frankgrimes

Either miss the playoffs or barely get in and lose in the first round.

Helm, Abby won't cost a lot to re-sign...4,5 for years same with Helm. Ferraro, Pulkinnen could be traded to free up cap space. Mrazek is on ELC

That long good god it's 8! games in. He was groomed for this job in the AHL coaching - you guessed it right - against other AHL coaches while managing a bunch of prospects. This is now the big league he is coaching young guys and aging veterans against the best of the best. Accepting being average? I would call it looking realistically at where this team is and if you think the transition is over uoh far from it. For your sake I hope we never do a real rebuild cause you'd be calling for a coaches and or players head after not a few weeks lol

Well Nyquist is signed for the next 5 years. Mantha and Larkin are on ELCso the only big one coming up will be Danny D. 10, 27 is a lot of money sure but you gotta pay to get. If it really happens and Lombardi continues to play hardball I don't care what it takes to get it done just do it. Kopitar would be instantly our best player, lessen the blow of losing Pasha and reducing the workload for Z..while Larkin can be groomed as a second line center. I mean someone like Kopitar doesn't make it to UFA anymore. But dreaming aside I'm absolutely shocked that Lombardi and Cheveldayoff are playing hardball with Ladd and Kopitar. Although it's great for the rest of the league.

I would offer him 72 mill over 7 years it's close to Toews' money but not as high. 8,5 for Kopitar is a joke it will take at least Malkin like money to even get the conversation started which it should guy is a - awesome comparison - a younger, bigger Z in his prime

With Methot out their defense is even worse, so it might be an opportunity here for the Wings if they finally put together a solid 60 minute effort.

No. Blashill has overtaken in team in transistion and like many have said in the off-season it will take time for him to implement his system and getting used to the coaching methods of other NHL coaches.

The thing with Byuflin is simple: he is fat and overweight and once he starts to get up their in age it will catch up to him, plus some team is for going to offer him a boatload of money for max-term I just hope it's not the Wings. As far as Ladd is concerned I always thought the guyh as been underrated be it in Chicago or now in Winnipeg. The guy has good size and his pt totals have gone up every year so something like 7 mill for the next 5 years would be nice. From what I've read it sounds like Ladd's camp gave Cheveldaynoff a deadline (getting it done in the summer or no talks) and they missed it, so now the ball is on the Jets side. But I've already heard rumors that Kopitar's camp is getting pissed of with Lombardi and his negotiation style man if that plays out the right way, the Red Bird III better be landing in slovenia in the off-season

Yeah he'll be as good as done and then hired by the Penguins

ah thanks for clarification mixed both of them up. Damn Wheeler would have been nice.

The guys I'd want from Winnipeg are Scheifele (not going anywhere), Trouba or of course Wheeler who I think could be available if contract talks are going south.

I hope he will guy is exactly what the doctor ordered. He will create energy , block shots bring a heavy game drop the gloves if he needs to and might bring back the hw belt to the place where it belongs Last I've read is that he's adjusting to the forward position and wants to get faster. Wings could do a better job with reports regarding him the last one is almost 4 months old

How exactly is this a fact? Stars are a year older , Richards is a very capable 3 line center and Green has an injury history and needs Danny D. to cover up his mistakes Some people went into the season with crazy unrealistic expectations give Blashill time he will adapt but also give him a better roster to work with. Sure Babcock is he better coach but that guy is the best coach in hockey and at this point a veteran Blas is a rookie. Unbelievable not even a friction of the season has been played and people are calling for his head. Babs already got the best out of this team which means playoff bubble and first round exits. May be harsh but that's the cold hard reality although guys like Larkin and Mantha are promising

I think he would improve the entertainment value just like a guy like Biznasty would. We are talking about fourth liners here they aren't tasked to improve the team that's usually the job of the top 6 guys, top 4 defenders.

If he has another season like last year I would agree but Kessel and him are way too talented for their current points I think they'll figure it out. I always thought that media created rivalry between the 2 was one of the dumbest things ever Crosby is a center OV a winger. It's like comparing a goaltender and a defender

I've said he would play hard, work hard and provide entertainment I for sure wouldn't expect him to score a ton of points but that's also not the job of a fourth liner.

