Jesusberg

The only time I ever use puns is to piss other people off... I know they piss me off. Stupid puns.

I've seen/heard this too. About a week ago I heard from a friend (one of those terrible "my friend knows someone who knows someone" stories, so I didn't care to mention it) that Ott gave a list of teams to Dallas, all close to Windsor. I think it was Detroit, Toronto, Buffalo, etc. and oddly enough, Edmonton. I think he'd be an interesting addition to the 3rd line and give a boost to the PK.

People are going to grumble about this because of the situation, I think. If we were adding a 26-year-old RFA with 30-35 point potential and he DIDN'T have a history with the team, people would likely be more receptive to the idea.

Conks is on a one years deal, so he'll be gone in all likelihood. J-mac 2nd year of his deal is one-way, so you have to think that Detroit intended to have him up as the back-up for next season. That leaves McCollum and Pearce splitting time in GR, with the possibility of Mrazek jumping into the mix and the three rotating between the AHL and ECHL.

Didn't expect the suspension. Cue the slappies on HF talking about how the Red Wings get preferential treatment, though.

Did Ericsson just look very solid on the PK?

Datsyuk looks like he just wants to get 'er goin'

Not saying it wasn't, but anyone who jumps a guy after a clean hit should get something.

So players go after Kronwall all the time after he throws a big hit and get nothing, but Abby gets a penalty for going after someone... I don't agree with the play, but at least be consistent.

I love Semin's talent level, but his work ethic... ehh. I'm not sure how he'd work out here. It's optimistic to say that he'd follow suit with the rest of our players and really focus, but I'm not so sure it would work that way. Combine that with the (likely high) asking price, and I don't think it's a deal to make.

And if he doesn't, who does? I don't think the Wings go with a Kindl-Commodore pairing. I just don't think they'd risk it. As much as E gets ripped on, he makes some smart, quiet plays. There's nothing flashy about the guy, but at times he just makes the smart play. One of the knocks on Smith, at least during his AHL play, has been his defensive lapses. It'd be nice to think he's past them, but I think in a high pressure situation, they might be exposed. I'm very pro-Smith; I'm just not sure throwing him into the deep end of the pool without any water wings is going to pan out.

This is pretty much bang on. Smith wouldn't be a disaster by any stretch of the mind, and when all is said and done, Smith will be the superior player... but the post-season is a different beast. You want the guy who's been there before, even if it's Big Rig. One little mistake can make a huge difference. I think if any player off the active roster is moved, it'll be a forward. Getting Morrow could really bolster our top 6, depending on the return and his health. He's had a difficult time staying healthy this season. I wouldn't mind the team moving a forward prospect, as they're very deep at the position. Holland's spent a number of years compiling his assets, and if we're really going to add some pieces to the team I think this trade deadline/off-season is going to be when it happens. I remain skeptical, but I feel like it's a good time to add some depth to the team.

I don't think the Wings are in a position to move a top 4 defender, whether he's leaving or not. The teams looking for a pending UFA, veteran defender are teams who are going to be in the post-season. We'd essentially be giving the competition a boost. The game is so tight now that even the smallest bounce could make or break a playoff series. What if that "bounce" is Stuart scooping the puck off the goal line. Even if we do lose Stuart for "nothing" in the off-season, we gained a solid defender for 5 years for a 2nd and a 4th. Smith is going to step onto the team next season, and who knows who we might pluck off free agency. The safest bet here is that the team is going to keep Stuart for a run at the cup. At most, I think that maybe they can sell his rights for a low-end draft pick before July 1st.

a ninja star?

I just lure those two giants West (I think) of Whiterun towards the city, get up on the stable roof and fire arrows at them. Cheap? Yes... but it's hilarious to watch them get mad and try to reach me.

