Neomaxizoomdweebie

Yes, there are bad fans. Every team has them, some just have more than ever. Hawks fans are a perfect example. I personally saw "diehard" Hawks fans of the early-mid 90s disappear by the late 90s only to reappear again 10-15 years later. Some of them even became Avs fans for a while just because they were competitive rivals of the Wings. Those are what I would refer to as "bad" fans. This team has some too, unfortunately. Although I believe almost 30 years of winning creates a stronger fanbase which can whether a few bad seasons. So there aren't as many "bad" Wings fans as compared to some other teams IMO. Being a Dolphins fan, I remember when they were in on the "Suck for Luck" sweepstakes. I wanted to finish last overall to get the number one pick. Unfortunately, the Colts have mastered the tank process. What are the odds the same team who finishes last overall the same year Peyton Manning enters the draft accomplishes the same thing the year Andrew Luck enters the draft only a year after making the playoffs with Manning? Speaking of Colts fans: awful, awful fans. Before Manning, most NFL fans in Indiana were Bears, Packers, Bengals and Steelers fans, maybe a few Browns and Lions. Then the Colts are good and then everyone is a Colts fan. Everyone's wearing a Colts jersey on Gameday. Then what happens when Manning is in Denver and the team is bad again? The Colts jerseys disappear and all the #18 Broncos jerseys pop up. That's why I can't stand the Colts or their fans to this day.

If Dahlin is off the board, and whoever else is sitting at #2 calls me and says they're taking Andrei Svechnikov, but they're willing to trade that pick to me for the #3 and Evgeni - I am absolutely doing that. I wouldn't even hesitate. He'll get over it. I wouldn't turn down that trade just to avoid hurting someone's feelings. Not to mention that it would be a lot easier to re-acquire Evgeni later than it would be to acquire Andrei at all.

Agreed. I am not saying Holland is perfect, but a lot of this teams downfall was due to him having to trade away prospects and picks in order to sustain the playoff streak even while the team was already in decline. Even the worst GM understands that that is the time to start trading away vets and acquiring assets to rebuild. If he wasn't put into the position he was in, I believe he would have done things differently, but we'll never know. Holland is not as dumb as some make him out to be. I think he completely understood what the later ramifications of those trades and signings would be. I just think that the powers that be made the streak the focus, and Holland had to fall in line. Now that the team seems to be focusing on a rebuild, I would like to see what he can do, albeit on a short leash.

If he can't even do that, it will only validate what I (and many others) already thought about him.

There is no way Holland isn't running the draft and the beginning of free agency. It would be foolish to replace him before that. If he isn't back next year (which I doubt happens), he will just finish out his contract and then they'll have pretty much the rest of the summer to replace him.

per wikipedia: On 5 May 2017, NBC Sports reported that Ejdsell signed an entry-level contract with the Nashville Predators of the NHL, after being pursued by several other NHL franchises such as the Detroit Red Wings and the Chicago Blackhawks.[3] Before official confirmation, Ejdsell made clear his intentions to continue his development in Sweden by agreeing to a two-year contract with newly crowned champions, HV71 of the SHL on 10 May 2017.[4] Ejdsell was later revealed by the Predators to have signed a two-year, entry-level deal on 15 May 2017.[5] On 26 February 2018, the Predators traded Ejdsell along with first-round and fourth-round picks in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Ryan Hartman and a fifth-round pick in 2018.[6]

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lost lost adjective \ ˈlȯst \ Definition of lost 1: not made use of, won, or claimed CHECK a lost opportunity CHECK 2a : no longer possessed CHECK a lost reputation CHECK b : no longer known CHECK a lost tunnel 3: ruined or destroyed physically or morally : desperate CHECK a lost soul CHECK 4a : taken away or beyond reach or attainment : denied CHECK regions lost to the faith CHECK b : insensible, hardened CHECK lost to shame CHECK 5a : unable to find the way CHECK b : no longer visible CHECK lost in the crowd CHECK c : lacking assurance or self-confidence : helpless CHECK lost without his glasses 6: rapt, absorbed lost in reverie 7: not appreciated or understood : wasted CHECK their jokes were lost on me 8: obscured or overlooked during a process or activity CHECK lost in translation CHECK 9: hopelessly unattainable : futile CHECK a lost cause CHECK FINAL VERDICT:

Why do the Blackhawks always end up in the top 3? Hmmm....

