BringBack19

The crazy thing is thus may take more than 3 or 4 years to rebuild.

There are a few analyst saying that the 2018 draft may be the deepest draft since 2003(?). If we sell I hope we can load up on picks through that draft. I am always jealous when teams like Buffalo, or Winnipeg have 3 first round picks.

Back when Bobby Orr was still playing my boss went on this fly in destination fishing trip with his buddies. He was told one of their friends is bringing some guy that his wife's friend was married to, and he played hockey. He got on this bush plane and realized he was sitting next to Bobby Orr. My boss and the pilot were the only ones to realize who exactly he was. Therefore Lidstrom gets my vote...

He is going to demand a huge contract on maybe developing into a #1. Not something you want to do when you're facing a complete rebuild.

This is a great post Rich. The upshot from this is he is an anchor of a contract waiting to happen.

Dickie- I agree with every point you make other than XO. I think he could develop into a good 2nd pair maybe even a serviceable #2. But other than that I think you hit the nail on the head which is why we are staring a top 5 pick in the face...

To what end? You better get a kings ransom, because we have been drafting at the back end of the 1st for the whole cap era. I argue that this is the largest contributing factor for why the franchise finds itself where it is right now. Islanders have two games in hand so we probably pick 3rd or 4th if the season where to stay the same. Vegas is going to pick a forward to build the franchise around. Colorado will do the same because that is who they are, and Phoenix drafted dman in the 1st last year. I think Liljegren will be there at 3 or 4.

Larkin has hit a wall, and I think a lot has to do with learning the center position at the NHL level. With, hopefully, new coaching and development he will become the first line center most people think he can be. I am not as concerned about Mantha hitting a sophomore slump as much, because he has been through a lot of adversity already. As early as next year we may see a Mantha-Larkin-Z top line.

I agree with you on Tippett. He meets a lot of needs. I would prefer a center or dman, but he would be a huge asset on the pp. He needs to work on his defense, but most kids do his age. If he rounds out his game he could be a top line winger that scores 35-40 goals in his prime.

That scouting report doesn't make me think of elite when I read it. I guess we will have to agree to disagree on this one.

Wrong, eliteprospects.com has all of Rasmussens rankings from the 4 major sites. McKeens hockey is the only one in the top 5. 2 have him in the 20's and ISS has him at 7. I've watched him play and see more Brian Boyle than Primeau. According to Craig Butten he isn't physical at all either. I have also watched Hischier live and when available on tv as well. He or Liljegren would be my pick in the top 5 because they have elite talent, not just potential or size. Hischier plays much larger than his size too.

You just like both because of their size. Rasmussen is often compared to Brian Boyle. If we're picking in the top 5 I don't want someone who is just big, defensively responsible but limited offensively. We have that in spades already.

If we sell at the deadline I would look for 2018 picks. That would be a good draft to have a couple 1st/2nd round picks.

Since we appear to be in a free fall it may not be to far fetched to get a top 4 pick. If that is the case we could get Timothy Liljegren. That would sure fill the need for an offensive defenseman. I wonder what kind of picks we could obtain for selling Vanek/Green/Whomever not named Mantha or Larkin. Could we do enough to get Hague/Foote whom are both projected in the 20's? Then we would have a Keith-Seabrook pairing for the next decade.

Well so far Mantha is a first line winger. Analytics, eye test, and the fact he is on the first line support the fact that he is and projects to continue to be a first line power forward. He reminds me of a mix of Jamie Benn/Corey Perry. He probably won't develop to be that good, but he is on pace and has the talent to do so. I would like to see a change in management and coaching before the wings make any franchise changing moves. I would not put it past Holland to try a drastic move due to his seat warming up. If we miss the playoffs I could see big changes coming for not only a rebuild, but also to sell hope for the future in the new arena.

Nico should be the next center off the board after Patrick. He is a dominant forward who is NHL ready. Reminds me of a more physical Zetterberg. Unfortunately I am sure we will win just enough to not have to worry about a top 7 pick.

I agree with a lot of what you're saying. The loss of Lidstrom has been brutal to the D core, and the loss of Datsyuk with a declining Zetterberg is equally detrimental. I am just of the opinion when you have a top line power forward you shouldn't trade him for a 2nd tier defenseman. I feel like you would be robbing Peter to pay Paul. Plus, I don't trust Holland to make the right move given the opportunity. The majority of his decisions stemming back to 2009/2010 have been brutal.

I agree that coaching is bad on offense, but the same can be said on defense as well. Kronwall, XO, Smith, Green, and Dekeyser are solid. XO is developing into a very good defender and possibly a solid #2. Who exactly on Offense, other than Larkin and Mantha, is worth building around? Tatar and Nyquist are just complementary pieces, and I think there nhl hot starts really skewed opinions on them. What we are seeing now is closer to who they are as players, rather than their 1.5 good years. KH's drafting prowess is greatly overrated, especially with regards to defense. The only way out of our defensive mess is to draft numbers at that position, not to trade arguably your best offensive piece going forward. I agree that we won't get an Ekblad/OEL with trading Mantha. That is why I believe trading him for a Cam Fowler type is a terrible move for the future.

We have finally developed a power forward who can score, but also play a 200 foot game. Now Paul Woods puts it out there, on behalf of Ken Holland no doubt, that they are interested in trading for a dman. This team wouldn't compete for a cup even if they added Brent Burns. I guess the streak is all that matters so let's trade away potentially the next Corey Perry for Cam Fowler. Whoever we trade with would have to take cap back as well. If an OEL/Burns type were involved then I may concede to trading Mantha +. Anything less would be Ken Holland doing what he's done best over the last 6 years...

Nico Hischier looked good in the 2nd period (only one I watched). One of the biggest needs on the red wings is a #1 center, and he may be the answer if he is available.

Yeah cut Mrazek or trade him for a 7th that's a good idea. You must be Richdgs second account. If he were 6'5" and could drop the mitts he would be the greatest thing since probert right?

This Blashill guy is something else. Glendening on the 2nd line again, and Lashoff over Sproul smh...

The difference in looks between Torts and blashill is Torts understands what happened. He just can't believe how f*cking stupid his player is. I would love to watch his expression after Ericssons first shift lol.

They need to hire a search firm in the post season to find the best coach available.

Well Coreau got a win against their minor leaguers in the preseason. In Blashills mine that means he has a real gud record against Pittsburgh...