stevkrause

I remember watching a few Oiler's games where even I thought Patrick O'Sullivan was coasting and skating half-assed to the point where it left an impression and I don't even watch them all year... so if it stands out on a limited exposure to an unbiased 3rd party, it's gotta be pretty bad and I can imagine maddening for a home town fan (like Lang when he was here)

I think it will be an exciting off season - once again, not here necessarily, but around the league. I think we're going to see a TON of movement in Chicago, a decent amount in Toronto and someone will probably land a big FA that no one was expecting them to land... it's just a matter of who and what... a lot of moves will most likely happen at the draft too, so maybe not even July 1st as I originally said, but I'm starting to get more pumped about the draft now too!

exactly, I didn't mention the CHL exactly, but I've made several mentions about junior leagues as well... I just still REALLY hope they add to the management part of the game, for example: draft a guy at 18 and own his rights for 3 years before you have to sign him to an entry level deal, let him develop overseas or in juniors AFTER being drafted, then after 3 years, then sign him to his entry level deal, then at 24, he is an RFA and you can tender him a qualifying offer and sign RFA's to offer sheets, etc... I just hate how right now, if you draft high, you're either paying out the ass for a 21 year old that you basically HAVE to put on your roster, or you lose him... they should make it easier to retain your assets for longer and develop them longer...

Another perk is, that if we get him for cheap, we'd still likely have around a million or so for call-ups/deadline moves if needed... which is always nice...

those were great for a laugh... love him or hate him, you gotta love the Domi one!

this cover makes sense, but it is pretty ridiculous that there are two Blackhawk's in a row - last years was a joke and Kane did NOT deserve it and that's where the problem really lies, 2010's cover probably should have actually been... I want to vomit admitting this... Crosby Back to the game though, I think I need to start collecting a paycheck from EA, haha I write them an e-mail every year with improvement's I would make to the game and it seems like they're actually listening - broken sticks, new faceoff's, disallowed goals... man, I'm pumped... I just hope they actually listened about controls and expanding classic controls for those of us that don't like shooting with the joystick (I know, it's better, blah, blah) and being able to make line changes with classic controls... and I would still love to see them expand the management section to allow more years of development for players, RFA status, arbitration, trading of future years draft picks in GM mode, etc... otherwise, I'm looking forward to it!

The more I think about this, the more I love it... he's had a couple injury issues, but if he's bought out, he could come here on the cheap and I mean cheap, as he'll already get majority of his pay from Edmonton, add that to exactly what you said - will stand up for teammates, plays with heart and would bring that "Dallas Drake" mentality to the team and this could be a PERFECT fit... LINES ARE ARBITRARY - ONLY SET UP THIS WAY FOR FORMATTING Valtteri Filppula ($3.000m) / Henrik Zetterberg ($6.083m) / Johan Franzen ($3.955m) Jiri Hudler ($2.875m) / Pavel Datsyuk ($6.700m) / Tomas Holmstrom ($1.875m) Todd Bertuzzi ($1.500m) / Justin Abdelkader ($0.900m) / Daniel Cleary ($2.800m) Ethan Moreau ($0.750m) / Darren Helm ($0.630m) / Patrick Eaves ($0.550m) Kris Draper ($1.583m) Mattias Ritola ($0.517m) Nicklas Lidstrom ($6.200m) / Niklas Kronwall ($3.000m) Brad Stuart ($3.750m) / Brian Rafalski ($6.000m) Jonathan Ericsson ($0.900m) / Andreas Lilja ($1.000m) Jakub Kindl ($0.883m) Jimmy Howard ($0.717m) / Chris Osgood ($1.417m) ROSTER: 23; CAP: $58.8m; PAYROLL: $57.585m; CAP ROOM: $1.215m BONUSES: $0.000m looks pretty damn good to me...

