YoungGuns1340

Which is why I said: I never said I would take Hudler over any of them. What I DID say was that there isn't as much difference between Hudler and those guys as there are between the Hudler=healthy scratch and Gagner=untouchable claims that fans of both respective teams make. Edit: And just to add, If Hudler had been playing on a team like Edmonton, Florida, or Washington, he too would've been getting NHL experience under his belt at age 20, 21, etc, instead of tearing it up in the AHL, and he too would just be entering his prime at age 24 with a few seasons of top 6 minutes under his belt already, instead of only breaking in at age 23 with single digit ice time. And again, that is not to say Hudler is among the elite youth in this league, but it is most certainly to underline the fact that he is performing at a very impressive rate all things considered, a rate which is highly underestimated by many Wings fans. (And if you ask me, it simply stems from the fact that hes 5'8 and people cant seem to get past that...) Edit to my edit: Hudler isn't in his prime either..

How come everyone is overlooking the fact that Toews has only 64 NHL games of experience, 0 of which are playoff games and virtually no veterans to look to help him out (Lang? Campbell? Are you serious?). As sad as it is, a kid with less than 1 season of NHL experience is now an NHL captain. And thats great for Toews. He deserves it and he has a good head on his shoulders. But I think Chicago f***ed up here in not adding some experienced leadership to that roster last season. Now Toews is going into an 82 game season which he hasn't even experienced before. Nearly 20 extra games on the season and a possible post season appearance is something this kid has no idea about.. That said, I'm gonna be as impressed as hell if this kid can actually still produce well and keep his collective teams head up when they're in the middle of a losing streak, or about to step onto a playoff sheet of ice..

If he scores a lot, I want to see him lead the Wings in points, beating out both Datsyuk and Hossa for 100+ points. If he doesn't lead the team, I want it to because he dedicates himself so much to defense that he leaves no doubt who the Selke winner will be. If he does both, then I want him to get the Lester B...

Similar to Fedorov? Not even close. I'd liken it more to Schneider leaving. Hossas 32 game stint with the Pens is stuff trivia questions are made of.

There are definitely players who scored more with less time. You can see players from my other posts that at least 5 players in the 40-50 point range did. Sakic, Horcoff, and Lupul off the top of my head as well scored more with less time, but that statistic is more to point out what I said in my original statistical post, that Wings fans are spoiled. In particular, take a look around the league at how teams value players like Booth, Gagner, Semin, Wolski, Dubinsky, and Weiss, and then take a look at how Hudler compared with those guys in points per minute. A lot of those guys are considered untouchable (within reason) by their clubs, and while there are typically more pros than cons when you compare them to Hudler, there isnt enough between those guys and Hudler to make them of "high value" while Wings fans consider a slightly lesser player than some of those guys to be "trade bait" or "worth about a bag of pucks". The only explanation for it is that Wings fans are spoiled to the point where our "junk" literally would be another teams treasure..

Cubs season ticket holders get first pick over Wings fans? Remind me why the Wings players and organization should be supporting Chicagos economy, hockey, and baseball clubs by playing in this thing again? The Red Wings get enough National coverage as it is. Now they're just being used as a puppet to attract the casual viewer to the NHL, and the Blackhawks in particular. There should be 20,500 tickets made first available to Wings fans, and if after a certain date they aren't all bought up then they can go to Hawks and Cubs fans, and then whoever else wants them after that. I doubt Wings fans would snap up that many tickets, but at least give them the chance to..

Heres another interesting stat. 192 forwards had more Total TOI than Jiri Hudler did. Of those 192 players, Hudler scored as much or more than 78 (40%) of them.

Personally, I think Wings fans are just spoiled... All 2007/2008 NHL forwards scoring 40-50pts in at least 60 games (1 point per X minutes) Nilsson 24.1 Jokinen 24.8 (14 of his 42pts coming in 20 games centered by VL) Cogliano - 24.9 Cammalleri - 24.9 Gagner - 25.3 Hudler - 25.4 Semin - 25.4 Wolski - 25.5 Cleary - 26.1 Umberger - 26.4 Legwand - 26.5 Recchi - 26.8 Reinprecht - 27.6 Kunitz - 27.7 Bertuzzi - 28 Kotalik - 28.1 M. Koivu - 28.3 Langenbrunner - 28.6 Booth - 28.8 Pavelski - 28.9 Fedorov - 29.3 Shanahan - 29.4 Straka - 29.5 Hecht - 29.6 Marleau - 29.6 Dubinsky - 29.7 Samuelsson - 29.7 Comrie - 29.8 Penner - 30 Hartnell - 30 Weiss - 30.9 Hagman - 31.1 Kozlov - 31.9 Perrin - 32 Guerin - 32 Steen - 32.7 Fisher - 33 Halpern - 33.2 Satan - 35.8 Madden - 36.2 Hunter - 36.4 Guess how many of these players make multiple millions a year...

Because he has as much offensive talent as the majority of 2nd liners who get paid 3.5-4M.

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2008...s-therrien.html Three more years of reffing being the only reason the Pens don't go 82-0-0, 16-0-0

As a side-note, Hossa could move into the Top 25 Active Goal scorers list, if he passes Martin Gelinas (309) and Bobby Holik (322). My guess is he'd need about 35 goals to do that, which is very doable.

Maybe to Wings fans it wasnt due to the sour attitude about his departure and the fact that he had scored the majority of those 400 with one team. He also scored it as a Duck when they had yet to have any measurable success (or fanbase) for that matter. It'll be all fanfare for Hossa. The excitement of scoring his 300 on a team that is marked by historical accomplishments and Hall of Fame players should be a big deal... ..Especially since he'll be the only 300 goal scorer on the entire Red Wings squad.

