kipwinger

Babcock is all about "trying to get people going". Remember two years ago when Hudler just got back from Russia and scored 10 goals (or something) after playing all year on the second line, and only being a healthy scratch once or twice. Meanwhile, Miller and Eaves put up 13-15 goals apiece that year despite being the healthy scratch every other night. All season long it was the same story, "we've got to get Hudler going". Nevermind the guys who "have been going" since the opening season puck drop.

I agree about Tatar, he's really impressed me. I disagree about Mrazek. In the one game he did play, it wasn't so much that he was impressive, as much as it was that St. Louis played terrible. Good on him for winning, but Detroit played good defense in front of him and St. Louis had their heads up their asses. He didn't really have to work too hard in that one.

I was being sarcastic, because Babcock tends to shake up lines after every loss, seemingly without rhyme or reason.

Time for another one of Babcock's random line shakeups. When guys don't play well you don't sit them, or move someone into the lineup from the minors, or make a trade. No no silly hockey fans. You just haphazardly draw names for line combinations out of a hat and throw them together. Abdelkader with Zetterberg and Brunner, why not? Cleary with Datsyuk and Filppula, you betcha! Eaves, Tatar, and Anderson...couldn't hurt! Datsyuk, Emmerton, and Tootoo...we've tried everything else. Whoohoo, it's a rollercoaster ride of excitement when Babs puts a lineup together. Makes me long for the Tigers. At least after Leyland puts his arbitrary lineup on the field he goes and takes a nap, or smokes cigarettes, or whatever he does when he's supposed to be managing. Mursak-Emmerton-Tatar. f*** it! Edit: Also, the hell can't we get a line change without ******* it up. If it's not a too many men penalty, we'll just get caught in the neutral zone flat footed and give up a break away. Ugh.

Remember when we played against the Blues and started our minor league goalie? Something tells me we played a little better defense in front of him than his. Poor kid!

Can we get our full compliment of forwards back some day in the future, pretty please with sugar on top?!? I love that this team is winning, but does it bother anyone else that we have no idea how good our team actually is considering we haven't been at anything close to full strength for the entire season. Ugh. An injury or two is one thing...

The loyalty argument is pretty hard to quantify in terms of effects. While it's easy to say that loyalty cost us when talking about Hossa, or whomever, it's a lot harder to say how much good it did in determining Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Lidstrom, etc. decisions to take less than market value on their new contracts. Like everything else, the effects of the Wings loyalty are not really all that black and white. Which is a tough pill to swallow for those attempting to find a problem to point at.

If Davidson can somehow manage to get a quality GM in there, a la Burke, and maintain the core of this team, PLUS have 3 first round picks in the offseason, I can't imagine it will be an after thought for free agents much longer.

It really depends on who the GM is.

Because you don't replace a 6'3 and 235 lbs. power forward with a 5'10, 185 lb. playmaker.

I'm going to be amazed if we can hang around the pack in the Western Conference in spite of all these injuries. That we're able to compete with top flight teams in the west, even with this hodge podge lineup should send a message to the front office. Young guys are capable of stepping in for the veterans. As such, some of these formerly "unmovable" pieces could be in play real soon if KH decides to make a go of it this season. Bertuzzi out is going to hurt though, anyone else notice that until he came back our offensive zone cycle was nonexistent and therefore our offensive possessions either ended in a takeaway, or a weak shot on goal followed by an opponent rush the other way? Say what you want about Bert, but he's one of only two or three guys that can hang on to the puck in the offensive zone when pressured by the defense.

Wasn't Chelios known for pretty much exactly this type of stick work?

Well it's hard to see what Thomas looks like when your head has been firmly planted up Sidney Crosby's ass for years!

Tatar is with Cleary and Abby tonight, so it's pretty unlikely that he'll be the recipient of any of Datsyuk's wizardry. Then again, if he plays like he did last game I don't think anyone will be the beneficiary of any of his wizardry. Tatar Abby and Cleary may well be a decent line though, however I'm still at a loss for why Eaves is out right now. He's got the best offensive instincts of any or our bottom sixers.

Hopefully Kronwall finds his balls tonight and steps into David Backes like he did to Ryan Clowe two years ago in the playoffs. We REALLY need someone to keep that guy honest, he just opens up waaaay too much ice for the rest of his line when he's able to play that game.

