haroldsnepsts

Great game by Joey. He saved the Wings butts several times today. If the Wings were in a market for a backup goalie in the last few months, they aren't anymore.

Great game by McDonald and the Helm line. Abby shouldn't have fought Clowe though. He threw a clean hit and with the Wings up 3-1 had no reason to engage him. Getting dummied by Clowe isn't going to help win the game.

that was a weak ass call on E

Abby touching it negates the high stick.

off Abby. thats a goal.

refs trying to get the sharks back in the game. How is it interference when the puck is still on his stick. What's this bulls***??

What is up with Kindl lately? He doesn't look like the same guy who started this season.

Z with the backhand! Does he even shoot forehand anymore?

I didn't see the game last night other than highlights, so I'm not sure exactly what Kindl did. I was more referring to that he hasn't improved and has been a healthy scratch for what, 14 games this season? In general he's failed to impress and Smith is chomping at the bit to get in the lineup. Sure there's still a chance he'll develop into a solid D man but I'd be willing to mortgage the future a bit while Lidstrom is still in the lineup and the Wings are gearing up for a Cup run.

the thing everyone ignores with Ericsson is that he has a NMC. And he already is a solid defenseman. He's just overpaid for his role as basically the #5 guy. I hear what you're saying about Kindl being younger, but I think because of Lids potential retirement and Stuart potentially going back to Cali, Kubina becomes a lot more interesting. It improves the Wings immediately for the playoffs and potentially helps fill Stuart's role if he leaves and they re-sign Kubina (assuming he plays well). I think Kindl may be a victim of the Wings current roster. They have Ericsson locked up as a #5 (potential 4) guy who is more stay at home, plays physical, kills penalties, and has a great first pass. Smith is coming up as a talented offensive player who can play on the PP, and already plays more physical than Kindl. Kindl right now isn't as physical as he should be, is better than E offensively but not as good as Smith. Unless he takes some big steps forward in his development, he's basically a #6/7 plug. Hopefully he'll keep developing and the Wings will have the luxury of a few young, big defenseman. But like I said, because of the situation with Lids and Stuart, the Kubina thing is interesting.

Am I understanding you correctly? Kubina would only be a clear upgrade over Ericsson, and not the two defenseman who've been alternating healthy scratches this season? There are people who still seriously think right now Kindl is a better player than Ericsson? I'm not saying the Wings should go all out for Kubina but lets' have a reality check here. Kubina would be a major upgrade over Kindl and an upgrade over Commie as well. He's a huge player (6'4 258lbs!)who actually uses his size, right hand shot from the point on the power play, Stanley Cup winner, veteran experience, can handle big minutes. You don't think that's a clear upgrade over a 25 year old D man who lost his spot in the lineup because he plays much smaller than he is, and his development seems to have tapered off? Going into the playoffs with an Ericsson Kubina bottom pairing, and Kubina on the 2nd unit PP is a definite upgrade. Like I said before, the Wings may be thinking that he's a rental this year and a potential replacement for Stuart next season. Another Wings reclamation project.

As Khan points out: http://www.mlive.com/redwings/index.ssf/2012/02/red_wings_6.html He seems like an upgrade over Kindl and Commodore. And it would get Hudler off the point on the PP and down low where he's more effective. Maybe they're hoping they'll pick Kubina up as a playoff rental and re-sign next season if and when Stuart leaves?

http://redwings.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=598573 Sorry if this has been posted already. Anyway, Vladdy has been painting as part of his rehab and they're having an exhibition of some of his work. Proceeds from the sale of his artwork will benefit the Brain Injury Association of Michigan. http://chevydetroit.com/vladimir-konstantinov-and-gallery-u-boutique-animals-inspirations-hockey-tbi-rehabilitation-art-royal-oak/

Now that was a clutch goal!

If someone basically ended my hockey career (no matter how long or short it may have been) by breaking my neck and giving me a severe concussion, I'd probably try to make bank from them too. But you were stating things about how he could play hockey if he wanted to. That's completely unfounded speculation. I've never seen anything that even hints that he is healthy. Three years after the incident there was an article that stated he was still not able to do a full workout and was suffering lingering symptoms from his concussion.

