Broken 16

I see Dave here more than a lot of Wings fan posters. He must really love Detroit. Heh. I'm sorry you can't be on our team... but look at the bright side, you're the fan of a team that's trying to be exactly like the Wings in every way. That's no so bad. As much as the Hawks need to learn to be a successful team, Hawk fans need how to learn to be cool and knowledgeable fans. It's a learning curve. Keep coming here and learning from big brother Dave. We won't wedgie you... much...

I've been reserving judgment on proclaiming Datsyuk my favorite player of all time. This might have sealed it. Undisputed most complete player in the game. I'm not gonna bother nitpicking the details of who won or lost. Pavs was more than Perry could handle and that's more than good enough for me. I honestly believe that if Pavs decided to work on the fighting aspect he would come up with dangle style knockouts that nobody has ever seen before. He's that creative.

Maltby's mouth will be missed. We got a new s*** talking turtler in the system to enrage the opponent? It's a dying art.

I agree. This is all very suspicious. I don't like it one bit.

I have no idea why people continue to try and reason with that Dave guy. The chance of breaking through is nill. It's obvious from his lack of general hockey knowledge that he just only started watching hockey when the Blackhawks started getting good. Why bother?

I like the move only in that we will now get definitive proof as to whether or not Ericsson sucks.

Pretty dumb to have an avatar like that and then get all butt hurt when someone calls you on it. Are there some people that really lament the loss of Leino still? Lol. Sucks to lose Ritola but someone had to go. But the organization lost the exact player they were prepared to lose. I can think of worse scenarios.

I hope you're right because I want the Wings to be the team that bounces their butts out onto the golf course.

Ordinarily I would agree, but in the current NHL, once you fall behind, you are pretty much effed. The beginning of the season is when they want to rack up a few cushion points if possible. A sputter start for them could easily result in a very long season.

I'm really hoping E can find some chemistry with Salei. If E can find his confidence, that would be a rock solid bottom pair.

Ya... unless one of them manages to pull away. A nice problem to have at your #6 spot.

That was pretty much a given. One bad game from Ericsson though and Kindl will probably get his shot. And based on what I've seen from E so far, that won't take long.

This is hideous.

Not a big deal. The Hawks have a 12-man core. With probably about 10 more core guys in high school. They'll be fine.

Seriously? Your using token 'enforcers' who barely played, let alone fought, as proof that they can't win without an enforcer. Lol. It's an angle... I'll give you that.

I played a couple games with it and I was more concerned with preserving it than using it. Heh. I feel much better using cheapies.

A lot of it depends on what kind of league you play in. If your league is filled with hacks and lumberjacks, you'll be lucky to get three games out of it. That's why I don't use mine.

I notice slight improvements in those areas when I horse around with my composite. But I still prefer the weight and feel of lumber.

Kopecky got a nice one in there.

It's pretty much common knowledge that any thread about a player who has ever been labeled an enforcer will always morph into a mindless enforcer debate. It's good clean fun.

I'm not anti-fighting, but this comment cracks me up almost as much as the entertainment value comment. If Holland wanted to put together a team like every other team... that's just what they would be, like every other team. Not many teams out there like the Wings and it suits me just fine. Wings don't copy the blueprint, they design it.

Having players on your team that other players are afraid of is ALWAYS a plus and will contribute towards wins. Saying that fighting is good for "entertainment value" understates it's importance quite a bit. Yes, a powerplay can be an enforcer on some level, but a human being will always be more afraid of a fist to the face. Having said that, Holland has proven that he will always pick skill over fighting and unless a player possesses both, he won't see much ice time. Not enough for him to have a real impact.

You're making a mountain out of a mole hill. The trade looks as good today as it did the day it happened. You should have used the time that Kenny has given you to come to grips with the painfully obvious fact that we weren't going to be able to keep everyone. But, then again, he may clear waivers. How about we not judge Modano after only a handful of preseason shifts. He's not here to be dominant. He's not here to be a leader. He's not expected to be the face of the franchise. He's just here to play third line center. Seriously, enjoy the luxury of having so much depth that we can afford to part with a decent prospect.

Not necessarily ALWAYS (again with the words in mouth)... but after 2 playoff runs and an entire regular season? Definitely. Ericsson's past is immaterial. He's expected to play defense at an NHL level. If your scientific analysis of Kindl and Ericsson reveals that they are both playing exactly the same type of game and that you could "switch jerseys" and nobody would tell the difference, then Ericsson is already behind Kindl.

Nice backstroke... The point is, if Kindl and Ericsson look identical to you (a point I happen to disagree with, beyond a couple plays that any player could make at any given time), that's not a shining endorsement on Ericsson. He should be leaps and bounds ahead of Kindl in his development.