therock48880

I love your sarcasm and I agree with you. What bugs me is, people are acting like he's the second coming of St. Louis and we've even seen Theo's name thrown around. If he was actually that talented of a player, wouldn't he be getting more than 13 1/2 minutes per game? Maybe posters on lgw know something Babcock doesn't. (sarcasm) Don't get me wrong, I love what he's done and I love his offensive potential, but he is NOT a complete player at this time. Has he improved defensively? Yes. Has his speed improved some? Yes. Can he still get better? Yes. But right now, I still think Franzen is a better all-around player.

No, he has more OFFENSIVE talent, no doubt. But once again, in the playoffs I'd prefer a big bodied, defensively sound player with soft hands that can score over a small bodied slightly better offensively talented player. Like Leftwinger says, though, none of the debate really matters. Like I've mentioned (and I think you have too), none of this matters. Hudler will either sign a deal or go to arbitration. I highly doubt that he's going anywhere.

I could argue that Hudler's double minor caused Detroit to lose game 5 against the Pens and his hooking penalty with 1:43 left in game 6 against the Pens almost cost them that game too. You could also blame Datsyuk for not clearing the puck at the end of game 6 against the Pens, etc... The blame game can go on forever and ever. It's kinda pointless, imo. I'm simply saying that if I have the choice between a talented big player and a talented small player, I'll take the big one. You guys want the small one. That's fine.

This would be one of those situations where stats don't tell the whole picture. At the end of a playoff game that is close, when the officials swallow their whistles, I'd much rather have a large bodied, defensively responsible player like Franzen out there than Hudler. I would imagine Babcock agrees since Hudler is still only getting 13 minutes a game or so. Plus, it's not like Franzen is useless on the power play. His big body is very valuable down low. Once again, I'm not trying to demean anything Hudler has done. I'm just saying if I could only choose one of them, I'd take Franzen. Judging by ice time, I'd say Wing's management would agree. In an ideal world, they'd both stay. Plus, what would I do with my "Feed the Mule" t-shirt if he were gone? Personally, I could see Flip and Lilja being traded and Hudler going to arbitration and the Wings keeping both of them. Of the three of them (Hossa, Franzen, Hudler) I'd say Hossa and Hudler are the most likely to return. My reasoning is simply based on the last contract that Franzen's agent negotiated.

I'm not holding anything against anyone. I'm just saying that during the playoffs, when games become more physical and there are less penalties, I'd rather have Franzen. That's nothing against Hudler. Those pointing out Hudler's stats can relax, I'm not saying anything negative about him. Franzen had 18 points in 16 games in last year's playoffs. Realistically, I didn't think he was 100% in the SCF either so those numbers are a little skewed imo. Once again, Hudler supporters, I'm not slamming Hudler in any way. I love how he's playing.

The fact this conversation is even taking place is a testament to the improvement Hudler has shown this year. However, in the playoffs, there's no doubt in my mind that Franzen is my choice. Playoffs, as a rule, aren't about power plays and a lot of Hudler's success has come on the power play. I don't really think this will become a problem, though. With him being restricted, I can't imagine anyone signing him to a contract that Detroit wouldn't be willing to match. If they did, they'd have to give up too many draft picks. I'd go the arbitration route with him.

I keep thinking back to how Kopecky was playing the few weeks before he was injured. He was becoming a physical force on the ice and his ice time was climbing. Whenever someone has a serious knee injury it will often take them up to two years to regain their form, not so much physically as mentally. For those who don't remember him playing well: http://blog.mlive.com/state_sports/2008/04...ps_red_win.html Considering it hasn't even been a year since he blew his knee out, (April 2, 2008) I think we need to exercise some patience as fans.

I'd like to keep him in Detroit but not for more than 4 million. For some reason I've had nagging doubts about his offensive outburst since he began his tear. Is he as good as he's looked the past 11 months or is he the second coming of Dustin Penner? I guess what I'm saying is, I agree with you.

It's funny, if you go to letsgopens.com they complain most of their gameday thread about the Wings getting favorable calls and they cry about how the broadcasters drool over the Wings. How can they be that blind? I missed a portion of the first period and the SECOND I turned the TV on, they had a close up of Crosby. I get so tired of seeing him, especially considering he probably isn't even the best player on that team.

I think Draper has lost a step or two and that's the reason his stats and play have dropped considerably this year. Just my opinion. I'd say Helm, Hossa, and Lebda are the top 3. Not sure what order, though. I haven't seen Kindl much but I hear he can skate quite well.

Hate is a pretty strong word. The only people that I can think of that hate the Wings are Ohalloran and Bettman. Everyone else is just envious, imo.

And a goalie is the last line of defense. There's no arguing that they need to crank up the effort defensively. No one is doubting that. It just bugs me when people are thinking that everything's great with Ozzie and places the blame solely on the dmen. It's a combination, imo. Both are playing like crap.

