YoungGuns1340

I agree. Hes earned a lot of respect from me in that area. Whats funny is that hes this small little guy, yet the bigger guys like Sammy and Franzen are the ones with the injuries. Despite his stature, Ive noticed its not often that he gets hit hard or ridden into the boards. Hes definitely gotten smarter with his positioning since being in this league..

pity goal for Tampa Bay

Zetterberg was hot, now Datsyuk is hot. One is not better than the other.

The first time Dats set up Hank, the puck was deflected and never got to him. Hank wiffed on the second one..

Man...Datsyuk and Hank. Wow. Hank looks kinda tired tonight, though.

Hudler with a 2 point night.

AWESOME goal

One year, 4M. Yes sir. But id rather take a chance on Rolston or Legwand for that money.

Yeah, its not something silly like him getting to play nearly THE SAME AMOUNT of games as Ozzie is. No way. At the 22nd game point, Dom and Ozzie had each played 11 games. Their records? 10-1-0 and 5-5-1. Somebody is doing what their supposed to with their starts. The other one is struggling to prove what the other has in nearly the same amount of games. If youre an elite goaltender, you get your team wins regardless of how many games you start. Osgood gave up 2 goals in the game against the Jackets. Theres a reason shootout goals arent counted against. I cant say whether or not Osgood played a good game on Tuesday, but I did see where Babcock statedly said about the game against the Blue Jackets "if it werent for Osgood, we wouldn't have even made it to the third period." Apparently, Osgood gave his team a chance to win in that game. As for Doms game against the Preds, yes, he was a little better. But getting a little better after being abysmal is still only mediocre. Honestly, with the way hes played so far, hes lucky to even have played nearly half the game so far. Ozzie has played better times over, yet hes still only played 2 more games than Dom. If anything, Dom has been given plenty of opportunities to reclaim his territory.

Haha. If the likes of Lidstrom, Shanahan, and Zetterberg had all been out for a stretch of time, I might buy this logic, but by no stretch of the imagination did he ever carry the team on his back in either 2004 or 2005. In fact, the reason why the Wings still succeeded when LGW had the band-aid was because of the great playing of the call-ups. And as for 2005, Datsyuk missed more games than Zetterberg, Lidstrom, and Shanahan, so never did he carry an injury riddled team. He may have been hot when other players werent, but similarly other plays were hot when he wasnt. In fact, if ANYTHING, Zetterberg carried the team for the entire season in 2005, considering he was buoying Samuelsson and Holmstrom on a line for the entire year. At that point, neither Sammy nor Holmstrom had ever scored more than 20 goals, yet Hank only finished 2 points behind Datsyuk without the all-star winger on his line.

It always amazes me how people let biases get in the way of the facts. Hasek should be kept on a short leash until he has "better-than-ok" game. If that means starting 1 of every 3 games, so be it. I dont give a crap if his name is Hasek, Leclaire, Roy, Brodeur, Sawchuck, or if hes some bionic combination of all those guys. You reward the guy thats playing well. End of story. Under no circumstances should a player be rewarded for PAST accomplisments. Period.

Datsyuk has done that once.

He would be the perfect guy to ride tandem with Osgood next season. Kolzig is worth a look too if the circumstances are right.

Zetterberg with a 3-6 point night.

But filppulas not putting up points either. Hes not scoring, and hes not creating chances. And whoever said he was playing hard every night game in and game out, well Flip has been wishy-washy at best. I really do like Flips game overall, but Id be lying if I wasnt incredibly disappointed with his incosistent play that on a few occasions was worthy of a healthy scratch.