Agree, though the amount Moore was asking for was high, but much closer to reality than Bert's settlement offer. Bert's offer was basically like leaving pennies on the table so the waitress knows that you didn't forget to tip, you're just a dick. Moore wanted $15 million for loss of income. As Eva showed in his post, that may be optimistic but not unreasonable. If Bert and Orca Bay sports had coughed up half that, with another million or two for punitive damages, this would probably all be over. If the NHL were smart they would've played a larger role and helped make this bad publicity incident go away. But Bettman is seriously lacking in diplomacy skills, especially for a situation this heated. $7 to 10 million would've been more than worth it to the NHL to put this behind the league once and for all.

All of the section I bolded is your own personal speculation and completely unfounded, unless you have legit sources you'd like to provide links to. I think the biggest shift in opinion here at LGW has more to do with Bert wearing the winged wheel than anything else. Regardless, Bert and the Nucks should've ponied up for an offer that at the very least wasn't insulting for Moore's injuries, so they could put this behind them. The 350k Bert offered in 2006 was an insult considering the league minimum was greater than that. Even if Moore only had to miss a season due to his injuries, he would've been out more money than that. Burke only compounded things with his derisively offering a contract when Moore wasn't even cleared to play. This secret deal with Crawford only makes things look worse. The hockey community circling its wagons and protecting its own, and unfortunately for Moore he wasn't around long enough to become part of that community. This whole thing has dragged on far too long, and it's not just Moore's fault.

I think the Kings made a big mistake letting O'Donnell get away. He was a steadying presence for Doughty and could've continued to help his development. For those same reasons I wouldn't have minded him here in Detroit. The Wings have tons of veteran leadership, especially on D. But he could've been actually out on the ice with Ericsson and Kindl. As for next year, I've always liked his game but he can't handle a lot of minutes or a full season anymore. I guess as a cheap pickup as the 7th guy would be fine. Off that list Knuble and Madden seem likely to be hanging them up at the end of the season. On the Wings I think Bert will be back. Homer will want to come back but his role is definitely diminishing. Still I could see Holland giving him a one year deal As for Lidstrom, I think it all comes down to what happens this trade deadline and playoffs. If they acquire some huge talent at the deadline that will be on the roster next season, it might give Nick more reason to stick around. Honestly though I feel like it's 80% chance he's done at the end of this season.

so that's one check mark in the Classy column, 9,938 in the Douchebag column.

The real question is what exactly is he trying to do there? On the Salo hit I get that he was at least trying to avoid getting crushed while throwing a sort of hip check, but got way too low. This was like he half bailed out of the hit. He's lucky there was no serious knee injury on the play.

I'm not a Hudler hater but I think it's a valid argument he needs to shoot more. There's many instances where he's in a great scoring position and he opts to pass, which results in a shot from a lower percentage scoring position. It's not hate, it's really that he's got a great shot and needs to think more like a sniper. Some games he still has some of that "pass first" mentality.

Ahh the luxury of having the first or second pick in the draft for 4 seasons in a row. When their franchise player in Crosby is out with an injury, they've got Malkin. Fleury Malkin Crosby J. Staal However did that franchise turn things around so quickly??

Honestly it's not much better than a lot of the trades offered up here. As fans we're not really wanting to part with key players, so many of the suggestions aren't really based on a realistic trade value as they are a list of players we're willing to part with. Which is why Hudler, Kindl, Ericsson and a couple lesser prospects often end up on the list. Nevermind that Ericsson has a NMC. Some people apparently think he'd be willing to forgo that to play in a historic powerhouse franchise like Columbus.

Agreed. Yes, there's things like the cap and it's a different era, but nothing is as directly a factor in the streak as the shootout wins. In this streak the Wings have 3 shootout wins that would've been ties. It is still an impressive streak but to me warrants an asterisk. Though honestly all I really care about is that they keep winning. The record I guess is nice to add their name in the history books under another column, but the points they're racking up are what really matters.

It easily could've been called a charge with the standard they're using this season. His right skate comes way up off the ice, and the left one does too though not as high, due to his leaping motion. That's the other great thing besides the hit itself. A huge hit like that can rattle players and make them more tentative carrying the puck out of the zone. Kronner has that Steven's like ability to reverse direction right when the guy starts looking down to play the puck.