Obviously, interesting to see that the Red Wings aren't included in the Central. Wonder if this is just speculation on his part, or if plans are really laid out already. http://www.sbnation.com/nhl/2011/7/7/2264885/nhl-realignment-central-division-minnesota-wild-owner-radio

I was thinking about how I'd rank our players at each position, keeping NHL readiness and impact in mind without relying on the number and letter grades used elsewhere. At this point in the year I think they'd look something like this: Center: Jarnkrok Sheahan Emmerton Ferraro Quine Andersson Macek Aubry Raedeke Hudon Cayer Samuelsson Left Wing: Nyquist Tatar Tvrdon Nestrasil Right Wing: Pulkkinen Jurco Mursak Coetzee Callahan Parkes Pare Defensemen: Smith Jensen Sproul Ouellet Almqvist Marshall Marchenko Lashoff Nedomlel Nicastro Backman Fournier Pyett Ehrhardt Piche Goalies: Mrazak McCollum Pearce What do you guys agree, or disagree with? Keep in mind, balancing raw talent and being an NHL ready player factored into how I've ranked them. Either way, be good to get some other perspective.

I'm more sold on Callahan than I am Cayer. I've seen or heard nothing to indicate that Callahan is a great skater. Very solid forechecker, yes... but I've yet to see him "skate like the wind". He's got more offensive upside than Cayer, and seems to have stronger hockey sense. Prior to this season, Cayer's highest point total for Clarkson was 10. He has to show something at the college level (which he's doing right now) and then in the AHL. He's a better skater than Cally and is a bigger body. I think the jury's out on both guys still, but if I had to guess which is more likely to be a future Red Wings player, I'd say Callahan.

Thanks for the input. I kept a few guys on there because they're still considered prospect by HF standards... just a habit I guess. I agree with Aubry, reworking the list I'd put him over Macek. I think Macek's a bit of a mystery, kind of like Quine. Both guys strike me as hit or miss. As far as Cayer goes, I'm not sold on him. He struggled for three years at Clarkson, so I kind of feel iffy about him. I know he's got a mean streak, as you mention, but I just don't know if he'll be able to contribute at the NHL level. I can see your point on Coetzee, I just want to see more out of Callahan. I might be a little caught up with Coetzee's solid start to the season. I agree with Callahan being the prospect more likely to succeed in the NHL. I just wonder about Coetzee's potential. He can go down that Francis Pare road, or maybe he has a higher ceiling. As far as Pulkkinen goes, I'm just really high on his skill level and hockey IQ. He's struggled a bit lately, but we'll see. I like Jurco, but I wonder how much of it is flash. I want to see how his skill translates in a higher league. I'm glad someone else sees Jensen's potential. I just think he's very underrated/under the radar. He's progressed so well. I think it's easy to look over some college players (I have in the past), but he seems like the real deal to me. He's very solid all around. As far as Sproul vs. Ouellet, I'm on Sproul's side for now. He's got a lot of poise to his game, and he really is working on his defensive game. He's a +15 on an average Soo Greyhounds team, and he just seems like he's going to blossom into a good two-way defender to me. Ouellet, I think has a lot of offensive potential. I've watched a few Armada games this year and to me the physical stuff seems a bit out of his element. I think the slapped the "C" on his chest and he felt the pressure. Some of the penalties he takes seems stupid to me... as if he's just trying too hard. His -11 is ugly, but not the reason I'd rank him below Sproul. Like I said, I think Ouellet just felt a lot of pressure and is a little out of his element this year. Don't get me wrong, if he rounds out his game and cuts down on the stupid penalties (not the physicality) I think he could be a promising player. I understand what you mean by ranking based on potential, but I think guys who have that "top 6" feel are tough to judge. I mean, I thought Evan McGrath was a sure thing seven years ago, but offensive prospects can really let you down. That's why I ranked Pare where I did... he's spent 4 years down in GR and is offense or bust, and it seems like bust as far as his future with the Wings goes. I see the value in guys like Andersson, Aubry, Callahan, etc. but I also know they have to put some numbers up to be a Red Wing. Cayer or Callahan's future as a 4th liner on this team is really dependent on the numbers they can put up/their defensive strengths. The Red Wings could have an enforcer, but he'd have to be a Brandon Prust type guy. Putting up 30ish point, playing strong defense and dropping the gloves. I really hope either Cayer or Callahan is that guy, but we'll see. Either way, leaving letter grades out of ranking makes things a lot more clear to me.

