kliq

Player 1: "You wanna go" Player 2: "OK" Fight takes Place Player 1: Good Fight Man Player 2: Thanks! and all this happens based on nothing from the game. Those examples you gave, I don't know as I didn't watch the games.

Yzerfan87 said regarding Howard "his GAA is the best of the list" but I said that he must have missed Rinne as Rinne's GAA is 2.00 (Howard's is 2.08)

You must have missed Rinne, his GAA is 2.00. Either way, I cant say I'm surprised, he did make the all-star game. You would think that all the all-stars would be in Vezina discussion.

Good point, but I feel that if he did have elite level hockey left in him, he would have somehow made his way back to a contender via trade. Sad he never won a cup, when he came to Detroit I was so pumped, sucks the way that all played out.

Completely agree with the point in bold. While I do believe he will be a good goaltender in the NHL, its really tough to see where someone is from a small sample size. Playing a game every once in a while is one thing, being relied on to possibly play 3 times a week on a playoff contender in a position that has more pressure on it then any other in the sport can be hard.

I dont like the long term effects of fighting in the NHL. If there was no such thing as concussions/Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy my stance would likely differ. On the topic of staged fights, my biggest issue is I feel that people can only be hit in the head so many times before long term damage begins. So if there is going to be fighting in hockey, at least if it was once in a blue moon, the amount of blows to the head these guys take would be limited. When you have staged fights, they are just getting hit over and over and over again, and I feel that issues down the road are inevitable. After seeing what has happened to guys like Probert, Boogaard, Belak, etc. and seeing proof that these guys (not sure about Belak) had Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, I don't want to see other players go down this road or God forbid we ever see a Chris Benoit situation ever happen in the NHL. If this is directed at me, I completely agree that concussions can also come from hits. But to think they dont come from fighting is just plain wrong. Taking hitting out of the game would obviously change the game drastically, even taking out fighting could change the game drastically as I see the argument that this could lead to guys taking cheap shots as there would be no fear of ramifications. But staged fights.....taking them out would change nothing.

You say its their decision, but in some cases these guys have no choice I can tell you with 100% certainty that some of these guys want to just play hockey, but are pressured by coaches/management. You also say they know what they are getting themselves into. Interview guys that are now in their 50's or 60's that fought back in their day all the time that now have concussion issues (just look at all the lawsuits, or at how many guys are now dead). I guarantee you a lot of them will say that if they knew then what they know now, they would not have fought as much. Its like a teenager who drives like an idiot because they think they are indestructible, its not taken seriously until its too late. People need to move forward. With the advances in medicine and concussion research, and the ridiculous athleticism/strength of athletes now a days, fans need to learn to move forward and realize that we have to start looking at the health of these players, and not our own personal entertainment. Bottom line, staged fights and constant blows to the head for no reason need to end. Yes this is a sport, and people do get hurt, but the NHL needs to be smart about this and try to do whats in the best interest of the players.

My comment on the Wings getting Thomas or another goalie was completely based on 2 factors. 1. Howard being hurt for a long time, 2. Mrazek getting the job and struggling. I agree we should wait. My questions to you, was if those two factors are the case, what would you do?

So if Jimmy was out for a long time (lets say he tore his groin, out for season) and Mrazek struggles, what would you do if you were Holland?

In 2004 Legace was the starter going into the playoffs, but after losing games 3 and 4 to Nashville and letting in 6 goals in those 2 games he was benched in favor of Cujo who allowed only 1 goal in games 5 & 6 combined. Cujo played great got us, in the 6 games in the Calgary series he only let in 11 goals in 6 games. Legace on the other hand, while playing good in the regular season, was bad in the playoffs, just like he was the following season against Edmonton.

Joseph is my favourite goalie of all time, and I hate the way he was treated here. I also think he played great for us in the playoffs and that it was unfair that he was a scapegoat. But with that being said, not re-signing him was the right decision, after leaving Detroit he was never the same player as after the lockout age simply caught up with him. His GAA over the next 4 years was 2.91, 3.19, 2.55, 3.57. But I guess come playoff time it couldn't have been too much worse then Legace lol.

Ya....I meant go for Brodeur via trade. Not saying this is what I want, but if it was a major injury, you would have to think K.H would have to consider this option.

I completely forgot about those guys. I wouldn't be opposed to signing a guy like Tim Thomas to a league minimum contract if Howard is going to be out for a while and if Mrazek shows he cant handle it. (though I think he can). The only guy I cant see coming is Giguire, I think he had offers but wanted to retire. I wonder if they would go for Brodeur? That would be weird to see!

