krsmith17

"5 worst players". In what world are Nyquist and Tatar worse hockey players than Miller and Ott? I listed the 5 worst, though I admit, I did take contract into account for Ericsson.

1. Ericsson 2. Miller 3. Ott 4. Marchenko 5. Glendening If we got rid of those 5 players, I think we would have an improved team... Much improved defense and competent 4th line...

Not to mention being the best defenseman (better than Ouellet, Sproul, Marchenko) in preseason a couple years ago. I've always been high on Jensen, not high as in top pair potential, but definitely an NHL player. Great skater, and puck mover, and seems to be very good in all three zones.

Jurco played a very solid game, good defensively (despite his -2 rating), hard on the forecheck, but alas, he didn't put up any points. And because of this, he will be scratched as soon as Vanek or Larkin come back, despite looking better out there than a handful of other forwards. Because Blashill is a f***ing moron...

Not surprised at all that he wants out. Don't blame him at all. Kind of surprised it went public though.

I agree 100%. If only he could play for a coach that would give him the opportunity to prove himself... Watch tonight's game, Jurco will not be close to the worst player on the ice. But unless he scores 2 goals, he will be the first guy out when Vanek or Larkin come back, even though Miller was waived and cleared yesterday...

Yes, he probably would clear waivers, though a team might take a gamble on him. My previous comment was obviously tongue in cheek, but he isn't half as bad as Red Wings fans make him out to be. You also have to remember, Vegas will have to take on a couple bad contracts just to reach the cap floor. Maybe they take Ericsson to get their salary up. It's not like many high end players are going to be left unprotected. Ericsson wouldn't be the worst option available, that's for damn sure.

Please take Ericsson... He's a really big, defensive defenseman that stands up for teammates and clears the crease. 6'4", 220lbs of pure nasty...

My hope is that Anaheim have some interest in one of our forwards, like Vanek, Nyquist or Tatar. They are extremely deep on defense and may be willing to give up prospect Brandon Montour in a deal including one of them...

I personally wouldn't be interested. Our one area of strength I feel is on the wing. If we're giving up assets in a package deal for a top player, I feel like it absolutely has to be for a defenseman. Maybe, I'd consider it for a natural center, depending on where the organization wants to utilize Larkin and Athanasiou going forward, but not for a winger... Now if the price went WAY down, and we could get him for Tatar, Ouellet, plus (obviously not going to happen), I would in a heartbeat...

That's correct, and as far as I know, if they were to take a player from free agency, they would not be eligible to take another player from the team that owned his rights the previous year. So if Vegas wanted to sign Vanek or Smith, they would not be able to take another player from us in the expansion draft...

... and Drew has been recalled...

Again, and I don't know how many times this needs to be said, he hasn't been given a legitimate shot since his rookie year. He's either been put in a role he's not suited for, put on a line with borderline NHL talent, or in and out of the lineup before he can get up to speed. There are few players in the league that would be able to overcome those obstacles, and I don't think there's a player on this team that would be able to, besides Athanasiou and maybe Larkin. Blashill needs to f*** off giving veterans a pass for terrible play, while punishing the kids for one mistake. Jurco and Sproul need to play. Let them make their mistakes and learn from them. In the end you will have a couple very good players that can help your team in the future...

Why are you comparing Jurco to Zetterberg and Datsyuk or even Nyquist and Tatar. It makes no sense. Jurco obviously isn't, nor ever will be on the same level of Hank and Pav, and he hasn't been given close to the same opportunity as Nyquist and Tatar. Jurco is a very skilled player, that hasn't been given a fair shot. Tons of players don't make NHL rosters until 23/24 years old and go on to have very good NHL careers as middle 6 forwards. Nyquist and Tatar are prime examples. Jurco has all the tools to become a very good middle 6 winger, and whether he makes that happen in Detroit, or with another team is yet to be seen... To give up on a kid with his skill set at his age would be a huge mistake in my opinion.

I agree with everything here. The only thing I'd possibly change is, I'd shop Green hard at this year's deadline, and if we can get a decent return for him, I'd move him now so we could protect both Sproul and Ouellet. A few months ago, I had no interest in protecting Ouellet, but he has really exceeded my expectations. I think he has been one of our better defensemen this season, and although Sproul hasn't (had the opportunity to) impress yet, I still think his potential is way too high to lose for nothing, and I do think he would be the perfect player for an expansion team if he were left unprotected...

