Opie

19, for obvious reasons, second favorite, 9 for even more obvious reasons!

I think what we saw towards the end of the season, is truly what we should expect from Howard and the D corps. Now not 2 shutouts every 5 games kind of deal, but very solid, smart play. Everyone seems to have a role and know what it is now that Dekeyser has stepped up. In the next few years I think you see this D rounding into the Wings D we saw after the last lockout with potential to be as good as the D was recently. They will never replace Lids, but Dekeyser's style is similar enough that now they can began to reshape the D the way it was a few years back. They just need to replace the Rafalski/Schnieder blast from the point, maybe that is Quincey, the crappy announcers last night loved his shot!

I think you leave the roster alone, the young guys looked nervous, understandably so. Even Dekeyser who has been as solid as a Rock with outlet passes bungled a few. (get it, Seger comment in OP, solid as a rock, ahhh, I know not funny!) I think the young guys need to calm down a little, I think they looked for the amazing pass/play a little too much last night. The team as a whole seemed to be trying to thread the needle a little to finely. Well, that and the fact that Jonas Hiller is a southpaw, and out of his freaking mind with the glove last night! I can think of two shots (one Mule can't remember the other) that were very similarly placed to Selanne's game winner, except Hiller's glove was all over that corner. And to the people blaming Babcock's roster choices, lets think about this: -it was Anahiem, arguably the second best team in the NHL all year long -it took an amazingly placed shot by an HOFer who has been sniping corners like that for years -the team was very shaky to start the game, Howard played Awesome which he will need to keep doing, but the kid line got better and so did the young D -Speaking of the kid line, IMO, the kid line carried this team last night, defensively as well as offensively as far as pressure goes, Nyquist was Dats Jr, all over the puck on both ends! My point, a Wings team that barely made the post season was in this game the whole time and gave the 2nd best team all year long a real fight in their barn. With the youth on this team, I saw that as a good sign and feel like the Wings could steal one in ANA. They will have to defend home ice, as I don't think they can take 2 in ANA over the series. Overall I thought that was a great game to watch and it is too bad the Wings lost, but I thought it was a good first showing on a team with that many playoff rookies! IF.... if Babs were to sit Brunner, I would much rather see Tatar there instead, but alas I am not the coach.

Added because Elite goalies don't do things like this: http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/nhl/story/2013/04/30/sp-nhl-stanley-cup-playoffs-5-stories-kings-blues-wild-blackhawks.html 2. Chicago's overtime victory came mere moments after St. Louis's own 2-1 OT win over the Los Angeles Kings. The Blues dominated the defending Stanley Cup champions and held a 1-0 lead for most of the game, before Justin Williams tied the game with seconds remaining in the third. Kings netminder Jonathan Quick made 40 saves and helped carry Los Angeles to overtime, but a costly blunder gave Blues winger Alex Steen a wide open net for the winner.

Elite Goalies do make mistakes and they do cost their teams games, even playoff games: http://blog.mlive.com/snapshots/2009/12/red_wings_statue_of_liberty_go.html Sometimes it is a stupid play, sometimes it is trying to make a play they shouldn't, and sometimes it is Just being too arrogant: Patrick Roy, Martin Broduer, even Terry Sawchuck have all been pulled over their career. Hell the time Roy should have been pulled in Montreal is the reason he wanted out of Montreal. He gave up 9 goals(to the Wings) and the team left him in. After finally being pulled he said I want the F**K out of here, in his own words of course. The point: even elite goalies (Which Howard is not yet) give up bad goals and get pulled. To quote Forrest Gump: "It happens" "What?, s***?" "Yes"

I stand corrected!!

The Cap rule about multi-year deals and retirement from Wiki: So as I understand it when Franzen retires so does his cap hit. That is why the Hawks sent Huet overseas, to lose the cap hit.

Again, I ask, and no one has answered, when he is 40 will you still expect him to play like a 4 mil a year player? I don't, I expect him to play like a 40 year old (if still playing), right now I expect him to play 32 year old, and to play hard every night. You mentioned not everyone can be Like Yzerman or Dats, but the list of guys hustling every night while wearing the Winged Wheel goes much deeper than those two: Draper, Cheli, Z, Mac, Maltby, etc... He was given the security of a career long contract, sure the team got a cap friendly hit, but he never has to get a contract again, he can score 5 goals a year the rest of his career and not need to worry about a contract ever again. His contract is player and team friendly, not just one way. And someone mentioned Cleary falling down or Kronner's bad passing even Sammy's shinguard assault or Helm's hands of cement, I can keep listing players short comings or mistakes. However; IMO lack of skill or execution is far more excusable than lack of effort! I respect Tootoo more as a player than I do Franzen, and I am by no means a grit and sandpaper guy, but when I see Tootoo taking bad penalties or being out of position it is still obvious every night that he is going hard and giving his all. The Mule I watched 4 weeks ago and before was definitely taking nights of ala Semin and Ovie as you mentioned above. I have watched him coast up and down the ice on Offense and Defense, watched him get the puck in the zone only to loft what amounts to a saucer pass at the goalie. When Zetta is struggling offensively at least you know he can still help shut down the other team's top line. A disinterested Mule is disinterested in all aspects of the game, ESPECIALLY HUSTLE! Is he tremendously talented? Yes! Does he take days/weeks off? Yes! I just have a hard time comparing a guy like Cleary's inability to score 30 goals with Franzen's lack of desire/effort to score 30. He is happy with the status quo, I get that, I just don't appreciate it! You are entitled to you opinion, and I will not argue that, but when a thread pops up claiming he is a bargain, I feel like chiming in!