Thats the whole point though. The Wings WON'T go 0-8 against the Bhawks this season. In fact, I wouldnt be surprised to see them end the season 4-4 against the Hawks. It really does take a while to get it through your head that you need to elevate your game against a team when theyve been such a poor squad for so long. Columbus played us hard last year, the Preds have had some good years, and the Blues have been battling us off and on for the division title for years. Not surprisingly, the team that theyve owned the most through the years is the team theyre having the hardest time with. The whole point people are making when they say its good for the Wings that the division is tough, is that it allows them to learn from past mistakes before it costs them their playoff hopes. If they develop the mentality where any team, any night can kick their collective red wing asses (and I dont mean just saying "oh yeah the Hawks are good this year". That doesnt necessarily mean they believe what theyre saying), theyll go into the off-season knowing that not bringing their A game every night is too big a risk to take.

When a player demands a contract, you trade him. You may not do it instantaneously, but forcing a player to stay when he statedly doesnt want to is bad for the team, the locker room, and the organization. Undoubtedly, the Caps would find a deal somewhere. Kane or Toews + Seabrook or Keith + ? would get the Caps listening. St. Louis + an extended Boyle + a high-level prospect wouldnt be too bad. Unfortunately for GMs, a player demanding a trade puts you in a position where you have to deal for the best package offered...which may not be the best package overall.

You took the words right out of my mouth. Personally, I like Franzen and Filppula better, but I cant stand it when people let their biases get in the way of the facts. Especially with Filppula. I feel like everyone on this board is still operating under the idea that hes the next Zetterberg. Filppula is the next Zetterberg just like Kronner was the next Lidstrom. We have enough defensive forwards - Cleary, Franzen, Draper, Maltby, Drake, and Filppula. The only guy thats providing us with steady offense there is Cleary...and mostly because of his insane work ethic + being in the prime years of his career. Franzen and Filppula will not be 25 goal scorers any time soon. Sammy and Hudler - as much as dont particularly like either - are much more likely to be putting up 20/20+ than the Franzen and Flip are. Neither of those two seem to be able to put it together. In some ESPN article, they said "Rex Hudler" instead of Jiri. Its become a joke/nickname since then. But Datsyuk is still putting up points. Correct me if Im wrong, but Hudler doesnt exactly play with an all-star center. But hes still on pace for a 45 point season. Thats not bad considering he was demoted to the 4th line and nearly scratched at one point. The more the season goes along, Im starting to get sick of this bias against Hudler and praise for Filppula. In most cases, Flip cant finish even though he gets great chances nearly every game. On the other hand, Hudler creates a ton of chances for himself and others, while utilizing a great shot. Not to mention his speed and work ethic has skyrocketed since last since.

I entirely agree. I keep on waiting for Franzen to make that next step...to actually land that wrister, and make the hard hits that he can game in game out, but Im starting to think he lacks the work ethic. IMO, hes getting the nod over Hudler in Babs book simply because of his size, but he never seems to create much by using it. I keep waiting for Franzen to establish himself as the Swedish Cleary, but I dont think hes going to at this point. Granted, theres still plenty of time to establish himself before the deadline, but if not theres no reason he shouldnt be counted as trade bait.

Not really. The caps have decent strength up front with Nylander, Semin, and Backstrom, and then theyd add Perry. Theyd strengthen the hell out of their blueline with Pronger and could definitely come out better than before the trade, all the while still adding a big name like Pronger to the roster. As for Anaheim, they add an absolutely elite winger, and with Niedermayer coming back, theyd replace Pronger as well. Note that my scenario for this trade was operating under the circumstance that Niedermayer was returning. You should also read the fine print here. The Caps arent a team thats concerned with making a run for the cup like some big spending organizations in this league are. Theyre more interested in keeping Ovechkin because hes a draw. Hes better for business than he is for winning. THAT is why the Caps would be gunning for a superstar to replace Ovechkin. An offer sheet would do nothing. The Caps would match. And Burke may be in love with Pronger, but this is Ovechkin were talking about trading for. Unless that Leafs are offering their 1st rounders from now until the end of time, then they have nothing of significance to offer the Caps.

