newfy

http://griffinscentral.com/articles/012014.html Interesting to see whose on the top of the list and who should be getting an NHL call up

Hes definitely doing his best to show he deserves a call up. Ferraro has underwhelmed this year but Callahan just keeps scoring. Callahan looks like a better player than Tootoo in the AHL. I would actually like to see Andersson traded, hes not that good but might have a bit of value. It will clear up some space on the roster and better players can step in like Sheahan. Then other younger guys can get their shot as well

No I dont actually mind Miller because hes been PKing well. Anyone who has watched Andersson should be able to tel easily that Sheahan will be a better NHL player. As for Ferraro and Callahan, Ferraro would definitely be an upgrade on the PK, team speed and fairly similar at even strength. Callahan next season might not be quite as good but hes a different player. He'll be fine on the PK, add mroe speed to the line up and has shown he can score goals. I like how you pick out about one thing I said each of them do and think thats the reason. Maybe go back and sound it out a little clearer where I'm talking about team speed, PK ability and more hunger. On top of that I mentioned they would be tougher. Giving waiver fodder guys like Miller 3 year deals is dumb because they know they have their contract. Put Sheahan, Ferraro or Callahan out there and theyll have something to prove every night and their play will show it

The problem with the "fourth line players" the wings have now is that they arent actual fourth liners. A fourth line should provide energy, some grit and defensive play at least. Instead the wings are putting washed up skilled guys who didnt play a fourth line role their whole career in the bottom 6. Emmerton is a scorer who cant score, hes not good on the PK, draws and not physical. Sammy is the biggest waste of space ever, hes so slow and still tries to stick handle around everyone like hes a top 6 player, Cleary is ridiculously old and broken down (and not even scratched ever) and even Eaves doesnt do much out there. Hes injury prone and redundant. You take out those guys who are filler and put in specialist types and the fourth line would have an identity. Sheahan is the big, defensive center that can chip in some offense and is a great PK guy, Callahan will piss the other team off, throw big hits, fight a bit and is a really good PK guy and Glendening is a bit of a balance of the two. He agitates a little and plays a bit physical but is also more defensive minded. I consider Callahan and Glendening fast and Sheahan solid speed wise. Theyre all young and want to prove smoething as well. What is Samuelsson or Cleary playing for? Theyre handed a spot on the team and have made their millions over their careers. Need some guys who are hungry which all three of those would be, and would likely feed off each others energy

Hes fast as well. Apparently not even jst fast for his size but in general can fly in and forecheck hard. That alone keeps me interested. Yeah if he was his size and slow as molasses I wuoldnt have any hope but being able to use him as a 13th forward to go crush dmen for 7 mins a game would be pretty awesome to watch

Ferraro is a speedy player. Hes got grit and will throw his weight around. He looks like Helm out there before Helm started scoring a lot. But lately he has been off his game, even Kaiser the griffs announcer who is a masive homer mentioned how he needs to step it up. Hes a really good PKer and will scrap a bit as well. Realistically, Callahan and Ferraro would make the wings fourth line very fun to watch and interesting in the future. Both have above average speed, are pretty big hitters, both agitate and Callahan is a pretty solid fighter (Ferraro is alright and willing, not the best though). Both have skill though that makes them desireable. Both are good defensive players (Callahan is better 5 on 5, Ferraro on the PK) and both can PK really well. They each would add speed to the line up and a bit of a scoring touch. Theyre the type of energy guys that can make a really good fourth line that can be counted on, not a bunch of cast offs like the wings have right now. Pretty much they would each give the wings more speed and toughness while not being a step down defensively and most likely better in the future than what the wings have right now. I would say Sheahan is starting to separate himself from these 2 with the call ups hes getting, but both these guys should at least have fourth line NHL futures. The only vet that the wings should consider bringing back is Alfie to get these young guys up and start giving the wings bottom 6 an identity

