GMRwings1983

I'd love to see this game no matter who the Wings would be playing. It doesn't have to be the Leafs. Also, for once we'd see a Wings game where the arena is full for a change.

What has Kopecky done to deserve 1st line minutes? I want to see Hudler on the 1st line, to see how he plays with either Pavel or Hank feeding him the puck.

I don't see how Kovalchuk and Ovechkin could ever play on the same line, since both love to shoot the puck so much. I don't see either of them conforming to take less shots. My pick would have to be Crosby, Vinny, and Iginla.

Another difference is that Bettman's tenure won't be up in a year like Bush's. Bettman will be around forever, which is why he needs to be removed ASAP.

And so begins the next 15 page debate thread on LGW.

When have you ever seen Laraque do anything awesome? His gentlemanly behavior on the ice is a disgrace to any enforcer in league history, and got on my nerves long ago. I know nobody on Philly's team could take him, but what's the point of having this guy on your team on a night where you have 4 fights, and he's not even one of the people fighting.

How's Hank gonna score goals now with Sammy taking all the shots on his line? Well, hopefully on the bright side, playing with Hank will boost Sammy's offensive numbers for trade bait value.

Yeah, good thing we don't have any drama queen goalies on our team.

Well, you can't expect everyone to throw 'em like Lilja has this year. Anyway, if I remember correctly, Shelley did beat Peters earlier this year, and hung in there against Boogaard. He never gets any big wins anymore like you said, but if he TKO'd Parros last night, I wouldn't have been the least bit surprised. Only a few fighters win on a consistent level against other top enforcers. A guy like Colton Orr, for instance, is exciting as hell to watch, and can drop anyone with that right hand, but his fight record has been horrible so far for a top enforcer. I'd take a guy like Shelley on the Wings any day.

You mean Lilja and Kopecky don't put fear into people after the way they've manhandled Phaneuf, Begin, and Sharp this year?

He's one of the few guys that has defeated Laraque, and he did it on several occasions. He's not a great heavyweight, but it's not like he always get beat either. He has dropped off lately, though.

I'd be willing to replace Bettman with a rented mule for commissioner at this point. He sounds like a jackass anyway when he's on TV talking about how great he thinks the status of the game is, and how Versus is watched by millions of households around the country. Bettman is living in his own little fantasy world.

Pretty much what I was going to write. However, it still won't be easy to win the cup, because it never is.

Hey, you sound like a player talking like that. You're probably right, but our regular seasons are so boring and unimportant, that we need something to strive for before the playoffs begin.

Yeah, he definitely turns the puck over a lot, and has a propensity for pinching in at the wrong time. Also, he can be taken advantage of one-on-one more so than other elite defenseman. But he's great offensively, and there's only a few defensemen in the league that don't have any glaring weaknesses. I don't think that anyone ever thought of him as a top 5 guy. A lot of the shorthanded chances that we give up are his fault, though, so that has to be fixed.

Hey, lets leave the Lilja jokes for fighting, and not get carried away.

This would be like John-Wayne Bobbitt getting back together with his wife. The NHL should not forgive espn for the s***ty way in which it treats hockey, and the way it treated it during its last several years on the network. espn can go f*** off with all their poker coverage for the rest of their lives.

I'd bring back Shanny, because even though Feds was better, we're pretty loaded at center, while Shanny would give us that physical right-handed winger, who can score goals, and drop the gloves when necessary. He was in his prime at the time as well, and I believe it was statistically his best season in Detroit, although I'm not sure.

Osgood who? I told you guys earlier in the season that after Lilja demolishes someone in a fight, his play is going to pick up. Looks like I was right.

How is that any different than what other leagues do with their top stars? Yeah, some of the things you say might be true, but that's what the league needs. This guy needs to be marketed better. so that the idiot "average joes" out there in society know who he is, just like they do in other sports.

That's exactly what I meant in my post. This guy's accomplishments deserve more recognition than what he's been getting. Hockey has become such a niche sport that many posters here have forgotten how unknown Crosby is in the U.S. as a whole, despite all those awards that you mentioned. I find that disappointing.

Come on guys! I complain that he doesn't get enough attention from the national media, especially when you consider how much ass-kissing they give to Lebron James who's the young phenom of the NBA. I wish Crosby got more respect for what he's doing at his age dominating the league the way he is. I don't understand how you guys can say that he's getting too much publicity. Too much publicity from whom? From CBC?

When I saw that happen Friday night, I never thought it would inspire so many posts. I just can't wait for the next game so we don't have to talk anymore about this overrated story. Just to put my final touch on it, Hasek made what was probably a dumb move, but I don't think that he was trying to injure Gaborik. Lemaire was just defending his star player with his comments. We see that all the time from coaches.

Then go watch espn. You won't hear his name on their entire goddamn channel. I promise you that.

Just stay away from his right hand. Seriously, though, you guys living in Detroit are lucky that you have a chance of meeting some of these guys. I don't know what the hell I'd say if I ever met someone like Yzerman or Fedorov.