hooon

I say Datsyuk by a tiny margin, but there is no one I'd rather have leading this team than Z.

I agree they should switch Tomas and Tomas in those lines, but its still the best forward lineup they've iced in quite some times.

Don't think its official yet, or is it? Glad he's off the market, wouldn't have wanted to overpay for him. I'd much rather target someone like Girardi.

They got knocked out in 5 games 2 years ago.... and game 7 in the 2nd round this year. How exactly is that doing worse?

HOLY ****. I think you may have just cracked the code on the Wings current losing streak! We need to let Babcock know ASAP.

Couldn't agree more. At some point, after 4 straight years of constant injuries, there has to be SOME kind of correlation between what they're doing and how many guys get hurt. Its been an awful long time since I've been this down on the Wings, but tonight is a great opportunity to turn it all around. Oh yeah, and TOOTOO!!!!

He played 8 games for the Wings this season before being waived. But I agree, he should always be a regular.

They are good, for sure, but their D and goaltending is nowhere near where it was last year and their special teams are horrendous. Their record is slightly better than how they've been playing, while they've been winning a ton of games, they've also been involved in a lot of really tight ones, and have blown some leads against teams they had no business doing poorly against. That said, they are still pretty darn good. I think a team like LA or STL would have a good chance at taking them in a series this playoffs. Sure don't want to see them do well at all...

That 2nd line wouldn't even be a very good AHL 2nd line. We're in trouble.

So no Nyquist now too? Jeeeeezzz.... That has to be one of the weakest rosters we've iced in 25 years or so.

I thought he looked very good out there for his first NHL game. Definitely a prospect to be excited about.

Calling up Jurco had nothing to do with how "pathetic" the Wings are as a team, it has to do with the fact that they currently have injuries to Zetterberg, Weiss, Helm, Abdelkader, Franzen, etc. So let's not act like Jurco was called up as some savior for this team... the Wings have a pretty terrible injury situation right now, THAT is why these kids are getting called up, not some desperation stunt to save the season.

Big game this afternoon. Excited to see Jurco in the lineup, hopefully we can see some of those smooth hands he has.

Very excited to see this kid get some games in the big league, though I wish we could find a way to keep guys healthy.

I think its more alarming that we're even GOING to shootouts against teams like Florida. Spend time working on that.

I feel like Calgary actually has some pretty decent talent that they've drafted recently, but from what I've heard today it seems like Burke isn't too high on a few of those guys.

I believe Panik is out tonight due to suspension. Not wild about the lines, but with all the injuries what can you do? Hard to get too excited about the games with the way they've been playing, but this is a good opportunity to make a statement and turn things around.

He's playing the blame game. If he was even a remotely effective defenseman, he would have a spot in the NHL. The Wings gave him an opportunity and all he could do was blame the coach and his ice time. The Columbus story seals the deal though. He was let go from Columbus because the coach (Hitchcock) was too jealous of how much money Commodore was making? After this article, and several other comments and incidents in the past, it is very fair to say that the problem is Commodore, not the coaches. A guy who can't get along with anyone who coaches him is a problem. ESPECIALLY if that player is a 7th defenseman AT BEST.

Agreed. That line would wreak havoc.

Sakic is a classy guy. I miss guys like him and Stevie in the game. Nice story, thanks for posting. Good little story about the linesman in one of the comments below the story as well.

A few thoughts: Holland specifically said "small herniated disc" which is at least somewhat encouraging based on everything I've heard about herniated discs. Thank goodness Helm and Nyquist are already in the lineup and playing great. Franzen's play recently is a big help with Pav and Z out as well. Even with the captain out, I'm not at all worried about leadership with all the vets on this team. Alfie will shine in that department. Opportunity. This gives guys like Weiss, Cleary, Sammy a HUGE opportunity to step up and make a difference to this team. If they don't, they will be the guys gone (God willing) when the injured guys start coming back to the lineup. I know we all have low expectations of these guys at this point, but they have to step up and now they get as good of a chance as they can hope for. I know it sounds odd, but in a weird way injuries were the best thing to happen to this team last season. It gives players opportunities to surprise and it also forces the team to play harder and hungrier than they are normally forced to play.

Wow. I never realized how top heavy the Wings are alphabetically. But I do agree with most of the ratings. Good analysis.

Vengeance is as sweet as the nectar of all the Gods of men! Don't like what Shanny said at all. Makes it seem like they put no thought into the decision whatsoever. “But we can’t always look into a crystal ball, and here we are a few days later and there’s a serious injury and no one feels worse, other than maybe Pavel and the Red Wings, than the department of player safety.’’ So he admits he screwed up... but only because Pavel hasn't come back yet? That, in a nutshell, is why these suspensions are so confusing to fans. They don't judge the actual incident, they only judge the result, which makes very, very little sense.

Nice! Thanks for posting. HURRY UP December 14th!

I agree with patience. Yes he is struggling, but he's still a solid player and I believe he will find his way. Having Pavel, Z, Weiss, Helm down the middle is as deep as it gets.