The only way this works is if Ovechkin asks for a trade. And if he does, it would have to be with a team that has a superstar to offer in return. Although, if Niedermayer came back, it would be cool to see a blockbuster move like Pronger, Perry and a 1st for Ovechkin, give or take a few high picks/prospects.

Im really starting to wonder why we even keep Franzen around. His third season so far hasnt been anything special. I think a guy like Avery would bring more to the table, albeit different things. I think Franzen *could* be a 20 goal scorer who hits like hell, but Im starting to doubt hell ever reach that potential. Same with Filppula being an offensive threat. I think the Wings should get rid of either Sammy or Franzen at the deadline. Hudler has shown a lot of promise, and hes signed on the cheap...exactly what you need from a kid that could get 20 goals. As for whoever said Commodore would get 1.8M...thats a joke. More like 3M. And Rolston will get at least 4. IMO, Detroit should sign Lidstrom to a one year contract, so that when Zetterberg re-signs with Detroit, they can hold contract negotiations with Nick knowing already what Hank will get, and what they can afford to give Nick. I doubt hed walk away from one last year at 5.5M, if Zetterbergs 7M per contract doesnt allow them to give Nick more in 09/10 Fedorov - 2.4, 1 year contract Rolston - 4.2M, 3 year contract Filppula - 1.5M, 3 year contract Cleary - 2M, 3-4 year contract Downey - 500k, 1 year contract Quincey - 600k, 2 year contract Commodore - 3.3M, 3 year contract Osgood - 2M, 2 year contract Lidstrom - 6.8M, 1 year contract. Datsyuk(6.7)-Zetterberg(2.65)-Holmstrom(2.25) Hudler(1.15)-Fedorov(2.4)-Rolston (4.2) Sammy(1.2)-Filppula(1.5)-Cleary(2) Maltby(880k)-Draper(1.58)-Downey(500k) Lidstrom(6.8)-Rafalski(6) Kronwall(3)-Commodore(3.3) Quincey(600k)-Lebda(650k) Ericsson/Meech (500k) Osgood (2M...I dont think hes going to slow down too much) Howard (800k...I'm not sold on this guy, but if Osgood keeps playing well, itd be good to see Howard start some 25 games or so. If this situation doesnt work out, we can address it later in the season. ) I think its crucial to go with a goaltender tandem that doesnt have any goaltender signed to a contract longer than 2 years. Lidstrom will likely retire in 2 years, and when he does, were gonna have to get a big presence in net in order to make up for him. (If Ryan Miller continues to improve....) Total: 50.65M (for those of you who dont know..the cap is supposed to go up. Wed likely have 1.5M+ in extra cap room)

Boyle has only gotten better in the last couple years, especially the way the NHL is played these days. He was a top 10 Dman last season. Theres no way hed be traded on the cheap, or signed on the cheap.

Id like to see Detroit NOT re-sign Kopecky, Ellis, Lilja, Drake, Hasek, or Chelios, unless he really wants to keep playing and is willing to split games with a guy like Quincey, Meech, Ericsson, etc. #1 Realistic forward: Brian Rolston Others: Legwand, Malone, Dumont, Ryder, Satan, Fedorov, Brunette, Prospal #1 Realistic Dman: Mike freaking Commodore Others: Foote, Smith, Stuart, Jackman #1 Grinder: Sean Avery Others: Kelley, Lapointe, Hagman, Hunter

The Wings dont have the space, money, or assets to get 2 legit top 6 forwards by the trade deadline. If you sign Rolston, then youve got 3 guys capable of 30-35+ goals (Rolston, Hank, Homer), and 3 guys capable of 20+ goals (Cleary, Sammy, Datsyuk), and then 3 guys capable of 15+ goals (Franzen, Hudler, Flip). Ideally, I would like to see Detroit get 1 top 2nd guy and 1 #4/5 Dman thats a stay at home guy. Or a guy like Avery would be awesome in addition to Rolston. EDIT: Sorry, I see you meant for next year..