You must not have been on the board when Feds played. That name alone still creates fiery debate and many a suspension on this board! These were the same arguments had then, except Feds had the whole defense thing on his side of the argument (and was immensely more talented even when loafing!). When guys like Yzerman come to be the face of your organization, it becomes hard to accept players who don't give it their all because they are disinterested, not because they are hurt or have things going on in life. Just simply due to interest. I will admit it Yzerman spoiled me, like being the best team in the league for the past 15+ years (not each year, overall most successful org in recent history) has spoiled some Wings' fans. I do not like part time players/ guys that only play for big games, but some have no problem with it and even admit that he has the talent to be a $7M + a year guy, but it is ok because he is only being paid to be half the player he could be! I understand that everyone picks it up a level for big games, I played enough sports at a collegiate level(very bad and very small college) to know that everyone turns it up a notch come post season, even the very bad. But Mule doesn't turn it up a notch, he simply turns it on.

I asked this before in a Franzen thread: Those of you who think playing like a 4 mil a year player is ok now because it is his cap hit, while he is actually getting paid 5.25 mil this year, will you still expect him to play like a 4 mil player at age 40? If not, then please stop saying he is a bargain at 4 mil a year. That is his cap hit, not what he is being paid nor what we should expect from him. He has said it, his coach has said, he lacks motivation a lot of times. I am not surprised he is playing very well right now, the Wings have been in playoff mode for weeks, roughly the length of his streak. And the Franzen apologists will come out and say if we put the last few weeks of this season, and the last month or so of season X you will see he is a monster. WRONG! i will see that he is a floater and plays when and where he wants because you had to pick and choose segments of his seasons. His defensive play as of late is all I need to see to know that he spent the better part of this season disinterested, he is now playing D up and down the ice, 3 weeks ago he wasn't defending anything. When Franzen puts an effort in for a full season, not a couple of months here and a couple of months there, I will back off of him. But he only plays in Mule mode when he thinks it best, I like that about as much as I like diving! He scores around 28 goals a season, however most of that is done in about 2 months worth of effort and work, if he worked as hard the rest of the season as he is working right now he would be in talks for the Art Ross. Instead he is Floater of the Year! That is the sickening part, he could be a top flight player in this league. Instead he plays when he wants, at least the last guy that played like this in the Winged Wheel was quite possibly the best defensive forward to ever play the game.

I actually think this season is as close to as bad as it is going to get. Think about the guys and the success they have had this year. Sure KH signed a bunch of vets this past off season to contracts, but the beauty of them is they are all short term. I think the future top line is taking shape and will eventually consist of a real good nucleus. Not saying they are locks as elite players but a future of: Nyquist - Anderson - Tatar Dekeyser - Smith Howard so far that is looking like a bright future! Hopefully a few more years of production from Dats, Z, Mule, Kronwall, grab a top D man to go with Kronner while Dekeyser and Smith develop chemistry before taking over as the top pair. I think fourth line of Abby - Helm - Tootoo could also be around for a decent amount of time. I know I am basing this off of a small sample size, but so aren't the nay sayers. It is just easier/safer to predict a player will not be elite.

After watching him play we should take a page from MMA fighter Benson Henderson and go with "Smooth"

I have complained a lot about Franzen (I feel justifiably) but last night was the type of game I would like to see from him all the time. Regardless of the two goals, I know those are important, but the rest of his game last night was on a level he does not (IMO) often reach. Solid hits, great positioning on both ends of the ice, an active stick, he was in MULE mode last night!

Watching this kid play one word comes to mind: SMOOTH! Everything he does seems to be done with ease, never seems to be trying to hard, but always seems to be in the right place or make the right decision. Very smart player for his age. Doan had the entire upper half of the net last night and Danny's stick got there just in time, I didn't even notice it until I saw the replay. The kid is SMOOTH!

