krsmith17

MasterPavel, who are the top 3 defensemen in next years draft? Noah Hanifin is the undisputed number one guy, who are the other two? Zach Werenski? Ivan Provorov? Oliver Kylington? Jeremy Roy? There's 5 solid D that will definitely go in the first round, then there's another handful that could possibly be had later in the first. A defenseman is what we should be looking at taking and I fully expect Holland to go that route unless there is an absolute steal at forward.

..... Yeah, and if they're going to trade Mrazek and Pulkkinen, they might as well trade Mantha too... F*ck it, trade 'em all... Can you please explain why this would ever happen?... There is no way the Wings are trading Mrazek. Zero Chance!

Give it a rest Frank. You're only saying that so, what? If he doesn't sign you can say, "well, unfortunately I was right", and if he does sign here, you can be "pleasantly surprised"... Babcock is not going anywhere. Why would he? There are about 100 more reasons for him to stay than there would be for him to leave... This is an up and coming team that is only going to get much much better over the next few seasons. He knows this. Why wouldn't he want the opportunity to coach two completely different Red Wings teams to Stanley Cups? He loves coaching these kids. Like, zombo said, he already coaches the best player in the league, Pavel mother f***ing Datsyuk. Both Pav and Hank are still basically point per game players, Nyquist and Tatar should both hit 60 points this season, and only improve on that in years to come. The Red Wings as an organization is the best in the National Hockey League, hands down, the best owner, the best GM and the best coach. The Wings were expected to finally miss the playoffs this season, and they're quite possibly going to win the East and have a good shot at winning the President's Trophy. But yeah, no chance he wins the Jack Adams... I'll say it again, Babcock has a legit shot at winning the Adams, and he absolutely, 100% will re-sign after this season.

I think he has a legit shot to win the Jack Adams this year as well. Like he's not going to have enough leverage already... Either way, I fully expect him back behind the Red Wings bench next season.

Frank, a good NHL forth liner should still be able to at least look somewhat decent in the AHL. Luke Glendening was a point per game player in the minors. Mitch Callahan is closing in on that now, and would be a MUCH better option on our forth line than David ******* Broll... He is a scrub. Also, how the hell does that video make him worth a 7th rounder?? LOL

Yeah, David Broll would be awesome to have on this team, from the Leafs, too bad he was just traded along with Carter Ashton for a 2016 conditional 7th round draft pick... He was awesome with the Marlies prior to the trade though, 0 points in 21 games as an American Leaguer, what's not to like about this kid... TRUCULANCE!!!

zombo, another point on the whole Franson debate. In this situation, I don't think the Leafs trading Franson to Detroit or any other Eastern Conference team should matter. We don't play the Leafs anymore this season, there's zero chance they make the playoffs, and Franson has the option to go anywhere he wants after this season anyway. A team so far out of a playoff spot trying to trade a player on an expiring contract should just be looking for the best deal, destination shouldn't matter...

Well right there is two reasons that deal will never get done. Holland is not going to give up next years first round pick and one of the most promising prospects in our system. He has already stated that several times. As for Franson going for a first, I doubt it, but if that's the price, I say no to that as well...

zombo, what would you expect Yandle to cost vs what Franson would cost? And by the way, while Yandle may be a better defenseman, not by much at all. If anything people are downplaying how good Franson is. He would be the best fit for us right now, and that's my opinion. And you have yours. Whatever.

Never have I downplayed how good Yandle is. He's absolutely the top defender that could potentially be moved at the deadline. But whoever lands him (won't be us) is going to significantly overpay. It's not worth it long term in my opinion. And although he is the top guy, I don't think he's the best fit for us. I would take both Franson or to a lesser extent Green over Yandle... cost vs long term expense. Franson is without a doubt our best option. But even him, only if he can be had for relatively cheap. I disagree zombo. Yandle is not our best option. If we're making a trade it should be for Franson. Anyway, matter of opinion. Let's see how it plays out. A.K.A. We probably make no moves...

Why is everyone so willing to overpay for Yandle? I don't get it. It's not going to happen and for good reason...

Dickie, I agree with your assessment of what 1st, 2nd and 3rd tier prospects are, and I even get that Pulkkinen may be viewed as a 2nd tier, when being compared to the elite of the elite, but he is definitely high on the 2nd tier. I know you're not that high on him, but he is ripping up the American League, and he will be a quality player in the NHL in a couple years. I expect him to be a 2nd/3rd line winger (depending on depth / line balance), power-play specialist.

