kipwinger

Because I believe in specialization. If you've got more defense than forwards, trade the defense for the forwards you need. Don't try to convert one into the other. Also, because we've got TONS of depth fowards (which is what he'd be), so why bother?

Maybe. It would be good for us if he did. But I'm not sure he can. He never scored that way in college or the AHL either. He was just another forward out there. Which is good at lower levels, but I'd imagine if he had a point shot he'd have used it by now. I think he put up good numbers at lower levels because he was a really good skater, and because he had a green light to get into the play down low in the o-zone. I'm not sure he'll be able to replicate that in the NHL. Maybe, but I'm not holding my breath. Like I said, I think Kindl has more upside under Blash than Smith does. I do, however, think that Smith could have a future in the NHL as a Oduya type guy, or a Stralman type guy. I dont' think he'll score much. But he could help a team in transition, and play good defense, based on his skating and toughness. But he'd have to give up trying to be an offensive d-man and commit himself to defensive responsibility...something he's not done thus far.

I don't know about all that. He's physically tough, and a good skater. But his shot isn't great. He misses the net, a lot. To be a good offensive defenseman you need a shot. It's why Kindl will ALWAYS score more than Smith does at the NHL level.

My favorite thing about the glowing puck is that when it went through the goalie and scored, it looked like the netminder was being shot by one of those blaster rifles from Star Wars.

Well I've always agreed that with krsmith that Brendan's offensive skills weren't being maximized. But that still doesn't excuse his piss poor defense. Although, that might be easier to swallow if he scored more than say...Quincey.

Well, I've always felt that Babcock's system took both Kindl and Smith's best assets away from them. They're guys who excel at carrying the puck up the ice in transition. Yet Babs wanted quick passes from the defense to the forwards, which puts decision making at a premium and opens them up to the forecheck. And god knows they're both vulnerable in those areas. Both are better when they're allowed to skate with the puck.

I don't really understand all the Phaneuf love. He's slooooooooooooooooow. Look at how fast the two teams playing in the finals are. Look at how fast the four teams in the conference finals were. The name of the game is speed, especially for a team built like we are. Adding Phaneuf isn't going to make us into the LA Kings, or the Bruins. It's just going to slow down a team that otherwise is built to be quick. No knock on Dion. In the right system he'd probably be fine. But for us, no thanks.

Phaneuf and Schenn...lol? Because acquiring guys that are too crappy to play for the Toronto Maple Leafs is now and upgrade? Hell, why not Sheldon Souray while we're at it? He fits all the criteria. Big, slow, North American, fights occasionally, and isn't very good at hockey. Sounds like a winner.

I agree. The Red Wings aren't in dire straits, so there's not incentive for Ken Holland to offer big money for questionable talent. He's shown, in the past, that's he's perfectly willing to offer big money (and big trade packages) for proven, high end, talent. But recently the money hasn't been enough, and he's been turned down. No fault on him for that. Stralman is a good player. And he's doing work for Tampa, no doubt. But people forget that when he was signed, a lot of folks criticized Yzerman for overpaying. Just like they criticized him for the Carle signing too. It was by no means a slam dunk FA signing, and wasn't noticeably different than our own signing of Quincey. For Kenny to have beaten Tampa's offer he'd have had to go higher, and that carried considerable risk given that Stralman did not have a proven track record of success prior to arriving in Tampa.

I agree. I think he'd like to add someone as well. I think he'll probably poke around and see if he can get any bites in free agency, but the guys he'd want will probably be too expensive. So I think he'll see what Jeff Blashill thinks about the existing defense, and float a trade package based on the odd men out (Smith or Kindl most likely). And if that doesn't work, he'll stand pat, go with the kids, and revisit the defense question at the trade deadline. Holland is risk averse. It's what makes him a steady GM. He's always going to play it safe. So those expecting big splashes for moderate talent (Green or Franson), or blockbuster trades, will always be disappointed. It's just not his style. He's got enough confidence in his farm club to play it safe and wait for the right deal...no matter how long that takes. And that's exactly what he'll do.

I put him in the same category as Carl Soderberg. I'd take either of them if we didn't already have a 3rd line center. But since we've got 3 guys that can play in that role, I don't see the use. Neither Soderberg nor Hodgson are good enough to be second line centers (neither is Sheahan...yet), so what's the point?

