kickazz

i wasnt at all happy with Zetterbergs game. That was probably one of his worst playoffs games. If we split Z and D what worries me is Z's line could get stomped on. Do we just keep Z with Dats and hope he picks it up? He was floating around a lot last night. Tatar/Nyquist I didnt mind, they were playing against a tough line. Imo we need to have less penalties, more PP opportunities. 14 shots was pretty bad.

Nvm that was bad

"Glendenning is too small and wont make it far" they said. "Trust me" Babcock said.

Turn overs would be double the amount then

Sure glad Z didnt have to center his own line today..............

Dont care as long as we win.

I agree. The problem with Howard is he gets too frustrated with himself. (You see him always banging his stick when hes super pissed off after a loss). I think he let's it get to him moreso than Mrazek does. No doubt Holland and Babs see eye to eye on most things, that's what makes this franchise so consistent. Both Babs and Holland went from favoring vet players to realizing that you can put your trust in kids. I believe Lidstrom's retirement has helped them groom into that.

Apparently people didn't understand when I said that additive concussions isn't good for your health. These are typical symptoms he's showing. Any TBI isn't good for you and to have it 6+ times is a text book prediction that you wont make it far if you keep pushing yourself. What worries me more is his prognonsis in 10-20 years. Just because he stopped playing hockey doesn't mean the damage done wont be detrimental in the future. I'm hoping it works out for him and his family. He's a good guy that just had some bad luck.

Look lets put aside the fact that Smith had a poor season. And all the opinions on whether or not he's good. There are certain facts here aside from opinions that we can't just ignore. 1. Dude is 26 going onto 27 for his next season. He should NOT be making errors like he does. Same rule applies to Ericsson. 2. Even if he is making errors like this do you REALLY think he will get any better on this roster considering he's already into his prime? 3. He's got the highest giveaways per game of our bottom 4 D men. 4. Marchenko is NOT superior to Smith offensively. 5. Marchenko has NOT made nearly as many errors as Smith does per minutes played. 6. Babcock decided to pick the player that will not be a liability regardless of offensive prowess. He just needs a D man he can count on to not screw up.

Again. That "potential" that people have been speaking of.. How long do we wait for it to have an effect? He'll be a 27 year old sometime next season.. 25/26 is when you enter your prime which lasts till around 31 or so. Okay lets give in to the fact that he's a defensemen and will have more longevity. Even then, how long do we wait around for him to develop? Datsyuk and Zetterberg are aging and are the last of our superstars. Nyquist and Tatar are performing well and are great assets and bringing us the results we need. Why can't Smith? Mind you Tats and Nyquist are a bit younger too. I don't think waiting around for Smith to turn into some breakout defensemen he was expected to be is in our best interest. Package him off and bring someone that can contribute to the veterans last few years left here in Detroit. For the standards he was brought in for, he had a poor season. He's supposed to be an offensive defenseman and he hasnt really done much of that. Hell 38 year old Zidlickey was a bigger impact in the few games he played here than Smith was.

After seeing the young guys perform the way they did last year and knowing the Z and Pav would be healthy I actually thought the team would have a better chance going into this season. Still not sure how Babs thought there was less of a chance. Maybe he thought Nyquist's performance last year was a fluke and probably didn't have much high hopes for post back-surgery Z and constant knee issue Pav (aka similar to what Yzerman went thru). If that was the case, I guess I can see that side too.

No official statements, just based off articles from our reporters at the practices and stuff.

Doubt it. Holland is quiet fond of the younger players. He had a lot of good stuff to say about Marchenko on his own accord at the FSN interview few months ago. Babs is also fond of Marchenko (hence he's starting game 1) So they both meet eye to eye on that. Babs has said it time and again that him and Holland have a very good relationship. Before the trade deadline he said that he gave Holland a list of what he needs and Holland followed up with 2 veterans. Holland basically gave what Babs had been wanting. A right handed shot and a big body (Zids and Cole). If they disliked each other you wouldnt hear them agreeing on basically everything and you wouldn't have seen a right handed shot on our roster after trade deadline (a damn good one for cheap too). I'm pretty sure both Babs and Holland agree on one thing. We need a goalie that can win it for us. Whatever it takes. As of now, seems like coaches believe Mrazek is the guy. Holland just wants results.

Phaneuf stays in Toronto along with his new Coach Babcock. I'm kidding, I'm kidding.

He's 26. Will be 27 next season. How much longer till he's no longer a kid? Zetterberg was 27 when he won his Stanley cup and nobody referred to him as a "kid". That's the reason people are unhappy with Smith.. How much longer can we make excuses for him? Besides, his college and AHL stats are meaningless if he can't work the NHL system. And that includes basic/smart decision while sitting on your bench. -___-

Aye, Zetterberg was picked to be future captain when he started playing. Yzerman was predicted to be captain in his early few years as well. Wings management/scouts are pretty good at grooming future players since the get go. Seems like Smiith is an unfortunate exception to the rule. Of course there have been others in the past who have been pretty dumb as well. Well.. Maybe not as bad as Smith.

Out for playoffs, hasnt been practicing. The concussion symptoms must have not subsided. Sucks because I'd prefer him in over Ferraro -___-

Ive always felt as tho Mrazek and Howard could used interchangeably. Having a good puck moving goalie would be a better advantage against the highest scoring NHL team. Whereas with a team like Pittsburg that Howard reads really well, he would have the advantage. Lets see if Babcocks cooking some strategy here

Z managed to lead the team but by his standards it was a pretty bad season overall. His production went down as the season progressed. A 4 day break won't necessarily help him get his speed back. Either way if they split them up I hope it's for good reason. i.e use Z to shutdown Stamkos.

If Z and D are split, poor decision on Babcocks part. It's early in the playoffs the last thing you want is to tire out an already slow Zetterberg. He does better when he has less responsibilities. We need these guys to last, it wont be an easy run.

Just an all around immature player. Imo the leadership core could influence him and groom him up. Who knows.

Legace wasn't that bad. He made it to all star appearance, something not a lot of goalies can claim. Besides it's too early to make claims on Mrazek. As of now, he's good. Who knows what will happen in the next few years. Can't jump the gun till we see results. Mrazek can def show some results these playoffs, it's his opportunity to do so.

Who is this King Henrik you speak of? The only King Henrik is Henrik Zetterberg on these forums.

This could turn into the 2004 Stanley cup playoffs when they decided to start Manny Legace in the first round over Curtis Joseph only to regret the decision and eventually had Cujo take over to win the 1st series (but then lost in second series). But I'm trying to be optimistic since Mrazek isn't Manny Legace when it comes to puck handling.

Btw where can I find the quote? Have to save epic quotes like these. Idk Babs goes from saying "i didnt think we were a playoff team" to "this is the best shot we've had since 2009". He might just be humoring the media.