I don't see Jagr making any sort of impact playing with anyone else on this roster, he just doesn't work hard enough to be on the bottom lines. So if he's picked up it better be for 1 mil or less to only play next to Datsyuk.

I could dig the Manitoba Falcons. Naming teams after animals is much better than naming them after weather conditions.

You're half right. I see what you're getting at, but that is the only way for fans to express their dislike of him. A letter writing campaign won't have any effect. But public embarrassment is about the only influence the fans can have. It's not like they're going to stop going to games just because they don't like him.

No kidding, talk about a late bloomer. But he's awesome and dominant and I don't know anyone who dislikes the guy.

Random thought: Isn't it odd that the finals went until mid-June? Seriously? This playoff run seemed to take forever.

I don't think I recall there being such a backlash to a rumor before. THere seems to be virtually no one who wants Jagr here.

Congrats, Boston! Way to pull it out and add insult to injury by shutting them out. Luongo is going to get crucified. I am still surprised Boston did it. I called them in the finals earlier this year, but only half believed it would happen. Anyway, good for the Original 6! Always bugs me that Cup coverage cuts off so early every year. There should be post-game on NBC.

Man, I want Boston to win, but I haven't felt this detached from a Cup final in a long time. 08 and 09 were the Wings, 10 was hoping Chicago wouldn't win and hating Pronger's Philly. But this year, as much as I don't really like Vancouver, it's just a big...meh. You'd think a Game 7 Cup final would make every hockey fan salivate, but I'm pretty blase about this whole thing. Any word on how popular this series is in the US, at least compared to the last few Cup finals? It just seems to me that this one isn't getting as much press as they have since '08.

What's interesting in that quote is that Holland mentions some candidates have been head coaches. Maybe Hitch isn't such a long-shot?

Man, that's embarrassing. Even the softest guys on the Wings at least put their hands up and try to bear hug the guy.

Good luck, Paul, hope you turn the Senators around into a decent team! It'd be pretty impressive to have two of the three AC's for Babcock to end up successful head coaches.

And since they'll have to make the jerseys in advance, I bet it'll leak out thanks to some overzealous manufacturer employee.

Well, if we're going by patterns Vancouver will win Game 7. But man, is Luongo the weakest goalie mentally since Manny Legace or what?

Really doesn't seem that long ago. But then again, the 08 Cup was four playoffs ago. I miss the days when I was younger when years took forever to go by. Awesome memories from that '02 Cup run. This Vancouver run has reminded me of it a bit, a team that stockpiled and was sort of "destined" to win the Cup the whole season.

Modano didn't hurt the team, so it's not like anyone has a right to be upset with him or anything. I'm not criticizing him out of disappointment for his season. He simply did not put in an effort. He never hurt the team, but never helped, either. He rode the coattails of everyone working hard around him. His stats were not as good as people try to make them be, and Hudler, like it or not, was a much more effective player. What we saw is what Modano has to give nowadays, injury or not.

Has anyone else become really annoyed by Mike Modano? Aside from the off-season drama last year, and his lackluster play this year, combined with his "I don't think I have the fire to play in the playoffs" statement BEFORE they started, this latest development just makes me chuckle at his complete lack of heart. He is apparently considering playing another season, but the Wings won't resign him. But his attitude is "Well, if someone offers I guess I'll play, otherwise I'll quit." Gee, who wouldn't be lining up to sign a guy who really doesn't appear to care if he plays again or not? Why doesn't he just retire if he's so ambivalent about the whole thing? http://www.freep.com/article/20110609/SPORTS05/106090528/1053/sports05 EDIT: I'm not saying he's always lacked heart, just that last season and this new development really makes him look lazy.

Well, I understand that, but why does it have to be low numbers. For instance, if my number was 24 (which I've used in every sport I've played) I could make just as much fuss over getting it as someone with 95 for a number.

Cleary in particular (being the most popular example used by people here) had an attitude problem more than a work ethic problem, didn't he? He was a big partier and carried himself like he was owed the world and didn't know how to adapt when the game didn't go his way. Those types of players can thrive with the Wings. Not so sure about a lazy player. Once lazy, probably always lazy.

I understand his frustration, but not his lackadaisical attitude toward his own career. Go back to last summer (when even I was a fan of Modano coming here) and remember all the things Dallas fans said about him? Lack of heart was one of the biggest complaints they had. His behavior is a trend (maybe just a recent one), not simply a reaction to his injury plagued year.

On a side note relating to that Lindros article: Does anyone know why so many coaches seem to be against letting players have high numbers? I understand the significance of numbers to a lot of players, but I don't see why a coach should care what numbers they pick. I hear about this preference among coaches all over but have never heard a reason.

No, not even close. And nobody is pissy. The point is not that Modano is unsure about whether he should retire, but that he put in very little effort here even when healthy, showed lack of heart when he basically gave up on the playoffs before they began (again, like others have said, Babcock didn't bench him for the fun of it), and in this article basically says he's done unless someone tosses him a freebie. With Modano he simply doesn't have any desire. Show me where Lidstrom ever said he's done unless someone tosses him a nice contract and won't expect too much from him (essentially). So in review, it's not that he's considering retirement, it's that he is showing absolutely no drive and it'd be pretty silly for anyone to waste cap space on him at this point. When you're debating retirement you have to at least sound like part of you wants to still play.

There's no doubt Bryz is elite in this league, but nobody is willing to spend that much on a goalie anymore. He's pricing himself out of a job, I have a feeling. Just because of his massive ego. If I'm not mistaken, Miller, Luongo, all those huge contracts were signed a few years back, no? This last year just cemented the trend that you can go far with a mediocre goalie.

He won't. Even when he wasn't playing terribly, he's not an impact player anymore. The Wings were his best shot at re-establishing himself, and he blew it. Yeah, the injury was bad timing, but he had plenty of time to get into a groove and while he didn't play horribly, he didn't play well, either. He hardly ever made an impact. And I hate when people bring up his one point in two games. That's way too small of a sample to compare to Hudler or anyone else. There was nothing to indicate he had a higher level, unlike Hudler who, while disappointing, still had a lot of us seeing his potential.

Holy crap, Boston has turned the tables. Vancouver eked out two wins, and Boston has two dominating wins. I guess Vancouver could bounce back, but winning the way Boston has, how do they lose?