Jesusberg

I think affording Abs a real chance on their wing will be able to determine his real value with them. Like Axe is saying, he didn't even really spend much time on Dats' wing, and Cleary was with them. He's got a better shot and foot speed than Homer did; he just really needs to work on his net-front positioning and balance. The guy's been used as a PK'er and checking line forward, it's kind of hard to just throw him into a new role and expect him to adapt right away. Give the guy some time before you write him off in that role.

While I don't necessarily agree that Brunner is "expendable", I do believe he is highly replaceable. I know they're not right-handed shots, but I think Nyquist and/or Tatar will be able to provide some much needed depth. Depending on which bodies are moved out, one or both of them are going to be able to put up some points. As mentioned, Alfie and Weiss are going to add some serious offensive as well. It might just be optimism on paper, but I really feel like the PP and overall offensive game of this team is turning around big time. Saw something mentioned about a Z-D-Mule, Kronner-Alfie powerplay unit... tell me that doesn't scream offensive. I think it'll be highly effective, especially if Alfie can run along the half-boards on his off-wing.

He can, but it'd be like a 2.1 cap hit, as opposed to the full 3. "BURIED CONTRACTS (Wade Redden Rule) Money paid to players outside of the NHL counts against the cap. A one-way contract counts against the cap as follows: cap hit – [ minimum salary + $375,000 ] Example: If Wade Redden plays in the minors in 2012-13, he counts as follows. $6.5M – [ $525,000 + $375,000 ] = $5.6M"

I wonder if he feels like he broke up with his ex-girlfriend, and then she moved on really quick... and now he's just sitting there like, "I think I messed up."

"In this fall, this is very tough, in this fall I'm going to take my talents to Motown and join the Detroit Red Wings."

Holland on Brunner: "We made a 2 & 3 year offer prior to noon today. He made the decision to test the market."

I'm not UNhappy... I'd like to see Samuelsson go away, and our RFA's locked up, though. I think we have a more potent top 6. Should see some serious PP improvements.

That would be a NMC that would factor in there, not NTC.

"Players that have received a qualifying offer can sign an offer sheet but players that are headed to arbitration cannot."

Well at least I can say I was right the first time

Nope, you're correct. I didn't account for bonuses. So 4.3 it is

With about 2.3 million in space, and having to sign Nyquist, Andersson and Smith... I would hope Samuelsson.

Not that I agree with it, but saw a Wings fan say this elsewhere: "Looks like Jim Nill took Kenny Holland's b**** when he left Detroit" I think it's a pretty even deal for both teams - Seguin clearly had some off-ice issues in Boston. The Stars get a young players who will be in their core for years to come, Boston gets one of the better two-way players in the game, and some prospects with potential.

Uh, I dunno where all this soft Euro crap came from, but I watched every post-season game the Leafs played this year and I noticed Grabo every single shift he played. I can't speak for his regular season, but in the playoffs he took a SERIOUS amount of abuse and kept getting back up. He was always buzzing around the net, going to the hard areas. I would take him over Weiss or Matt Cullen for sure. I'd cough up 4.0-4.5 per for Grabo. Big fan of what I watched, though it is a small sample size.

This is pretty much how I see it. I'd rather either Smith or DeKeyser (played some PP at the end) with Kronwall. Both Kindl and Kronwall seem to like to shoot, and as has been mentioned, Brunner might be better served by the left-side half boards. I don't think the Red Wings do nearly enough cross-crease stuff on the PP.

I really don't see him even hanging onto the back-up spot over Coreau... so this essentially feels like adding a body in Toledo,

Just to add to what Richdg said, per Twitter: "The #RedWings have released GK Jordan Pearce, and made a qualifying offer on Tuesday to GK Tom McCollum, the team's 2008 first-round pick." Head scratcher with Mrazek, Paterson and Coreau in the pipeline.

