VM1138

We can't afford two big name sigings. The odds are too slim, what with all the teams desperate. THere are 30 teams competing for about 4 or 5 quality guys, and 99% of those teams have histories of drastically overpaying players. We may get one of Hossa, Sundin, Rolston, but not two of them. If we do, I'll be happy, but I'm not getting my hopes up. And no way in hell should Lilja be on our second pairing. You need to replace Stuart with someone of equal caliber. And we don't haev anyone in the system capable of being a Number 4 defenseman other than him.

I think some people put too much stock in "leadership." Having "leadership" won't matter if the guy won't listen.

Amen. Hopefully one of our divisional rivals picks him up.

We don't NEED anything, but you always want to add if you can. Standing pat rarely works out well. I'm more interested in a Rolston/Bertuzzi type than a Hossa/Sundin type, and those are the types we need to add. Players that will complete the puzzle. I'm not one of those fans with pipe dreams for Hossa or Sundin. And frankly, I'd rather have cap space for emergency than sign a goalie we don't need or even want. I would say we "need" a defensive replacement for Stuart (if he leaves) or forward than we need a goalie.

Because he'll be competing for a starter. In case you didn't get the memo, theyu're still not treating Ozzie as a starter. They're looking to have a goalie tandem. Who better to challenge for top spot with Ozzie than a veteran like Kolzig? Besides, all the quotes I've seen associate "veteran". I wouldn't call Emery a veteran yet. Isn't it like his 3rd year? Kolzig is the very definition of veteran. Kolzig-Osgood looks closest to Hasek-Osgood in terms of tandems out there, so I bet they go for him.

If we pick up any goalie, the only one that I could get excited about is Kolzig. He's much more like Hasek/Osgood than anyone else on the market. The guy is capable, he's a class act. That way, even if he ends up sucking, we'll all still like him as a person, and he won't be a cancer. Also, I think there are better odds of him having a come-back year (that is the way joining the Wings goes, after all) than Emery or anyone else out there. If we have to pick up a goalie please God let it be Kolzig.

http://www.mlive.com/redwings/index.ssf/20...at_as_free.html Interesting use of words by Ansar Kahn. The Wings "will" sign a veteran goaltender to compete with Howard and Osgood. I'm kind of disappointed. Signing a goalie wastes precious cap space that we need to compete for some better players out there. We don't really need or want anyone else in the goaltending position, at least we shouldn't.

Malone is good, yes, but Roberts? The guy is an all-grit sort of guy, nothing else. I fail to see how they'll turn it around with him. he's a non-factor. They're improving slightly, but I really don't see them in any different position than last year at this point. Malone is the only improvement and he's not quite good enough to really have a massive impact on a team.

I can think of quite a few players on this years squad who put up similar numbers who people are bowing down to as great parts of our Cup run. The inconsistency is silly. Also, I'm not looking through rose-colored glasses or nostalgia. I'm not a Bertuzzi fan outside of his stay here, which I thought gave hints of what he could play like at full strength. He wasn't here long enough to be nostalgic for it. I'm just giving an unbiased opinion here. He's still got gas in the tank, he's in better form than he was with us, and if he'd take a smaller role and less cash, why the hell not?

So according to Kevin DuPont we're getting Hossa, Sundin, and Bertuzzi? I'm thinking he has no idea what he's talking about.

Isn't if funny how some people bash Bertuzzi's stay here as some sort of huge debacle? Yeah, we lost out in the long run, but it was only because he wanted too much money. It's not like HOlland could predict something like that. I can't think of any negatives during his stay with us.

He's not going to Montreal, I'll bet money on it. On the bright side, whoever gets him will have a warrior on their hands, because if chooses to leave his career-long love the Leafs, you know he's serious about winning the Cup.

I do, too. Bert isn't a bad player. We ***** and compare him with Filpulla and say we'll take one over the other, but why not have both? Not everything is a damn competition. He's a solid player who works his ass off, and I haven't heard of any drama with him. He seemed to genuinely like it here, and even with a sore back he was a big part of our playoff run in 2007. As a 3rd or 2nd liner and for cheap, I say pick him up.

Exactly, I think goaltending is the last area we need to improve upon. Even though Howard is untested, I'd much rather straighten out defense (Find out if Stuart is staying or going---find a replacement), and at forward. I never even thought about goaltending until I heard this.

Leadership or not, you don't intentionally create a problem and hope they can fix it.

Yeah, that worked for Calgary.

For ultra cheap (like....league minimum) he wouldn't be a bad pickup, he'd score some goals and rack up some points, but no, he's not the player he used to be, and he's bound to be a little bitter about the whole experience with Detroit-Anaheim, he'll want a fresh start. I'm not sure if he's ready to be a bit player.

I call BS. If we get Emery I'll throw up. The difference between former trouble like Cleary and Emery is that Cleary cleaned up his act. Emery has done nothing. He's still a trouble making, whiny, self-involved, lazy cancer. Not exactly the type of player that thrives in the Red Wings system.

They don't generally overspend. I trust them to go the right amount. Filpulla won't command a huge salary. He's played well, but inconsistent, and he's never played flat out amazing for any period of time. Give him a raise, but not a big one.

Erm, I didn't suggest splitting up Dats and Z. Those were juts options. I think it's clear he'd play with Franzen and Filpulla and they'd tear it up. He'd also do well on a wing with Zetterberg.

Keep in mind we don't HAVE to match if Flip doesn't take the offer sheet. We can very ewll have an agreement with Flip that we'll take him under a certain ceiling and he would turn down an expensive offer sheet to stay.

Why not just put him with Frazen, Zetterberg, or Datsyk and give him second line minutes? He'll still score more goals than Filpulla, most likely. That's not a knock on Filpulla, but Rolston has been huge for Minnesota. Reduced minutes equals less scoring, but it's still more than any other second liner we have (except maybe Franzen on his hot streak).

Why waste money on a goalie? No one out there except maybe Kolzig would be a worthy addition. Otherwise, we're picking up a goalie with Howard-like talent, wasting cap space. That bugs me for some reason.

I'd rather have a team stacked with first liners at every position than purposely limit the caliber player we look for to fill voids.

How much money do they have? Could Boumeester be an option?