Yeah, when a guy has a three point night, I think to myself, "Aww man, why the hell is the team paying him 2.875 instead of that 5.5 for Wisniewski... oh wait." They were talking about Sid's return, they should have been talkin' about the White Knight. With that full armor of his, he can block even more pucks with his face.

This. There's no way the guy can go back into that locker room and play for that team after this. It's one thing to hold out for some money, but Turris kind of tore down the team. That being said, I think it's difficult playing there with everything Phoenix went through, being that young and hyped up. Getting a fresh start could be just what he needs.

Like others have said, hard to see it happening... but Phoenix certainly loves their Czech players. Couldn't hurt to offer them Hudler or Kindl (because of Smith's emergence) and a pick. The deal actually isn't THAT far fetched. Make it happen, Keeenny.

This isn't really a "list" per se... it's got no relevance at all to any real rankings; it's just how I view some of our prospects right now. Jensen seems to be underrated to me. When I was writing for HF a few years ago, the editor at the time told me she'd watched him quite a bit and that he was the real deal. He's only gotten better since then, and his transition into college hockey last year was very solid. He's on pace to go over his point total slightly from last season, and has improved his defensive game quite a bit. Almqvist has a lot of talent, and his hockey IQ is something that's been mentioned to me numerous times. My biggest concern with Almqvist is just him being overmatched physically. He done well to put on some weight in the last few seasons, but he's still kind of slight. Combine that with his need to improve his skating, and I worry about how he'd handle getting hit on North American ice. The rinks are smaller, and he'd have less time and space to make plays. I really can't wait to see if he comes over to play in Grand Rapids, because then it'd be easier to tell how much that hockey sense can overcome the issues in his game. Fournier did have a great start to the year in the ECHL. I think he deserves a spot on the Griffs over Piche or Ehrhardt without a doubt. He just seemed to get a bit stagnant his last year in the Q, so I'd like to see what he can do as the season progresses. Marchenko, but the accounts of the Russian prospect writer at HF boards is going to be a huge steal for the Red Wings. The issue this season is that he had a bit of trouble getting ice time on his KHL team, and then suffered a knee injury. He had to have surgery, and is going to miss the IIHF tourney, so it's going to be difficult to really rank him without that. We'll see. I agree on Nestrasil. I had hope for him as well, but he just seems to have consistency issues. His first game or two with the Griffins he put in a couple points right away, and then got quiet. I'm excited about Jurco too. He's got really solid linemates right now in Huberdeau and Phillips, so I'm sure that's helping him a ton. As far as Tatar goes, I really think Nyquist showed a difference in their play with the little things that he does. While it was only pre-season, Nyquist showed a lot more poise than I think Tatar has. During his call-up, and in various AHL games I've seen Tatar much questionable moves with the puck. I still think he's a solid prospect, but I think he just needs to develop some more patience and consistency. At this point with what I've seen this year, I'd have to put Nyquist just ahead of him.

It doesn't have much to do with Commodore, really. I mean even if he is waived, that means one of Ericsson or Kindl is rotating in and out with Smith. Unless Smith is getting regular ice time, there's no point in keeping him up here to sit as a healthy scratch for periods of time when he can play top minutes in the AHL. I can't see him being given a job over Ericsson or Kindl, (not that his play hasn't shown he deserves it) because it's just not generally how the Wings do things. Could surprise me though, as I'm already a bit surprised they're keeping him up now. The question is, is he as good/better than Ericsson or Kindl in the eyes of the Red Wings brass?

This. He's addicted to the ping pong, and they're trying to wean him off it by only dressing him ever other game or so. Straight back into hockey and he might have withdrawals.