bonan78

That sucks. Miller is definitely one of my favorite non-Wings (even though he is a Spartan) Wolverines!!!

Amen. They looked really good on the line together with Hossa. Yet another reason why I think it would be a mistake to let either of them go. Hudler's got so much more skill and creativity than I gave him credit for, good to see him gaining confidence and stepping into a featured role. And did you notice Filppula doing a Homer impression, screening the goalie on the power play. You can play him in just about any situation and he will give whatever it takes to help the team and his linemates succeed. Really looking forward to the day when they both hit their prime, could be the next dynamic duo, a slightly smaller version of the Eurotwins.

4-2 Wings Hudler (PP), Lilja, Filppula (SH), Zetterberg (EN) Ozzie lets in a soft goal, wakes up, then stands on his head the rest of the game, down 3-1 late, Minnesota pulls the goalie and pulls it within 1, but Z seals the deal. Just getting warmed up for Sunday's match-up, looking to exact some vengeance on the artists formerly called Nordiques.

Obviously, this is a worst-case scenatio, heaven forbid we should lose both of them, but realistically it could happen. Assuming all other free agents sign, here's how I see next year's lineup: Datsyuk-Zetterberg-Holmstrom Hudler-Filppula-Cleary Samuelsson-Helm-Leino Maltby-Draper-Kopecky Lidstrom-Rafalski Stuart-Kronwall Lilja-Ericsson Osgood Howard What I'd like to see happen, when we re-sign both Hossa and Franzen, and Draper, Maltby, Holmstrom, Chelios, and Osgood all retire: Datsyuk-Zetterberg-Franzen Hossa-Filppula-Cleary Hudler-Helm-Leino Abdelkader-Haydar-Downey Lidstron-Rafalski Stuart-Kronwall Lilja-Ericsson Conklin Howard Here's a scenario to consider: We can't re-sign Hossa, and we make a sign-and-trade deal that looks like this, Franzen, Filppula, Lebda, and prospects/picks to Vancouver for the Sedin twins and a pick Then the lines would look like this Datsyuk-Zetterberg-Holmstrom Sedin-Sedin-Samuelsson Hudler-Helm-Leino Maltby-Draper-Kopecky D pairings the same

Agreed. Guys that were valuable contributors to last year's run are finding themselves without a clearly defined role, and their efforts are showing it. Without Hossa this year, I admit we would have a less explosive offense, but we would have these guys playing with the same units most of the season, and that goes a long way in terms of confidence. All 4 of the above mentioned players, Franzen, Filppula, Huder, and Cleary, have been bounced around between different line combinations, different positions on these lines, etc. Franzen and Hudler are putting up great numbers and are worthy of nice big contracts, but a lot of their numbers have come due to increased regular PP time, whereas Cleary and Filppula have only played on the PP when Zetterberg or Holmstrom have been out of the lineup. Cleary got his big contract, and only put up the same numbers as the year before, looks like Filppula will do the same, given his forced demotion and revolving-door cast of wingers (he's right at his assist total from last year already though). We need to focus on locking up the talent we drafted, give them time to develop, then stick with them instead of trying to rent players like Hossa, who, if he really wanted to stay would have signed for more years to begin with, he's just after the Cup, then he'll take his 401k, I mean, multi-year deal with a non-contender and make his millions.

Agreed. If you're trying to bait the hook for a trade, Hudler will be a lot more enticing based on his explosion this year. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to keep them all, but if you're trying to trade to help the team, one of the bubble teams in the East would much rather get their hands on a RFA whose cap hit is just a hair over 1 mil, who is creative and has looked good on the PP this year, as opposed to a player who's already on a long contract who hasn't put up the numbers he's capable of (granted I think Val could easily have numbers like Huds if it was him getting the PP time). If Hossa decides he wants to stay in Hockeytown, I really think Hudler could be sent packing at the deadline for a pick and a couple of prospects. Get them all together with Kenny, no agents, and let him talk them into deals that fit our cap. If anyone can do it, Holland can.

Hallelujah! Everybody wins here. We lock up Hank for life, and only $6 mil against the cap. Anyone who doubts that Kenny Holland is the greatest exec in all of pro sports better take notice. How can you possibly get a better negotiating position, any player who wants to win would be crazy not to take a pay cut to sign here. I wouldn't be surprised to see our other UFA's take similar deals to stay in Detroit, let's see...Franzen and Hudler, 6 years, 24 million, with the last year being 1 mil. Git R done. BTW, please, please. please dont trade Filppula

First of all, does anyone have a link to that particular interview, either in text or a video? Second, trying to change the game for the sake of drawing a "new" audience hasn't worked well for the NHL (i.e. FoxTrax). Anyone in a decision-making capacity who would consider banning fighting should be put out of their misery. Hockey is nothing like any of the other "major" sports in so many ways, trying to change it to make it more like the others is impossible. Fighting, while it can take away from the flow of the game if it gets out of hand, but it can turn around a game, and sometimes a whole season or playoff series, when it happens for the right reasons, to settle a score or to keep cheapshot artists from running rampant (i.e. Claude Lemieux). Fighting always has, and hopefully always will, had a place in hockey as we know it. Third, completely unrelated, I think they should make the shootouts 5 shooters per team instead of 3. Shootouts are exciting as heck but they are over too quickly.

No, I think Sammy is gone, Franzen and Hudler will sign for what they deserve, and Hossa takes his big payday that he put on hold for the sake of winning the Cup. When we win this year, Hossa will go to the highest bidder. Not that I wouldn't mind keeping him long-term, but I can't see it happening, unless by some cruel cosmic joke Zetterberg signs elsewhere (keeping all my fingers and toes crossed that doesn't happen). Hudler and Franzen will get their big contracts, Zetterberg will get what he deserves, and everyone will be happy and keep on winning. You can't really look at this in terms of either-or, especially with Kenny Holland pulling the strings. He'll find a way to keep a winning team together, and he'll reward hard work, loyalty, and success. Bottom line, it's better to have too much depth than not enough.

I think it's way too early to give up on him. Sure, expectations went up based on his playoff performance and the new contract, but I agree that getting bumped down to the 3rd line and no PP time are to blame for his numbers. But, it's not all about the numbers. Babcock and Holland have had nothing but positive things to say about him all season, even when he was getting 10 minutes or less in some games. Also, look at his wingers: Samuelsson and Cleary (most of the time), who are shoot-happy, which also explains why he only has 65 SOG in 46 games. If there was concern about his performance, he definitely wouldn't be in the ice at the beginning of every short-handed situation. I understand that this is a business, and if they get an offer that will help the team, I can't fault them for making a deal, but to talk about shopping for trades, or sitting him or sending him down to GR is nuts. He's an important part of the future of this team, and to say he's already peaked is also crazy. He's got the potential to be a Jere Lehtinen-type player for a long time, and I think letting him go at this point will come back to bite us later.