eva unit zero

Yeah, it's Osgood's fault he was playing for the second night in a row and the defense looked like s***. That's ALL Ozzie's fault, nobody else is to blame on that and the fact that the Wings won less than half of the faceoffs despite the fact they have three of the top thirty faceoff men in the league, including at least one of the top five, that's certainly to blame on the goaltender as well. Let's see, what else was Ozzie's fault? He kept the Wings in the game despite the fact they were being outplayed most of the game; he wasn't perfect but the Wings aren't that close to winning the game if not for Ozzie. And Conklin's GAA over his last six games is about 2.85 with a save percentage of .882 on 24.1 shots per game, 4-2-0. 16 goals against on 136 shots in 338 minutes played. Compared to Osgood's last six games: 3.30 GAA, .874, 26.2 spg, 3-2-1. 18 goals against on 143 shots in 327 minutes. So for those of you claiming Conklin is some kind of great goalie...his stats recently look like the 'kid down the block' numbers you are pointing out that Osgood has been putting up, that Osgood has also put up over the same period. And the Wings' defense has been better for Conklin than it has been for Osgood in terms of allowing chances, at least in the last few games.

Not only is Fedorov underrated in several categories, but Dats is overrated in a couple. The fact that Dats is 3 points higher than Fedorov in MOBILITY makes this rating a total joke.

No, I claimed that if he were Franzen's size and strength while still retaining his own skill level in all other areas he would be a better player than Jagr because of the following. Hudler is a better defensive player than Jagr ever was, better on faceoffs than Jagr ever was, a legitimate elite playmaker, and has a very good shot. He is a good skater. I claimed that he would be Jagr, but a better defensive player and better on faceoffs. You don't realize how skilled Hudler is, do you? I'm not exaggerating Hudler; you're underestimating Hudler.

No, he's not a great backchecker. But he's an above-average defensive forward, which is something Jagr never was.

I agree, Flip is the PRIMARY fault. But Sammy should have been able to play that situation properly. The fact that it ever even got to Osgood relied on TWO errors by Red Wing players, so blaming Osgood for a goal he had little chance of stopping is silly.

Sammy should have had the lane cut off with his stick; it's a combination of sweet Koivu and weak Sammy.

Flip and Sammy both. Not much the goaltender can do when the puck carrier is completely corralled off to the side and yet he's still allowed to cut across like that. Flip was weak when he turned it over and Sammy should have been able to use his stick to prevent the scorer from coming across and force him to the corner.

And that's why we keep the Sammy. Cause he sticks up for his teammates as well as scoring and playing the point.

A Cleary trade would be unlikely but if a team were specifically looking to trade for him, willing to give up a big package that worked well for the Wings, and Cleary was willing, then it could happen; his salary is, of course, one of the reasons the Wings would be willing to trade him.

If he were Franzen's size, he'd be much better than Jagr because Jagr could never backcheck or take faceoffs like Hudler does.

I've wanted Hudler to be the center and playmaker for Hossa's line since September. With Cleary...or Franzen...or Samuelsson...or anyone else. Doesn't really matter.

Offensively, Hudler is light years better than Franzen. He has a better shot, better stick skills, and he might be the best pure passer on the team. Franzen is a better hitter and defender, but that's about it.

Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Holmstrom, Cleary, Filppula, Draper, Maltby are all signed. So for those who are not, the order of priority should be: Hossa first if possible. Then Hudler. Then Franzen if possible. Then Samuelsson if possible. Kopecky is likely as he will sign for close to the league minimum. After that, if the Wings need to open cap space, they will most likely either trade Filppula and/or Cleary from forwards and Lebda and/or Lilja from the defense. Conklin may sign elsewhere, and if Larsson beats out Howard, don't expect to see Howard in Grand Rapids next season.

That's CLASSIC! As if he silently emerged from the shadows unnoticed and took the puck.

Hudler's "5" ranks him as a capable hitter. If I were to rank Datsyuk as a "7" or above I would be ranking him as a full-on power forward, which is inaccurate. He's an offensively very skilled player who is also very good defensively, who is better than Hudler physically. And as such, that is how I rated him.

Franzen for $4m....OVERPAID.

Franzen is a natural winger who was converted to center in Sweden and then moved back to wing in Detroit.

With regards to cap space... How, exactly, do you plan to do that? Hossa will cost somewhere between $5.5m and $8m. Franzen will cost between $3m and $5.5m. Total $8.5m-13.5m cap hit. By comparison, Flip costs $3m and Hudler will cost between $1.5m and $4m, meaning a total of $4.5m-$7m of cap hit. Flip and Huds combined could potentially cost LESS than Franzen ALONE. So it's possible that Hudler and Filppula cost the same as Franzen by himself. Given Franzen's history of tough negotiations and the fact that Hudler is the best player of the three and an RFA, so likely to be closer to the cheaper end, I'm changing your comparison for a more logical comparison. Hossa+Hudler+Filppula>Hossa+Franzen.

