YoungGuns1340

Decent fight...but McCarty lost...

Wow. That was uncharacteristic of Sammy - a well placed shot! Liljas a beast.

If I had a penny for every time Kopecky blew the clearing attempt..

Two Swedes screw it up at either end. Sedin fumbles the shot, Franzen blows the 3 on 2.

Wasn't Steen once deemed untouchable? Let this be a warning to you, Filppula fans.

Hudler doesn't work well with Z? And your evidence to support this is their great chemistry on the PP together - the only time they ever get the chance to play together? He goes downhill when he plays beyond the 3rd line? And you draw this conclusion from where? Hudler played all of 8 games last year at above the 3rd line TOI marker (about 16 minutes). With the exception of one occasion, none of those games came consecutively and most came about 5-8 games apart. This season, hes had all of 2 games at or above that marker. So based on 10 games getting 2nd line ice time over 1.25 seasons - none of which lasted for more than 2 games in a row - he can't play on the third line? Folks are still holding on to pre-CBA notions of how no small guys can compete. Fact is, Hudler is 24 years old and on the natural path to becoming more and more adept at handling NHL defenseman. Any sharp fan would notice how Hudler has become much harder to manage along the boards even for defenseman some 6-8 inches taller and 50 pounds heavier. Fact remains that some folks on here are loathe to admit that a tiny European is capable of being a regular scorer. Start supporting your arguments with fact as opposed to bias.

Nope. Not under this CBA.

Its actually the drafting I'm worried about. Drafting is huge under a salary cap. Whereas the Wings were able to dump a ton of money, time, and talent into scouting the highs and lows almost entirely on their own pre-cap, there are a lot of teams who are now doing the same, considering the money you put into scouting doesn't count against the cap. The Edler story is a prime example. Detroit doesn't have the market cornered anymore.

We aren't losing depth? We're just assuming that Helm and Leino are going to perform and produce like Sammy and Flip do? Heres you're scenario. Tell me how this "works" with a 55M cap: Homer (2.25) - Datsyuk (6.7) - Hossa (7) Hudler (2) - Zetterberg (7.5) - Leino (.88) Cleary (2.8) - Helm (.6) - Kopecky (.7) Maltby (.88) - Draper (1.58) - Abdelkader (.85) Mac (.5) Lidstrom (7.45) - Raffi (6) Kronwall (3) - Stuart (3.75) Ericsson (.9) - Lilja (1.2) Meech (.5) Osgood (1.4) Howard (.71) Total: 59.15 So lets keep Lebda and trade Lilja = a gain of 550k, trade Hudler - a gain of 2.0 (and its likely that hell earn a hell of a lot more with a simple trip to arbitration), and cut Hossa and Zetterberg down to Datsyuks price of 6.7 - a gain of 1.1M That leaves us with this roster: Homer (2.25) - Datsyuk (6.7) - Hossa (6.7) Cleary (2.8) - Zetterberg (6.7) - Leino (.88) Abdelkader (.85) - Helm (.6) - Kopecky (.7) Maltby (.88) - Draper (1.58) - Mac (.5) Downey (.5) Lidstrom (7.45) - Raffi (6) Kronwall (3) - Stuart (3.75) Ericsson (.9) - Lebda (.65) Meech (.5) Osgood (1.4) Howard (.71) Total: 56.0M Please tell me - because I'm dying to know - how the hell this scenario is going to work out. Even if you trade Cleary - who has a NTC - and keep Hudler - who at 2.0M is a bargain and will earn more than that in arbitration, you can be sure of it - your salary still comes out to 55.2M. And thats with Hudler, Hank, and Hossa taking paycuts, a loss of PKing skill on the backend and three lines up front that have seen a downgrade in either experience or all-around talent. Get over it. Hossa is gone. Finally - food for thought. The reason Hossa signed here on a discount is because WE RETAINED OUR ENTIRE CUP-WINNING ROSTER. Do you honestly think with the downgraded roster I just posted, hes really going to want to sign here long-term at a significant discount no less? right.

Or to hand out raises. Guys like Ericsson, Helm, and Kronwall won't be making a pittance for long. The Wings need to be very careful. Outside of Lidstrom, there isn't gonna be a ton of salary coming off the books due to retirement or paycuts.

Yes. Besides one little tally, he was invisible. Hossa got a goall, but he was nothing special tonight either.

Great game from the Wings all around.

Forget about the numbers Franzens gonna demand, Hudler is on his way to a 70+ point season..

Nice jinx!

Lets score a freaking empty netter, ok guys?

I guess Datsyuk realized he was too good to be tied with Hudler in scoring..

Its incredible how fast Draper is going into his late 30s..

DAMMIT! haha. Same production as Datsyuk, though. Thats sad..

HUDLER IS SECOND IN TEAM SCORING!

Our shooting has really been bad tonight. Too many missed or blocked shots.

Well you're not gonna get far relying on Maltby, Lebda, and Lilja to carry the scoring.

I think I just became more of a hockey fan!

I hate how the Wings ALWAYS take a penalty when theres traffic in front of the net.

Hudler is only one point shy of Datsyuk in points and games. Thats crazy..

Wow. Lids. You had all the time in the world and couldnt bury that??