wings87

Trading prospects for good players and then keeping them is not the same thing as mortgaging your future for a patch. There are always plenty of trades made and not all of them are of the Ott for the entire farm system variety.

Well let me be a bit more clear. I never advocated mortgaging the future for a quick fix, but let's not kid ourselves whether we're talking about this year, next year or 4 years down the line this team needs to upgrade. IMHO the worst thing an organization can do is over value their prospects, which is something that the Wings organization is prone to do. While it's fun to watch all these young kids play, very few prospects turn into good NHL players and even fewer prospects turn into stars. There is a reason that Holland went out and spent 30 mil on Weiss: there is just no way to build a competitive team with only AHL players. So what happens to all the prospects the WIngs have in Grand Rapids? They can't all play for the Wings. Some will end up stuck in Grand Rapids for far too long overshadowed by overpriced veterans as in Nyquist's case while the team suffers, other will be playing for the WIngs but will spend much less time on the ice which will hinder there development. So while it might hurt to part with younger talent(who we can;t be sure are even going to be any good), it is a necessary part of the business. That being said every team should have their untouchables; a list which should include guys like: Tatar, Nyquist, and several others. They just can't all be labeled untouchable. Kindle had a good season last year, which most likely raised his value on the open market but management overvalued him, held on to him and now he is struggling. Holland believes in his prospects so much that he went out and got Quincey back for a first rounder after just letting him leave because of roster space. Injuries not withstanding this team was built with far too many holes in it, and to plug those holes trades have to be made. Ever since more and more teams started re-signing their young players before they become free agents; the free agent market has had fewer top players on it and most of them want big bucks. Even mediocre players are cleaning up. With the Salary cap, free agency has become a terrible place to rebuild a team. As much as we would all love to keep our young prospects for the fear of them becoming good players somewhere else it's just not plausible. So I beliveve that there is nothing wrong with trading a few younger players along with draft picks to help improve a team, you just have to be smart about the trade you make. Quincey for a first rounder equals bad trade, but finding a way to get a guy like Vanek or Girardi for example and having exclusive negotiating rights with them, will help the team now and in the future.

This was how I felt last year, but then we made the playoffs and took off. So while the chance to make the playoffs hasn't completely evaporated, the brass should do all they can to upgrade the team even though we all know they won't.

Ever since the cap era started; Holland has been passive on the trade front and I wouldn't expect this year to be any different. He had been unwilling to upgrade the club at the deadline in the years the Wings had a great chance at winning the Cup, and now with a chance at winning the Stanley Cup minimal he has very little motivation in upgrading the team with proven players while trading picks or prospects. Frankly I'm tired of watching the trade deadline special every year and hoping against hope that Holland and Co. will make a move; while knowing damn well that no trade will come. Holland is like the guy with the dollar bill on the string in the old prank. Every time we at LGW think that he will finally make a move he just pulls the string with the dollar bill away and we end up with nothing but air.

Love Callahan if available, would be a great fit.

I agree. Plus we don't even know that he can't play tomorrow. Most of this is conjecture; yeah he said that he's not sure but game time decisions are very common in hockey. He also said that the knee feels about the same as it did before the Olympics and he ended playing games before the break. So let's just wait and see whether he plays and how he looks on the ice. I thought he looked awesome in the Russia vs USA game, my guess is that he'll be back playing tomorrow. But if he needs two extra days he should take them. And while I won't be thrilled about it, I would rather have him miss a few extra days than the rest of the season.

You completely mis-understood my point, what I meant is exactly what roboturner wrote.

I see you're from Canada. where you happy that they won the Gold? Would you have the same problem with Z and Dats playing in the Olympics if they played for Canada and helped them win?

I actually thought he looked great during Olympics, he was easily the best player Russia had. And with the way he looked during the Olympics I'm just kinda surprised and a little confused why he thinks he's not healthy enough to play when the season restarts. P.S. I have absolutely no problem with him going to play for Russia, I'm actually happy he did.

I'm sure he will find a taker; desperate teams overpay constantly. Remember the Gaustad trade? First rounder for a fourth line center, crazy.

It's P.K. Subban, he wants to be a Red Wing so badly he paid of the toy maker to make it happen.

If you remember the guys where running away and had to dress up as women to join the band, and me being a guy; I would have to dress up as a women to join the women's curling team.

I get your point, and don't mean to get on you, but I don't think you can the lines arbitrary and invincible.

I'm sure they have furniture, but if they take a swing at it I'm sure they will miss it, fall, and embarrass themselves even more.

I think you spell it F-U-C... No wait I think that's something else.

I think the pressure will be too great from other countries and the NHL will be forced to allow players to participate in the Olympics. The NHL already has a bad relationship with the KHL can you imagine if Finland and Sweden also get pissed at the NHL. I might be thinking too extreme but I believe the worldwide draft will be affected as retaliation if the NHL denies other countries the ability to have their best players play for them in the Olympics. Let's not forget that the Olympics mean more to the European countries then they do to North America.

The only reason Franzen is a limited edition is because he's rarely seen on the ice.

Worst thing that could have happened to them was winning the Russia game. Made them complacent.

I actually had my eye on the Russian women's curling team, just like in "Some Like It Hot"--- The older generation knows what I'm talking about.

I'm so embarrassed, I'm going to change my citizenship like Victor Ahn. Don't think they every cared, it was just an illusion.

After watching the past two games; I would like to hear Burke say that Bobby Ryan was still not good enough to make this team... just two goals these Olympics against good teams. And no I don't count the Czech Republic as a good team. This team just wasn't ready to compete in the elimination rounds. Just a complete collapse; the Women's team lost to Canada, but at least they showed some heart. The men's team just laid down and become a doormat. So frustrating.

We've had some discussion in the Olympic thread about which teams on the International stage have the Biggest rivalry. So just curious what some of you guys think. To me at the present time there is no more bigger rivalry then USA vs Canada.

And how many Canadians voted Russia vs Canada?It's really all about perspective.

In history sure, but since the Soviet Union broke up the rivalry has been somewhat toned down. Which has let the US, Canada rivalry take center stage.

Let's say it like this, whether we agree US is a bigger rival to Russia or not, today's game was a big blow to Russia. Losing to the US in any format is unacceptable to their country, evidenced by the fact that Putin showed up. We are getting to the point where the Russia, Canada rivalry is more like the Wings, Toronto rivalry: Both teams want to beat the other badly but don't have the same intensity it once did, but due to the long history will always be big rivals like the Wings and Toronto. I would compare the USA and Russia rivalry more to the Penguins and Wings rivalry: Its a newer rivalry with a shorter history but with plenty of sub-plots and intrigue. But really what's stopping the US and Russian rivalry from becoming insane is the fact that the US team or the fans don't have any hate towards the Russian team, but Russian fans have plenty of Hate for the US. So right now it's a little one-sided but that doesn't diminish it's importance.