I don't know a ton about either of them either, but as far as I know, neither project to be anything more than 2nd / 3rd pairing guys. If we're making any trades for depth guys, I'd prefer it to be for bottom 6 forwards than bottom 4 defensemen. Our defense sucks, probably bottom 5 in the league, but we also probably have top 5 in the league depth on defense... While we don't have a single player that projects to be anything more than a number 2 (and I believe even that's being generous), we have about 40 2nd / 3rd pairing guys. I think Robbie Russo for example, projects to be better than either of those guys, and we don't even have room for him now, and maybe not next year either... We need to make some trades quantity for quality. I know that's easier said than done, but in my opinion, giving up Nyquist or Tatar for a bottom 4 defenseman would be a downgrade. Same applies to Forsling for me. I don't think he will ever be anything more than a depth defenseman. I'd pass.

I'd rather not deal with Chicago, unless they're willing to overpay in picks, which they've already stated they're not. Their prospect pool is probably the worst in the entire league, and if we're trading established players, we better be getting high picks or good prospects in return. The only prospect I'd have a little bit of interest in from the Hawks, is John Hayden, and I wouldn't give up Nyquist or Tatar for him, unless there was a mid to high pick coming with him...

Tatar - 47GP, 10G, 12A, 22PTS Nyquist - 47GP, 7G, 17A, 24PTS Assists are just as important as goals and Nyquist is (barely) out producing Tatar in a contract year. Tatar also played on the top line with Zetterberg and Mantha the majority of this season, up until recently when he was demoted and Nyquist was promoted... Either way, neither are performing nearly as well as they should be, but it has been a down year statistically speaking for (pretty much) everyone wearing the Winged Wheel...

Miller, as expected, has cleared waivers. May remain with team though, since Vanek and Larkin are out next game (or longer). I'd personally rather send Miller down and give a kid from GR a shot... I love that Jurco is (forced) in the lineup again though. Hopefully he can get some reasonable minutes, with capable linemates... Looks like the Tatar - Sheahan - Jurco line could be reunited.

Seems like a good guy, just not a very good hockey player. I hope he gets claimed. I'm happy Holland still values Jurco. If only Blashill felt the same way...

Lashoff? Seriously? Sproul >>>>> Lashoff... But then again, pretty much any other Griffins defenseman >>>>> Lashoff...

Cannot stress enough how much better the 4th line looks and the team in general. Helm for Miller = huge upgrade Kronwall for Marchenko = huge upgrade If only we could swap Jurco in for Sheahan and Sproul in for Ericsson...

You know what I mean... 1-3-1...

They may review tape with the "alternates", but very rarely do you have subs for power-plays during practice. You have two units practicing, and that's it. Others are practicing penalty kill, working on faceoffs, battle drills, or just skating / shooting. So no, Sheahan doesn't practice on the power-play unless he's expected to be playing on that unit in the next game... You're really making it seem WAY more complex than it really is. Net front is net front, no matter what system. Same goes for half boards, point, slot, etc. No player is (should be) stationary on the power-play. Vanek (and any other player) can and does play down low, point, slot, all over the ice. Changing from a 3-1-3 to a 2-1-2 shouldn't change their mindset drastically. You're suggesting that they change from their current system to a 3-1-3. How long do you think it would take for the players to learn / get used to it? Weeks? Days? Or a practice or two? My guess is the latter... Again, these players are not idiots. They understand systems and strategies of the game, and it would take any one of them little to no time to adapt. If for whatever reason, they decided to put Glendening on the power-play, after a single practice he would understand his role (whatever it is). He would suck at it, but he'd be capable of playing their despite never getting any reps in practice before. Anyway, I don't see the harm in trying it. What we're currently doing clearly hasn't been working. You think it's a terrible idea. I'm okay with that.

So in your scenario, both units the exact same system, Abdelkader gets injured. Either later that game or the next game, Sheahan is put in his place. He has absolutely no idea what to do because he hasn't been practicing on the power-play all season long. What happens? Learning curve equals reduced effectiveness right? Sheahan is lost out there, finds himself skating in circles, forgetting how to hockey, the power-play is a failure... Or maybe, Sheahan comes in and plays in front of the net and the power-play continues as normal.. Okay maybe a little hyperbole, but the point is, they're hockey players, they can adapt to different systems pretty quickly. I'm not sure if two different units has ever been done, and if not, why? But to say the reason it hasn't is because it's too much to expect of the players because they're dumb, is absurd. No point in arguing it though. Blashill or Torchetti aren't about to do it, but if it were up to me, which is what I thought this thread was about, that's what I'd do. Maybe it would be a huge success, maybe it would be a complete failure, but it can't be any worse than it currently is...