LeftWinger

Wasn't it said that this guy was going to leave the organization if he didn't get promoted soon? Or was that the other guy? Anyhow, you guys are all right, as we just witnessed in the preseason, we are loaded with young talented prospects. I do not want to see Holland trade any of them for a 36 year old UFA, but I wouldn't mind, if the need is still pressing near the trade deadline, that he trade a package for a top defender or maybe a top 3 scorer. That is IF needed. I think though, with Tatar, Nyquist, Larkin (if he stays) and Pulkkinen (and possibly Jurco) all playing well with our leaders, we may not need to make a deal for a forward this season (barring the injury bug) unless that guy becomes available and he could be the guy who puts us over the top. Good for this kid to make the NHL, but like everyone is saying, he probably wouldn't be making Detroit for a long time.

forgive me for being a stickler, but if he is on the roster into December, then he will for sure play more than just a dozen games. You point is well taken though and agreed with! If he plays like he did preseason, he is going to be hard to send down when the time comes. If that time ever comes.

Just a quick bump up for this thread...I thought maybe it'd be cool to see what we were saying before and after Larkin was drafted and compare it to what we are saying today! MODS you can lock this thread if you feel so no one else posts in it, but I just thought bumping it up for this week would strike some nice conversation from what we all initially thought of the pick.

I agree. It will be curious though, to see if Andersson does get waived, if he will slipped past Babcock's Leafs. Babcock loved him that is for sure! But, ya, no big loss either way.

True, but once Cleary and Andy get wiaved, now you would be looking into our bottom 6 players in order to keep Dylan. I would like to assume that Dylan would just be the one to go to GR since it makes the most business sense. Ok, now that Dylan will be here Friday, I am hoping that he chooses a better number to wear. Maybe he chose 71 for a reason, but with camp over, there has to be a few others he can take. I look at the #22 Meile wore in camp. He was impressive, but I have a hard time believing he will ever make the club permanently and if he comes up once in a blue moon for injuries he can just don an oddball number. Heck, I am all for Mantha being here soon as well, but let Larkin have the #39 and make Mantha choose another one when he makes the team. I'd suggest #24 for him. Nothing against the reasons Dylan wore #71, but it just looks weird. I think he would look great in #22 or his #39. Oh well!

Just real quick, I cannot believe that we didn't lose any of those waived players to anyone else. You guys told me all summer long that it wouldn't happen and you were right. I was wrong and I apologize... The players that remain that will most likely get waived (Cleary and Andersson) when we are 100% healthy, I really couldn't care if they were lost. I am so happy we didn't lose anyone! I thought Meile played very well and wonder if we'll see him in some spot injury duty at all?

I too do not want to see Jurco or Pulk sit. You'd have to figure Cleary and Andy would sit, but that still leaves one extra forward. I am so happy and excited that Dylan has made the club, but you're right, I also want to see the other two excel and given the chance. Maybe there will be someone else who will be sitting instead? I guess it's always a possibility... Going back to my question about trade bait. I just meant that after you send Cleary and assumedly Andy to waivers, if you want to still keep Dylan here, do you just waive another of you more talented players and lose him for free or do you try to trade and get some return? It's going to be tough.

what I want to know is, why the f*** is Cleary on this roster still? We were told that Dan Cleary will not take a roster spot in Detroit. We were told he would not be here...so much for honoring his word to the fans. I got a feeling that Blashill had to negotiate with Holland in order to keep Larkin here. We all know Holland would never keep a 19 year old here. Ever. He probably told Blashill that he'd give him Larkin as but Cleary stays with him...take it or leave it.

so....question is...Larkin comes in, continues his high end play from preseason...Pav and Helm return, who becomes a trade asset in order to keep Larkin here?

so with Larkin on the team, do we expect to hear that Cleary and Andersson are on waivers?

looks like XO is up for Dekeyser. I thought Jensen may have earned that nod, but maybe they want him playing more minutes.

was just gonna post that tweet. A bit disappointed Jensen didn't stay, but understandable there is just no room. Larkin or Cleary, eh? We know who deserves it, but since it'll be a #12 or #13 forward spot, it'll probably be Cleary to stay. Marchy injured, so he cannot be sent down I do believe.

of the three, the one I'd hate to lose most is Meile. He really impressed me this preseason.

This is great news! Is it me or has Detroit been signing a lot more of their draft picks a lot earlier than usual? Nonetheless, this guy must have impressed them enough that he garnered a contract! The only thing now is, that just means he has that much less years for waiver exemption. What is it 3 years after their first pro contract? I could be wrong on that...anyhow, Welcome to the D (or I should say the G for now) Evgeny!

I do believe Datsyuk will hang em up after this contract. That will open the door for Larkin to come in and learn even more leadership skills from Z before he retires and passes the "C" onto to Dylan! Ok, ok, so I am a little ahead of myself, but just like stated above, when you have players like AA and Larkin pretty much NHL ready now, there really will be no need for a 39 year Datsyuk. He can skate away into Red Wings lore and be the first player to have his # retired in the new Arena (which BTW I am still calling Cadillac Centre© until it is officially named.) Not that I am wanting him to retire, but he seems to be getting more and more fragile each year, I'd like to see him retire healthy, and not because of an injury.