Wonderful, just what they need validation for the lockout. I have held true to my promise of spending no money on the NHL, lot of good it did. I know many other people that have held true to the same promise, but there are just too many people willing to spend on it. I too have found my interest waning sure I check scores now, and I log in to LGW, but at the start of the season I was watching every game on TV. I couldn't get enough hockey. Now the newness of it being back has warn off and I am back to feeling like the league and players don't give a crap about the fans. While people struggle in this country to make ends meet and keep food on the table, these millionaires and billionaires play around with other's hard earned money. Look at the lowest paid player in the NHL, and tell me that with that kind of pay the average American could not thrive. Hell, he makes $55,0000 more than the president of the US a year. Yet these rich players and owners gave nothing back to the people who pay for them to do what they are doing. What long term thank you did they give the fans when they came back? The league is carrying itself like it doesn't need the fans, while fans are acting like they cannot live without the NHL. Yet many of us have lined up expecting it to be different, that they won't Shart all over us again in 7 years. Insanity is repeating the same mistakes and expecting different results The NHL and sports leagues in general are no better than EXXON, AT&T, HSBC or any other corporate entity that lives off of it's workers\customers and sticks it to them the first chance the execs have a chance to make more money. Pro sports in general with all of these work stoppages and lockouts are wearing thin on me, I think the real problem is none of them expected us to throw so much money at them, and now they have no idea how to divvy it all up, who gets the bigger share. But they are all giving us so much back, I can only imagine their PR meetings going something like this: **Warning the following took place completely in my head, I know it seems real, but it was made up!** "The fans, screw them. Oh wait, I got an idea we should shoot twice as many T-shirts out to these fans that someone else paid for (because Bell Tire or Meyer's paid for the t-shirts not the Wings, or any other sport org.) and they will think we are giving them prizes. The fans will think we love them, when really we love money generated by letting AMWAY put their logo all over the T-shirt before we have some half naked ice girl shoot it out of a cannon with a Miller Lite Sports Bra on! We can let a farm equipment company pay us thousands of dollars a year to put a t-shirt cannon on a four-wheeler and launch them that way too. The 40 fans out of 20,000 a night that get a T-shirt will love us, if they can put down the $8 beer and $5 hot dog to catch it! Then when we ask them to help pay for new arenas we can say, well we gave you free stuff, why can't you help pay us back. Sounds good right, all in favor?" I should have bought more knock off jerseys from China, apparently the league doesn't need my money, I should use it in the manner that best suits me.

Holland was said to be involved in multiple players, how is that standing pat? Do you consider what he did this summer standing pat as well? I guess I think standing pat and not getting the players are two different things.

I think Holland should kick the tires on the Boyle deal. If he can land Boyle, he could then trade Ericcson/White/Kindl + for a top 6 winger. Boyle won't solve the teams problems, but neither would just a top 6 winger, the Wings need both. I just think the sellers are asking to high a price for rentals, with about an average of 12 games left who would give up a 1st rounder just to lose the player later, unless you think the guy is going to assure you a run at the cup,

I am a bigger fan of landing Regehr, I know he is not a flashy name or player, but he is what I think this D needs, the Brad Stuart type of guy. Doesn't jump off of the stat sheet but plays a real steady game.

The reason I think any dive needs to eliminate the original call is that even if there is a legit hold/trip/hook/slash, allowing diving to be a 1 for 1 exchange encourages diving on some level. Because you win some you lose some, but it is still a 4 v 4. If any embellishment removes the original penalty coaches will get involved in stopping this. If it is just a fine or a matching penalty the team does not suffer in most circumstances, if the call cannot be made without a player looking like they have been shot by a sniper than that is a deficiency on the refs part and that is another can of worms that needs to be addressed. If coaches start losing potential PPs or having 4 v 4 turn into a PK they will start policing their own team as well as the league/refs.

Stevie did not do hard-ass well as a player. When he did do it, I got the impression it was because he was so frustrated he finally lashed out. As a GM he needs to be in Hard-ass mode all of the time, I just don't think that is in his character. He needs time as an assistant to learn what the job will need from him, I don't like the idea of rookie GMs who did not cut their teeth as an asst with another team.

Looks like they made a play for Morrow that fell short but nothing else of news. http://www.csnne.com/blog/bruins-talk/source-bs-bid-morrow-falls-short

That would be a good move I think. A guy with some tenure behind him, won't need to work as hard as a rookie coach to get the players' respect.

it is amazing if you think of the talent on the TBL, and that they are just not performing. They really need a netminder.

I have a better idea, state in the rule that a dive automatically negates the penalty on the other team.

I really wish they had swapped Chi for TBL/FLA and NYR for Buf/TBL/FLA. Have all O6 in one division. The 2 Florida teams are closer the teams left in division B that it wouldn't have been a huge deal. But at least Det went east!