Rice

They've really grown on me since we first saw them at the beginning of the season. If Hossa re-signs, I think I'm going to pick one up.

I don't know what everyone is disappointed about. Franzen is in the midst of his prime. Roughly $4 million is a great price for a guy who is becoming a premier power forward in the NHL. For years everyone bitched about the Wings not having a scoring power forward. Franzen is exactly that and now everyone expects him to play for nothing? Say he blows up again in the playoffs, scores 15 goals, and wins the Smythe. Disappointed with $4 million then? I'd guess he could get upwards of $5.5 million on the open market. Franzen's a very versatile player... he can play center or wing in a scoring role or a shut down role. The thing about the term is no one knows what's going to happen with the economy over the course of this deal. The cap will likely go down in the near future, but maybe it will go up a few million towards the middle of the contract. What Holland's doing is making this team as strong as possible while Lidstrom is still around. This team has been playing at or near elite level hockey for close to 20 years people! 20 years! It has to end at some point. This core is intact for years to come, and if it ends up biting the Wings in the ass in nine years, so what? How long can a team stay this good for? It's a "cross that bridge when we come to it" type of thing. Signing Franzen, Zetterberg, and hopefully Hossa to these deals give the Wings the best shot at winning some more Cups in the near future. Would you rather have a team that's not as good for the next few years, simply for the possibility that the team will be better in 10 years? If the Wings keep producing young talent (which it looks like they're going to), they can afford to have some overpaid players.

If anything, I think the length of the deal means Holland's going to do everything he can to keep both Franzen and Hossa.

Cap hit is determined by the average salary over the course of the contract. It most likely is front-loaded in order to keep Franzen happy because he's going to be playing for peanuts (relatively) at the end of the contract. The fact that it's front-loaded is what's going to help the Wings keep Hossa.

Our team has been old as hell for a while now.

In what world is Franzen not worth $4 million? The same world that Hudler is a first line NHL center in?

I doubt he'll have much of an impact. He's a bit overrated to begin with and it's going to take some time for him to get back into the swing of things on the ice.

Hossa's the better player, but Franzen is plenty capable of creating offense on his own. There are times when Franzen is nearly unstoppable driving to the net. It's not as if he is only a beneficiary of Datsyuk and Zetterberg.

Why the hell would Vancouver trade Kesler? They're in danger of losing the Sedin twins and he's easily their best young forward. They already have a ton of defensive depth. The Wings are going to be lucky if McGrath or Emmerton turns out to be nearly as good as Kesler. This trade would make zero sense for Vancouver.

...or he could just stay with the Wings and tear it up with two of the best offensive centers in the game.

I haven't posted in this thread forever. Here's a good pic from Halloween: Here's a normal one: Or is it the other way around?

If Lidstrom and Holmstrom retire, I'd say it's definitely in the realm of possibility.

Pretty sure the last defenseman to score 30 was Kevin Hatcher in '93. Impressive, but I don't think 30 goals should win Green the Norris. I'd still take quite a few defensemen over him.

...and give up a very valuable piece right before the playoffs? Hudler's a RFA. If Detroit loses him, they'll be compensated somehow -- whether it be via trade or another team signing him to an offer sheet.

Favorite trade of the day was Pahlsson to Chicago.

I'm fine with it. This roster is easily capable of winning the Cup.

Someone says this every. single. year. This team's fine the way it is. The only "tweak" they need has to do with their mentality.

Man, Calgary is scary if this is true. I wonder who they're giving up. I'm guessing Leland Irving is one of the key pieces.

Holland on the Neil rumors, via Kukla's: Cue LGW panic in 3...2...1... Seems like a good move for both teams, but Vermette isn't Columbus' answer for a number one center. Wouldn't it be a wiser move to hold on to Leclaire until the off-season when he can be packaged for a legit number one center?

Yeah, he's not an upgrade. The Wings aren't trading for a goalie anyway. Don't listen to Eklund.

Three o'clock tomorrow.

Now or never? The Sharks core is still pretty young. Plus, they don't have the cap room to acquire Pronger. Some significant salary would have to go the other way. I can't see Anaheim and San Jose making a trade of that magnitude.

Man, absolutely vicious elbow.

If it's not Detroit or San Jose coming out of the West, I have a feeling it's going to be Vancouver. They've got a big, physical defense, two solid scoring lines now that they have Sundin, and with Luongo in net anything can happen. If they pick up another top-six forward, that team is dangerous.

If we're not taking the cap into account, you'd be crazy not to trade Osgood for Luongo.