I didn't conveniently leave anything out. My post said I was talking about regular season stats. Yes, he played very well in the playoffs, but according to the philosophy that his play this year is a result of poor play by the dmen, some could argue that his success last year was due to great play by dmen. Their defensive effort was great last year in the playoffs, which made his job easy. (before people read half the post and freak out, I said that to make a point and don't believe it's true) See how flawed the logic of blaming his play on the dmen is? The simple fact is, he played well last year and so did the dmen, this year he's not playing as well and neither are the dmen. It can't all be placed on the dmen and it can't all be placed on Ozzie. However, he is not playing well as he did last year.

Remember the Hasek vs. Cujo year? That had to set a record for the most goalie threads and the most people suspended from the site for inappropriate comments. Ahhh, the good ole days!

First of all, notice I said, "It seems" when I said he lets in a soft goal per game, which indicates that I realize that isn't true every single game. However, there are games in which he lets in more than one soft one. Secondly, a .900 save percentage for a goalie is not "damned good". In fact, it's below average. His save percentage in the last 12 months of regular season play is under .900. If you don't find that alarming, I'm happy for you. However, I'm assuming that most people wouldn't want a goalie with a sub .900 save percentage going into the playoffs. Thirdly, a game in which he allows 2 goals on 4 shots has a VERY MINIMAL impact on seasonal save percentage since it was only four shots faced. I DO like the word "hyperbole" though. You used it twice and used it correctly both times. (I'm an english teacher) I noticed that everyone is quick to blame the dmen when the save percentage is bad, does that mean Ozzie should get no credit for what he did at the beginning of last year? After all, it was great defensive play in front of him right? (that was sarcasm and I don't believe either case to be true) But how can he be blameless when the save percentage drops and get all the credit when his save percentage is stellar? The truth is in the middle somewhere. He excelled last year because he was playing well and so were the dmen. This year he's struggling because he's not playing as well and neither are the dmen. He CAN'T be blameless in this mess.

I've watched every game and Ozzie lets in a soft goal at least once per game, it seems. I fail to see how that's NOT his fault. Granted, the defensive lapses lead to some goals that aren't his fault, but he's got to stop letting in ones that he should stop. Finally, if we think back, an alarming trend has taken place with Osgood. He started last year on fire and his save percentage was hovering around .930 at the mid season point. He finished the year with a .914. In other words, his save percentage dropped quite a bit in the second half of the season, which resulted in his season percentage to drop. I don't have the time, nor the energy to figure out his save percentage in the second half of the year but it must have been around .900. This year it's at .880. So, in the past full regular season of hockey, his save percentage is under .900. It's time people quit making excuses and realize that right now, his play is a very serious threat to the team's chances of repeating.

The answer to the drop in ratings is pretty simple. Look who the fans voted as player of the game last night via text messaging, Aaron Downey. There is simply not enough physicality on that team. Did you guys notice that Kopecky picked up his physical play last night? Would that have happend if Downey wasn't there? I doubt it. Detroit is a blue collar city and we are watching white collar hockey. I'm not just talking about fights either. There were no fights last night but in the second period the fans were as energetic as they've been all year long. Last year in the playoffs, the Wings were extremely physical. Where are those bone-crunching hits from Kronwall that energized the team and the fans last year? As I was watching the game last night swearing at Ott, I realized how much I'd love it if he was on the Wings. That's the type of element that this team is missing. Having said all of that, we still have the defending Stanley Cup champions and they have a great record this year. Hopefully as the regular season nears its end, the energy level and physicality of the team will match what they had last year.

The thought crossed my mind on the Ott penalty to pull Conklin once the Wings were controlling the puck. I know it was a little early in the game for that but the Ducks did it a few years ago in the playoffs and it worked well. It's all moot now, the Holmstrom penalty pretty much seals this one.

It's sure a good thing that blatant elbow to the head wasn't called at center ice where everyone could see it.

This is the worst game Draper has played all year. And that's saying something.

Dallas 2 Ohalloran 2 (for Dallas) Detroit 2 I can't understand why this guy is allowed to be a ref for any red wing game.

That's my understanding also.

I wonder if Franzen's history of difficult negotiations will come into play here. With his emergence the past year (remember it's still only been one year that he has been an offensive force) I wonder if he'll be looking to break the bank. Kinda the opposite of what Hossa did last summer. He's already won the cup so why wouldn't he chase the big payday? It's those nagging thoughts that make me wonder if Hossa will be targeted next by Holland.

There's language in the cba that doesn't allow a player's salary to decrease more than a specified percentage from year to year. Erat had his contract revoked as a result of this rule, I believe.

Lidstrom's status could play a part by then, though. His contract expires after next season.