Somewhere in Colorado a bearded Tim Thomas wanders the mountain tops looking for the bedraggled corpse of the Norman Rockwell America that he so fondly speaks of. Little does he know that when he eventually returns to hockey, and he will (they all do), he's heading to Brooklyn NY. I hope you find what you're looking for soon Timmy, because I have a feeling all the Bohemians, Democrats, Gays, and independent women in Brooklyn are going to be a test of faith that even you will struggle with.

I noticed both of these things too. Passing was horrid last night, just absolutely half assed. Which is exactly the same set of adverbs I would use to describe Pavel's play for at least the last two games. The one guy on the team capable of taking over a game all by himself is notoriously absent right now.

Isn't he a good bit heavier too? Edit: nevermind.

Well, we all know that there's tough, and then there's Ford tough. I'd say the Wings don't have a problem with toughness. But there's definitely a lack of Ford toughness. Does anybody know if they measure towing capacity at training camp? I bet it was way down this year.

"I don't care how fast a skater you are, if you don't play this game with a big heart and a big bag of knuckles in front of the net, you don't got dinky-do." -Donnie Shulzhoffer Sorry, I had to.

Well that was a stinker. I don't want to sit here and pick it apart because there's enough of that going around for everyone. However, I do want to say that I hope I never hear Babcock say "I don't dictate the playing time, the players dictate their playing time by how well they perform". When I see Cleary and Quincey sitting and Kindl and Eaves playing in their spots I'll start believing that load of b.s. Still go a ways to go before we can call this a hockey team, but I'm not ready to give up yet. But a little accountability and consistency by the coaching staff would go a long way. He wasn't really a factor, but he worked hard and his hustle almost made a few things happen. Give him consistent linemates and a week or two to practice and he'd probably contribute.

Ok, in post #10 I said Suter is a good defenseman, but not a great one. And in post #19 I said Weber is going to look worse because he went from playing with a good defenseman to a worse one. I didn't mention Josi's name, but it was implied. I've never said Suter wasn't good. I just said he wasn't as good as his hype, and that he wasn't worth his new contract.

I don't think I've ever noticed you around here, but it seems like you've got a lot of posts so welcome. Obviously you've got a lot to say on the subject of Ryan "Sutter" and Shea Weber given that you've entered this thread and decided to post. Yet, I find myself wanting more. I feel as though your comments thus far are only the tip of the iceberg. Rhapsodize if you will on your opinion of "Sutter's" contract. Was it worth it? Is it too much? Is "Sutter" a shadow of his former self or is it the new environment in Minnesota? It's obvious that "your" wanting to say more on the "Sutter" vs. Weber topic, so why not break us off a piece of knowledge? Is it because "your" afraid that your opinions are just "realy", "realy", "realy" good and we won't understand them? I mean, wtf?!?! Think of it this way, we're your padawans, and you are our hockey Yoda. I know we don't seem like much, just sandy haired kids fresh off an ice planet, with nothing but the clothes on our backs and the stars in our eyes. But if you give us a chance, just one chance, we'll prove that with just a little of your guidance we can blow up the Death Star. C'mon Yoda, whaddya say?

No, I said the following: Suter is pretty good, just not as good as his hype. Josi (Suter's replacement) is worse than Suter was, so Weber has to do more on his own and therefore looks worse. You don't have to agree, but that should clarify my logic.

I wouldn't do it if the guy is Suter and the asking price is 10 million a year or whatever. Suter isn't as good as anyone you just mentioned, not even close really. In his prime Lidstrom was worth that because he played two way defense and was exceptional in both regards. Suter is pretty good defensively and alright offensively, he's not elite in either aspect. He's getting overpaid. 6 to 6.5 per year for Suter is about right. But in a weak class, with a lack of quality d-men around the league (as you pointed out) he got paid like the second coming of Ray Bourque. I don't understand these GMs and their mentality that because a guy is the best available FA at his position in a given year, that it automatically means he should get paid like the best player at his position league wide. Lots of teams will win the Stanley Cup without the highest payroll. And lots of teams will win the Stanley Cup without Ryan Suter, no matter what his asking price.