3. I guess that's a point of disagreement. I don't see anyone beyond Sammy who should be bought out. Do I think Mule is going to be effective in the last years of his contract? Probably not. I think we'd be a worse team in 2014-15 without him, though. Can you say the same about Samuelsson next year? Samuelsson being on the team is a hindrance to the future of this hockey club. 4. I see where you're coming from with Cleary, and I've loved every thing the guy's brought during his time here... but I feel like that time is done. He's almost completely ineffective during the year. He's a playoff warrior, and that counts for a ton, but I'm not sure it's at the expense of healthier bodies. The physicality of the East is wildly overrated. Los Angeles, St. Louis, San Jose... those teams aren't physical? I would much rather see guys like Nyquist and Tatar given a fair shake. 5. I do see a much higher quality in the class of players next year. I just think a good portion of those guys will be tied up. The cap will bump up some, too... so maybe teams hang onto guys unless they're truly going to liabilities going forward. And I must sound like a prospect slappy here, but guys like Ferraro, Sheahan and Jurco are going to be knocking on the door soon. Depending on how they fare next year, Jarnkrok and Pulkkinen too, perhaps. Hadn't even heard of Parise's name in buyout discussions, but he would be an interesting one for sure. He's a game breaker worth spending the cash on.

I will boo the total s*** out of him if he doesn't go away. I don't even care how irrational that makes me sound. Touchy puck, I boo. Though, he'll probably spend 70+ games on the IR, so I'd better time out my game attendance well.

I will fully admit that the overreacting on here drives me nuts, at times. I agree with your first two points 100%. After that, we tend to have a different view of the situations. 3. This is my primary disagreement. I have seen others on here wanting him bought out to add some fancy new free agent to the team. I couldn't care less about the cap hit coming off the books if a Samuelsson buyout were to occur; it's about making room on the roster for the younger guys. The man can barely stay healthy for more than a handful of games at a time, and if he does... what real good does he do? Do you want him in your top 6, seriously? He's a 3 million dollar third liner. If his presence on the team next season means that one of Tatar or Nyquist does not have a spot, it's absolute garbage. Cap isn't the issue here - it's a useless player taking away from the progress of others. 4. This isn't so much me disagreeing as it is me simply stating: I don't care if we're not good next year, as we were this year. I didn't care how much noise we made this year, either. Part of us doing well may be used as a justification for bringing a guy like Cleary back, at the expense of some younger guys learning from Z and Datsyuk, first hand. I like Cleary, but I feel his time has passed. Success with this team = Holland things he's got a fantastic team = "well, I guess we can still let the kids overripe." I'm not an advocate of bringing in overpriced, lower-tier FA talent - I'm a fan of letting our young guys get the proper experience now with some of the more talented two-way centers in the game. 5. It's fine to look right now and see that FA class, but how many of those guys will actually be there come next summer. Tons of teams lock up their UFA's before they hit the market. Again, I don't want anyone in this year's FA class, but to say that we're saving for next summer has been kind of a cop out for several years now, and was really only a solid idea when Parise and Suter tested the market (Bad outcome, but those are the guys you throw money at.) Don't get me wrong, there are some nice names there (Vanek, Gabs, Kessel, Pominville, etc.)... but how many will actually make it to July 1st?

"The Red Wings had been expected to use their second compliance buyout on forward Mikael Samuelsson but his injured pectoral muscle makes him ineligible to be bought out. Contrary to speculation, forward Todd Bertuzzi will not be bought out in his place. The team may save the second buyout for the 2014 offseason." How reliable is the site? I wonder if it's just speculation on their part? If his pectoral muscle is seriously going to be the reason to not use a buyout... wow. http://www.detroithockey.net/pressbox/news/2013/07/02/red-wings-to-buy-out-colaiacovo.php

I think things at forward are still a bit confusing. Once they know if Brunner and Cleary are going, then we could see a Sammy buyout.

Looks like Colaiacovo is headed for a buyout... I really want to see Sammy, though. http://prohockeytalk.nbcsports.com/2013/07/02/report-red-wings-likely-to-buy-out-colaiacovo/

@Real_ESPNLeBrun "Montreal, Detroit and Anaheim inquired on Alex Edler. Wings made an offer. Habs may circle back. But nothing close at this point."

I'm a fan of the deal, and I actually think the extra year or two is a good thing. By the end of the deal, he could definitely be playing above his cap hit. I like it.