YoungGuns1340

We dont. Hes locked up for next year at another 4M hell no. Personally, even if the Wings do get Blake, Id still like them to take a long hard look at Prospal or Comrie.. Has anybody given any thought to Spacek? Hes signed for another year at 3.3M, but hes a pretty good stay at home guy who is a hard worker, can score some goals, and is pretty physical. Plus we have a good trade history with the Sabres...Holland and Regier are friends...

PS, Anaheim doesnt have the cap space to sign Forsberg and trade for Blake.

Im calling big time BS on both those rumors. First of all, Forsberg is going to the Avs or the Flyers. He wants a multi-year contract, and the Ducks cant afford to have anyone signed to longer than a one year contract or else theyll have a hell of a time re-signing Corey Perry, and no doubt hed get poached if hes not re-signed soon. As for Blake, that would be probably the worst BUSINESS move of all time. Anaheim and LA compete for an audience, and helping Anaheim win back to back cups will only leave LA with fewer fans than before, as all the casual fans will pile on the Anaheim back to back Champ bandwagoen. Not to mention, how is the captain of the Kings going to accept a trade to his teams biggest rival and then RE-SIGN with that team in the off-season? "Oh sorry guys. I didnt really give a s*** about how much you all hate the enemy. I was just looking out for number one and really wanted to win a cup with the team you all hate most. Forgive me?" I just dont see that flying. Way too many reasons that that rumor is BS..

Barely played this year? You should check your stats, man. Not to mention, if hes such a gimp, why was he able to play 6 games with the injury he has now? The only reason hes sitting out now is because the injury wasnt healing quickly. If this were the playoffs, hed still be playing..

Good. The Wings need a loss like this to remind them not to rest on their laurels...or however that saying goes. Weve won too many games lately by only showing up for one period. Its high time we got our asses handed to us by a bottom feeder.

Can you really blame this team for playing uninspired hockey? Its nearly 60 games in and theyve got the West all but locked up..

Toronto is beating Montreal (2nd best Eastern team) by 2 in the 2nd as well. Doesnt say much.

If last year was any indication, its that defensive depth is key. Look at how deep Anaheim was on defense..look at what happened when we went down a Dman. There are only 6 Dman, and people I think somehow forget that defenseman can contribute to offense too. Ideally, if I could only choose one, it would be a physical Dman with offensive abilities.

How can you make posts like this and continue to contradict yourself?? You say yourself that what is being discussed here is what happens if ONE Dman goes down. Then you use scenarios like Kronwall and Chelios going down = TWO Dmen or Ralf and Cheli going down = TWO Dmen. Basically, your entire argument is that 1) Blake cant replace Lidstrom if he goes down and 2) Blake cant replace two defenseman if they go down. Well, let me be the first to say this: DUH! Let me break it down for you. IF ANY Dman goes down or even any TWO Dmen goes down, the Wings are BETTER OFF having Blake on the squad to replace them, then they are having a #6/#7 guy on the squad to replace them or no one at all.

LA is going to make all kinds of claims about what they think Blake is worth. And it would be disrespectful to Blake to say hes only worth late picks and mid-level prospects, but the fact of the matter is 1) he'll be injured or just coming off injury at the deadline 2) he has an NTC and ONLY wants to go to contenders and 3) It is a widely known fact that he will NOT stay with the team he is traded to, and WILL return to the Kings after this season, meaning their isnt even the most remote possibility that hell be around for longer than July 1st. All that in combination makes me think Meech/Quincey, 2nd (that would turn into a 1st if we won the cup), and maybe an additional late pick (4th or lower). And IMO, why the hell not? Id rather have a Cup than a couple more prospects any day..

Opie, man, what are you smoking? First of all, IF (big if) Lidstrom and Raffy goes down, NOBODY short of Niedermayer and Pronger could replace those two. Second of all, where the hell are you getting this hypothetical??? Lidstrom hasnt missed more than 22 games over his CAREER. And in 8 seasons, only once has Raffi played fewer than 75 games (he played 69), and he played 82 the two years prior to coming here. Youre talking about the two healthiest Dmen on our team going down..how is that even basis for argument? You dont even mention that Kronwall going down would be MOST likely and that YES Blake is an upgrade over Kronwall. As for Blake making the transition, you act like the guys played with one team his entire life. Hes a professional, and he will adapt, just as he has over the years when he has switched teams. As for his ankle, its a hairline fracture - hardly career ending. Thats the type of break that players still play with in the playoffs, and Blake knows hockey and his own body better than you or any of us do, and Im willing to bet he knows what hes capable of and would be upfront about it if he doesnt think he can compete. And as for him being "out til early March at best", last I heard they thought hed be out 2 more weeks, which means hed be back even prior to the deadline..

