Datsyerberger

I think at this point Hudler would do better on a lower pressure team with a greater need for offensive vision on the wing. Part of the problem with Hudler on this team is that we don't really have a spot in the lineup where Hudler fits. There are other teams that are in much greater need for a player of his role/talents, so at this point it might be in our best interest to get what we can for him and use the additional cap space to fill different roles.

Gritty forwards certainly doesn't address any holes for us, anyhow. It's no longer a place we have an obvious lack.. if anything, we're actually reasonably well off. On the other hand, definitely need a d-man with some cojones, but a penalty magnet isn't the answer. While mobility isn't a huge concern (as long as its not a huge liability), nor is offense (we need to add on there as well, but with a different d-man) any gritty d-man we target needs to have a good first pass, shot blocking, solid PK ability and grit. That combo doesn't come cheap.

We don't want SOB. That guy takes way too many penalties for what he contributes. A bottom pair d-man just doesn't give enough value to the team for giving the opposition that many PPs in today's NHL.

East; aside from travel, weaker conference with overall less consistently physical opposition leading to a likely healthier team heading into playoffs and easier matches. Better chances of a well built team winning the cup.

Maybe Ericsson turned down the contract because he wants a change of scenery, rather than the $ amount being a concern? Maybe he thinks he can get around $2m elsewhere (he probably could, large d-man with a decent shot that can skate fairly well for his size, someone's gonna spend on that) and is looking to try his luck elsewhere. Edit: Just seems like everyone is jumping the gun on him turning down the contract because he wanted more; I don't see that stated anywhere. There are other reasons to turn down a contract (someone might actually want to leave the Red Wings )

I am, but Tampa Bay is my 'east' team (before Yzerman... I'm from Florida). In addition I'd like to see Stevie's team pull this off.

Kronner, and a lot of people outside of this team's fanbase think that. What this team needs is an appropriate top pair partner for him.

Things I didn't like in this game: Thornton assassination Franzen wanting to compete but can't First 35 minutes Abdelkader taking another doofy penalty Things I did like in this game: Kronwall! Datsyuk! Howard! Zetterberg Lidstrom Filppula (was the only guy consistently winning battles all night) Ericsson Helm

He's benched for the same reason Hudler and Flip are on a line together and Rafalski and Ericsson are a d-pairing. ...Ladies and gentlemen, Mike Babcock has been drugged.

I've defended McCrimmon the last couple of years, probably even in this thread, but even I'm on the 'replace McCrimmon' bandwagon now. Not necessarily fire him; I'd be happy with the Wings offering to re-assign him as a scout. I'd honestly like to see Cheli given a shot; his last couple years as a skater he was essentially an extra D coach on the bench and I think, just as much as the addition of McCrimmon, our D has looked considerably crappier every year we haven't had Cheli on the bench.

I'm fine with Rafalski. He does what he was paid for and does it well: be a complementary top line offensive d-man. The problem is when you expose him by pairing him with Eri--uh... other defensively lackluster, soft players.

Why is Ericsson and Rafalski a pairing to begin with?

What the f*** kind of call was that?

Second (and third) chances: the difference between the Sharks and this Wings team.

I'm pretty sure Toews' intangibles will do wonders for his driving and putting.

Well, at least we scored 3 goals in the St. Louis game. According to our GAA that'd be enough for a win in >50% of games.

Lidstrom. Datsyuk is being overrated here because of the games he missed and the subsequent Wings performance. While he is a close second, I don't even want to imagine what this team would look like with Lidstrom out 20+ games.

Regarding the Franzen goal, if that went to replay, it still would have counted, as there's no conclusive evidence that the puck didn't cross the line. When reviewing a goal that's ruled on ice as a good goal, there has to be conclusive evidence that the puck never went in, not evidence that the puck was indeed in (that's the evidence needed if it's called no goal on the ice). My guess is that with the angle the official had, he was able to spot the puck between Theodore's legs. Either that, or he was making an assumption, which would explain the no goals against us as well.

Not sure Nick's name belongs anywhere near an award with that overrated ****** canoe's name in it.

Clutterbuck playing with Helm and Eaves would be ******* amazing. And that guy has the most awesome coincidental combo of name + style of play that has ever happened. Agree with HS on Vokoun, most overlooked and underrated starter in the NHL. That's playing in Sunrise for ya, I guess. I don't think he's ever had a 'Vezina' year, but on the other hand, he's been one of or the most reliable and consistently performing goalies since the lockout. And Enstrom is sorta like a Lidstrom-lite, wouldn't mind having another one of those on the team. Very overlooked young d-man among all the Doughtys and Keiths and Webers, at least until fairly recently. Been keeping an eye on him a long time and while I won't say he'll be the next Lidstrom, he definitely has the potential to have a very long, healthy, and consistent career.

Ah, goalies still take way too much s*** in the D. Better goalies have had worse years than this one for Jimmy; not bad for a sophomore year, really. We'll see what happens with him next year and in the playoffs this year. There are other larger concerns than Howard's play, most notably passion and chemistry. I'm surprised the latter doesn't get talked about as much. Some of this is Babs getting too creative, a lot of it is injuries, some of it is just... mesh. Have we ever had consistent lines this season? Not really. Here were the two best, though: Hudler - Datsyuk - Cleary Franzen - Filppula - Bertuzzi Put those back together and another line with Zetterberg (Holmstrom + Modano?) and see how things work out in that regard. Alternatively, put Datsyuk and Zetterberg back together (When has this not worked longer than a couple games in a row?) and run the above combos with similar lines, such as Hudler - Filppula - Cleary, Bert - Modano - Franzen. I think perhaps Babcock has been trying to get a feel for line combos moving forward into the playoffs, but it just feels like he's been trying to use line changes too much to get a spark going for some player or another and chemistry has suffered. If people don't have a spark, just make them sit.

I'll reserve judgement until I see what happens in the playoffs (and the injury state while doing so). If the Wings put up a solid performance in the playoffs, I'll feel fine about the team going into next season. If there are obvious defensive/goaltending/scoring consistency issues, I think there will be some serious shakeups during the offseason.

So uh... who thinks Howard and/or Osgood are that bad now? Anyone?

Considering he was a top pairing defenseman for the vast majority of his career, I'd imagine he has the money to do what he enjoys rather than what brings a marginally bigger paycheck.

Dude steef, he just trolled your trollin' like a pro.