Not a bad lineup I'd say! Pretty full of NHL'rs on both sides. Is it just me or does that Larkin - Richards - Tatar line look deadly? Wish I could watch it, but I will be traveling back to Detroit for my weekend of work, 80 hours in three days! But hopefully I can find it somewhere on the "Tune-In Radio" app! Let's Go Wings! This game means nothing, but doesn't it really? Would be nice to give our former coach a nice pre-season whoop up!

Sheesh, other markets sports writers just cannot find something better than the "Too Old" shtick? It seems like we've been too old since I was 20! And that was 25 years ago! I think that these "writers" that keep saying this and probably wishing the Wings would just go away, have a rude awakening for them when our kids come up permanently. I really hope Danny D gets back soon, but I am confident that if he is off the entire projected time, it won't be too bad. Last season XO, and Marchy proved they were NHL caliber players, Jensen made a great impression on the NHL this pre-season and Spoul looked pretty solid the one time I saw him. I want Danny back soon, but I am not too worried if he has to take the entire time off. (crosses fingers)

It's Me!!!! Seriously! I just realized that there are better ways to put my ball in someone court without kicking the other guy off the playground! In the end, it's all about winning! Do I hope Petr takes the reigns? Heck ya! But like I said before and in past posts, from a business viewpoint, it may be in the Wings best interest to have Howard re-establish himself as the legit #1. Not that I don't want Petr to make all the $$$ he can, but IMO, and I could be wrong, if he only plays 30 games it may cost us a lot less to re-sign him rather then if he played 50+ and win the starting job...that would mean a HUGE raise.

I agree! I know there are preseason rules that a team must dress so many veterans, but IMO, if a player is no doubt going to make the team, why should you have to play him in these scrimmages? I understand getting the player ready for the season, but these injuries seem to happen more times that not in today's NHL, and it just seems that I the NHL wants it's star players healthy to start the season, they should amend that pre-season game rule requiring veterans. Besides, isn't the preseason more about your prospects trying to make the club moreso than your veteran just gong through some motions? Not saying the vets don't try hard, but really, there are certain players that know their jobs are not on the line or bubble if you would...

I am most definitely pro-Mrazek, but even I saw that he was still a bit inconsistent over the pre-season. Jimmy played well, most likely well enough to get the start in the season opener. Although I have been on team Mrazek for the past few years, I have said before that from a business standpoint, it may be better for Jimmy to re-take his #1 spot so it cost a bit less to re-sign Petr this summer. I am sure he will still get a nice raise, but it couldn't be too much, could it? Anyhow, I am all for the tandem for this season, unless Petr just takes over in a huge way, then it will be fine to entertain calls at the deadline about Howard, but even if Petr did take over, it still would be a good idea to have them both for the playoffs, if we get there. Despite my past opinion's of Jimmy, I do acknowledge his usefulness and the fact that when healthy, he can be dominant in certain games. The apparent lack of shootouts that is perceived to be this season should help him as well. We've never gone wrong with a 1a 1b tandem before, why not ride it until a decisions HAS to be made!

Well, that'll probably mean a kid will be on the roster to start the season (like someone said earlier, hopefully not Lashoff) as the #7 or #6 maybe? I didn't watch but I heard the XO played great in his game, and Jensen has been doing his best to prove he is ready for a shot at the NHL. I hope its only 4 weeks, but lets hope it doesn't linger on too long! We need Danny D out there, that's for sure!

I certainly hope all these tweaks and aches get worked out before the season gets into full swing! We may get to see some of the kids because of these little injuries, but it sure would be nice to see what our full NHL roster can do!

Sent a Visnovsky packing and trying out a Zidlicky!

Kickazz, Nope didn't say that at all. What sucks is, back when all these contracts were handed out (and I understand the whole cap circumvention reasons) some of us as fans didn't really realize how long the contracts really were and now we all are and unfortunately these players just won't be but hollow images of themselves in 5-6 years. They cannot retire due to the CBA rule before their contract is up either, but I just said that it was nice that the new CBA put a cap on the lengths of these contracts. Just think how the Minnesota fans are going to feel in 5 or 6 years when they realize that Suter and Parise still have a 4 or 5 more years on their contracts. Hell, Jersey is still paying Kovalchuk until when, 2023 and beyond? At first we are all just happy that they signed and had a smaller cap hit, then you realize, damn, that is a long time! Z definitely does not suck, just that when the OP said Larkin just may be captain when Z leaves, it made me realize Z isn't leaving for at least 6 more years. Probably a good thing, just when you realize how long the contracts were, it kinda hits ya in the face for a minute. 9, forgive me, the way you asked if I was serious about going back through the thread its like you already pulled something up and was ready to spin it in your usual way...

Let it be known, I did not bring him up! Franzen looked ok, typical of a guy who was out for 9 months and was just trying to survive the night. Didn't hear his name too much other than talking about his injury. Guess it was a good thing. We'll see what he says about the day after his first game. Manxy, there was nothing negative about what I said. Did I say we are STUCK with him? No, if all you want to do is attack, please ignore and move along.