I'll add some context since I watch a lot of Griffins. Callahan is playing lower in the line up than guys like Ferraro or Sheahan. He usually plays with someone like Triston Grant. He doesnt get regular PP time (did get some when there were call ups) but does play the PK. Callahan is outscoring Sheahan and Ferraro while getting way less opportunity on the PP and with less skilled linemates. Hes essentially playing the exact role he would in the NHL on grand rapids, whereas Sheahan and Ferraro are playing more of a scorers role. Callahan is arguably the most trusted winger down there defensively. Hes out at the end of games when the other team has the goalie out and everything. Overall I do like how Sheahan has played since his call up and he has looked great, but between Callahan and Ferraro I'm not sure who should really have the edge. Both are fast (Ferraro has elite speed) but Callahan adds more of that rugged play and seems to put the puck in more. All three should be on the team next year. They all deserve a chance. Callahan looks like a better play than Tootoo down in GR. And if the wings want to be tougher you need to keep Callahan. Hes cheap, homegrown toughness that you dont need to overspend on in free agency for guys like Tootoo

Cant say I disagree. Hes got size that most NHL heabyweights nowadays dont. Realistically, how many players in the NHL are even his size? The crazy thing is that hes supposedly a fitness freak and his weight is muscle, not Byfuglien weight. Im glad he went to college so he can develop some skill, his mean streak is always going to be there and hes had plenty experience fighting. He needs to work on his puck skill and skating

If it was a contest to actually win something I would be mad too, I dont think the guy was trying to hurt him by the looks of it but who knows lol. Mascots suck

Yeah and he almost got burned pinching earlier in OT that game where he just got s*** lucky, doesnt learn tries it again and theres the game winner with 13 seconds left. I wont say Smith has been great but hes been completely fine since hes gotten away from Quincey and even with Quincey he wasnt as bad as some people were letting on. Kindl and Ericcson were crucified their first couple seasons, Smith has played 50 NHL games and has more talent than both, theres going to be some crow to eat in a year or 2. Smith is already playing tougher compeition than Kindl

Watch the game he was a -2 in and got benched after and tell me which goals were his fault, watch the game against Carolina where he was a minus 1 where he made a PERFECT defensive play on the goal and Quincey effed up. Hes not defensive stud by any means but a LARGE part of his plus minus is on Quincey and its not surprise to anyone that hes looked much better with Ouellet and now Kronwall as well

No if his junior season is done youre allowed to sign a PTO with an AHL team and join but you would have to rejoin your junior team if you werent 20 the next year. Pretty sure they dont just say "sorry your season is over, we dont want you playing AHL either" because thats not as good for a developmental league like the CHL anyways.

Probably came across as more condescending than I meant to but honestly there is no reason to even bring up his play as bad last night. He created offensive chances and made no real defensive mistakes. The goal he was on the ice for he played it perfectly against a pretty good player and Quincey messed up royally. I've actually seen some people say he was one of the wings better players last night and even had him as a star (I think he was solid but not top 3) the only reason people would be saying anythnig bad about his play is because hes getting the Ericcson treatment where everyone hates on him and watches for one little thing he does wrong. Smith played like a second pair dman last night

What game were you watching? Smith was fine out there all night, people call Dekeyser a stud off tonights game and say Smith was brutal. Both played a comparable game its funny how once someone gets a rep around here they cant shake it no matter what. Same thing happened to Ericcson

Yeah he was a late bday for his draft year, he'll be turning 20 soon. He might get traded to a team that has a mem shot chance because his team is suposed to be rebuilding but if not I wouldnt mind seeing him get a game in Detroit. When youre 6'5 and that high of a pick you dont always need 3 years in the AHL, I hope the wings realize that with him. Its not a Nyquist case where he was tiny

This is true, sooooo many studies have shown ties between heart attacks and getting punched in the head. Much more of a correlation than doing enough blow to kill the average man on a regular basis

Debatable if those other teams are ahead and that alone shows how much hockey is loved in Detroit. It has become lethargic for a lot of fans though with how much the wings have won. The Lions were getting blacked out on channel 2 not that long ago and we're gonna say theyre clearly ahead of the wings? I dunno about that

On a team that finished top 5 in goals against he was by far the best dman on the team. He was one of the few returning guys on that bllue line and stabiliized it quite a bit. He finished top 10 in Norris voting this season and plays both ends of the ice. Hes a number 1 dman and pretty easily top 20. Anyone who calls guys like Letang, Phaneuf (lol), Shattenkirk and even Staal are wrong in their evaluation. If those guys played on the wings you would see just as many mistakes or more. Its a case of the grass is always greener, the wings dont have a franchise dman but they have a solid number 1 guy. If they could find a number 2 to play with him he would look much better. If Kronwall is a number 2 D on a team that team would have one of the best defensive units in hockey guaranteed

