xtrememachine1

Right. That's kind of my point. We've lost players left and right and we're replacing them players from the AHL. The salary cap has been going up, those players leaving is freeing up tons of cap space and he hasn't traded for or signed, hardly anyone. We're doing a little worse each year, our cap space is growing, our problems are increasing and Holland hasn't done anything during this time. Again, don't get me wrong, he's done lots for the Wings over the years, but to post an article proclaiming him the best GM in the NHL when he's done very little over the past few years is bizarre.

One of the stats I finding interesting is his shot totals. He took a ton of shots in the first couple months and had 10 goals in 21 games. Since then he's been taking less shots and has just 1 goal. Maybe that has to do with ice time or injuries or fatigue, but this kid needs to find a way to get the puck to the net more.

Not to beat up on Holland because overall I do think he's a good GM, but I wonder about the timing of this article. Aside from calling up players from the minors and signing our own guys, he's really done nothing over the past 3 years. So while every other team in the league makes trades and signs big name free agents, Holland's been "standing pat" and watching the team get knocked out of the playoffs earlier and earlier and is now clinging to the final playoff spot this year. So while he's done a lot for our franchise over the years, I'm not sure what he's done these past three years that would justify giving him the top GM honors.

For this team's style of play, we need to be better on the back end. When we had Lidstrom, Schneider, Rafalski, Stuart sitting on the opposing teams' blueline, blasting the puck back into the zone, we had no problem scoring goals. This team lives and dies by its defensemen.

Really glad to have Jimmy around for awhile longer!

The only similarity between Crosby and Yzerman is that they both wore/wear the "C" on their jersey. That's about it. Saying that Yzerman dove tells me that you didn't watch much hockey in the 80's and 90's or at least Red Wings games.

- Its a class act organization that's run right, starting with the ownership down to the players. - Its an original 6 team with a rich history and has had some of the greatest players of all time. - When they're at their best, their style of play is mesmerizing. The passing, the skating, the whole flow of the team was just incredible to watch at times. - I don't live in Detroit and I wear Red Wings gear ALL the time (the logo is even tattooed on my arm) and I'm known as that "Red Wings fan" (like their's only one or something). I like being known for that. Its a good feeling.

If Holland doesn't make some bold moves, he'll be gone after next season. Possibly Zetterberg too. These players are way too talented to be playing on a rebuilding team or even a transition team. I feel bad for both of them right now. They're both busting their butts, but there really isn't anything around them to help out, so it doesn't even matter.

Geeez, this Gaborik trade makes no sense. Why did the Rangers throw away a guy that scored 41 goals just last year? I know he's not doing great this year, but he could easily get hot at anytime and they're still battling for a playoff spot. And why did they get virtually nothing in return? I mean, its like they felt bad for stealing Nash, so they evened out that trade by giving them Gaborik.

Eh, I wasn't expecting anything from us today. So sad, yet so so true. On the plus side things could be worse. We could be watching our GM throw away our best players for other teams spare parts and unwanted prospects like Calgary.

The Pens gave up practically nothing to get Iginla. They gave up more to get Brendan Morrow. I'd like to see Jagr in Detroit, but he raved about how much he loved Philly and they had a good team and he left for Dallas. If we traded for him, he would be a 2 month rental, so we would need to give up like a 5th round pick and a low end prospect to make it worth our while.

That's what I keep telling Pens fans who are already planning the parade. It just takes ONE hot goalie and you're screwed. We had a much better team than the Avs in '99, we ran into Roy and lost. We had a much better team than Anaheim in 03, but Gigure was a wall, we lost. If the playoffs started today, they would be playing Lundqvist. The 7th seeded team is NJ with Brodeur. Those guys are more than capable of stealing a series.

So basically, even though the Flames felt Boston was offering a better deal, they went with Pittsburgh's offer because that's where Iginla wanted to go. A little fuel for the Bruins fire if they meet Iginla and the Pens in the playoffs. http://prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/28/report-flames-preferred-bruins-deal-iginla-picked-pens/

I was actually thinking this too. I think that these trades are great for the Pens, obviously and make sense to do them this year while the East looks really weak and disorganized. However, Crosby and Malkin are probably two of the NHL's most injury prone players. Does everyone like the Pens chances if Crosby goes down? Also, Iginla and Morrow are great, physical scoring additions to the team, but the Pens lost in the first round last year because they couldn't keep the puck out of their net. Is Doug Murray going to solve that problem all by himself? It just takes one team with a hot goalie to derail someone (see 2003 Mighty Ducks).

