Dabura

Also - Gaborik makes big, big money, at least by our standards. Given the postseason he's having and how hard this summer's UFA class blows, he could probably get something like $40M/5. That's a lot for a guy who's likely going to miss a lot of time with injuries, especially when our forward leaders - Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Franzen, Alfredsson - are, well, old and injury prone.

I think the Kings are the perfect team for him. I'm not sure we'd be a great fit.

Pens fans are terrified of the Flyers. For good reason. Also, Lundqvist > Howard. It's true, though - the Rangers have looked like the Wings.

Fair enough. I do feel like we tend to play them pretty tough, but they've definitely had our number in recent years, so...whatevz. F*** the Blackhawks.

It now becomes clear that realignment is a conspiracy designed to give the Pens an easy road to the conference finals every season and to soften up the Bruins and top Western teams for them. The Metropolitan Division is one big joke. Why else would they give it such a s***ty name? Argh! I can't even finish my midnight snack. It tastes like...lies.

Agreed. But, realistically, Mantha doesn't make the team out of camp. Babs himself said he's probably not going to make the cut. (Granted, that was kind of an off-hand comment he made, not a serious assessment.) I'm incredibly excited about Mantha, and I'm a big Pulkkinen fan. But we didn't lose to the Bruins because we didn't have Mantha or Pulkkinen. I mean, sure, give them spots if there's room. I can't argue with that. Just don't expect them to be The Difference in 2014-15. (Great, now I'm sounding like Ken Holland.)

Alfie was one of our top producers this season. Mantha needs a season in Grand Rapids. He could probably step onto the roster, but I wouldn't expect him to be a key contributor. Let him learn the pro game without the whole being-a-Red-Wing-and-needing-to-lead-your-team-to-the-Cup thing. While he's doing that, Alfie can give us another productive season. I'd also give Pulkkinen another season on the farm. So, unless there's a free agent or trade target that we're really high on, I don't see another season from Alfie being a block to progress or what have you.

Props to Bylsma, I guess. Putting Crosby, Malkin, and Kunitz together is basically saying your opponent has no depth and you know it. Yes, the swagger seems to be back for the bad guys in black and gold. Slimy bastards.

They look like a team that's missing their heart-and-soul captain. *cough*

Man. The Rangers suck. I think I just heard someone yell, "NASH, YOU BUM!" And then the Rangers scored just now. 3-2. Still in it. Kunitz from Malkin, Rangers suck. St. Louis has been bruuuutal. Is it possible for a person to feel bad for Henrik "Perfect" Lundqvist? Cuz I kinda do.

I see him going there this summer, actually. (Provided they buy out Pavelec.) Well, he's right about Smith being one of our better puck movers on the back end and one of our more promising young players. At the same time, we could really, really, really use a proven top-four defenseman. Kronwall isn't an ideal #1, Ericsson is a #3 or #4, DeKeyser is a #3, Smith is, at present, probably a #4. The talent on the farm means the future of our D corps looks bright, but I'd like to at least try to win another Cup with Datsyuk. Right. (Not sarcasm.) We have plenty of attractive pieces. It's also largely about the possible trade partner. The Flyers, for example, might like Lashoff or Kindl or Almqvist, and certainly they'd love one (or two!) of Sproul, Ouellet, Marchenko, Backman. Wayne Simmonds - exactly the kind of guy we need in the top six - probably isn't going anywhere, but I feel like we might have a better shot at him than one might think. (It goes without saying that one of Nyquist, Tatar, Sheahan, Jurco would be gone, but you have to give to get.)

Well, then the team in question has trouble finishing, not unlike the Blues or Kings. On the other end of the spectrum, you have a team like the Leafs or Avalanche - ugly possession numbers, but they can put the puck in the net. So, what general possession stats tell us, then, is that possession isnt the be-all and end-all indicator of a team's offensive output. But no one's ever said otherwise, so no real controversy here. The aforementioned Kings are a really interesting story right now. When they went down 3-0 to the Sharks, some people in the fancy stats community simply rejected reality. "Nope, impossible. This isn't how it ends. The Avs are going to lose in the first round because they're a wretched possession team and the Kings are going to go deep because they're a phenomenal possession team. I don't know how it's going to happen, but the universe is going to course-correct and the Kings are going to awaken from their slumber of suck and be awesome." (Sort of the opposite of the Leafs.)

In a word, Winnipeg.

The only true untouchables are Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Kronwall. The holy trinity. A rung or two below them: Ericsson (loyal, homegrown, new father, the Liv connection) and DeKeyser (could've signed anywhere, chose the Wings). Beyond those five, no one gets tenure.

At the same time, though, full credit to the Habs for being a really good team. Historically, I hate Therrien, but I feel like his "Okay, wut wur gonna do is wur gunna show some f****** pride. And wur gunna show some f****** skillz to put deir f****** heads troo dah glass. Becuss, unterstandt dis: we got belief in are systum, and we got dah abilities, and we got dah goaltending, and we got dah scoring. And if we put deir f****** heads troo duh glass, wur gonna come out on toppa dis. I truly believe dat. Do you believe dat? [loud show of belief in dat] Let's f****** do dis. Put thur f****** heads troo duh glass" is actually kind of perfect for this team and its rivalry with the Bruins. Everyone talks up their speed and skill, but their physicality is underrated and, I think, a big reason why they can hang with the Bruins.

I think it's largely just the rivalry. Games between these two teams sort of exist outside of time and space and stats and reason and stuff. Everything goes out the window; it really just comes down to which team wants it more. Same deal with what the Wings and 'hawks have had for the past few seasons, especially last year. We pushed them to seven games not because we were that good, but because we always bring it against Chicago.

He was one of our biggest producers this season. I think you're confusing him with Cleary/Bertuzzi/Samuelsson.

Three very good, numbers-heavy pieces from Winging It In Motown: Data Mining for D-Men Red Wings Season CSSI Wrap Up: The Defense Evaluating Kyle Quincey Basically, our blue line blows.

I think the Kings are the perfect team for Gaborik. The Wings? Not so much. Or pair him with Quincey or Kindl. I keep trying to put together, or at least lay the foundation for, a hypothetical top six that I can get really excited about. And it's making me sad. (I mean scoring lines, not the blue line.)

I like this move. Laviolette gets the most out of his teams, turns them into overachievers. The Preds are set in goal (Rinne) and on the back end (Weber et al.) Now they have to work on the offense, and I expect them to do just that. This is a good first step. And, fortunately, this summer's UFA class boasts a number of forwards who would, I think, work really well in Nashville. Sign two of them and I'm bullish about the future of the Preds. Side note: Is there any chance Hornqvist gets moved, PredsFan? What if they felt they could get more of a pure scorer? I'd seriously consider trading Nyquist (+ more) for him. We miss Holmstrom almost as much as we miss Lidstrom.

It's much more than luck.

Can I pretend we have a chance at Brent Burns?

I've been trying to put my finger on who it is he reminds me of. I think if Thomas Vanek and Max Pacioretty had a baby, that baby is who I'm thinking of.

Ferraro - Andersson - Mantha

Wild flip the script, explode for four goals in the third period. LOVE IT! Unfortunately, this means Chicago's actually gonna try now.