I was thinking the same thing.....I feel this probably happens all the time in pro sports, it just usually happens behind closed doors.

Why do you like staged fights in the NHL, but you dont like MMA? (im pretty sure you said this before, my apologies if I am remembering this wrong) If fighting is something you like, why not just watch fighting? I personally hate staged fights, I feel like guys are hurting themselves for nothing. I agree with everything krsmith17 said, if an idiot like Lucic does something stupid to one of out players, I would love to have a guy that can step in, but only if that guy can also play hockey and is not just a goon. I use the comparison to MMA, because at least in MMA guys are fighting.....maybe 4 times a year at most??. In the NHL these guys are taking blows to the head over and over and over again for no reason. Sure it may help pay their bills, but at what expense? I'd rather have less money but be able to enjoy my life after hockey. I knew a guy who played in the AHL and a few games in the NHL, and now he is in his early 30's and suffers from concussion related issues. He said that he was put into a position where he felt (at the AHL level) that he had to fight or he would lose his job, nobody should have to feel that way. Now, so many year later the guy is paying the price. Fighting on occasion to protect a person, I can live with that. Fighting day in, day out, to me is just plain stupid.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?id=1642810

I admit there were some weak shots on Roloson, but you are making it sound as if every shot we took was a floater shot right at him, he played extremely good in that series and him outplaying Legace IMO was the difference maker in the series. I feel you are giving the team D all the credit, and Roloson virtually none. We had over 50 shots in Game 6, there is no way you can tell me all 50 were floaters from the perimeter. We did only score 2.8 goals a game which was the main story, but IMO that low number is directly connected to the play of Roloson which is my main point....Roloson outplayed Legace. Their team D/Roloson were definitely the big difference maker, but at the end of the days if Legace lets in less than 2.8 goals a game (which is not unheard of by any stretch) we win. I am not one to crap on goalies, it’s not how many goals Legace let in, it’s the type of goals he let in and when he let them in. He is not the only reason we lost that series by any stretch, but if we had an elite goalie playing for us that year, I think we win. Lastly, please don’t put words in my mouth. I never said anything about Cujo in 2004 against the Flames. I do not put that loss on him at all. I do not remember him letting in bad goals like Legace did in 2006.

I watched every game of that series, and I was there in person for a game. What I remember is us dominating in puck possession and shots on goal, and Legace letting in weak goals. It that series we out-shot the oilers 238-156 yet got outscored 19-17. I realize shots dont mean everything, but they definitely help tell the story. I also remember in game 5 which I went to, the Wings coming out hard but Legace letting in a soft goal 5min into the second period which killed momentum. EDIT: I do remember them keeping the Wings to the perimeter, I will give you that. But like Rick Zombo said, Roloson was easily the better goalie in that series. When the series was as tight on the scoreboard as it was and all of our losses were one goal games (not counting an empty net goal in game 2) I feel Roloson outplaying Legace was the difference maker.

I feel bad for Franzen. People love to crap on him, but no player enjoys having their body slowly break down on them. Either way, I am excited for Teemu! I have never seen him play before, and a right handed shot in the lineup can never hurt!

Osgood was great in 2008. I hope that his performance that year as well as 2009 eventually help solidify him as a hall of famer. I feel that if they won in 2009, he would be in the HOF or be in inevitable inductee. I hate the argument that he had a great team in front of him. Many great teams have been bounced in the first round because of a bad goalie, or a bad performance by a goaltender. Anyone remember Legace in 2006 vs the Oilers/Roloson. Our team was clearly better, but Roloson simply outplayed Legace. Osgood may be the most under-appreciated Wing in modern day history.

I’ve never seen anyone get hassled in Detroit the way it can be in other cities. The worst she will get is when she is walking up the aisle someone may yell "Blues suck!" but with a smile on their face. To contrast that, my 21 year old female cousin was at a NYR game wearing a Pens jersey, and some idiot stood up and yelled at her "Get out of here you *****!!" with an angry look on his face. Detroit is NOTHING like that.

That makes more sense lol.

+7 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If the Wings are 5th in the league in GA per game, but they let the most shots in per game during 5 on 5 play, wouldn't this be a statistic showing how well Howard is playing, not the D? What this tells me is that the D are letting a ton of shots on goal, but Howard/Backups are shutting the door.

Couldn't have said it better myself, I 100% agree.

I don't think the masses are going to give the Preds respect of truly being a force until they make some real noise in the playoffs. Maybe this is the year.