Not really. Ehrhoff is on the decline, and was never really a top pair guy at the peak of his career. Martin would maybe be a step up in the top four, considering he's really versatile. But look at your top four, they're not particularly big, tough, or fast moving. They're just kinda average(ish). I think I'd rather have Q and E up there to be honest. At least they're strong on the boards. I'm really not trying to rain on your parade, because I've liked both Martin and Ehrhoff for years. But that this point in their respective careers, I see them providing the most value in a role not unlike what Zidlicky did last year. Third pair guy and PP specialist. Any more responsibility and they'd get exposed. There's a reason Pittsburgh is letting them walk.

Just thought this would be a good idea with all the prospect talk, call ups, and (potentially) playoff races for both teams. Oh, and because Mantha scored tonight and I didn't have anyplace else to put it.

This is all being blown out of proportion. Cleary will not sign another contract with the Wings. I'm willing to bet on it. They'll either do like they did with Maltby, or if he's really hell bent on playing, they'll do like they did with Chelios. With the tacit understanding that he'll have a job in the front office when he'd ready to hang up the skates. Edit: Here's another reason why it won't happen. Jeff Blashill LOVES Landon Ferraro and Mitch Callahan. You think he'll be ok exposing them to waivers for Dan Cleary? No way.

In the closet no doubt lol.

Well, big and from Michigan. Sexiest women of all time... 1. Katie Strang 2. Serena Williams 3. Della Reese Unless Kate Upton dougies her way down to Slow's BBQ a few times a week to order "The Reason" sandwich, I ain't interested.

I obviously like that he's been an NHL coach, and will know (and be able to show) these kids what it's like to compete at that level. But it's not like he did anything special with all the young talent he had in Edmonton. Then again, that's probably entirely due to his short tenure there. What is it that you like about him? I'd honestly like to know more about the guy.

Guilty. Weezy is my boy.

Chicago inexplicably changed their lines up last night. You'd think that they would have stuck with what they had in game 3 given that they put a lot of pucks on net in that game, and given that Tampa was going to be starting a rookie goalie last night. I suspect the reason why they switched them up was to split up the offense a little prior to going back to Tampa. It gave the new lines a game to gel, at home, and it will help alleviate the matchup problems next game. I expect Chicago will be better in Game 5 than they were last night. Which may be a big problem for Tampa if Bishop is still out.

I don't know where else to put discussion of the vacant GR head coaching job... But former Griffin, and former Oilers coach Todd Nelson is in the running for the top spot in GR. Along with Derek LaMonde, coach of the Toledo Walleye, and Kris Knoblauch of the Erie McDavids...errr....Otters. Not really sure who I like out of these three given that I haven't seen much of them. First impressions about Nelson and Knoblauch aren't great. They both coached world class players to underwhelming results. But I'm not sure if there's mitigating circumstances in each case. I know the Oilers are a dumpster fire, but how do you not win big with McDavid and Strome in Erie?

You're in a Blackhawks related thread. One which is directly applicable to Joel Quenneville's game time decision making. If you didn't want to talk about it, this is probably not the thread to be posting in.

Quenneville's third pair last night played a combined 36 games this year. One of them is a 23 year old rookie, with no playoff experience. The other is a 40 year old who was injured all season long. They were also AWFUL last night. That's why they played so little. By your logic, Quenneville would be a better coach if he played less capable players more often than he does. It doesn't make sense.

Exactly what you'd expect out of a beardless pantywaist.

Thank god. I don't think I could seriously cheer for something called "Dougie".

Why do you feel "attacked" when I disagree with you? I'm not attacking you. I'm correcting you. Because in this instance, you are completely wrong. If Quenneville is playing his top line just as much as guys like Babs and Bowman did, and his bottom pair less, then by default that means he's playing his second pair more. Which the numbers bear out. Hjalmarsson played 24:00 minutes last night. Oduya played 25:00. So your notion that he plays his top guys WAY MORE, is false. He plays them about the same same as most good coaches do with their top pair. He just plays his second pair a lot more too. Probably so that his train wreck third pair doesn't cost him the Stanley Cup. His bottom pair is a rookie and a 40 year old that missed most of the season. Would you play them more?