YoungGuns1340

He had a pretty sick pad save against Carolina that made me think "hes still got it." Like Ive said before, I dont have a bias when it comes to goaltending, I just want to see the tenders playing well. Hasek did that. Spectacular? He did what he had to do to win the game. Thats what goaltenders should do. Whether or not he was deserving of being one of the three stars, I dont know, but hes made some huge strides.

I think he means at the deadline. Nagy sucks, and Cammy would be too expensive, but I would LOVE to have Stuart on the back end, considering hed only cost 1.5M or so at the trade deadline. We already have a good defensive core, so he wouldnt be playing huge minutes, but hes a good #3/4 Dman with some size, physical edge, and offensive skill. Hed be a great deadline pick up. Hed probably look a lot better on the point than Sammy would too..

I was wondering if any of you guys could offer your opinions on how Franzen has looked this preseason. I thought from what he displayed in the playoffs last year, he had a good shot to be one of those borderline top 6ers if he held that up through this season, but I was skeptical about the idea that he could play at a high level for too long. However, it seems like hes found himself a home with Datsyuk and Holmstrom on the top line so far this preseason. Ive only seen some highlights of preseason games so far, but one thing that his really impressed me is his shot. Hes got a bullet and can pick his spots well. I know the preseason is a far cry for the regular season, but the fact that he supposedly hasnt looked at all out of place playing with Datsyuk makes me wonder if this guy has what it takes to be a 20-25 goal scorer and possibly a down low sniper-type on the PP. He definitely looked to have improved his offense instincts between his rookie and sophomore year..so do you think he can continue to build on that or is this a fluke? Opinions please.

Yes we need to make a move. When you have the space, and a good core intact, theres no reason not to make a move that can make a great team even harder to beat. If we dont add another scorer, and we come within a couple games of the Stanley Cup, but we cant score the goals to take us the extra mile, it would be an embarassment. There will be deals to be had at the deadline, impact player or not. You can never have too much depth.

I could definitely see him going to Carolina or NYI. With MAB going down, and Kaberle the only semblance of a PP QB on the Canes, both could use him.

Fedotanko wouldnt be an upgrade at all, and Stuart is much more than a bottom-pairing Dman. Although id LOVE to see Detroit get him if the price was right, but hell be a hot commodity come the deadline. And Comrie will be more expensive than Satan because hes playing better, and hes cheaper.

Yeah, actually when you consider that Satan and Sammy are on pace for the same number of points, and that this is the 2nd year both Hunter and Satan have underperformed, then yes. Also, when you consider that Comrie, Vasicek, Fedotenko, Hunter, and Satan are ALL UFAs next year, it would be nice for NYI to have a secondary scorer under contract. Sammy can put up just as many points as Fedotenko - if not more with good minutes - and hell cost nearly 60% less than what Fedotenko is costing the Isles right now. And if NYI is so upset over losing two soon to be UFAs, Im sure it wouldnt be a problem for Detroit to throw Franzen into the mix. As for the trade itself, you have to consider where these guys will fall on the market. The majority of teams that want to add a top 6 forward AND are playoff bound AND have the cap space to absorb an even subsidized 4.5M salary are limited. Then factor in all the other forwards out there who could be available that provide equal or better assets than Satan does with a cap hit that teams can actually afford. Prospal, Legwand, Dumont, Ryder, Vyborny, Stoll, Brunette, Nagy, etc. All this guys can put up or are putting up similar or better numbers to Satan and cost less. At any rate, Detroit may need to add a conditional pick, Franzen, or another lower pick to swing the deal, but the point is they dont have to break the bank to modify their roster for the better.

No. Hunter and Satan....for Sammy AND a draft pick AND a mid-level prospect. Satan makes 4.5M, Hunter makes 1.5. Together thats 6M, which at the deadline would be around closer to around 2M. Vandermeers and Sammys cap hits would more or less cancel each other out.

Theyll use some, if not all of that space...it just might not be something as excitng as we think. The Wings could add a couple of players to take up that space. Consider this: Trent Hunter and Satan for Samuelsson, a 2nd rounder, and a mid-level prospect - The Wings get 2 UFAs not performing up to their potential. The Isles get cheap secondary scoring for next season and a couple bonuses. Again, its not exactly the best trade possible, but its realistic, cheap, and would give the Wings a decent sniper on the PP and a big body on the lower lines. Jim Vandermeer for a 3rd round pick. - The Wings get a reliable bottom-pairing Dman who knows his role as a stay at home Dman and is a big body to lock down small opposing forwards. That would be about 4 million worth of cap space used up. No, its nothing particularly exciting, but it does flesh out the team. Not really any impact players involved, but a small upgrade on offense with Satan over Sammy, and a decent stay at home defenseman. Filppula-Datsyuk-Homer Hudler-Zetterberg-Satan Cleary-Draper-Hunter Maltby-Franzen-Kopecky Drake - Downey - Ellis Lids-Kronner Raffi-Vandermeer Cheli-Lebda Lilja-Meech One thing you have to consider is that, for a guy like Satan for example, a lot of playoff bound teams wont get into a bidding war for him because they wont have the cap space to. If youve only got limited cap space, and you need to add a top 6 forward, youll offer up the goodies for somebody cheaper, like Legwand, Dumont, Prospal, etc. Other guys that the Wings might land that wouldnt be too exciting, but would be a slight upgrade for the Wings and would come cheap (depending on if said team is out of the playoffs or not): Comrie, Lapointe, Fedorov, Vyborny, Foote, Stuart, Ryder, Avery, Straka, Malone, Eaton, Orpik, Gratton, etc.

