Dabura

Not to be an ass, but...are you high? Re: Orpik - I have a very, very hard time seeing Orpik coming to the Wings. And I don't think he's quite what we need on the back end anyway. I think we need a solid puck-mover, a guy with Real Good offensive instincts. Smith and Kindl have been disappointments, and Quincey has been a train wreck. We're not getting nearly as much offense from the defense as we thought we would. To which someone will probably say, "Yeah, but you like Girardi. He's not an offensive defenseman by any stretch." True enough, but he moves the puck very well, among other things. As for the nuts and bolts of these hypothetical trades, e.g. Edler and Visnovsky - tbh, any solid top-four defenseman is probably going to cost more than we'd ideally like to give up. Edler almost certainly would make us wince, in terms of the return. And Snow could very well say, "Screw off. Visnovsky is essential to our blue line and I had to put my natural charm into overdrive to convince him to play for us. And now this whole Vanek thing is threatening to taint my otherwise perfect legacy. So I'm not giving Lubo up for anything less than a top-six forward, a good defenseman, and a first-round pick." Which wouldn't be worth it. Solid top-four defensemen are so highly coveted these days. Hats off to Gillis for getting Diaz for, basically, a nobody.

barabbas, what's the issue? Weiss was hurt from the get-go, essentially. The other three have been mostly healthy. That distinction alone warrants different standards. I mean, sure, Weiss has been a disappointment. And, sure, it's true that he hasn't really done anything to distinguish himself from the other three. But we can be pretty sure that that's because he was playing through an injury. So, Weiss gets an asterisk, whereas the others are simply too old. Granted, it's not their fault that they're old.

I'd say Ferraro and Callahan are both facing a real uphill battle with the Wings. I have a hard time seeing either on the roster out of camp. Maybe as extras.

Pretty much this. Miller is our best PKer. That counts for a lot.

I dunno if everyone here realizes this or not (I didn't know it until a couple nights ago), but the Canucks are battling for a playoff spot, much like us. So, if Gillis moves a key player, it'll probably be for a heavy return. And if the key player in question is a staple of the Canucks' top four, the heavy return will probably be or include a pretty solid defenseman. Maybe Quincey or Kindl, but, in that case, there'd have to be much more to it than Pulkkinen/Andersson and a 1st. That's how I see it, at least.

The issue with Edler is two-fold: he's probably not getting moved (at least not this season), and, if he does get moved, it's going to be for a heavy return. He's struggled this season**, sure, but so has pretty much every other Canuck. At the end of the day, Edler's an established top-four defenseman, a high-end talent, a huge part of the Cancks' blue line and team as a whole. We should probably be focusing more on potential bargains. That's sort of my thinking with Visnovsky. I've heard he might be available and at a not-unreasonable price, because everyone not named Tavares or Okposo might be available at a not-unreasonable price. I'd like "Lubo" because he can move the puck and QB the PP. **(I suppose you could count this as a third issue.)

Kronwall DeKeyser Visnovsky Ericsson Smith Lashoff I could dig that.

How about Visnovsky?

And, come on, he's Martin St. Louis. Impossible to dislike, and this willl very likely be his last chance to play in the Olympics. I doubt he'd be spiteful about it and turn down the spot.

Them's the breaks. So...St. Louis gets the nod?

I love me some Ryan Callahan, but even I'll tell you 49/7 is loo-dic-rous. If I were Glen Sather, I'd tell him to get the hell of my team immediately, and I'd probably call him a no-good pinko commie, while smoking a 60-million-dollar cigar. Because I'm Glen Sather.

It's not that he wouldn't qualify, it's that you generally don't look to bring in a key player with the space freed up by an LTIR assignment.

Report: Islanders projected to get a lot for Vanek [ProHockeyTalk] Report: 'More than a dozen' teams have contacted Buffalo about Moulson [ProHockeyTalk]

Report: Callahan's demands are even higher than thought [ProHockeyTalk] Vanek: Decision not to sign with Isles involves more 'than a contract' [ProHockeyTalk]

To be fair, we can't be totally sure of that.

I've gotta think Alfie will re-sign for one more season. I don't think he burns his bridges in Ottawa and says "Thanks, but no" to the Bruins and moves his family to Detroit and all that for just one season with the Wings, especially with this season being so bizarro-world and Quincey-filled. I honestly believe he left the Sens to become a Wing and pursue the Cup as a Wing for as many seasons as his body will allow (realistically: two. Assuming we don't win it all on the first go-around.) Plus, he deserves a proper farewell tour, a la Selanne - though, granted, he doesn't need to be a Wing to do that.

You Meddling Kids

I really don't want Moulson going to the Sens. We have enough trouble with them as it is.

Helm has played wing before, if memory serves. I've always been keen on the idea of him flanking an elite center.

The KGB. Obviously.

This whole thing has me wondering if the Czech Republic is even a real place.

The White Crosses, Blue Rings, Black Rings, AND Red Rings, ALL IN A ROW???

Was just gonna add this to the mix. That, or The Men's League. Or just The Men. Or just Men. A friend suggested 3 Ninjas. Another friend suggested The Future.

Pre-Sochi blather? That's probably not fair to Fetisov. But, like you guys have said, it's a pretty strange interview, tone-wise, timing-wise, etc.

Happy to see Dats will get at least one game in before Sochi. (Not sarcasm.) As for who should sit...Andersson was poo last night. But he was playing on the wing and he's probably more valuable than Glendening. And he's a regular. And he's a big body and good in the faceoff circle. So, Glendening. I guess. But watch it be Z.