YoungGuns1340

I don't have an issue with it so much as I do the discrepancy in the number of back to backs between teams. If one team has 15, and another has 8, thats a sizeable difference that results in a palpable advantage. No to mention, the traveling we have to do yearly as well.

Once the roster limit is lifted, Kopecky, Maltby, Draper, Helm, and Leino are going to have to duke it out for the last three spots. I think we'll see some sick performances out of our bottom 2 lines to ride out the season - there are going to be a lot of guys that want those last few spots. I think Maltbys gonna be a scratch come game 1 of the playoffs. Even Kopecky is looking better than him of late.

This just in. To Det: A good work ethic At this point, thats what we're going to need to compete. The Wings have the best talent in the NHL, the question is...can they perform like it? On the bright side, it'll be nice to see what this team is actually made of if/when they kick it into high gear.

There were rumors that was the reason he was traded in the first place. I guess hes a "first guy off the ice at practice" kind of guy, and JM didn't like how his attitude was affecting younger players like Horton, Booth, etc.

Cole again?

Aww, you ruined my WE GOT HOSSA punchline. Now I can look forward to an exciting, trade-filled off-season.

Filppula for Hossa! Check his facebook! Oh wait...

Howard is what, 25? I'm not saying a buy that deal either - a 3rd and Howard is a lot for Neil - but Howard hasn't exactly done himself many favors since being integrated into the Wings organization, and hes getting to the point where its now or never.

Thats exactly what I'm thinking. Calgary is deep now, and we all know they're big and physical. I think Jokinen is overrated, but I also thought Calgary was a great team to begin with - this only makes our playoff run tougher if we come up against them. This is exactly the type of team that you'd need a Lappy/Neil/Etc presence against.

What a let down for Bs fans. The rumors say they're getting Pronger, and instead they get Montador. Haha. The Flames got better, but Jokinen is overrated.

In my eyes, the experience is merely a bonus. What most intrigues me about Laperriere is actually this combination of PKing/energy/physicality. Hes like Drake, except in his prime. I wouldn't be advocating so much for Lappy if he was merely a gritty vet - but hes been putting on a show on the PK this year. Hes kind of a package of exactly what we need - even more so than Neil, and I personally like Neil better.

Depth we have; grit we need. I really hope not replacing Drake doesn't come back to bite us in the ass.

Neil is out of the picture. Holland already said so. The Avs won't ask for a 2nd for Lappy, and if they do then no deal - its as simple as that. But I would honestly take Lappy over any one of those guys - even Helm. Hes more physical than all of them, and is as good a PKer as Draper is (if not better this year). And then theres the experience factor. If somehow he comes at the price of a 4th rounder or a weak prospect, then I would hope Holland would snap him up.

I'd like the Wings to get him, too. But the thing is, he wants to stay in Colorado. So the Avs aren't operating under a "move him or lose him" stance. But maybe they'd take a pick or weak prospect for him as it stands, knowing they can just re-sign him in the summer. In my mind, lappy is even more appealing than Drake because of the way hes been killing penalties. Hes a great PKer, which would allow the Wings to keep their offensive stars even more fresh in the playoffs with lesser PK time. Babs manages the PK time well as it is, but with the way our PK has had a penchant to implode at times, plus the added grit and energy Lappy brings, it'd be a good pick-up should it not cost too much.

I'm sure other teams would put a claim in for him before we did. At least we'd get our hands on him before San Jose. The reason he hasnt been claimed yet likely has everything to do with his salary. I'd expect TB to put him on re-entry waivers just to clear some money from their budget.

Did them a whole lot of good to give him up in the first place...

Detroit doesn't save cap space from LTIR, like others have said. But by not bringing up youngsters earlier in the season who had two-way contracts (paying them an NHL salary if they're playing in the NHL, and a different, lesser salary if they're playing in the AHL), they did save money. Thats where the money saving measure came from - not LTIR.

It really does seem that every single player we've called up has been even better than expected. And the expectations for these guys have been high as it is. As much as I like the trade speculation, with as tight as it is, I don't see Holland trading for anything more than a depth guy making nil in exchange for futures, if he makes a trade at all. I could see a team like TB or Phoenix giving up a depth guy merely to cut budget costs to finish off the season.

Didn't we have a topic like this when Kopecky was bumped up to the 1st line/1st PP unit, had 1 goal on the PP - what was thought to be 2 - and suddenly he was the 2nd coming of Franzen? The guy is 27. He has 16 points on the season. He has to do a lot more than pull of a 3 point night or have a mini hot streak to warrant a crow eating thread. At this point, hes nothing more than the 10th most skilled guy on a team packed full of skilled guys. Every game, he looks more and more like George Laraque circa his "I'm not going to fight because I want to be considered a skilled forward" Edmonton days. Hes giving us skill and pretty plays, which is nice, but if thats what hes going to be, I'd rather see him shipped for a pick and replace him with a guy who actually agitates, fights, or pulls off quality hits instead of mere quantity. We have enough skill - we need balance.

This is the 1st time I've seen Ozzie play since "the break", so I don't know what hes looked like since returning, but while he didnt see many tough shots tonight, there were a couple stops he made where you could easily say he wouldn't have made that stop a few weeks ago. Good to see. Proud of our depth tonight.

So does this mean a Kopecky for Neil trade is finally plausible?

Good for the Wild. They lock up their goaltender for 4 years and can now move Harding. Lots of talent in that kid, hes young, and shouldnt cost too much. He'll be a great trade asset pre-deadline or post playoffs.

TSN bloggers suggesting Wings are interested in Neil. Not sure if this has been posted: http://www.tsn.ca/story/?id=269576

I don't think Malik recalls correctly. Rafalski said, days after the deal was signed with Detroit, that one team offered him a deal that would pay him "a little more than what Detroit offered." The fact that he took less to sign with Detroit is old news. I think the $8M was probably the first few years of a front-loaded contract. At the time, the deal that Raffi turned down was speculated to have been worth about 6.6M on average. Its like saying Malone was offered 7M. He was offered 7M, but thats not the average cap hit of his contract.

Kindl will be lucky if he sees a regular NHL roster spot at the age of 23. If you're counting on him being in the HHOF because of production, he needed to already have his NHL feet wet by now. Green is already in the record books. On production alone, he'll probably get a Norris nomination this year (sadly), and at 23 is already the best goal scoring defenseman in the game. He'll probably get his 50th NHL goal this year. It'll have taken Lidstrom at least 50 more games to hit that mark than Green, and hes just hitting his stride. Phaneuf and Green are flashy Dmen, and I think that will earn them recognition and awards alone. Kane started at 18, and began producing at that age as well, so I think he has a better chance than Getzlaf and definitely better than Parise who will be 25 in the off-season. Malkin, Crosby, and Ovechkin are no-brainers. In terms of random choices, I'd take Doughty, Steve Mason. Also, I'm surprised no ones mentioned Backstrom.