krsmith17

Lol I'm sure you must hate how well Pulkkinen is doing... I'm still hoping Frk can turn things around this season. I think he will have another slow start but finally find his game half way through this season. I predict he finishes this season with around 50 points with the Griffs...

Keep Tatar over Jurco? Really?? Please tell me you're the only Wings fan that would do that... Jurco has top line winger written all over him. Tatar on the other hand is a middling 2nd, 3rd line winger. I guarantee when GM's are talking to Ken Holland, they are asking for Jurco long before Tatar is mentioned. But no need to worry because Green shouldn't cost anything close to any of those guys...

He would absolutely be a great addition to the team, like everyone else is saying, as long as it doesn't cost us too much in assets. There is no way the Caps would get any of our top players or prospects, so no they would not be asking for Jurco. Green is on the last year of his contract, and is slightly overpaid in my opinion, and the Caps need to trim a player from their blue line and they need cap space to sign another decent forward. All of this is what makes the Caps (Green) a perfect trade partner for us. But then again, I'm sure there are a lot of other teams that may be thinking the same thing, so let's hope Holland can make a reasonable offer without giving up too much of the future...

I see one of them (hopefully Callahan) making the big club as a 14th forward. I think Nestrasil will definitely be on the Griffins roster, and I'd be really disappointed if Frk is sent down to Toledo again. I think Tvrdon and Nedomlel will play the majority of the season with the Walleye.

Thanks, much appreciated! I'm still hoping this kid can mature into a serviceable 4th line player for the Wings in a few years...

Yup, I would definitely have season tickets as well. I'll settle for watching every game online though. I've seen the majority of games the past 3 years, but I won't miss any at all this year. So stoked to see all the boys, especially Mantha and Athanasiou and another year of Jurco and Pulkkinen as well. I'm also expecting a Nestrasil to continue his steady play and for Frk to finally find his game at the pro level, and the slim chance that Tvrdon grabs a spot with the Griffs... Well Ferraro and Callahan would have to clear waivers to be sent back down, I wouldn't mind the chance in losing Ferraro but I would hate the 24 hours praying that Callahan clears. I love that kid.

Does anyone know why Mike McKee is playing defense at the development camp? I thought they had decided to convert him to forward? Which in my opinion was the right call...

I honestly wouldn't be at all surprised to see either Zetterberg or Datsyuk to play close to a full season. I'm going out on a limb and predicting that between the two of them they play over 140 games and put up over 130 points. I'll add to that by saying that Weiss has a career year putting up over 60 points, and Franzen will be at his usual 55-60 point pace. I also think Nyquist and Tatar will beat last years point totals and between the both of them, they will put up 100+ points. I may be a little overly optimistic, but hey, someone needs to counter all of the overly pessimistic people on here...

DeGraa55, make the bet. I'm with marcaractac. There is very little chance for any of those players to miss anything close to what they missed last season. So that along with the young guys having another full season, we will be a much better team. Guaranteed! Detroit # 1 Fan, I just don't see any harm in Jurco getting top line minutes down in Grand Rapids for another half season or so. Having a player like Jurco as a first call up is never a bad thing. Depth is key to success in the NHL.

Link? Everything I've been reading says that Green will most likely be traded in the next couple months. Most likely before the season starts.

I would bet a large amount of money that our key players play significantly more than they did last season, along with the development of our young guys and as a result we finish significantly higher than we did last season.

My point was that no YOUNG player is ever given anything. You know, the one's that have never proven anything as a pro. Sure, sometimes veterans get the nod before a kid, but like I said, I don't mind that, to a certain extent of course.

I would definitely be willing to make a trade for Green. He shouldn't be too costly, being on an expiring contract, a possible rental (don't bring up the Legwand trade). I think he could be had for Andersson, a mid level defense prospect (Backman or Jensen?) and a mid to late round draft pick?... We won't be able to pawn Kindl off to the Caps because they already have 8 defenseman, hence the reason for trading Green in the first place. So the only way that would work is if, either us or the caps had another trade in the works to offload a defenseman or if it was a three team trade. Green would definitely help out our team in a big way, and we could finally have a power play that is a threat again. Yes, he's a liability on defense but he can't be any worse than Kindl back there... Rick Zombo, that's exactly why we could benefit by going after a guy like Green. The Caps do need to cut a defenseman and from their perspective, Green definitely makes the most sense. Niskanen can basically replace Green's production while being better in his own end. Plus the fact that he has a fairly large cap hit and only has one year left on his deal, makes him the perfect candidate to trade. I'm not saying we would necessarily get him or that we wouldn't over pay, but I think he is definitely our best option, going trade route.

16th ranked offense last year due to probably the most bizarre rash of injuries to key players we've ever witnessed. 16th ranked defense last year due again to significant injuries, but mostly because of our young blue line getting accustomed to the NHL. *** Please do not say that we are going to be more injured than last season because all of our players are a year older... It just won't happen. I will bet most if not all of Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Franzen, Weiss, Ericsson and DeKeyser will play more games than last season. Our roster is not "over full", although I would like to rid ourselves of a couple spare parts (Andersson, Kindl). I'm one of the few that would like to see all of Jurco, Pulkkinen and Mantha start the season in Grand Rapids. We are not "out of cap space already". We should still have over 6 million after Tatar and DeKeyser are signed. As of today, I would bet we could challenge for the Division but more realistically we would finish around 4th or 5th in the Conference.

