Cali-Wing-Nut

Firstly, that was how he was touted to the fans. Big Rig, Big E... "forward turned big man on the ice" -Hows that working? "He was drafted dead last" -Kinda proves my point "Hes a servicable bottom pairing guy" -Please define "servicable" cause putting somethin g into service and having it work well are two different things. He brings no upsides and as of yet I have heard none of them other than what seems to be emotional needs for him to play well. "If the Wings can find someone better and cheaper, Great" - You have my verdict on how good he is. For equivalent money I could find some decent talent that needs a bit of polishing and has grown up a Dman. Ericsson is 27 almost 28, he is getting past his prime quick and has shown nothing to prove hes good. For 2 mil a year there would be a line of guys available for the job that could be 4th man maybe 3rd. " It's ridiculous how much hate he gets here as the #5 D-man. There were much bigger issues with the team." -Short memory eh? We and everyone else knew that our D was falling apart a few years ago. We needed up and coming Dmen to learn to take over for our aging guys. Now that we are at the point where we need capable guys to fill vacating spots its far from rediculous to be upset with who was supposed to be an up and comer. The way I see it, if we needed a guy that needed time to grow he would be on the Griffins. So tell me, what makes Ericsson so good?

Here are my rules for rooting when the Wings arent playing (regardless of time of year) Rule 1. Always root for a loss from Colorado, Chicago, Pitt and San Jose Rule 2. If none of those teams are in the game then root against Canadian teams Rule 3. Always root for the team that benefits the Wings Rule 4. Root for an Eastern conference team if Rule 1 or 2 are in play and Rule 3 doesnt apply. Emergency Rule 5. Root for the team with as much in common with the Wings. Since SJ and Vancouver are playing and their wins dont benefit us, I differ to the East. Since no teams in the East benefit the Wings I go to the team with most in common to us. That would be Tampa Bay via The Captain. Makes it easy to pick teams

For his size he should easily be leading that category, should he not? Helmer hits more effectively and is quite a bit smaller, Hell D hits harder than Ericsson. Turnovers are way more telling and the breakpoint for a Defenseman. Unfortunatley there is no live stats for time holding the puck. At that point you can determine how effective a player is at holding on to it while its in his possesion. Youre going to expect players that have the puck a lot such as D and Z to have more turnovers on average. D-men dont have the puck as much so they shouldnt be turning it over. Look at Rafalski, he has 1 more turnover than Ericsson in the regular sesason but has over 30 points MORE while playing 11 games LESS. So for people to somehow say that Raffy is no good need to get their head examined. He trails only Nick in points for Dmen. We can breakdown box scores and stats all day and I still dont see any compelling proof that he has what it takes for our team. We have the opportunity to bring in some known good talent to bolster our D and he should be first to go Kron has established himself as a banger and de is one of the best in the league. Jiri Fischer was a banger and unfortunately was probably sick more than he wasnt I dont expect points from Kron, I expect him to destroy people. Ericsson was brought up to be somewhat like Pronger, a big guy that should be able to establish position with his body and be able to shoot due to being trained as a forward. He cant do either, hell he cant bring a puck up ice for christ sake. If we kept him hed be best as a scratch player coming in for injured players. Bottom pairing with 82 games is too much for such a crap ass player. I wish I could see optimism in him as some here do but I see a lemon, no more and no less.

Well he blew that. Thing is everything I always read/heard about what they were hoping from him was a big body Dman with the hands of a Forward since thats what he tried to be and failed doing. The rationale was that Johnny Turnover would be Nicky with Krons hitting abilty. sadly I cant find the link I had posted on a different forum where he actually stepped out of the way of a puck being shot which screened Howie and led to a goal. Cant remember the team, wanna say the Stars, the Blues or Blue Jackets. People that have seen him play in person have a whole new level of disdain for him. TV tends to stay with the puck so you cant see what he is doing on the ice but it takes bad play to a whole new level. My point with this is that he has been given a chance. Even if you give him the benefit of the doubt that hes new to the position, how long do you let someone screw things up before moving on? If Detroit wants a half assed D man that is 6'6 220, they can hire me. Ill play for league minimum and would probably show more heart and try than him. Hope he goes to the minors, no team deserves what he brings.

Well Ericsson led our defense with 70 giveaways through the full season and led the team with 14 in 11 games of the playoffs. He had 1 more blocked shot than KINDL at 37 for the whole regular season with almost double the amount of games played as Jakob. How bout hits? Hes our biggest D man and had the least hits of any of our bangers. Numbers dont lie 15 points NOT goals, POINTS in 74 games from a guy that averages 18+ minutes a game is horrid. The fact he doesnt help with anything else sticks a fork in it. Some teams have a D man that cant shoot but does other things well. Truthfully, WHAT DOES ERICSSON DO WELL???? Answer is nothing.

Not trying to be funny I despise #52, He scored 1 time in the playoffs and was completely worthless in the regular season. He is a traffic hazard. Hes best at watching not playing and heaven forbid he does anything close to sacrificial like blocking a shot. Hes soft on the boards, his lack of movement ends up setting picks on our own guys or screens Howie. He has cost us numerous games. Oh and how bout those blind drop passes he loves to do for a chasing forward FROM THE OTHER TEAM ?!?!?! Hes had enough time to get comfortable and thank god hes a UFA.