2 words: Mike McKee that guy would play his butt of and provide some entertainment no matter the score but he I guess he is to tough and physical to get a real chance rather play guys like Jurco...

there is no debate Crosby is the best player in the world and can do more than just waiting to unload his onetimer. Ovechkin is one of the best goal scorers in the game but there certainly are better players not just Crosby..Toews , Stamkos, Tavares, Seguin, Benn and Getzlaf come to mind.

2 more games like that and he might get the boot. The Ducks stopped playing after the 3:0 and that against the hottest line in hockey not a good decision. But I'm happy for Nill guy is building a juggernaut on an internal budget if he can fix the D in Dallas watch out west.

Exactly that it always astonishes me when people are talking about an improved roster, given that the stars are 1 year older and the best player (who is 38) hasn't even played yet. Richards was supposed to fix the 3 line center role right now he is simply playing over his current abilities at this point in his career. That being said it is way to early to judge Jeff Blashill but maybe just maybe even the Anti-Babcock crowd can now understand how great his coaching has been because getting an average (by Wings standards) roster to the playoffs is a huge accomplishment. Blashill will need some time to implement his system and to figure out how to coach against other NHL coaches, even John Cooper needed some time to do that. To be honest I also don't care if Babcock was or is a players coach the fact is he is the best coach in hockey and deserved a lot more respect than he received after signing with Toronto. I don't think Blashill will turn into another Dave Lewis because he looked and acted pretty pissed after the last loss against the Oilers, so if some players believe the honeymoon period will last forever they are hopefully in for a huge awakening filled with backskating soon. Blashill also can only work with he has and what he has is a team in transistion that hasn't figured out how to fix the defense and how to add more muscle to the lineup which is needed to win puck-battles. Guys like Abdelkader and Glendening may not be the most skilled guys but they are working as hard or maybe even harder than other players and are able to win some puck battles. Another fact is players on other teams are able to put on a huge amount of muscle in the off-season why aren't the Wings players? Given all the access these guys should have to the top of the top medical stuff it shouldn't be too much to ask to expect a ~ 180 lbs guy to add around 20 lbs in the off-season and come to training camp in top shape and being much bigger. McDavid went to the Gary Roberts school and is now almost at 200 pounds why aren't Nyquist and Tatar doing the same thing? I'm not saying every player needs to be big but wheter or not Holland believes in big teams at some point you need more than 2 guys that can win you puck-battles agains other huge guys and that's something Jeff Blashill can not fix because he is the coach and not the GM. I've said it before and I'll say it again even if the Wings are missing the playoffs I would not blame Blashill one bit for it this is his first season as an NHL coach, so some learning curve has to be expected no matter what. I'd rather miss the playoffs and get a slightly better chance at Auston Mathews than looking at another first round exit but that's just me. In another thread people were wondering about Blashill getting outcoached by the koala ya well McLellan has tons of experience and the NHL coaching level and is a very good coach so others will get outcoached by him too.

read a rumor about you guys bringing back Carlyle wouldn't that be a mistake given that he butted heads with Getzlaf, Perry? I think you guys need to get back to that gritty in your face hockey instead of Boudreaus' run and gun style, he would be the perfect coach for Pittsburgh lol But also credit where credit is due Nasvhille played a strong game their defense is unbelievable.

Richards is playing a role over his nowadays abilities simple as that. Chicago fans were saying he is a good third line but not a second line center anymore Jurco needs to be packaged in order to get something useable back. And no the lbs thing is not overblown it's been true since quite some time. When was the last time the Wings outmuscled an even average heavy team ? How people can already criticise Blashill is just nuts he is takin over from the best coach in hockey and sadly doesn't have the horses Babs has had when he took over. People are acting like getting outcoached by the koala is surprising McLellan is a damn good and experienced coach..Blashill is still new to the NHL. At some point Holland will need to trade for a rugged top 4 defenseman Kronner isn't getting younger either.

while that pc bulls*** is one of the worst things ever there is a difference in how someone is talking to the media and how he is talking to his own players do I care how he threats the media? Nope because some guys are total blowhards but if he does the same thing with his players and snaps over minimal stuff this is not going to work simple as that.

Nope if you haven't seen him playing yet trust me he is worth watching no matter which team you are cheering for. Same thing can be said about Jack Eichel these 2 are something else.

I think around February would be a good guess