VM1138

Holland and Babcock basically said that Alfie has a spot if his back is completely healed. Sounds like they will make room for him but they're not going to lock him up until he can prove his condition.

Unless they're okay with giving up their 2nd to have two first round draft picks, I doubt that would be enough for a second. Maybe a third or fourth?

With these long-term contracts, a GM can't worry about not paying someone more than your captain, for instance. Everyone panicked about Ericsson and Kronwall's prices, and now Kronwall is an absolute steal. I'm sure if we landed Niskanen for 5.5 or 6 we'll all be worried, but if he remains consistent in three years it'll be a steal, too. Remember, when the cap goes up, salaries go up for new free agents, too.

In fact, every actual article I find refers to Pittsburgh or Chicago being the two finalists, not Detroit. So let's not hold our breath on this one.

I know it's just a rumor, but if that's all it takes...wow. For the record, the rumor about Kesler is from Dreger. Looking for a link now. EDIT: Okay, so Dreger's Twitter feed mentions that trade talk surrounding Kesler is heating up by the minute, and teams are pushing hard but Kesler won't change his list of acceptable trade locations. Dreger DOES NOT SAY Detroit is a possible destination. In fact, he says he has no idea where a likely destination is.

I don't know. If I was a player and had the choice of playing in LA, I'd do it unless the team was absolutely terrible (Islanders) or I had never won a Cup before and had limited time to win one. I mean, it's LA. I've never been there but considering the weather, the scenery and proximity to real entertainment, LA has to blow most other cities out of the water. Except for maybe NYC. It'd be a no-brainer for me as a player to sign with LA, even if it was for slightly less money than I'd make somewhere else.

I'm sure they've already talked tentatively about cost/term, etc. Nisknanen's agent isn't going to waste his time. Whatever Holland offered they'e at least considering, which means it isn't absurdly off the mark.

I don't know much about Niskanen but I do know we need an offensive defenseman more than anything else. Quincey was not. He was just a middling suckhole. We need Niskanen to generate offense. Not be the ultimate defender. We are already stacked with defensive guys. Sooner or later we need to control the puck, move it and help set up the offense, which Niskanen seems to do. We get better defensively just by subtracting Quincey and Kindl. Then we get better by adding Niskanen or some other offensive, puck control guy. It makes us a more dangerous team to play against. Niskanen is not the final piece, but he gets us back into making the playoffs easier. Back to where we have been for 20 years. Then, with him added to the core, add your pieces. Bottom line, we need someone like him to be more than a bubble team. Then, the additional pieces are gravy. Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

The reason mid-level players like Callahan (if that's what everyone thinks he is) can get so much money is because everyone has locked up their stars for 7-15 years. Nobody goes on the open market anymore. I almost think they should limit contracts to three or four years, and adjust the cap accordingly, just to keep the flow of talent moving in the league. It used to be exciting seeing trades and UFA signings, now teams have to wait for a decade to rebuild through the draft and hope they're good.

Holland pushed hard for Kesler last year. So you're attacking him for doing the exact same thing Chicago is doing now. Holland hate is dine but blind rage and hatred all the time is just excessive. Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

I disagree. In order to stay competitive we need a defenseman. We have several quality centers right now. Yes, they are aging but they're not dead yet. We do not have a quality defense. A young center is a must for the future, but defense is a must right now.Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2Also, didn't Holland offer Nyquist, Tatar and a 1st for Kessler this year? He's willing to make the moves but there are two sides to every deal.Sent from my ADR6350 using Tapatalk 2

I still think Sheahan is a third liner. He had a good year, but all the kids did. I just remember the constant dreaming about Helm becoming more than a third liner, and I'm being more cautious with him. He's got talent, but so far I'm going to assume he'll just be a talented third liner.

Alfredsson coming back is fine. He's not the final piece but he's not the problem, either. He's good for 15-20 goals next year, especially if he and the team stay healthy. It seems like every offseason since 2009 we talk about "if people stay healthy," so I guess that's too much to hope for, but sooner or later we have to have a season full of average health, right? Anyway, he's best in the top 6 scoring role. If Babcock buries him on the third again he won't do much good unless he finds explosive chemistry with Tatar or someone. I like having him back, but this means we won't be pursuing a top 6 scoring forward. A week or so ago Holland gave an interview where he said his decision to go after a forward would hinge on Alfredsson coming back.

