krsmith17

I agree that there is still room for him to grow, at just 24 years old. I just don't think he will become anything more than a bottom pairing guy at best. The league is continuously getting faster, and I believe just like the "enforcer", the "stay at home" defenseman will soon be a thing of the past. There's just no room for guys that lack skating in this league.

You're either a week late or 3 weeks too early on this one...

Hicketts if we're looking for a player... McIlrath if we're looking for someone to sit in the pressbox...

Yeah, terrible luck / timing for Sproul. I was looking forward to seeing a lot more of him down the stretch. If there's any positive to take from this, maybe he becomes less appealing to take in the expansion draft... Hopefully he has a quick / full recovery, puts in a ton of work this summer, and steals a top 4 spot in October...

So what you're saying is... Brian Lawton = Nolan Patrick Sylvain Turgeon = Nico Hischier Pat LaFontaine = Martin Necas Steve Yzerman = Gabriel Vilardi Well Vilardi is the obvious choice isn't it?...

Mantha has played right wing in the past but he mostly plays on the left side, as he should. I'm more so speaking of the need for a right shooting top line winger anyway. It's been way too long since we've had one... EDIT: My bad PVD, he does play mostly on the right side. For some reason I was thinking he switched to the left side with Tatar on the right. Regardless, I still think we need that top line right shooting sniper. We have way too many left shooting guys, which prevents us from setting up shooting options on the left side of the ice, in particular on the power-play...

I don't see this at all. He may be one dimensional, but I think he will definitely be a top line right winger. I've heard a lot of comparisons to Kessel, and I'd take a prime Kessel any day. Besides, this team needs more offense first guys. He has an elite level shot and elite level skating, loves to shoot the puck, right handed, 6'2", 205lbs. Sign me up.

I agree that we will likely draft around the #4 spot, and if that's the case, I want Vilardi (he may be gone by then though) or Tippett. Larkin may become that number one C, but he may max out as a really good number two. Vilardi will likely develop into that number one C if Larkin doesn't get there. We have a top line LW in Mantha, but we desperately need that top line RW. Tippett could be that guy. As I've said several time in other threads, our number one priority is defense, but there aren't many high end defensemen in the top of this draft, so we should draft a bunch in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. But I also think the best bet for us to land that future number one should come via trade...

Everyone knows we need that number one defenseman, I just think we should be looking to acquire him through trade, rather than hoping to strike gold in the draft. Holland's staff has been great at drafting forwards, but for whatever reason, can't draft defensemen for s***. We have plenty of quality defensemen in the system, just no top end talent. If we can trade some depth to upgrade, I think that's the route we should go. Some teams like Anaheim, Carolina, Nashville have been great at drafting defense, but not so much at drafting forwards. Make some phone calls, kick some tires, and make a f***ing blockbuster trade that blows everyone away Kenny!

Hands down the best site for Red Wings prospects info. The amazing job Matt Wuest did for that site cannot be replicated, but I do wish someone would at least try to get a similar site up again... There's nothing even remotely close right now (as far as I know).

Yes, it is because the guys you've mentioned have not yet signed a contract with the Red Wings. Teams have two years after drafting a player to sign them to a contract. If a player does not receive a contract in that time, they are eligible to re-enter the draft (if younger than 20 years old). If the player is 20 or older, he becomes a free-agent and is free to sign with any team. That's how we snagged Russo from the Islanders a couple years ago.

I'm looking forward to see Hicketts, but maybe it's better that we don't rush him. Russo is ready. I doubt McIlrath ever plays a game with Detroit...

In a heart beat. There's not a single player in the league I wouldn't trade two of them for though. Doesn't hurt that I always like Filppula either.

I'm excited to see Russo, just sucks that it's at the expense of Sproul.

De Haas is really starting to heat up for Clarkson University. He has 28 points (7 goals, 21 assists) in 34 games and 10 points (2 goals, 8 assists) in his last 3 games. He will likely make the jump to pro next season to play a season or two in Grand Rapids before getting a shot in Detroit. I don't think he will ever be anything more than a bottom 4 stay at home defenseman at the NHL level, but at 6'3", 215 lbs, smooth skater, decent first pass and shot, he could be a nice addition in a year or two...

I don't see Sheahan getting anything close to a 1st round pick. I know there were rumours that he could go for a 1st, but there were also rumours that Vanek could go for a 1st plus, and all we got was a 3rd. I'd prefer to keep Helm over Abdelkader too, but I just don't see Holland leaving his assistant captain unprotected. For the same reason, I wouldn't be shocked to see Kronwall protected either... Imagine using a protection on a 36 year old broken down Kronwall over one of the 23 year old kids...

No one is suggesting leaving Abdelkader unprotected. Abby will absolutely 100% be protected, whether he should be or not. Nyquist is in that same category. Zero chance a player like Nyquist or Tatar is left unprotected for Vegas to take in the expansion draft...

I'd be okay with Kronwall playing 3rd pair minutes if it were just him being a step slower, but it seems to be more than his foot speed to me... His passing has been off, he can't get shots through from the point, and has trouble holding the zone. Even his decision making has been questionable at times. I'm not sure what's going on with him, but I hope he either gets his game back on track or goes the way of LTIR. No disrespect to Kronwall, he's had a great career, but if his body (knees) isn't holding up, time to hang them up...

You mean Ysermen and Zedderburg?

Of course Callahan is the healthy scratch... Wish it were Miller. Oh well...

McIlrath played his first game last night paired with Renouf, and looks to be same pairings again tonight. People have mentioned the possibility of McIlrath becoming the replacement for Ericsson *when Vegas takes him this summer*... Well he is wearing number 52 in GR, so maybe... I'm hoping De Haas can develop into the steady stay at home defenseman to replace Ericsson, but he's at least another year or two away.

Where are you getting these stats?...

I'll bet anything Nyquist tops 40 again. Hell, it's even possible (not likely) he hits 40 this year... Nyquist is a 50ish point producer on a good team with good coaching. C'mon Dickie, you b**** about Blashill more than anybody, but don't think he has anything to do with Nyquist's lack of production? Abdelkader will definitely be protected, Helm could go either way, but zero chance Glendening gets protected...

No, it definitely would not help us if Vegas claimed Nyquist. Nyquist is FAR from "horrible", and his contract isn't even bad. He's having a down year, but so is virtually every other Red Wing... Like I said before, no matter how much YOU dislike him, he is a very good 2nd line winger, and you don't just give them away... I'd bet anything that he would leave Helm unprotected before Nyquist or Tatar, and this coming from one of Helm's biggest supporters. I still say there will either be a trade before the expansion draft, so we can protect all 7 forwards without leaving any key players unprotected, or there will be a deal in place with Vegas, either to take a certain player (Ericsson), or not take a certain unprotected player (Helm)...

Is it just me or does it look like Glen Gulutzan (Flames head coach) could be Nyquist's dad?...