krsmith17

Nyquist - Zetterberg - Franzen Tatar - Datsyuk - Jurco Sheahan - Weiss - Mantha Abdelkader - Helm - Callahan Miller - Glendenning Kronwall - Ericsson DeKeyser - Quincey Smith - Sproul Lashoff Howard Mrazek 2015-16 Stanley Cup Champions!

Ok, I understand now Leftwinger. Because the "potential" is there that Tatar can be as good or better than Datsyuk he should be signed to a 5 year 4 million dollar contract. Sorry for my ignorance, it all makes sense now...

I'll be honest, I've read a few different scouting reports on all of our new signees but other than that I don't know a whole lot about their overall games. I'll take your word on Porter and good call on Janmark, I completely forgot about that. Thanks!

I couldn't agree more. I also agree that it should be Jurco, Pulkkinen, then Mantha. Unless Mantha is absolutely destroying the American League, which I highly doubt will happen.

This constant comparison between Tatar and Datsyuk is just silly. Tatar had a great year, he put up very admirable numbers for a rookie. I think he has the potential to be a legitimate top 6 winger, but come on, he is no Pavel f*cking Datsyuk... If Tatar continues at the same pace WHILE being defensively responsible then he might be worthy of being in the same sentence as Pav, but never will Tatar be comparable in any way to one of the best ALL AROUND forwards EVER! The argument that Tatar should be paid because he had ONE good season is crazy. In Tatar's first year and a half with the Wings he put up 0.505 points per game. In Datsyuk's first three season with the Wings he put up 0.703 points per game. The reason I'm comparing those two time periods is because that was before Datsyuk finally started getting paid. In his first three seasons he made an AAV of $941.6K, then he signed a 2 year, $3.9M, then a 7 year, $6.7M, and now his current 3 year, $7.5... In my opinion, Tatar should be looking for a 2 year, $1.25M - $1.5M and then he can prove he is worth the money and really get paid after that...

I'd like to know where all these players are going to fit in?... You would have to think that some of them will have to be sent down to the Toledo Walleye. As it stands right now the Griffins roster could possibly shape out to be something like this... Tomas Jurco - Mattias Janmark - Teemu Pulkkinen Andreas Athanasiou - Andy Miele - Anthony Mantha Andrej Nesrasil - Tomas Nosek - Martin Frk Jeff Hoggan - Mark Zengerle - Zach Nastasiuk Leaving Marek Tvrdon, Louis-Marc Aubry, Colin Campbell, Kevin Porter, Shane Berschbach and Alden Hirschfield fighting for spots or sent down to Toldeo Nathan Paetsch - Ryan Sproul Mattias Backman - Alexey Marchenko Brennan Evans - Nick Jensen Richard Nedomlel Petr Mrazek Tom McCollum Leaving Jared Coreau and Jake Paterson down in Toledo *Notes I have Jurco being sent down to the Griffins, at least to start the season I'm leaving Landon Ferraro and Mitch Callahan out because they are no longer waiver exempt. I think one will be the Red Wings 14th forward (hopefully Callahan) and the other will be sent down and possibly claimed by another team. I think one of our defensive prospects will make the big club. Although I would like to see it be Marchenko, I think it may be Ouellet so I left him out. Cory Emmerton and Adam Almquist signed in the KHL Trevor Parkes, Willie Coetzee, Gleason Fournier and Max Nicastro were let go Tristan Grant will more than likely be let go and Brennan Evans will probably be brought back or replaced by another veteran.

Pucktividi, it doesn't and shouldn't always come down to who is the better player, sometimes it has to be a more calculated decision. When it comes down to handing a roster spot to a (21 year old) kid that still has another year of waiver exemption (Tomas Jurco), or re-signing a (future hall-of-fame) veteran to a reasonable contract (Daniel Alfredsson), I would pick the second one 95% of the time. In my opinion there are a number of reasons for doing this. One being point production. In this case, both player will more than likely produce the same number of points, my guess being between 40-50. Secondly, development. I'm a big believer that a player is much better off playing top line minutes in all situations in the minors rather than getting sheltered minutes and no special teams in the pros. Another thing would be confidence. This doesn't apply as much to a player like Jurco as much as Mantha, but confidence can definitely be completely diminished if thrown in to the deep end too early. I'm sure there are even more reasons but I'm going to finish off with team depth. A veteran player like Alfredsson is brought in, while a great young kid like Jurco is buried to increase the overall depth of the team. When the inevitable injuries hit, Jurco / Mantha are great first call ups. Everyone is well aware of how highly I regard Jurco, he is far and away my favorite prospect and will more than likely be my favorite Red Wing in a few years. Hell, I'm getting a new dog in a couple months and I'm between two names, Zetty and Jurco and I'm leaning toward Jurco... I cannot wait for this kid to be up full time with the Wings, however I still believe that another year in the American League is the best thing for his development, and because of that, I'm confident that is where he will end up.