What don't people understand about depth? Injuries are inevitable. Whether it's a 35 year old Datsyuk or a 21 year old Jurco, or a 33 year old Kronwall or a 22 year old Marchenko. Injuries happen in the NHL no matter what age you are. Sure, it may be a little more likely once you get up there in age, but there are a lot of injury prone young guys in the league, as well as a lot of iron man older guys. Having veteran depth is never a bad thing. The kids will get their shot and once they do they will be ready. I personally love the way the Wings do things. No player is ever given anything, every opportunity, every game, every shift, has to be earned. That goes for everyone, from first round draft picks such as Mantha and Larkin to the late round gems like Ericsson and Marchenko. Their is a reason we've been so successful for so long and I'm a firm believer that this is a huge reason why. How many players get thrown in the fire too early only to break their confidence, sometimes never being able to regain that confidence... It's the toughest league to play in, in all of sports, and I think it's important that the players are good and ready before they make the jump. It takes a rare player to be able to get drafted and dominate in the NHL a few months later, and we never get the opportunity to draft a Sidney Crosby, Steven Stamkos, John Tavares, Nathan MacKinnon, so we have to bring our players along much slower.

I didn't see anything like that from Stralman, if anyone else has a link, care to share... Either way, Stralman was probably the most overpaid UFA on July 1st, so good for him and good for us. I was being extremely sarcastic... Top 5 GM in the league, and top 5 coach in the league equals terrrrible - LeftWinger

Anyway, back on topic. I can't wait to see Mantha tear up in Grand Rapids this season.

Or maybe... just maybe it has something to do with us being in a transition period... Maybe a player choosing to go to another team over the Detroit Red Wings has a little more to do with the terrible general manager and the unbearable head coach...

What Swedish defenseman shunned the chance to come to Detroit?...

Well said Son of a Wings. I completely agree with everything you said.

Yes, the eyeball test. Hard to believe that that is what makes up my opinion isn't it?...... Are you that delusional that you don't believe that Babcock ever misuses his players? Over plays players in certain situations and under plays others?... LOL! So defense are only paid to play defense and forwards are only paid to play offense? Got it... Everyone, forget labeling players as offensive defensemen and defensive defensemen, and power forwards, snipers and playmakers. Kip has it figured out. Defense should all be defensive minded and forwards should all be offensive minded. Forget about Erik Karlsson, he's garbage at defense, forget about Glendenning, he can't put up points to save his life...

Give it a rest with the "accomplishments", as I already debunked that argument. I watch every Red Wings game so I base it solely on watching them play (opinion...) He's an offensive defenseman that hasn't yet been given the opportunity on the power play that he deserves. And don't give me any s*** about how if he hasn't gotten it, he mustn't deserve it. He does. As much as I like Babcock, everyone knows he makes a lot of questionable calls when it comes to line combos and special teams opportunities. His defensive game is still growing and he showed massive improvement in that area last season, but I'm sure you're blind hate refuses to see that. Coaching aside, Smith is more of an asset to special teams then Tatar, Smith could be a good penalty killer and great power play quarter back if given the opportunity. You're talking about Smith's lack of defense, but Tatar isn't exactly an future Selke winner or anything. Both players are more offensive minded, but in my opinion neither have had great opportunities to succeed. My OPINION is that Smith has the potential to be a number 2 defenseman, whereas Tatar has the potential to be a 2nd/3rd line forward. Again my OPINION!!!

LOL, Kip IT IS absolutely an OPINION. You have yours and I have mine. Explain to me how it is fact that Tatar is a better player than Smith. You can't because it is an OPINION. You laid out Tatar's accomplishments and I simply explained to you why it was so difficult for Smith to have those same accomplishments due to circumstance... I'm not going through any lengths to prove my point, just explaining why it would have been near impossible for Smith to accomplish the same things as Tatar in their short careers. It is nothing like comparing Datsyuk to Kronwall, because we're talking about ceilings and we have seen both these players ceilings, unlike Smith and Tatar. My OPINION is that currently Smith is better at his position than Tatar, that Smith has a higher ceiling than Tatar, and that Smith brings more of what we need on this team than Tatar...

Again you're comparing things that are really incomparable, in my opinion... You're saying that Tatar won the Calder Cup MVP, he certainly did, but do you know how difficult it is for a defenseman to win that award? David Fenyves was the last defenseman to win the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy way back in 1987. Then you said that he was an Olympian, for which team again? Slovakia? Of course Smith wasn't going to make the team Canada roster, but do you really think it would have been out of the realm of possibility that he would had made the Slovakian roster?... Smith being better than Tatar or vice versa is a matter of opinion because they play completely different positions and is definitely an opinion, especially when talking about a players ceilings...

I agree Kip, it is definitely unfair to put Smith and Tatar in the same boat, they play completely different positions... You can't compare entering the NHL as a defenseman to a winger, it is MUCH harder to adapt to the best league in the world as a defender then it is as a winger, everybody knows that... don't they? I think Smith is going to be a much better player in this league, and definitely a lot more valuable to his team in just a year or two from now. I like Tatar and I wouldn't give him away but I do think he is the most expendable on our team and would be a great starting point to any package deal. I just found it funny that you were upset that everyone was placing Tatar in all these trade scenarios, when you place Smith (the guy with the higher ceiling ) in all the same type trade scenarios...