haroldsnepsts

Agreed. Djokovic is an extremely talented player, but he seems kind of an ass. Even moreso when I heard about his long history of bailing on matches when he starts losing. Am I the only one who's tired of seeing Nadal pick his ass before every point???

http://www.mlive.com/redwings/ Just thought I'd start a new thread about is instead of derailing the one on Hossa. Mods can combine or delete if they want since it's not technically official yet, I just hadn't heard the news that he's as good as signed. according to Mlive. I'll be curious to hear how slightly less it is.

Hopefully that's the Chelios we'll see, and not the one from the '08 playoffs.

Because he could be paid around $800,000 to play half a season as a bottom pairing defenseman, and we're not exactly hurting for defenseman. And I think people are oversimplifying shot-blocking ability. Winning faceoffs is a learned skill too. Draper is a monster at them. Why doesn't he teach the rest of the team so the Wings would all be great at it? The fact that it's a learned skill doesn't mean everyone can learn and be good at it. Blocking shots takes positioning, timing so you don't get caught out of position, and toughness. If it were a simple skill to pick up, every defenseman trying to crack the lineup would already know how to do it.

That's pretty much how I feel. Much like Yzerman in his final seasons, the main reason Chelios can even survive out there is because of his hockey smarts. Even with the surgery, I don't see him improving out there. Since he's about to get signed though, I'd love to be wrong.

In the Mlive article Holland says he's close to signing a two-year deal with Quincey, so I doubt he'd be on the trading block. Though it looks like he may pull the sign-and-trade with Lilja.

Yeah. The biggest question for me is how many games Chelios is going to play, and at what level. (I guess that's two questions) If we're talking about 40ish games and he doesn't make a remarkable comeback compared to how he finished the season, that's not worth $700,000 or whatever they pay him that's slightly less than last year. Lilja definitely doesn't have the hockey smarts that Chelios does, but he can step up and play a lot of minutes if need be. And he actually plays more physical than Chelios.

I started a new thread on Cheli to keep from derailing this one about Hossa. http://www.letsgowings.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=52974

not to derail the thread, but my least favorite part of the news about Chelios is the "slightly less than the $850,000 Chelios made last season."

It also said there that the Wings did sign Chelios. Did I miss that news? Or maybe I just blocked it out.

I think the mentoring role is overvalued in regards to Chelios. Yes he has tons of experience to provide. Hire him as a coach. And Lidstrom and Rafalski know a thing or two as well. It's not like we're talking about a very young lineup here. I forgot about him having to clear waivers if he were to go down (haven't had coffee yet). Maybe Chelios will rebound and have another solid season. I just feel like he looks slower and slower out there. Barring injuries to our D-men, he's going to play limited games in already limited use as a defenseman. Last playoffs he lost his job to Lilja. Maybe it was due to the "lingering leg injury." Maybe not. I like Chelios and just wish he would've retired on top, and the Wings started integrating the kids into the lineup.

The thing is, given the cap situation, when you're talking about a 7 or 8th d-man who will play limited games in a season, wouldn't it make the most sense to offer a two-way contract like with Downey or Mac? Obviously they would never do that with someone like Cheli at this stage in his career, which is why I wish he'd retire. Yes Chelios comes cheap, but you're paying for half a season. This is partly about who he is and not just how he plays.

Hudler is "much more important" to the team than Samuelsson?

Well, it's somewhat the same thing. He's a warrior to even be playing at his age, but his level of play has dropped enough that it would be better to go out with the Cup win than to be a 7th d-man playing half the season. He was pretty bad against Dallas, but it's hard to tell if that was legitimately injury or he just had nothing left in the tank.

I think Chelios is awesome. I still think he should retire though. To me the two aren't mutually exclusive.

Yeah, I'm not sure how sammy's name got thrown in the mix, other than he's the whipping boy here. He drives me crazy sometimes, but I highly doubt Holland would be moving him to make cap room. For what he does, he's still a good deal. And now with Hossa he'll likely have the appropriate ice time. As I said before though, I don't think Lebda is about as good as Lilja. Lilja played more even strength ice time, kills penalties, block shots, and will muck it up once in a great while. Lebda doesn't do those things, and his only real advantage is he can be used on the power play. but with our top 4, it's not really an issue. I honestly don't know what they'll do to make the cap space and get everyone signed, but it should be interesting.

Would you feel the same way if the NHL instituted a similar policy and Datsyuk and Holmstrom were suspended as a result? I think it's a good idea for the players to learn english. It would likely help their careers. I just don't see why the LPGA feels the need to mandate it.

who wasn't it fair to?

Agreed. Draper for all these reasons.

Beyond just his playing years with the Hawks and captaining that team, Chelios was born and raised in Chicago and played hockey there as a kid until moving to southern California in high school. Even though he played almost as long in Detroit and Montreal, Chicago was his youth, and his prime NHL years. It's no surprise he'd have thoughts of returning.

True. I can't believe they're still relying on that ridiculous system where 3 of these 5 old guys have to hit a button within one second to register it as a point.

anyone watch boxing? fiiiiiixed. I feel bad for the fighters from other countries, because if you're in a bout for a medal against a Chinese fighter, you're all done. There was a light heavyweight from Ireland who had so many punches land that weren't scored, the announcers kept commenting on it.

I agree he's not an upgrade over those guys, at least not at his salary. I don't see how Babcock seems to prefer Lebda. Lilja averaged more minutes per game than Lebda even strength, and a ton more minutes on the PK. Lebda is younger and cheaper than Lilja, but not necessarily better, other than the power play. Chelios is cheaper, though I'm starting to wonder if he even contributes more on the ice. Lilja could play a full season if called upon, Chelios not so much. It depends on if the Chelios we saw late in the playoffs was due to injury, or just age. The biggest drawback with Lilja is his salary. Like I said, it makes the most sense on paper, but I'd still be a little surprised the Wings did a sign and trade. We'll see what happens.

Trading Lilja does make the most sense financially, but I would be a little surprised if the Wings pulled the trigger on that trade since they signed him a couple months ago to a two year deal. And as unbelievable as it may seem to us Detroit fans, Lilja probably could have gotten more on the open market than he did signing with the Wings.

It's because some people think player should fall down at the feet of Holland, take massive paycuts and remain forever beholden to the Wings organization because they are so classy. It's a job. These guys are pro athletes. As I said before, money aside, I totally understand McCarty exploring the possibility of a full time spot on an NHL team instead of bouncing back and forth between that and the AHL.