The Detroit Red Wings have long had the philosophy that prospects need to be "ripe" before they make the jump to the National Hockey League. That means after getting drafted, our prospects spend around 3-5 years between junior or overseas and the AHL before finally getting their shot in the NHL. This has proven to be successful for many years now and I don't see them drastically changing that system any time soon. I don't see there being much of a chance that Mantha makes the big club this season, despite how highly fans, media and management regard him, nor do I think Jurco will start the season in the NHL. I'm actually a fan of the Red Wing way, of over ripening players, and I like the idea of having a farm oozing with talent. Depth is probably the biggest key to a teams success in the league today, and because of our drafting, development and ripening methods, we are definitely stacked with depth in the minors. There is a reason players like Nyquist and Tatar were able to jump into the NHL with little to no growing pains, while highly regarded players drafted by other teams get thrown in the fire too early and flame out due to not being ready, and having their confidence destroyed. I'm just as excited for all these kids as anyone but I think it would be a huge mistake to throw them in the best league in the world before they're fully ready, both physically and mentally. In my opinion, on the back end, Marchenko could be ready for full time duty in the NHL, other than that I think Backman, Ouellet, Sproul and Jensen can all use more seasoning in the AHL. Up front, Jurco is the closest to being ready, but could still use another season down in the minors, along with Pulkkinen, Mantha, Athanasiou, etc. Anyway, point being, I don't think there is any harm in resigning a future hall-of-famer, veteran like Alfredsson, allowing all of our forward prospects another season in Grand Rapids to round out there game. Having these guys getting top line minutes and loads of PP time down in Grand Rapids, to me is a lot more beneficial than getting 3rd line minutes and no PP time up in Detroit. As for our RFA's that are not waiver exempt, I don't think there is any chance whatsoever that any team picks up Nestrasil, with a slim chance a team takes a chance on Ferraro, although that may be even less likely now with uncle Tony now as the assistant coach. My only fear is that we lose Callahan. The kid is coming off a career year with the Griffins, is an absolute warrior and would be a great addition to any teams 4th line. I hope Holland doesn't give any team the chance to claim him. No he's not going to put up a lot of points but I think he would be a huge loss...

I'd be shocked if either player signs for more than $2M per..... I think DeKeyser has an outside chance in signing in the low $2M range, I doubt Tatar will get anything close to that...

I'm on the fence about whether I want Alfredsson back or not. I think he could be a great asset to the team if healthy, but the key is can he be healthy for 70+ games? I'm not so sure. However, I'm 100% sure if Alfie feels that he has enough left in the ol' tank for one more season, he will be resigned. Cap space won't be an issue with a little over $8M remaining. I doubt that it would cost any more than $4M to resign both Tatar and DeKeyser, and I think Alfie would sign somewhere around $2-3M range. A roster spot won't be an issue either because no matter how you slice it, Alfie is an upgrade over a lot of players on the roster. If Alfredsson plays, a player like Andersson is easily expendable, cutting the roster back down to 23. Another option, although very unpopular with most people, still very likely, is to send Jurco back down to Grand Rapids. I think most people know how I feel about Jurco, he is one of my favorite prospects, but I don't think playing another year in the American League would be the worst thing for him. I would certainly rather see him sent down to start the season, than to lose Callahan to another team on waivers. No matter how the rest of this offseason shakes out, I think most people would agree that a couple players could easily be shed off the roster, namely Andersson and Kindl...

I still think Holland will get them both signed for under $4M, and possibly around the $3M range. My bet is still around $1.25M - $1.5M for Tatar and $1.75M - $2M for DeKeyser

This is going to be great for the city of Detroit. I've been down there several times, and I personally love it there. Me and a few friends go down once or twice every year for the past 4 or 5 years to see games. I love the Joe and I'll be sure to visit it another half dozen times before the new arena is built but it surely will be missed. Not only is this going to be great for the city, it should also benefit the Red Wings in my opinion. Doesn't anyone believe that this new arena and entertainment district should be a huge attraction for future UFA's? I would have to believe it would. I'm sure most players would like to have a brand spankin new arena to play 41 plus games a year plus practice and train all season long. Add this to all the great prospects we have coming up over the next few years and the future is definitely bright in HockeyTown!

It is unbelievable how the Aves are treating O'Reilly. I get that they're trying to sign him to the best deal they possibly can, but you don't cheap out on a player like this. O'Reilly is coming off a career year and is an unbelievable two-way player that is only 23 years old. If they're not careful things will go sour and they will lose him for little to nothing. Franson is a player I really wanted 4 years ago when he was in Nashville, and nothing much has changed since then. I would love to get Franson on this team if the price was right. He is a solid all around defenseman with a booming shot that would be a massive boost to our power-play. I would give up Kindl and Ouellet plus a mid round pick in a heart beat for Cody Franson. Regarding Seabrook. Zero percent chance we would get him and I doubt I'd be willing to give up what it would take to get him. You'd be talking Nyquist and / or Jurco, Sproul and / or Ouellet, plus picks... No thanks!