This is coming from why he was benched and eventually bought out from Buffalo... and they were a damn good team... it's been his m.o since he broke into the league... I won't deny he has talent, but I don't think he would fit here...

yea, no kidding... if this is true, Moreau is the EXACT type of player we need... I would love to see him in the Winged Wheel... especially if we can get him to come here at a discount...

If he rejected their offer, there's no way we can afford him... I don't know what the offer was, but coming off the season he just had, I have to imagine it was for at LEAST 1.5 and we don't have that space... plus, he's VERY well known to coast and take shifts off and would probably end up in Babs doghouse after 2 weeks...

like a said... a vast majority were beauties... but there are a couple, and you can tell which ones instantly, where the guy is going too low and purposely targeting the lower leg/knee region - not cool.

A couple of those we're more like trips and kinda dirty, but a vast majority were beauties!

I agree with that, but chances are that if the chin straps are mandated to be tighter, the helmet wouldn't come off very often also, you are dead on, blatant takedowns need to be removed as well, ESPECIALLY of the grab-the-legs-and-bodyslam nature, but they also need to break them up sooner when guys get tied up and start to jostle... this is where the injuries really occur (not just head injuries, but knee, shoulder, etc...)

I got very split emotions when I suggested the NHL work very closely with a company like Bauer or someone to create snap in visors, which can be shed by the pushing of two buttons and then have the league mandate visors and tighter chin straps, requiring players to shed the visor in the event of a fight, giving them an automatic 4 minute double minor for unsportsmanlike conduct if they don't shed the visor and still fight... it would make the game safer more respectful as well...

All good points - I really like the PP after a penalty shot if missed idea...

removing the center ice line would make dump and chase plays DRAMATICALLY more dangerous for defensemen...

exactly - the icings on the PK is a HORRIBLE idea...

I think you have the right thought of splitting it up, but I think you're pairings are off... We basically are molding Kronwall to take over for Lidstrom when the day comes and what better way for him to truly mold, rather than playing with him... also, Stuart is a very solid defensive defensman and adds the physical element that Rafalski sorely misses... plus, they looked VERY good together when Babs paired them up at the end of the season and really compliment one another... I think if anything, it should go: Lidstrom-Kronwall Stuart-Rafalski Back to the topic at hand though, Stuart fits here GREAT and adds exactly what we need from a 2-4 defenseman, he shouldn't be asked to play top 2 minutes, because he is his best at this role and fills it VERY well.

"I don't get it..." "It's a joke" "oh, I get jokes"

Wait... was that Pronger driving the ATV?

The problem with Raffi are his turnovers and lack of size for his price tag - not saying I agree, I'm just saying I can see where some of the negativity comes from... with that said, I think he is GREAT for what he does, as you stated, and I really think both he and Lids would benefit GREATLY by splitting them up and putting a physical counterpart with them, not to mention, I thought Stuart and Rafalski complemented one another VERY well.... Lidstrom-Kronwall Stuart-Rafalski Ericsson-Lilja/UFA Kindl PP: Lidstrom-Kronwall Ericsson-Rafalski

Fair enough, I can definitely see your point and agree with it... I'm just saying it's an interesting proposal for that exact reason, the chance for 2 goals on essentially one PP... not really for or against it, as I haven't seen it in practice and it's hard to imagine how many additional goals would be created because of it in reality... but it is interesting to think about

Agreed on the first two, but you overlooked the 3rd one - I like this one, it basically extends the PP and gives you more exciting hockey and makes penalties more dangerous...

It's a little more complicated than that, but short answer - yes. What it really comes down to, is a healthy Franzen, Kronwall, Holmstrom, Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Lidstrom and Rafalski all producing at or above the level we expect of them, an equal or better than we expect Hudler (57+ pts), huge steps forward for Filppula (60+ pt season) and Ericsson (+ season and solid positionally, plus more physical) and finally (and one of the most important) an equal or better Jimmy Howard and no sophomore slump Other than that, if everyone else just plays the game expected of them, along with these factors, we are one of the most dangerous teams in the world and we can beat anyone.

You're a sick, sick, sick man...