haroldsnepsts

Even when the Oilers do something right like hiring Chiarelli, they still can't get it completely right. Hopefully they're giving MacTavish a really nice office with a great view and a big desk he can put his feet up on and while away the hours while everyone else runs the team.

Has he ever said he wants control over a roster? I can see how it's natural for coaches to want more control, but Babcock seems to seek out opposing viewpoints and people who bring in new ideas. It's his management and hiring style with his assistant coaches, so I'm not sure it's a given he would even want GM powers. I dont' put much faith in what St. James says, but this is apparently a direct quote. Helene St. James @HeleneStJames · 16m16 minutes ago "I don't want to be a general manager. I'm a coach" Mike Babcock

Really? Dont' get me wrong, I think he's in the running. Most of it from their series against the Habs. But for me the king is Alain Vigneault. It's fun just to do a search for "Alain Vigneault complains" on your favorite search engine.

and gets paid $3 million more per year.

Granato seems to have done good things here in Detroit, but I don't know about him as a head coach. He's had a couple shots at the job but keeps up ending back as an assistant. It's hard to say for sure but there's likely a reason for that. Some guys function better in that role of being on the side closer to the players versus overseeing the whole team and having to be the bad guy at times.

Bob McKenzie ‏@TSNBobMcKenzie 38s 39 seconds ago Mike Babcock said he expects to meet with DET GM Ken Holland tomorrow a.m. but also said, at this point anyway, no timeline on his future.

Kindl gone and Wayne Simmonds in the top 6?

I know on paper Phaneuf makes a fair amount of sense. I've just never liked the guy. He's one of those players for me where my dislike is based mostly on a gut feeling and not anything rational. That he's somehow like a Jack Johnson. A talented guy who on paper should be great, but when you put him in a defense they somehow get worse (thought I think that's changed somewhat for Johnson in Columbus).

My hate for the Blackhawks is deeply rooted and transcends all conferences.

Did you really just say you'd rather the Blackhawks win the Cup?? I can't even look at you right now...

Howard could be a good trade asset. I guess it's possible but he'd have to waive his NTC and there would have to be a very reliable backup/borderline starter coming back in the trade. But bold moves aren't exactly what Holland is known for.

Agreed. If they hired Tortorella I'm not sure I could follow the Wings, because management has clearly lost its mind.

It's possible I guess. It would seem a little surprising to me because it probably means management has said Mrazek is getting the lionshare of the starts or Howard is not interested in trying to earn the job back.

To be clear, my comments have nothing to do with how I feel about Mrazek. He's just very inexperienced in the NHL. I'm not saying he won't succeed. I hope he does. It's just that it's a very bold move to trade away Howard for someone with such a short track record in the NHL.

Who said that on what radio station? I wouldn't totally trust it. Whether he's going or staying I find it hard to believe he'd announce it in such a flip manner. Michael TraikosVerified account‏@Michael_Traikos On future with Red Wings, Babcock says he'll be happy to "talk about that crap" later.

They're both professionals. That sort of thing happens pretty often with goaltenders. To get rid of Howard for a guy who's started less than 50 games in the NHL is an extremely bold move, and one I don't see Holland making.

The most games Mrazek has started is 52 and that was back in the OHL. I'm guessing he splits the season with Jimmy and the "starter" will be the guy who ends up earning the spot over the course of the season.

I'm hardly one to defend Thornton, but he's primarily a setup guy. His career high in goals is 37, and that was with the Bruins. Stamkos on the other hand has scored 60 goals before. He's expected to put the puck in the net in the postseason and hasn't so far.

Honestly i just see Q losing a puck battle. He goes down and looks like he has the Tampa player's stick clamped under his arm to hold him there. Then three Wings out front are puck chasing.

Man that Oates trade was friggin brutal. The Graves one wasn't much better. The Wings need to do some serious considering before they ever trade an Adam again.

In a single game, Kindl is capable of playing well. Hopefully tonight is one of those games.

That's a better way of putting it. It's not that I expected him to replace Lidstrom, because that's not gonna happen. You have to re-evaluate the whole defense, and even team, with the loss of a player that great. Since there's not another Lidstrom around in the league, the more manageable move is to bolster your 2,3,4 guys.

It was a bad hit and would've been much better for the Wings had Kronwall been ejected in a game they were already losing. Had he gotten a major and a misconduct I think there's a good chance he only gets fined, if anything.

And two of them he knew about and should be planning for. He may have even known about Raf. To be clear I think he's recovered well and it's impressive the team is still rolling along. But he seemed ill prepared for what was obviously going to be the biggest transition the team faced under his tenure. Uncharacteristic is the word that keeps coming to mind because he's usually three moves ahead of everyone else. When Yzerman left he was a third liner and we had Datsyuk and Zetterberg, whereas Lidstrom was still our #1 d-man. Holland seemed surprisingly unprepared for what should have been something the franchise was planning for years in advance. It's certainly easier written than done. Holland has an incredibly hard job, but has done it very well for so long. As I said above, I was just surprised how unprepared he seemed for something that was inevitable. Lidstrom's retirement was second only to the implementation of the salary cap in terms of its impact on the team. I'm glad he drafted those players but it kind of supports my case. That's way too late to expect those guys to contribute to the lineup in Lidstrom's absence, especially with defensemen. It's almost like Holland was in as much denial as the rest of us that Lids would ever retire.

Let's hope so. I hope Kindl gets the game winner. Then the Wings can deal him in the offseason.