Richdg, are you serious? You actually think just because Holland and his staff picked Ouellet before Spoul in the draft 4 years ago, that they are higher on him now? Or that because he was drafted higher that he will be the better player? Everyone that follows Red Wings prospects knows that Ouellet and Marchenko are ahead of Sproul in their development, but they also know that Sproul has a much higher ceiling. The former two are two-way defenders, whereas Sproul is a pure offensive, puck moving, power-play quarterback defenseman, which as everyone knows, is a lot harder style to transition from junior to pro. Sproul is our best defense prospect by a landslide. Why are you debating that? dirtydangles, although I do believe Pulkkinen will be a big time player in this league, it's going to take his skillset longer to adjust than a player like Athanasiou. Pulkkinen is undersized, and he needs time and space to use his number one asset; his shot. He will adjust to the speed of the NHL and he will figure things out, but there's no doubt that it's going to take a bit of time and patience... Athanasiou is big, lightning fast, has unbelievable hands, and has already adapted to the pro game. He was a top player in junior and will be a top player in the American League by this time next year, before eventually cracking the Red Wings lineup. There is absolutely nothing stopping this kid from being a top 2 center in the NHL in 4-5 years from now. Why is it that our defense will develop as planned, but our centers may falter? It doesn't make any sense... I'm going to ask both of you to rank our young talent? If you think any of our defense, other than DeKeyser, Smith and Sproul rank higher than Sheahan, Nyquist, Tatar, Jurco, Larkin, Mantha, Athanasiou or Pulkkinen, you're crazy. I would trade Ouellet, Jensen or Marchenko in any trade before any of those forwards (except they don't hold near as much value)... We are extremely deep up front and down the middle in the future. Our weakness is without a doubt, on the backend... Anyway, I'm done with this. I'm clearly not going to change your minds on this and that's quite okay. We'll just have to see how Holland and our scouts approach next years draft...

nyquististhefuture, I still don't get it, I have no idea you're logic on this one. Please explain why you wouldn't want a player like Franson (who is the EXACT type of defenseman this team needs) long term... Is it because of the contract he would likely get? Even at $5.5M for 5-6 years, that is very fair value. He would clearly be one of the top defenders on this team, the moment he came here. Is it because you don't want to bury our promising prospects? Which one of them is even remotely close to being as good as Franson is right now? Not a single one. The only one that even projects to be as good, is Sproul, and he's a long ways away yet. We would have to give up very little to get him here, but a 2nd and a mid-level prospect would be well worth it... I just can't understand how you (and I'm pretty sure you're the only one) wouldn't want Franson on this team... Makes zero sense to me...

As I've already stated, Athanasiou has had arguably the smoothest transition from junior to pro of any Red Wings prospect in recent memory. I rank him just as high as Mantha on our prospects list. He is THAT good. I'm not sure if you're able to catch many Griffins games, but I watch a lot and before the injury, Athanasiou was tearing up that league, as a rookie nonetheless... He's legit. As for Larkin, he is one of the top players in college as a freshman. He is right up there with the likes of Eichel in scoring (not saying he's as good, but he is somewhat comparable), and he's only 3 months older. If Larkin were born a couple months later, he wouldn't have been draft eligible until 2015, and you can be guaranteed that he would be a top 5 pick in next years draft. This guy is the real deal... How anyone can possibly think that we're not deep at center, is crazy. Clearly not paying attention. Defense is without a doubt our area of concern going forward... Draft a stud defenseman in the first round Kenny, unless of course there is a forward that can't be passed over, and you think there will be a chance at a great defenseman in the second round...

That's awesome. I wish I could get the games here, I would definitely watch every game too...

dirtydangles, despite not being as well established yet, they are still some of our top prospects. Between Sheahan, Larkin and Athanasiou, they will have no problem filling the top 2 center spots in the future. It doesn't matter how old these guys are or when they were drafted, the top prospects for any team are the ones that have the highest potential, not "biggest bust potential"... My "untouchable" list (may be different from yours) consists of 4 "can't miss" forwards (Larkin, Mantha, Athanasiou, Pulkkinen), a defenseman (Sproul) and a goaltender (Mrazek). Again, on top of that we already have, Sheahan, Nyquist, Tatar and Jurco up front, while we only have DeKeyser and Smith on the back end... That's eight potential top 6 forwards and only three top 4 defensemen... Richdg, you sure showed me with the aid of HockeysFuture... They have absolutely no credibility. Sproul, Ouellet and Marchenko all with the exact same ranking? Okay... Even using that awful site, you're still wrong. There are three 7.0 defenseman and there are four 7.0 forwards, as well as a 7.5 and an 8.0... Therefore, using this site, we have 1.5 defense pairings and 2 full forward lines... Which has more depth, defense or forward?... Also, they have Larkin, Athanasiou, Nosek and Holmstrom, all listed as wingers when they're all centers, they still have McKee listed as a defenseman when he is a winger... Why don't they have Mrazek listed as a defenseman? The guys on that site are clueless... PumpkinEscobar, have you seen all these live or on TV / internet? I'd love to be able to catch a few of his games...