All the players that "hated" Babcock were lazy bums in the twilights of their careers who hated that they were actually asked to use the body and back-check. The fact that they "hated" Babcock was an indication of the fact that Babs was doing what a good coach should do, i.e. getting the most out of his players. If Therrien played any part in the loss of Hossa, Malone, and Roberts, you can be sure it wasn't because Therrien was asking them to develop stronger work ethics, as all those guys are hard workers and complete players as it is. As for Babcock, I started liking him when he kicked our asses all around the ice in 2003, managed to take an underdog team to within one game of the finals (much better than Therrien did when comparing the Ducks competition plus their roster on paper), and then got a team chock full of skilled Europeans to play a grinding style game. Therrien took the best Eastern team on paper to the Stanley Cup Finals. Basically, he did what he should have done with a roster like he had, and any competition in the East being already eliminated (Montreal) or with significant injuries (Philly).

I bet he doesn't score his first goal til Game 6. Through the first 5 games, he'll have 14 assists. And the NHL media will call him a bust so far in a Wings uniform.

33 posts and no one has made mention of how disappointed they are we didn't get him..

Pominville already is a star. Just not to the media.

Maltby is not going to sit out games unless he is injured. Period. The Red Wings don't treat their (nearly) life-long veterans that way. The coaching staff would notify Maltby long before any such action occurred, and Maltby would pick up his game accordingly. And he won't be traded either. Kopecky will be 12th once healthy. Hes a great friend of Hossas, and he'll play an important role if the Wings want to lure Hossa into taking a paycut on the long-term. As such, he'll be treated as a kept asset this season. The coaching staff also sees something in him similar to Dallas Drake, for whatever reason. Not to mention the Wings will likely bank on Hossa teaching Kopecky a thing or two on the bench during games. Helm will be down in GR unless someone gets traded out of the current 12, which is highly unlikely at least up until the deadline frenzy, we have a decimated roster, or until post-deadline when the roster limitations are removed. Helm is 21 years old. It is beyond rare that the Red Wings give a 21 year old a full-time position at that age. This is the Red Wings. You get a spot if you can provide something of need, not on talent alone. While Helm is talented, he is far from needed. Abdelkader will be down in GR without a doubt. Leino will as well, barring an explosive training camp. Downey and Mac are basically only going to be on call for injury duty or in extreme cases where the coaching staff expects an excessively dirty game.

Filppula doesn't have too many legs to stand on it seems. Val Filppula: Age 24, 19G, 17A, 36P, +28, 78GP, ? Nigel Dawes: Age 23, 14G, 15A, 29P, +11, 61 GP, 587k Daniel Paille: Age 24, 19G, 16A, 35P, +14, 77GP, 1.1M Brooks Laich: Age 25, 21G, 16A, 37P, -3, 82GP, 2.0M Matt Stajan: Age 24, 16G, 17A, 33P, -11, 82GP, 1.75M Brooks Laich is most comparable at around 2M, but that was on a 3 year contract. I'm guessing something in the neighborhood of 2.0-2.3 if we sign him for 4 years or more, and something in the neighborhood of 1.6-1.9 if we sign him to the 2 year deal, with or without arbitration.

Some threads on LGW.com are a testament to the wealth of hockey intelligence on this board. This isn't one of those...

Its not just about talking vs. keeping your mouth shut. A guy's presence alone can affect the locker room atmosphere. Like the article says, certain players are going to feel threatened. And on top of that, how does it make the leaders of the team feel to know that the team needs to call in support because their leadership isn't quite enough. As for the article/idea itself, I agree more or less. Its hard to bring in a big "leadership" presence at the deadline when you already more or less have your lockerroom pecking order established. Its also hard to bring in a leadership presence regardless of when or how when you have a room full of big egos. I think the point more or less is to know when not to, and when to stick with what you have and ask the players you already have to step up. Adding Drake was a good move for the Wings because although they already had their team more or less established at the time, they're a team of teammates, friends, and professionals, unlike some of the egomaniacs around the league. That sort of move could've been ineffective for a team like Ottawa that clearly didnt have enough limelight to go around this past season...

Not shooting the messenger here, but I hate that so much of this crap is available on the internet nowadays and that people actually take it seriously. This "rumor" is from bleacher report which is basically an amateur sports blog filled with bad writing, poor grammar, and made up rumors that are based on dream rosters rather than actual sources. This kid doesn't even have a source. And if he/she wants to be taken seriously, they should try actually writing in a professional manner as opposed to something you quickly jot down on a message board like this one. /rant

Emery is a victim of racism so he goes and signs in the KHL? That makes sense. He couldnt get signed here so he went and signed with a league located in a country whos culture is often times more blatantly racist than North America is..

Gerard Gallant a possibility for coach?

What truth? That Filppula is more skilled than Draper? Good for Filppula. Is Filppula was so skilled, he'd be getting 2nd unit PP time and be putting up points in spite of who hes playing with. A 2nd line center does not need All-Star superstars to help him break 40 point. Take a look at Hudler. He gets nothing but scratch for ice time, yet he can still put up 40+ points. Thats because hes got the offensive instincts to do so. Filppula doesn't.

He never quite got back because he was stuck with a huge cage on his face that made it difficult for him to see the puck. Kronwall was similarly atrocious when he had the cage on his face after getting his nose nearly chopped off. That has to be taken into account.