He had one average year and the rest he has played like a top 10 goalie, this year he played borderline top 5ish I would say. His games played, combined with his stats including leading the league in shut outs which is overlooked here. I think hes probably around 9. I would take him over Miller now for sure

No Tootoo started in the playoffs and Babcock shook up the roster. The team started winning and were an OT goal away from conference finals. Its hard to blame him for not putting him back in the line up, you dont mess with a winning team. That being said, he very well could have been a guy in that series who laid Seabrook out and shook him up so that he didnt have such a good last couple games. But like I and others have said, you bring up he doesnt provide meaningful offense as a reason to not play him on the fourth line but all the other fourth line players get a pass for that? You couldnt pay an AHLer to go out and get voted the second hardest hitter in the league by his peers. That just shows your arguments arent based on logic and you just dislike Tootoo. You go on about his behind the play antics and act like all of his hits are after the play but cant acknowledge that his physical game is actually elite in the NHL?

Youre kidding right? An agitator who happened to be voted the second hardest hitter by the actual NHL players doesnt make the team tougher to play against? Having a willing and high end middle weight fighter in the line up in case hes needed doesnt make the team tougher? Youre full of it. Tootoo must get noticed by other teams players if the players vote him the second hardest hitter in the league, you dont think some dmen voted in that and having him bearing down on them leaves them a little more uncomfortable back there? Cant wait for tougher players to start making it to the wings since theyve bee drafting this way lately. It will really clear out a lot of the band wagon fans who jumped on for the flashy european style of play. The wings arent good enough for that to work anymore, and it wasnt all that effective this year. Theres a shift coming so get used to it, its not like the wings were forced to sign Tootoo. Management decided it was in the best interests of the team for the direction theyre heading I also dont think anyone would identift Miller as a banger or their definition is pretty far off from reality. Solid player, Tootoo, Abby and Helm are the only guys that should be called that though

Youre out to lunch, hes not one dimensional because he scored at the same rate as any other fourth liner on the team this season while getting used to a new team, fighting and being one of the hardest hitters in the NHL. How does a guy who is so one dimensional put up 30 points a year ago playing the fourth line? You saying he doesnt hit enough or stick up for teammates is actually laughable. I dont think hes some offensive juggernaught but he probably is a bit above average for a fourth liner, and especially for one that hits and fights like him. You also say he doesnt fight enough.. what? He fought 8 times this year, on pace for roughly 15 in a full season, who was the last wing with that many fights in a single year? Not big enough to really deter enforcers I agree with, but I guarantee you the average NHLer is more scared playing a shift against Tootoo than they are against John Scott. Theres plenty of huge hits Tootoo had this year that youre blind to, probably because hes a player who fights. Are you saying you would rather have Prust like hes more intimidating than Tootoo out there? Or because hes a better player? I would rather have Tootoo at his cap hit considering hes just as good of a fighter, hits harder and is cheaper. Find a video of Prust throwing a hit like this

Howard has a top 5ish season out of goalies in the NHL this season. Tied for the lead in shutouts, was amongst the games played leaders (hes a workhorse), very high save percentage, great GAA (team stat but still) and had no help from back ups. Look at the stats of back up goalies of goalies that you think were better and look at Howards help he had. Its not close. I wouldnt say elite, but well above average number 1. If he has another season like this one youre looking at a guy you can call one of the elite NHL goalies

I think I read he'll be signing Wednesday but cant remmeber where I saw that now. It doesnt make me that nervous that hes taking some time to decide, his agency would make sure he does his due dilligence before making the biggest decision hes made in his life. I would say hes 90% Detroit right now, the fact that hes offered top 4 minutes in Detriot and PP time should seal the deal. The fact that in the past the wings didnt have room to make this kind of offer would worry me but now they can

Leftwinger youve been saying youve had that source since last season so I believe you, I dont think anyone would go on that long about a fake source so thats encouraging. He would probably be better than White, CC, Huskins and Lashoff right now so I see him as an improvement to the team. No reason he shouldnt get offered a spot on the squad. Once hes signed if hes clearly not ready you can still send him down