gcom007

Yes, they could've easily won, but the reality is that they didn't. And that we were up 3-1 and still found a way to lose the series is very telling of not only that the Wings still have holes, but respectfully, that the Blackhawks were a better team than a lot of people wanted to give them credit for. And if we're going to reference the BS penalty shot, we should be fair and remember that the only reason game 7 went to overtime is because of a BS no goal in our favor. Otherwise Hawks win in regulation. And we were still losing when the original penalty shot was called. Even if it hadn't been called and say we score that goal, all that happens is game 6 goes to overtime in which either team could've won. That's how bounces go. Bottom line to me is that Chicago was set up to lose the series while we were set up to win it after four games, yet we found a way to lose and Chicago found a way to win. There were some tough bounces for both sides along the way, but I think it's pretty clear that the better team won that series, and I think it's pretty fair to say that the Hawks weren't at their best through the first four games, and all credit in the world to the Wings, they rallied around it and took advantage of it. But the Hawks got their act together and found a way to win, bottom line. That's what Stanley Cup champion teams do. That said, I think it's reasonable to say that this Wings team in general didn't have a chance against the Blackhawk's team that beat them, and that was the real Blackhawk's team. If they had played more like they did the last three games the whole series, we would not have gone up 3-1 and they probably would've beaten us in 5 or 6. But to be clear, I'm not saying that so much to take away from the Wings, as I think they played well any way you shake it. But again, I just think the Blackhawks were a much better team than people wanted to give them credit for.

So Lecavalier at $4.5 million for 5 years is handcuffing the team and whatever absurd contracts Holland was about to give Parise and Suter for far longer at twice the price were...what then?

I don't think anyone's arguing (well, at least...) that Holland wasn't a great GM at one point. What a lot of people are noting is that as we have moved far enough into the new era where we really started feeling the weight of the cap, Holland's struggled to show that he can maneuver well in free agency or with other teams via trade. That is a real problem, right now. It doesn't matter that once upon a time he did this or that; "this or that" from "way back when" have no bearing on "hear and now." Hear and now, he can't figure out how to sign or trade for difference makers, and he's tried plenty. Holland's let people slip away that he shouldn't. He continues to cling to players he shouldn't. He overpays for mid-level talent based largely it seems on familiarity. He tries to underpay for high-level talent, which ultimately has failed every time. And when he fails, he's the king of revisionists, make no mistake. That guy finds a way to reshape everything that happened as part of some master plan, and it must be working, because there's plenty of non-critical thinkers who keep falling for it and praising Holland because of what he did in another era now long past us. Oh, I guess it's easy forgetting in an instant that Holland was desperate to throw $9 million plus at both Suter and Parise last summer. Oh, that's right, I remember now, Holland is so smart for not overpaying for free agents! Now that we didn't sign them... "We like our team." I'm not trying to take anything away from what Holland has done, but if he was as great of a GM as people want to paint him to be in this cap era, he would not be struggling so much in the free agency and trade markets. You can say all you want about what he did in the past, but no one willing to be objective can say that Holland has shown that he has a strong handle, let alone any handle, on helping this team via trade or free agency lately. And like it or not (for the sake of some of ever-shifting argument), trade and free agency are still very important parts of this game.

I don't like defending Sammy, but I doubt it's really his choice if this is indeed an issue. If the rule is there for a reason and he happens to be affected by it, how is that his fault? That Holland threw this guy $3 million a year last summer is what should really grind people's gears.

Cleary at $3 million for 3 years but we can't do $4.5 million for five years for Lecavalier? I get why people defend Holland, but seriously? Seriously? We'll pay a guy who spends half his ice time on his knees $3 million for 3 more years because we're worried about the "pace" of a guy who's ten times the player Cleary ever was?

Why are you disappointed in him? He obviously believes he can play for 5 more years and he doesn't want to move his family again. That's a pretty reasonable thing to want, and that he was willing to sign for a very reasonable $4.5 million is also telling that he wasn't out for the money, as he probably could've gotten close to that much in less years of playing. On a 2-3 year deal, he's easily still a $6 million and up caliber player, so 5 and $4.5 isn't bad at all, and it'll be even easier in those 4th and 5th years when the cap gets back up to around $80 million. Again, I don't think Vinny will put the Flyers over the top as there are other issues at play, but I think he could've gone a long way to putting the Wings over the top the next few years. This frustrates me a whole lot more than not signing Parise and Suter. I gave no f*** about not signing those two individuals, but this is just very frustrating any way you shake it. That Sammy was signed to a multi-year deal for $1.5 less last year just hurts my brain, two-year term or not. I've got a feeling that Holland's going to have to have a hell of a weekend if he doesn't want to lose the faith of those that still believe that the "best GM in the business" isn't just resting on his laurels and a strong scouting staff.