I completely agree. Id like to see us add both. But the fact of the matter is our most injury prone player is Kronwall, therefore a physical defenseman who also has a booming shot from the point really needs to be added. If not, youre looking at Sammy and Lebda from the point again, and a smart team like the Ducks will give those two all the time in the world to take one of their weak, oft-missing shots on the PP while covering up the difference makers like Datsyuk, Hank, and Homer. Thats exactly why we failed on those 5 on 3s in game 5 and thus lost the game and a chance at the cup. I dont think Holland lets that happen again. In my opinion, I wouldnt worry about Detroit adding either, because I think Holland will find a way to give us depth at both ends of the ice.

Considering Blake played for the Avs in the late 90s, early 00s when the Avs DID play our same style of play, then yes I think we stand a good chance that he'll know what hes doing in a puck possession system. Who cares if hes a downgrade from Ralf and Lidstrom, we arent looking at him to be our #1. Were looking at him to give us an incredible 2nd unit PP and crunch bodies on the 2nd pairing. He does that.

So was Bertuzzi. Whats your point? Undoubtedly his injured status only benefits the Wings. We're probably the only team in the league that doesnt need to make any improvements ASAP. We dont need him to step in immediately. And the more I think about it, the more I like the idea of Blake coming here, especially now that hes got his game back. Big? yes. Physical? yes. Strong? yes. Experienced? yes. Can he clear the crease? yes. Can he take a hit? yes. Not only is he exactly what we need in terms of physicality, but he also fits into a puck possession style, is good offensively, and has a bomb from the point. Hes a really complete defenseman despite his age, and its not like were asking him to come here and be our #1. At best, hell eat up #3 minutes, possibly #4. And honestly, how sick would it be if we could follow up Lids and Raffi on the PP with Kronnic and Blake??

Yeah, I was gonna say, I think somebody mixed up Weber and Suter, cause IMO, Weber outplayed Phaneuf last year...

BTW, is Clarke that much of an idiot that he doesnt realize the game has changed to the point where hockey itself is no longer comparable to the 80s? Something tells me this is bad case of jealousy. Nobody consistently wins by 6 or 7 goals anymore.

Well you know...most games in the playoffs are blowouts, so... (insert sarcastic smiley here)

Jokinen notwithstanding, the Wings do need to add something more in the playoffs. A lot of people here are hypothesizing, but only half of them seriosuly think we can get him, which of course we cant. But that doesnt change the fact that we need to fortify this team even more for the grind.

For Jokinen? My guess would be something like Kronwall + Filppula + maybe picks and prospects.

We're looking at both? I hadnt heard we were looking at Stoll...Hes been terrible this year, but it might be a kind of Calder type scenario..maybe Stoll for Sammy + pick/prospect? Although if Stoll is all were adding up front, I would probably want to keep Sammy. Stolls offense has been really poor this year. As for Torres...HELL YES. I would love that guy. Too bad hes sidelined indefinitely with a knee injury..Still, Id love to see us look into getting him in the off-season if at all possible.

Thank you. We may be able to take on anyone in the league, but what happens when/if Anaheim adds Sundin? Montreal adds Hossa? San Jose adds Blake? Dallas adds Jokinen?? The list could (and will) go on and on. What happens if/when we lose a couple key players? Maybe we only add a Dman, but this year Homer and Hank go down. Can we win the cup with really only one bona fide top sixer to carry us there? Our entire second line of Cleary, Flip, and Hudler have never proved throughtout their NHL careers - however short - that they can be consistent performers. Who knows how long Lids and Cheli can play at this level, and who knows how well Osgood and Howard are going to work out as a tandem next year. The window of opportunity - the Wings best opportunity - to win a cup is THIS YEAR. Honestly, Id rather see a cup this spring than have a couple extra prospects in the barn..

From what Ive heard from Oilers fans, Staois hasnt been anything special this season. But with that said, hed definitely be a nice pickup, although Id take Foote or Blake before Staios.

Do we NEED the Stanley Cup? Theres no way in hell I wanna watch another team win the cup because we had key injuries and/or players who went cold in the midst of the hunt.

I say theres nothing that Cleary really does better because if you look at special teams in general, Holmstrom is much more valuable than Cleary. We have Franzen, Flip, Dats, Hank, Malts, and Drapes that can all work the PK. Who can do what Homer does? exactly... Like I said, theres no reason Cleary should get paid more, regardless of what line hes played on..Theres a reason hes generally on the 2nd while Homer is on the 1st.

Prospal is a great player in his own right. And no player that we add who is phyiscal is going to be any better than a 3rd liner. And we have way too many of those. Somehow I have a feeling youd be singing a different tune if Sammy + 2 prospects and a pick were going TBs way, and Gratton and Prospal were coming our way..And believe it or not, on a team that has probably the worst scoring depth in the league, a cheap, still- signed 45 point skill guy like Sammy WOULD interest a team like Tampa Bay. Im guessing something like Sammy, Quincey, Oulahen and a 4th is what it would take to get those two.. Datsyuk-Hank-Homer Cleary-Flip-Prospal Hudler-Franzen-Gratton Maltby-Draper-Kopecky Drake - Ellis - Downey Thats some pretty nice size, grit, and depth