Although a few on this forum probably wish Id do what I said Id do earlier but I will seriously consider Draino down the gullet to watching Road Block, Traffic cone, Pileon aka a pathetic excuse for a D Man sport a Wings uni again. Ericssucks and Sakei need a plane ticket to NOT IN HOCKEYTOWN, Raffy aint that bad, he just needs someone to help him out on the blue line. Heres to rebuilding our defensive lines in there entirety, unless it doesnt include Nick although Im not good at holdin gmy breath.

On the eve of a most imprtant battle may we bow our heads and pray Let us pray for Abby, play hard, play smart and play to win Bert, may you score when you arent looking Clears, MAKE THE PLAY THAT MAKES THE GAME Pavs, Amaze us all, amaze your parents who look down from heaven Drapes, Skate fast and skate strong you will lead the way Eavers, may the goal you score, light up the crowd brighter than your smile Mule, may you find a way to win, you must and you will Flip, may your spirit lead your hands to voctory Helmer,may speed be the way, and may victory be the path Homer, may you block every smile of your foe and bring cheer to every friend Miller, may you score more than your brother stopped Mo, may your dreams be fulfilled Z, find a way, any way Ericsson, find the wisdom to suceed Kron, Hit, hit hard and hit with righteousness Raffy, may you see through adversity and see us to victory Salei, may you find the right shot at the right time Stewie, may you risk body for soul AND TO HOWIE , May you fight tooth and nail for the win you deserve. You have been blessed with a gift, may that gift bring joy to some but not all. Finally.... To our Captain, Nick Lidstrom May you show us the way, may you find the way when there is no way out. May you lead us to triumph and may you lift us to victory. I pray for you all and may you be blessed by god. Amen

I give that 1:100 odds. Where it falls apart is when you ask all the East coast teams governors what they think about it, Ask yourself. If you were the Governor for Buffalo, Toronto, or the Panthers.. Would you say Yea for Detroit going East? They will keep Detroit in the Western Conference however they need to in order to keep them there. Dont get me wrong, other than not seeing them playing a guaranteed 2 game set in SJ for me to attend, watching them at 4:30 is no biggie. It would be awesome to watch them set records for the highest scoring team in NHL history. We all know that East coast hockey sucks and is alot of dump and bump. The Wings would make the Caps and Snow Chikens look like also ran teams and the NHL cant have that.

looks like you need to upgrade to pro dude. Im sure it was ROFL funny.

GOD LOVES EVERYONE. nuff said I was asked why I BELIEVE, so I answered. If you dont then you dont. Theres more to life than Hockey. I pray that our Men fighting have God on their side. I pray that people without jobs find one. I pray that life was easier for alot of families. I also prayed that the guys Im rooting for have God behind them win or lose. You have a reason not to believe in god? Is it so profound that I should change my mind? HIGHLY DOUBT IT

Why Not? Ive lived though a few things that I can assure you that you havent. At that time I was an atheist. Laying in a hospital bed with people and drs telling me what I survived was a miracle got my attention. When I was told I may not live though a second 8 hr surgery after being stabilized from the first 9 hr session, I still didnt give God a thought. When I woke up and was told that I required 9 units of blood and my blood pressure dropped to 0 three times as well as needing a defibulator I started to believe. When I was told I wouldnt walk, I prayed. I walked the next day. When I was told that I would never regain any real use of my legs, I prayed again I walked without a walker. So ask me agin why I really believe that stuff. How bout asking me why I shouldnt? My Doctors thought I would die and I didnt, Thought I wouldnt Walk and I did. Thought I would be reliant on a wheelchair and they were wrong. Those Uber smart Surgeons never said to talk to God Then I met my Orthopedic Surgeon. He found problem that kept me in pain, and fixed them. He allowed me to walk without a limp. He made me a regular person. Guess What? He happened to pray with me before every surgery.. He believed and so did I. Other Drs said I was done, that I was a s good as I could be and that it was a miracle I was still alive let alone walking. He said "My hands work through God and he helps me help other people." I also watched the Wings win in 2008 when this happened when I was in a hospital bed with Drs telling me there was no hope. So how bout you convince me why not to believe. I see no reason not to

I believe god gave us the strength to fight on and yes I believe angles were there. I still thank god for what happened. I got 7 games out of Nick instead of 4 and thats good enough for me. Hate to see how the rest of your life is though . Probably a bitter hateful person. I bet you tal to yourself about how idiotic people are and tell yourself how smart you are. I may be dumb and maybe Im not but Belief gives people a will to keep going. Faith that theres a reason for what your doing goes a long way. Obviously god was with all the players. Look at Clowe. He was demolished and came back in Game 7. Look at Bucky, hes a blessed man to score the way he does. I dont think God picks sides but I think God picks people that believe. Hope you feel justified that we lost just so you think you can rub in something to my face that is hardly gonna bother me or any other true believer. I believed and I got what I asked for. You got nothing but being upset.

Well thank god for one helluva series. We found a way to battle back with out a single chance of survival and we did it Heres to the Wings I gave you my attention and you gave me one helluva serie and one helluva season Nick, Please come back.

Im real f***in nervous

PRAY

Of all times for Nick not to shoot ????

HISTORY WILL BE MADE GO WINGS!!!!

AND PAVS DOES IT!!!!

I have to believe

Now I have reasons not to believe... My prediction is wrong And sadly this may be it by I sure as hope not.

This will end with utter disappointment for SJ

JEEZUS H CHRIST!!! NOW IM NOT CALM

4-2 wings BABY!!!!

We choose to go to the moon. We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not only because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too. -JFK GO WINGS!!!!!!