I actually wouldnt mind seeing the wings trade Sammy for Trent Hunter. That gets the wings off the hook for Sammys salary next year, which will help in re-signing Lids, Hank, and a top 6 UFA, but if the Wings re-sign Hunter, itll also give them no reason to re-sign Franzen. IMO, Hunter has more upside than Franzen, is more physical, and has already proven that he can score 20 goals, which Im sure he could do again.

Define blockbuster. IMO, if the Wings managed to land Rolston, Dumont or Legwand, that would be blockbuster enough in the Wings terms. First of all, I dont think the Wings will touch Forsberg now. Secondly, the Wings wouldnt be able to retain Hossa for next season, and there are plenty of other teams that would likely outbid Hossa for a couple months of play. Thirdly, the Nucks look like theyre headed to the playoffs with Luongo playing well once again. If they fall, we could see Naslund here, as I think hed be the cheapest of the three you mentioned. But hes started to do well again, so its doubtful hed come as cheap as he would have at the beginning of the year when it was speculated hed be moved.

Im not so sure I like this. Dom only faced 15 shots against the Habs, and judging from last year, Im being to think thats what Dom needs to pull off a win - less than or around 20 shots a game. If Minny is taking tons of shots, Ill assume we'll lose. If he can still pull it off, then good for us. But lets make sure we keep Ozzie in the picture. He hasnt faltered in 16 games this year so far..

Having Scott back on the blueline is going to help. He makes a great first pass and is known for being a 4th forward. Not to mention hes dominant on the PP. Still, if Selanne doesn't re-sign and they have to sell off one of O'Donnell, Beauchemin, or Scheneider, they'll remain weaker than last year. Even with Niedermayer back, this isn't the same team that the Wings nearly took down despite being without their #2 and #3 Dman, and with Lebda playing on a bum ankle.

Is...this sarcasm?? cause Ozzie faces an average of 24 shots a game. And all you have to do is compare his record with Doms to know that a team can only go so far in salvaging wins for their goaltender.

Beauchemin for Quincey and a 2nd. Burke needs to trade a Dman asap according to various sites.

Its no coincidence that Scotty is likely coming back right after they get shut out by those offensively dominant Oilers.

I dont Osgood will get the votes cause hes not an exciting name. Most peopel still think of him as washed up, despite having probably the most ridiculous record in the entire league right now.

He is doing a lot better. Hes on pace for 30 points so far if he plays 75 games. I think he can probably hit 35 if he stays healthy. Nothing wrong with that, for a guy who is basically only in his 2nd season as a regular.

They knew they had a good hockey club. They replaced Niedermayer adequately enough and Selanne as well in the off season to the point where a couple months of both back will elevate Anaheim probably to around a 4-6 seed. Basically, no harm done as their seed ranking wont be an accurate reading of what the team actually is after Niedermayer returns (a top 3 seed, likely). Burke gets to have his cake and eat it too. On the upside for us, Anaheim might be trading off Beauchemin, which means theyll have the injury-prone Schneider staying in their top 3, instead of the better shutdown guy in Beauchemin.

The edge that Vinny has over Datsyuk would become absent when you consider the loss of chemistry that Datsyuk leaving would create, and likewise the fact that Detroits game doesnt allow for the superstar type to flourish. I wouldnt be surprised to see Vinnys production decrease with Detroit. As for whoever said theyd take Richards over Datsyuk, youre a moron.

Kronwalls quietly elevating his game. 1G, 3A in his last 4 games. If he stays healthy this year, he'll break 30 points. If he goes on a hot streak, he may even hit 40.

He ASKED the Pens to trade him. Undoubtedly they didnt put him on waivers cause they thought he was a heaping pile. They probably couldnt work out a deal for him and decided to put him on waivers, knowing some team would probably pick him up. Every team in this league probably has at least one guy Recchi could replace.

I think some of the songs he plays are funny, but how can you possibly think the same songs are funny over and over again?? seriously. There are about a billion songs he could use that would be funny. Example...there are plenty of songs that have the word "hook" in them. And why the hell hasnt this guy realized that Dan Cleary is about as Irish a name as it gets. PLAY THE GOD DAMN JIG FOR HIM.

Ilya Kovalchuk

I agree. Im still waiting to see if Hank can do it. I think Hudler will have a career year with about 38-42 goals, and in his prime, average about 28-32 a year.