When we sign the guys we do at what we do and then I see deals like this, I wonder if Holland even tries. I don't know how people can continue to defend him when he seems to so clearly be unable to maneuver well with free agents anymore. Lecavalier at $5 million for 5 years at worst wouldn't have been as bad as Sammy for $3 million, ever. That he went to Philly for $4.5 though is even sillier. Franzen has close to a $4 million cap hit and he's already more worthless than Vinny would likely be in his 4th and 5th years. At this rate, I think we'll be lucky if we can sign Brunner again. And by "at this rate," I don't mean one guy that we didn't before free agency even began, I'm talking about the last four off-seasons of failing to truly make this team better via free agency or trade. I get that development and the draft are vitally important, more than ever in the cap era, but it takes a fool to think development alone will put you over the top. Clearly Holland doesn't believe that it'll work, otherwise he wouldn't pursue anyone, so don't even try to kid yourselves into thinking his schtick about being focused on the draft and development after he comes up empty is anything more than lip service to his local lapdogs at MLive and the Free Press. Again, what shouldn't worry anyone is whether or not Holland believes you need to be able to add NHL talent to your roster via trade or free agency. What should cause you to just shake your head is that Holland just doesn't seem able to get that job done anymore, and it's a shame. Any team built around Datsyuk and Zetterberg with decent goaltending is close to being a contender. We saw that clearly in the last playoffs. But it's going to continue to go to waste if Holland doesn't pull up his britches and take some chances. So what if deals don't always work out? For the love, grow up and deal with it, that's life! Maybe Lecavalier had other reasons to go to Philly, but at this moment, given what is known, it's hard to imagine. He doesn't automatically make them a contender by a long-shot, but if he had signed with the Wings, after what we saw from our young guys and what he'd add, I'll be damned if I wouldn't be very, very confident heading into the playoffs the next couple of years at least, probably more. But as of now, it's hard to have confidence in that because once again, I just don't have confidence in Holland's ability to make the moves that will put us over the top, and we're just too close to keep wasting opportunities.

Lecavalier just realized he's set to make over $30 million doing nothing. Perhaps he's decided to retire.

Oh, to be young...and stupid naive.

Maybe, maybe not. He's still got a great goalie at a descent cap hit, albeit forever. And it was probably better to not consult with Luongo if you consider that he'd likely have a reaction that could be a deal-killer. Gillis has already had enough slip through his fingers, his best chance of getting a return for one of those goalies was moving Schneider, and the pickup isn't exactly terrible considering his back was pretty much up against the wall. Edmonton was offering more supposedly, but I'm sure he had his reasons for not moving him there. All in all though, I think it will be easier to persuade Luongo to play along at this point than it would've been before the deal. And Gillis made the point that they don't often get the opportunity to draft that high. If he can get Luongo to play ball, and I think he will, this won't go down as such a bad end to the drama. It wasn't ideal, but the longer it goes on, the worse it gets for all parties involved in every way.

Aww, that's cute.

I was just about to post the same...his entertainment choices could use some beefing up too. Fast and Furious and Vampire Diaries?!? I mean, has he never heard of Breaking Bad?!? Who cares let alone watches many movies anymore anyways? TV has just gotten too good.

That's been cracking me up for awhile.

Did all of you eagle-eyed observers not notice that every player is getting a #13 jersey today, I don't know, maybe because it's the 2013 draft?

When I heard "The Detroit Red Wings," I cracked up and instantly recalled how Holland was so adamant about not trading our first round pick at the deadline. I guess he'll trade it after all...

Really isn't surprising when you look at every angle of it. It's not like they haven't tried to move Luongo, and it's not like Luongo is truly a bad goalie. But I really can't imagine what's going through Luongo's head right now, let alone how he'll respond. I think it'll go better than some think though, just given how it went this year. If things were really going to explode, I think it would've already happened. I think it'll be weird, but I think he'll come around by training camp. If he comes out and plays solid, people will forget these few years ever happened and he'll be fine. At least until he implodes in another game 7... But seriously, I think half the drama from the situation comes from having two #1s in the room like they had. We should know after the Hasek/Cujo situation how "fun" that can get, and we also know that sometimes your contract makes it next to impossible to trade you, and you might have to come back and be the number one guy again. But that's gone now for Luongo, and what happens next is up to him. I'm no Luongo fan in general, never have been, but if he comes out and plays well next season for the Canucks and has a good Olympic run, he'll be fine. And again, as much as I'm not fan, I do think he's capable of playing his way out of this drama.

Except in game 7s, of course.

How weird must Luongo feel right now? And I think NJ just got a killer, killer deal. That's a very, very, very good move for the Devils.

Wow. Schneider to NJ for the 9th pick.

I think that'd be fine for 4-5 years, the $4 million. A bit high given what he's done sans one season, but it's not atrocious. Given how it's gone though, I still think they would've been better off trading him at nearly any point over the last couple of years. If you remember, that was the biggest thing I pushed for, as I thought he was more valuable to us as a trade asset than a player given the guys we already had. Still blows my mind that we're most likely going to lose him for nothing given that the writing has been on the wall for the most part for years. Agree or not, you have to expect that he's a 35-40 point guy, and you knew he'd most likely want to cash in on his next deal. When you already have Dats and Z and you have very little else in terms of trade bait, I think you trade Flip.

I have to bust your chops a bit for old times sake! And what do you think is a reasonable cap hit for him?

Are you going to join a new board when he leaves? And you know what's funny? I used to give you a lot of crap, and my perspective hasn't changed much about Flip, but it seems like I'm on the milder side of Flip-distaste. I'd be fine if he stayed for $3.5 million, maybe every $4 million a year or so. Any more than that on this team is just not a smart move especially with Datsyuk signed now, but eh, at $5 million or more, there's just no way. Two bad. He's not a strong offensive player but it's nice to have decent forwards who you can put out all the time and not have to worry about them being a defensive liability.

I heard that they're going to have a hard time trading his rights because he's determined to test the open market.

I'm sorry, but given that teams cap situation and the cap in general, I do believe that you have to be some sort of sincere dick to hold out for an extra $2 million over 8 years when you're already looking at well north of $50 million over the time period.

I don't want to say it, but there really are a lot of things to admire about the Blackhawks organization these days.