Richards wound up playing on the fourth line in the Finals. He is not good anymore.

The more I think about Thornton the more excited I get. He could be the piece, If we improve the defense, that gets us into contention. Depending on who goes the other way.

Exactly. Holland may be thinking down the road a bit with this idea. Nyquist and Tatar are small, but Jurco isn't. He was the rawest talent last season, and I expect he will be much better this season. And keep in mind our passing in the playoffs sucked. Maybe Tatar and Nyquist would have scored had they not had to carry the puck in from their own blue line all the time alone.

We may not have so many after trading starts. Realistically we have Datsyuk, Weiss, Helm, Sheahan. Weiss can play wing and Helm may end up traded. Andersson just isn't good and can also be traded. A middle of Datsyuk, Thornton, Weiss/Helm and Sheahan doesn't make anyone else excited? That's powerful and Cup worthy. We could still use a new winger but if we upgrade the defense we may not need one.

Especially if we lost some players due to trades we might end up needing an extra playmaker.

Oh come on. Jumbo Joe is still a force. He's still got game and will for a few years. He'd be great to have. We still need finishers but how could you turn down Thornton?

Barry Smith was one briefly, wasn't he? As was Dave Lewis. Only MacLean and McClellan have amounted to anything. Hope our training staff follows him.

Kind of silly to be upset over this. It's a backup role. So what if there were a small handful of slightly better goalies? They aren't THAT much better, and Gus is a known quantity with an establishes relationship with the team. It's really a non-issue. I would've liked to have had Mrazek as the backup but its pretty hard to get upset over Gus coming back.

I didn't mean trade Tatar for Michalek. I meant if we had to trade Tatar to get someone else, would Michalek be a suitable UFA replacement? But you answered that. No speed, no thanks.

So I'm looking through this article about the top 30 UFA's on Bleacher Report, and while I'm taking their summaries with a grain of salt, there are some interesting options for the Wings if we lose certain players. If we're forced to part with Tatar in a trade, would Michalek be a suitable replacement? Seems like a similar player but with a bigger frame. His ceiling might not be as high as Tatar (he's 29 and probably as good as he'll ever be) but it seems like he would fit in on our third line. If Alfredsson doesn't come back, Cammalleri might be a good replacement. Similar points,short-term contract, similar cap hit. Moulson could be a more long-term replacement, too. On defense, I'm no longer sure we would go after Niskanen. If his defensive game still requires improvement, $6+ at 7 years might be way too pricey. If Holland can talk him down to the 5 mil range and a shorter term, then there's a chance. Otherwise, it looks like trading is the only way we'll improve our top 4. I ignored the likes of Stasny and Iginla, who are likely to re-sign with their teams. Maybe Cammalleri will re-sign, too. In short, there are some options that will improve this team, but there really isn't a Plan B if our targets don't sign with us. We can't afford to stand pat, either, so Holland better get cozy with the idea of trading some of our prospects and roster players.

We shouldn't have to make room for Cleary. We've got so many kids ready to make the jump, and any of the UFA players are better than Cleary at this point, too. He just doesn't belong on this team or in Grand Rapids. Remember, Babcock took MONTHS to bench Cleary, even after it was clear Cleary couldn't play anymore. Other players would get demoted for having a bad shift or a turnover. Then, the second half of the season he was injured. Guarantee with a summer under his belt Babcock will play him on the Wings to see if he healed up over the summer. And, you know, a tie goes in favor of the vet. This just doesn't make any sense at all. On this issue I'm completely with the Holland bashers because none of the arguments in favor of this signing make any real sense.

It was already common news they were going to buy him out. The only way a GM would actually trade for Tootoo was if he was part of a bigger package and he was just an add-on as a favor, like Eaves was in the Legwand trade. I always wonder why they announce this sort of stuff weeks in advance, which kills any sort of leverage Holland might've had to trade him for a pick or something.