I don't think anyone is "over rating" Callahan, but I for one would be pissed if we lost him to waivers. No one is saying that he is the next big thing, just that he could be a great 4th line grinder in the mold of a Maltby. I love the kid and I hope he steals a full time spot on our crowded 4th line sometime this season...

poel, this whole rant is a joke right? You can't be serious... Those are some teerrrrible trades and that roster is ******* awful... You want to trade away our best shut down defenseman for a draft pick, only to flip that pick along with our two top young wingers for a project defenseman.... Wow... I wouldn't even trade Ericsson for Myers straight up at this point... Unreal...

Tampa Bay signs veteran forward, Brenden Morrow to a one year deal at $1.55M.

I'm a huge fan of Dan Cleary, he is a heart and soul guy, he will go through hell for his teammates and he is a great locker room guy. He works his ass off on and off the ice, and he is a great mentor to the kids. However, I believe his time has come and he should hang 'em up. I'm not a fan of this signing, but not for the same reasons as a lot of people on here. I don't think it's the end of the world, and I'm not about to burn down the Joe or Holland's home... Before this signing I was fully expecting Jurco to start the season down in Grand Rapids, and I'm completely okay with that. I think him getting top line minutes, and being the go-to-guy down in Grand Rapids will be great for his development. I'd much rather a 21 year old kid get top minutes down in the AHL then have him get limited third line minutes in the NHL, but that's just me. The biggest problem I have with this signing is the potential of losing a kid that is out of options that I really, really like (Mitch Callahan) because there isn't room for him on the 23 man roster. I will be very disappointed if Callahan is placed on waivers and gets claimed because of this signing...

Frank, I'm pretty certain everyone understands that they got "market value". But the problem is, for myself anyway, that I don't agree what the market dictates that players get. I don't think any one man is worth $10.5 million dollars per year. The money that these guys make (some are still kids), in my mind, is beyond ridiculous.

Just because we would want to re-sign Green, if we were able to trade for him definitely does not mean he would want to re-sign with us. He would be one of the top defensemen in next years free agency class and would be able to sign with any team. He may get here and really like it here, but then again he may opt to test the open market. And like I said, the possibility of him not re-signing here would be enough for me to say no to trading any top players. You can spin it any way you want but I will be disappointed if we trade for Green if a player like Tatar or Jurco is involved.

That sounds all too familiar... Legwand? Besides, I don't think anyone is acting like Green is 100% guaranteed going to walk after one year, but the chance is there. And that is not a chance I would want to take on any of out top players or prospects... That's my opinion anyway.

Damn it! Baertschi is in Calgary not Edmonton, otherwise that deal would have been all but done...

I'm not sure who compared Brunner to Hudler but I can honestly say I've never seen that. Exactly, Frk already has the size advantage and has shown the willingness to get his nose dirty, which is why I said I can see him becoming a grittier / hungrier Hudler, which in my mind isn't a bad thing at all. What were the biggest knocks against Hudler? He was very timid most of the time, and seemed to be frightened to death to take a hit. He was also a very poor skater, with a wicked shot, which again is why I compare him to Frk. There are a lot of similarities in their game, other than size and handedness, which is great for us. I hope he can become a bigger, grittier Hudler...

I love Tatar but I definitely see Jurco as the better player in a few years from now. I'd also love to add Green to our blue line but there is no way he is worth either of those two guys on his current contract. Over paid and on his last year (more than likely being a rental). Like I said before, if he was extended to a more reasonable cap hit, I would possibly consider trading Tatar, but not Jurco.

I think Jurco has the one thing that Filppula lacks in his game. Drive. Filppula has always been a very talented player but he lacked the ability to go to the dirty areas, drive the net, and take or give a hit to make a play. Jurco has all the tools to be an elite player in NHL, big body, physical, great skater, deceptively hard shot, crazy stick skills, defensively sound, etc.. Whether or not he puts it all together is entirely up to himself, but I don't see him as another Filppula at all...

You don't GIVE away your top prospects, no matter how they may or may not turn out, for a top 4 defenseman that will more than likely be a one year rental. I wasn't a huge fan of the Legwand trade, but the reasons for that have been beaten to death for months, whether justifiable or not, there was a reason we gave up promising prospect, Calle Jarnkrok. I don't think we are nearly as desperate for Green as we were for Legwand at the time. Maybe if by November, Lashoff and Kindl are our top pair, we would be forced to trade a top end talent for a rental such as Green, but as we currently sit, I don't see that happening.