Wings won't finish dead last. I predict 3rd from bottom. I also believe they will draft no worse than 3rd. If they get 1st or 2nd, I am happy either way. If they get the 3rd pick, throw in VGK's 1st rounder and another piece to move up to #2 since everyone knows elder Svech brother is already here. Heck, I would throw in Evgeny in a trade to move up and draft Andrei.

Which means they'll trade Dahlin for Cholowski. No worries.

You guys are forgetting that the simulators are factoring in the league's tampering. They are incredibly accurate.

I don't think its the latter LOL. At this point I am still giving the coaching staff the benefit of the doubt. If it gets to the point where Svech is clearly outperforming other guys on the team and is still being given only a handful of minutes a game, then... If and until that happens, we can afford to be patient IMO. He wasn't exactly tearing up the AHL before being called up. He hasn't earned top 6 minutes or special team assignments (yet). But he better get them when he does, and I think he will?

Maybe Svech isn't ready for 15:00 or more a game yet. Its only like his 2nd game. It only makes sense that he would get sheltered minutes until he's ready for more. Throwing him into situations he's not ready for yet can actually do more harm than good.

Tats being Tats.

Agreed. But I would like to see if he's a decent plug, at least as a 4th liner. If so, he's a lot cheaper than some of the other contracts on the 4th line right now. He only signed for $750K this past year, and he's an RFA after this season. If someone can be unloaded, Puempel could be a cheap replacement at the bottom of the roster to free up cap space.

So there's still hope for B.Smith?

Because that isn't a recipe for success. The teams that are good at being bad never get any better. How many times in the past ten years have EDM, BUF, FLA, AZ had lottery picks? And they are still not playoff teams.How long were TOR and CBJ bad before they finally pulled themselves out of it? You can look at PIT or CHI as examples of being bad and coming out of it to become contenders, but they are more the exception than the rule. Not to mention, once you develop a reputation as a "tank", good luck bringing in any decent free agents to complement and help develop your draft picks. There's a difference between being respectable and being bad. It takes a lot longer to rebuild a house from the ground up than it does to simply gut and remodel it. That's what this team needs You can be both respectable and attain high draft picks. The rebuild will go quicker that way.

https://www.nhl.com/video/backes-suspended-three-games/t-277440360/c-58518803 Explains the suspension really well. I think they got this one right.

Yes, this is what I am saying. I don't think you can be "accidentally" dirty. There were other reasons too. Backes didn't line him up and take Nielsen out. Stupid hit. Worthy of suspension because the head was invoIved, and Nielsen was injured, but not what I would call "dirty". I posted a link to the NHL's website explaining the suspension in the other thread so as to not further deviate this one.

Absolute joke. Roy the best goalie ever? Bobby Orr at 61%? I can see the argument for it, but the numbers should have been closer. Apparently disappearing when your team is bad a reappearing when they win a Stanley Cup after 50 some years makes you the best fans. I know Crosby voted for Forsberg over Yzerman. He learned his diving skills from the beset. How do you have Jagr, Crosby and Forsberg over Howe? Ridiculous.

It was a hit to the head. It was apparently worse than it looked. I don't think it was a "dirty" hit. Maybe late, but more of a fly-by. Love Ericsson sticking up for his teammate. Here's a link:

Backes got 3 games? Good. Much worse than anything Wit got called for. He's progressing slowly. I'm actually surprised they're bringing him up at all this season. I wouldn't expect to see him on the roster to start the season. Most likely a late season call up next year. When they traded Tatar, I was thinking they would call up Puempel. Would like to see what he can do in a bottom 6 role.

This franchise has been successful in the past with elite level talent. 4 cups in 11 an 11 year span. I won't speak for kliq, but i assume that that was what he was referring to.

By retread, I meant someone who was banned and rejoined under a new name. There are also some who post in here under multiple user names. Not that I mind however, we need all the posters we can get!