gcom007

I just figured out why the Wings played so well last night. Flip wasn't in the lineup! Trade him.

I think Holmstrom and Maltby will do one more year each on the cheap. Lids will do at least another year. Maltby's not a bad guy to have around for a low price if he's up for another year and fine with a continually reducing role. He still does a lot of things right, which doesn't really translate to big numbers, but it doesn't translate to big mistakes either.

Nice goal there...good play by Miller to keep it in and Bertuzzi, man...for guys like him, it's just so easy to think that they've got no hands, but that guy has got some hands! He's an easy target for a lot of people playing the blame game, but I think he's a steal and a great asset at his salary. And that was a big goal...they rescued our momentum there...

"Tim McGraw???...Pretty good stuff..." -Mickey Redmond

Not gonna lie, this period has left me feeling optimistic again. What gives?

Damn. That was nothing short of "well-executed." Real nice save by Howard there to keep the 2 goal lead. This is a good period to build on...

Nice goal there. Working hard, not giving up. Looked like Bert chipped it out from Elliott, am I right?

I love these "articles" written by fans. They're hysterical. Though I don't know what in the hell the Free Press is doing spreading BS like that. I know the print-media industry is desperate, but this is just pathetic.

So put a guy on the Wing who can't score goals to save his life and pay him $3 million to boot? Really? Have you seen how he plays along the boards??? You know that thing about him falling all the time in the offensive zone and in the process botching rushes? That's what happens with Flip on the boards. He's had more success taking it down the middle. He's not strong on the boards, let alone his skates, at all. And at center his defensive ability is better utilized anyways, and generally he's been pretty good on the face-off, though it has been an issue lately.

Yeah, Babcock knows alright. That's why he said last night that moving forward: Dats - 1st, Z - 2nd, Flip - 3rd, Helm - 4th.

To those thinking we don't have a goal scoring problem: I don't think anyone within the NHL or the Wings organization will suggest that we didn't have a scoring problem since July 5th or so??? Williams, Eaves and Bert were nice pickups in a pinch, but they've acknowledged all along that our biggest weakness is goal scoring. What so many don't account for is that goal scorers often help goal scorers. People are getting all pissed at Dats and Z for lower production, but what do you expect? The idea that you can just pull out 3 guys who combined for 80 goals and expect there not to be a major difference bringing up a bunch of kids and 3 gambles is crazy. Aside from just guys being on the ice together that are known to produce, when you're scoring more goals, you've got momentum on your side which helps you keep scoring more goals. And when you set a team up centered around the scoring of 3-4 guys, it's a lot easier for teams to stifle that offense than an offense that has more balanced scoring prowess. The thing about stats is that they can be as telling as they are useless if you only observe them from the surface. The actual GAME that goes on in which these stats are produced must be accounted for on a deeper level to understand what the stats can actually tell us. And looking at the stats at a more holistic level is also incredibly important. Cherry-picking stats accomplishes nothing, and that's why so many are still surprised that the Wings have a scoring issue. Simply adding up goals and assuming guys will do more with more ice time is utterly and completely a misguided approach to analyzing the situation.

Bet it's been a bit of a letdown the last couple of years... I'm not saying I'm not in the same boat of being excited as obviously, I'm here and checking the sites too. But I'm definitely learning to lower my expectations...

That's certainly the flip-side of the coin I suppose. But even in thinking that, can you imagine teams in the hunt giving up core players to make moves that are really noteworthy? I think we'll see a bit of the "seemingly lateral" stuff as I've been phrasing it lately that a lot of people will question before scratching below the surface. Sometimes it's not the big moves that make the difference. Probably more of the time. And unfortunately for the hype train, those types of moves tend to not get people too excited.

We already blew it on the best deal out there. We should've traded him last year and used the cap relief to pitch a better deal to Hossa. Hossa at $5 mil >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Flip at $3 mil... In every way imaginable...

That's what makes me think that it's going to be a slow year in general. How many teams are going to want to make serious moves to mess with their teams when they're in the hunt? Just because a team claims to be having a fire sale does not mean we can assume that they are reasonable sellers. The price may just be too high for a lot of teams, especially when you consider trends of the last few years and continued uncertainty in the cap world.

You know, the more I think about it, (and I'm referring to the NHL on whole here) I'm thinking between the tight races in both conferences, the weird Olympic deadlines, and a trend towards fewer moves, we won't see a lot of major moves today or after the break.

Honestly, it's a little sad. I don't give the guy any credit for his ridiculous predictions, but he's done something right to actually be able to find a market for himself...

You know, Eklund gets paid money to do what we're doing...

I want to stress, I'm not saying Helm is some Flip replacement. I wouldn't move him from the line he's been with once Eaves is back. I'm just saying, to use scoring arguments against Helm who's more of a grinder is silly in general. But it's even sillier considering that they're more pertinently applied to someone who's supposed to be a scoring line center like Flip, who happens to have a terrible shot and next to no goal scoring ability. And it's all the more silly when Helm's a rookie got a $.598k cap hit while Flip's got a $3 million cap hit. Does Flip bring $2.4 million more in offense, particularly in goal scoring? And who's done more considering the minutes they get and the type of minutes? Helm, the PK guy with 8 goals and minimal minutes, or Flip, the PP guy with 6 goals and a ton of minutes?

And how does Flip shoot????????? How about all those Flip goals...... Despite power play time, generally better line-mates, and more minutes, Flip puts the puck in the net at about the same pace as Helm. Flip has a crap shot and is not a goal scorer. This is all the more true when you consider his minutes and power play time. Does Helm see as many minutes as Flip? Does he get power play time? Is Helm getting paid $3 million a year? Is Helm a rookie? Flip is a good player over all, but his strength is defense and we're deep there. Bringing in another guy with more natural goal-scoring ability would be a big plus. I'm not saying Helm is developed yet or an offensive powerhouse, but he's done real well with what he's been given. He's lived up to his contract and some while Flip still hasn't justified his contract.

I don't disagree about Larionov. He's a legend. But how many brilliant assists has Flip gotten this season? Seriously? How many great plays can you recall. If you go back and watch the replays, it's very clear to see that more often than not he's not the guy making the great play that leads to the goal so much as the guy cycling the puck. Like I've said, a point is a point and Flip has earned those, but play-makers OWN their points. Cycling the puck around does not make him a play-maker.

Again, Flip, Kronwall, or Datsyuk on LTI would not necessitate putting Brad May on waivers. The cap relief would be enough from any one of those guys to cover Lilja and some...

Damn good? No way. Not even close. Go watch the replays on all of his assists. Seriously. A lot of assists does not make him a play-maker. Igor Larionov: DAMN good play-maker. Flip: average at best.

No way. It shouldn't happen and it won't. Babcock has reaffirmed that again and again and said last night after the game that they were being split up moving forward. You don't take two of the best 2-way centers in the game and put them on the same line. It's a stupid move. You really want Flip passing to Franzen over someone like Zetterberg or Datsyuk??? Who will maximizes Franzen's goal-scoring potential, Flip or Dats/Z? It's a very, very obvious answer...

Eaves+May is still only $1 million so it wouldn't be enough. Kronwall would cover May so they wouldn't bother waiving him.