I've said this ever since before he left Florida, I'd like to see what Bouwmeester can do on this team in our system. I think he would flourish. I mean, let's face it, Florida and Calgary are not exactly the best places to play hockey. Two non-playoff teams that get crushed by most teams on most nights, he really didn't have talent around him in either place. I think his skill set would really work in Detroit.

This is a good trade for the Pens. I didn't like the Morrow one for them, but this is a much needed move. They need defense and specifically a shot blocker, which Murray is. Two good playoff moves for them for this year, but if they don't win the Cup this year, they'll be sorry they made these trades.

If we trade players that could be the next guys to carry this team after Datsyuk and Zetterberg leave for a 35 year old player, rental or not, we don't have much of a future. Like I said before, we're not one player away from a Cup here. How much of an impact is Iginla going to have in Detroit while the team is in this transition phase? Don't get me wrong, I'd love to have him in Detroit, but his best years are behind him. Power forwards play a more physical kind of hockey, he won't last into his 40's like Lidstrom.

I'm really surprised to see Joe Morrow leave. He looked very impressive at times with the Pens during the preseason and camp and they knew he was going to fit into their system. Yet they trade him for a burned out power forward that might just be a rental? Unless Brenden Morrow turns out to be a critical piece of their Stanley Cup run or Joe Morrow ends up being a bust, the Pens lost this trade.

A 35 year old power forward? Calgary's going to want to cash in big because he's their franchise, but you don't see very many power forwards lasting this long and being effective and its not like we're one piece away from a championship here. I think we need scoring, but I can't even imagine giving Calgary that much for a guy that will probably be a just a rental and won't be nearly as effective as he was in the past. Let some other franchise throw away their future for a rental.

If Phoenix ends up moving don't forget that Seattle and KC are in the running for teams too. KC nearly had the Pens a few years ago. When they say re-evaluate in a couple years, I think that basically means, how well are the Islanders, Panthers and Devils financially and could they potentially move to a Western city. After a couple years of the Wings playing the Rangers, Bruins, Leafs and Canadiens, the NHL would have to be nuts to send us back to the West. I think we're in the East for good guys. Hallelujah!

We've seen so many teams steam roll the competition in the regular season and then get bounced in the first round or struggle and get eliminated early. Remember last year how the Pens were unstoppable and there was no one that could beat them. First round knockout. Remember the Sharks year after year finishing really strong, getting a high seed and they have yet to make the Finals. Heck, even us. We had a 23 game home win streak last year and lose both playoffs games to Nashville and were bounced in the first round. The regular season means nothing. If the Hawks have success like this in the playoffs, they're good, but what they're doing now, while impressive, means nothing.

I'm way past pissed right now. I was pissed when we blew that lead in Minnesota. I'm to the level so far beyond pissed I'm going to have to invent a new word for this feeling. Its one thing to lose, but to lose in the final period after winning the whole game is so frustrating. I mean, they're playing better than their opponents for like 50 of the 60 minutes, winning almost the entire game and coming away with zero points. That is the killer. If they were getting at least a point, I would be mad, but at least they're getting something. There's no difference in the standings to this loss against the Kings and the blowout loss to the Blues on opening night. As a fan, I'm this upset, I can't imagine how angry the players and coaches must feel.

I've said it before, I'll say it again, Ovie needs to be traded. To me, this looks a lot like Patrick Roy in his final days in Montreal. He was great for awhile, then he started to decline, everyone said he was washed up and a change of scenery really helped put his career back on track. I think the same would happen to Ovie. Trade him to a Western Conference team and watch him re-ignite. The question is who can and is willing to absorb that huge contract with him playing this badly. He's a $9.5 mil cap hit per year till 2021. That's a lot of money for one player in a salary cap league and for him to not be playing like an MVP, he'll be tough to move.

So is it too early to order my Damien Brunner jersey? lol The guy is a phenomenal addition to our team. Really hope Holland gets him signed to an extension.

I know a lot of people are down on the Wings right now, but this is kind of expected. The Wings were down in the beginning and then they got better and were good, now they're down again. Its very typical of a team during a shortened season, plus add on all the injuries we've experienced. What did you expect to happen? Take a look around the league, everybody is having big ups and big downs. As long as our ups are long enough to get us into the playoffs, it'll be fine. Right now, the team isn't playing "bad" we're just not holding leads. Its not like when we got dominated by the Blues on opening night. Nothing looked good then. This is fixable and doesn't need an overhaul or rebuild.