GMRwings1983

LOL. Yeah, there's no way Tootoo could match Miller's 2 points in 6 playoff games, Eaves' 3 points in 13 games, and Emmerton's 1 point in 13 games. All these posters who don't like Tootoo need to get over their dislike of him and actually come up with decent arguments against him. He's not a fighter, our 4th line guys are better than him, and he takes too many stupid penalties are not good arguments, as explained by myself and others in this thread. We have no shortage of PK'ers. We have a shortage of toughness or good hitters. If by "took himself out of the play" you mean he fought a lot, well no crap. That's what fighters do. They fight and sit in the box. Unless the NHL wants to change the automatic 5 minute penalty that goes with that. I agree about next year's roster, but for this season, I think he should have played more in the playoffs. Not saying we would have won the series, but he should have played more. They signed him so he can help in the postseason with grinding shifts and wearing defenders down. Which of our 4th liners contributed meaningful offense? Look up our 4th lines' playoff stats and answer me that question.

Quasimodo may have just cost his team the game.

Stairway to Heaven

I think a line of MacIntyre / Helm / McGrattan would fix a lot.

Good for them. I don't follow the team like others here, but I'm glad we have some winning prospects who will use this experience at the NHL level. I hope Tatar is finally "overripe" and can play for the big team.

Matthias for Bertuzzi!

No, but he pissed in my Chelios.

Most unnecessary timeout in NHL history.

"I'm going to take my talents to Pittsburgh".

It's a two-way street for sure.

We're the softest team with him too. People need to stop pretending like our 4th liners are somehow more talented than gritty players who fight. This isn't the 2002 Wings. Our 4th line was a joke most of the season. That's why Babcock had Sammy playing center on the 4th line at one point in the playoffs. Too many throwaway players there.

Tootoo had the same amount of points as Drew Miller last season. In two fewer games. And Miller was a -8. Yet most posters here would rather have Drew Miller on the 4th line? Why? Just because he kills penalties? We have like 8 forwards who can kill penalties. We have no one who has any balls to fight more than once or twice a season. None of these arguments against Tootoo make any sense, when you consider who's being advocated over him.

Do we need a 6'0 tall, 30 year old, left handed centerman? I know he's a good player when healthy, but he seems like something we already have. Then again, he would help our current top 6, meaning guys like Cleary and Abdelkader wouldn't have to play on it.

By expendable, I mean they're easy to find around the market for cheap prices. They're absolutely important for any team's success, but still expendable. Drew Miller is expendable. Helm isn't, but he's more of a 3rd liner when healthy. He's a unique player for us. Holland signed Downey and May in the past as well. I think we've seen enough from Kenny and Babcock to make a fair assessment that they're not too keen on guys who fight a lot and play a physical style. Maybe they'll occasionally sign a guy like Tootoo or May, but eventually, they phase them out of the lineup. In general, Babcock and Holland prefer smaller, less physical 4th liners. Not big, grinding forwards that like to punish defenders and drop the gloves. If they say otherwise, then their actions don't support their words. We've been a small team on the lower lines for as long as I can remember. Pretty much. Each team only has a handful of players that are untouchable and not expendable. Certainly, not any 4th line player.

Better not be. Hate to think we're raising a team full of young guys that blow big series leads.

LOL. How is he not a fighter? He's had almost 90 fights in his NHL career. Do you have to hit 100 fights to be considered a fighter now? Look at our roster of milk sops, and then you'll know why Tootoo is a fighter. The rest of those guys combined probably don't have 90 fights. An agitator that doesn't fight is someone like Maltby or Cooke. Pretty sad if you can't tell the difference. Also, he hits more often than any of our current 4th liners. I remember him laying some big hits this season. How often do Miller or Eaves hit anyone? Emmerton couldn't hit a bong. Tootoo excited the Wings fans everytime he was on the ice. Mostly because they've been starving for a guy like that since the last time we dressed an enforcer (Brad May). He did what he was brought here to do. He hit, worked hard and fought more than the rest of our team combined. Yeah, he doesn't scare the bigger fighters, but it's not his fault he didn't have any backup this season the way Holland assembles the roster. Tootoo had to do all the tough, dirty work in the physicality department. The Preds let him go because he became expendable. Most 4th liners are expendable, including Tootoo. But on a team like the Wings, he's currently the only player that fills his type of role. Why didn't he play in the playoffs? Because he's not the type of player Babcock and Holland like.

I don't remember him taking any more dumb penalties than Smith, Quincey or Abdelkader. What are these penalties that Tootoo took this season? I don't remember him costing us too many games. He's not one-dimensional either. Look at his career numbers and then look at Tony Twist's or Stu Grimson's. How is Tootoo one-dimensional? He fights and he lays good bodychecks. Scores as many points as most 4th liners in the league. What is he not doing right? I feel like there's too many posters here who look at all 4th line fighters as being in the same basket. Too much stereotyping.

I thought the game would be played here.

This organization is not willing to play players like Tootoo for any significant period of time or years. Scrappy 4th liners or enforcers typically don't make our roster, or only play a season or so. That's how it was with Downey and May. Tootoo is better offensively than those players, but I see him suffering the same fate.

I am jumping on the Griffins bandwagon! How are my boys McCollum and Greg Amadio doing?

Emery hasn't fought in a while. But he beat Josh Gratton and handled himself well against Andrew Peters, after he'd already fought Biron seconds earlier.

Wrong guess.

It's funny that the best fighter in this series actually plays for the Blackhawks. Sort of.

I hate Chara and Marchand too. Marchand's face is almost as annoying as Bolland's and Tyler Kennedy's. Chara is a big giraffe who hardly ever fights tough guys. When he does, he magically falls down when the other guy has an advantage. I almost wish Jack Edwards would commentate these games with Eddie Olczyk. Then I can get some laughs out of this.

I want Boston to win, but hate their team so much. That spotpicking hunchback first and foremost. I can't imagine how much I'll dislike them more, playing in the same division. I wonder if Boston didn't piss away the Cup last night? Maybe it's too early to tell.