Jurco and Andersson are polar opposites as players. Jurco isn't going anywhere. Andersson should be traded for a 7th or waived...

dirtydangles, nope, you're right. There's no way we can just expect a player like Larkin to pan out, but the player we would get at 25th(ish) next year, he, he will be the player of the future. The fact is, Larkin is just as or more likely to meet (exceed) expectations than Mantha or anyone else in our organization. The guy is a stud, and will absolutely be a top 6 center for us in the future. Athanasiou could potentially bust? Sure, so can anyone else's top prospects or any of ours at any other position for that matter... Why do people keep trying to say that these centers may not pan out, just to "try" to prove their point... I get it, our two best players are on the verge of decline and eventually retirement, but the sky isn't falling. Why are the centers more likely to faulter than any other position?

nyquististhefuture, you may not want him here under such a contract, but I'm willing to bet you're one of the only ones here that wouldn't... Not to mention the 30 GM's in the league that would love to have a player like Cody Franson on their team long term (yes, I am including his current team, that believe it or not, does still want him, just can't afford him)... By the way James Wisniewski is another player that would do great on this team, so I'm not sure what that comparison was all about. Explain to me what doesn't make Franson a second pairing defenseman? That statement is ludicrous... He would be a second pairing guy on just about any team in the league and would be a borderline top pairing guy here...

Larkin was named National Rookie of the Month for January with 7 goals and 7 assists in 6 games. In the month of January he led all college hockey freshmen with 14 points, and was number 2 overall in the Nation with 2.33 points per game. Currently ranks 14th with 30 points (10 goals, 20 assists) in 21 games, and 8th with 1.43 points per game in the Nation. Looking good for this kid so far. I'd love to be able to watch more of his games, but unfortunately I've been limited to just the 5 World Junior games so far... I've watched some of his highlights this year, but they just don't do justice...

nawein, Paterson is a very good goalie prospect, and he will make the jump to pro next year. He may start in Toledo, but he very well could be in Grand Rapids straight out of camp, with a definite possibility in making the Griffins roster at some point next year, stealing a spot from McCollum or Coreau (if they both get re-signed). I don't think our goaltending depth is an area of concern, and if it is at some point, there's always the option to sign a veteran to a two-way contract to add depth in the minors...

Richdg, just please stop, you're flat out wrong here, and the fact that you're still trying your hardest to prove you're "right" is just laughable at this point... How about you take a poll on what our biggest need is in next years draft? Defense would absolutely be the number one priority on most people's list. Like Son of a Wing said, 60 points is not the benchmark for a second line center, 40-50 is more accurate, with 50 being ideal. Sheahan is in his first full season and he is on pace for 41 points, he will without a doubt, put up 50+ points in this league. I think Larkin's floor is a second line center, with his ceiling being a top line center, which isn't that far fetched at all. He was a 15th overall pick and is already one of the top players in college as a freshman. You can be guaranteed he is going to be developed properly, being in the Wings system and there isn't a doubt in my mind that he will exceed expectations. Ouellet and Marchenko have passed Sproul in the call-up list because they are the most NHL ready at this point, but they definitely have not come close to passing him in what Holland, Babcock, scouts or anyone else for that matter (except you, for whatever reason..), would project them at in a few years. Sproul projects to be a top 4 defenseman (with the possibility of becoming a top pair) while everyone else projects to be a bottom pair (with the possibility of sneaking in on the second pair). There shouldn't be any debate here, and there wouldn't be if you have followed these guys as much as myself and many others on here...

Definitely no to a Pulkkinen level prospect on a rental.

TheXym, I'm not sure if you're serious or if it was a joke or what but... I'm pretty sure it's "light 'em up"... not "light a mup"... If it was an inside joke, my apologies...