When Coffey was in Edmonton, he was actually playing a decent defensive game as well. His defensive game tapered off in the 90s, but he was much better defensively that Green when he was winning the Norris. And in 1995, his offensive numbers were much more impressive for a defenseman than Green's are this year, and he was at MINIMUM Green's equal defensively. Coffey had better than a PPG (58 points in 45 games) and led the team in scoring by 8 points over Sergei Fedorov's 50 in 42. That's significantly better offensive stats than Green has before considering that Green's team has two forwards scoring more points than Coffey's highest-scoring teammate, plus another with almost as many in fewer games. Green has a ways to go before he deserves Norris consideration. Lidstrom and Chara are the only two I think even deserve consideration. Lidstrom because he is easily the best, and Chara because he has outplayed the rest and many of the media have seemed to want to give it to someone else this season because Nick has not been deserving of a unanimous selection this year, so they feel that means he doesn't get a vote at all.

Simple answer? Because Kopecky has been playing better defensively recently than Draper and Maltby, who play on the PK unit regularly. He's also a MUCH better physical player. Giving him a shot on the PK is a reasonable thought based on that, and if he outperforms Draper and Maltby there, then why not keep him there?

I'm glad you have FINALLY come around.

Well, let's establish a few categories and give each player a rating. As there are 12 forwards per team, there would be 360 forward spots. So "First liner" level talent would be rating from 9-10, "Second liner" would be from 7-8, "Third liner" would be from 5-6, "Fourth liner" would be from 3-4, and "Minor leaguer" would be from 1-2. Of course, not every rating is equally important. So let's establish values for each rating. Skating-1, Shooting-2, Playmaking-2, Defense-3, Hitting-1, Work Ethic/Grit-1. This gives a total maximum rating of 100. I'm going to rate more than just Cleary and Franzen, also. Just a note; I rated the individual skills of each player before determining what the overall ranking was, although I did re-order the players after determining what the overall rating was based upon it. Datsyuk Skating: 9 Shooting: 9 Playmaking: 10 Defense: 10 Hitting: 6 Work Ethic/Grit: 8 Total: 91 Zetterberg Skating: 9 Shooting: 10 Playmaking: 9 Defense: 10 Hitting: 6 Work Ethic/Grit: 8 Total: 91 Hossa Skating: 10 Shooting: 10 Playmaking: 8 Defense: 9 Hitting: 5 Work Ethic/Grit: 8 Total: 86 Hudler Skating: 8 Shooting: 9 Playmaking: 9 Defense: 7 Hitting: 5 Work Ethic/Grit: 8 Total: 84 Filppula Skating: 9 Shooting: 6 Playmaking: 9 Defense: 9 Hitting: 5 Work Ethic/Grit: 8 Total: 79 Franzen Skating: 7 Shooting: 8 Playmaking: 6 Defense: 9 Hitting: 8 Work Ethic/Grit: 8 Overall: 78 Cleary Skating: 9 Shooting: 7 Playmaking: 6 Defense: 9 Hitting: 6 Work Ethic/Grit: 9 Total: 77 Samuelsson Skating: 8 Shooting: 8 Playmaking: 8 Defense: 8 Hitting: 5 Work Ethic/Grit: 7 Total: 76 Holmstrom Skating: 7 Shooting: 8 Playmaking: 7 Defense: 6 Hitting: 8 Work Ethic/Grit: 9 Total: 72 Kopecky Skating: 7 Shooting: 6 Playmaking: 6 Defense: 7 Hitting: 8 Work Ethic/Grit: 8 Total: 68 Draper Skating: 9 Shooting: 5 Playmaking: 6 Defense: 8 Hitting: 5 Work Ethic/Grit: 8 Total: 68 Leino Skating: 8 Shooting: 8 Playmaking: 7 Defense: 6 Hitting: 5 Work Ethic/Grit: 7 Total: 68 Maltby Skating: 8 Shooting: 5 Playmaking: 5 Defense: 8 Hitting: 7 Work Ethic/Grit: 8 Total: 67

2008-Shawn Horcoff won "fastest skater" and "puck control relay".

Quebec left because they had decent fan support with mid-priced tickets and no corporate support or hope of ever getting any. A second team in the province is unlikely to succeed due to the traditional addiction to the Habs. As far as Hartford...Hartford should not be considered. Do you know why? Between Boston, Ma and Washington, DC by car it is about 450 miles, or 7 hours and 45 minutes, covering a range that includes six NHL franchises as well as Hartford. Hartford is not even close to from the the largest or most isolated large city in this range, as it is almost exactly halfway between Boston and New York.

You are such an incorrigible **** when it comes to uncalled for player bashing.