vladdy16

Agreed, the others mentioned don't deserve the honor either. Yet. Yzerman and Lidstrom bled red and white. Not only is Fedorov's work ethic able to be called into question, his loyalty is as well. I don't fault him for signing the Carolina offer sheet - I do fault him for holding the Wings hostage by holding out and making his displeasure known on the ice. He always came across as a prima donna, which is probably why so many are against his number being retired. That's not the Red Wings way.

It can't be the multiple sources as they weren't even aware of the checks. They never processed my credit card. That's one-stop shopping there. I checked their website today; it looks like the gold outing is still happening and they've announced their grant recipients for this year, so the charity is still functioning. I am not of a mind to beg them to "approve" our donation. It's beyond me why they wouldn't just take the money and say thanks.

The checks have not been cashed. The IC, Inc. charity coordinator told me our donation would have to be approved because of the way it came about, but wouldn't be specific or tell me any more than that. It's been months since first contact, and at least 6 weeks since I followed up with them and was told, in a nutshell, don't call us, we'll call you. Now, I'd be happy to use this money to refresh my Wings wardrobe, but, alas, I am not a charity. Apparently IC, Inc. is not interested in our money, so it needs to find a new home.

I feel so sorry for those of you who have only known the Wings of the last 20 years, but I'm going to try and talk you all off the ledge. Recent history has spoiled this fanbase beyond belief. no doubt, but just because we've hit a bump in the road doesn't mean we should just blow up JLA and ship our current roster off to the remaining 29 teams. We will be able to sign desirable free agents, we will do well in the draft, we just won't have the usual cakewalk to the playoffs. Now, sit down for this one: we may not even make the playoffs. You can either jump ship or take a Valium and wait for the season to begin and enjoy what you have taken for granted for so long.

Anyone's stance on any political issue is no longer a topic of discussion at LGW. Please keep any discussion limited to the game of hockey and all that entails.

I'm registered with both the Wings and the Leafs. I have previously stated that if I have extra, they will be offered up to members here. Not sure how I'm going to decide who gets first crack when I do. (Notice I say when!)

See, if we sign Doan, we wouldn't be able to do things like this:

I couldn't even begin to tell you how I signed up for a Toronto lottery. An initial browse through my email has yielded nothing. If I can find something later on, I'll post it again. I would suspect, however, that the opportunity has long since passed. We are talking Leafs fans, you know.

I just received this email: Hello, Having previously registered for the opportunity to purchase 2012 SiriusXM Hockeytown Winter Festival™ and 2013 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic® ticket packages, we had communicated to you that we would hold a random draw of all eligible registrants on Wednesday, July 11, 2012 to award this opportunity. However, with an overwhelming response we have postponed the date of the draw, which will now take place on Thursday, July 26, 2012. Just to confirm, you don't have to do anything further to register for the draw. If you are getting this email, you have been registered. If you are selected as a winner, you will be contacted via email within 21 days of the draw with full details on how to purchase ticket packages. Check your email frequently to find out if you've been selected. Click here for complete contest rules. Your Toronto Maple Leafs® are honoured to participate in the 2013 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic® hosted by the Detroit Red Wings® and we look forward to sharing in this great event with you! Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club

Of course he is - after the signing. I would think that if Weber were truly upset by what his agents were saying, he would have given an interview of his own right after the fact, not days later. He needs to mend fences. Whether he actually wants to be there or not, and conventional wisdom and general consensus dictate not, he's in Nashville, for good or ill, for the next year. He can't tank the season because if he wants a trade, who's going to trade for someone who had a crappy season, particularly with his fat contract? This presser is a serious backpedal and an olive branch, nothing more.

But they work for Weber. If Weber doesn't like or agree with what they're saying, it's up to him to get them to stop talking or fire them. He's been oddly silent, while those two "bozo's" haven't.

Yeah, there's 14 million reasons why Weber would say he's happy to be a Pred still. Seriously, what else is the guy going to say? If he's not happy, he's locked in for at least the next year.

It will be very, very interesting to see how this plays out. Weber gets his payday, but is stuck in Nashville. If he was just trying to up his salary, then all is well. However, if he really wanted out and a solid chance at winning it all, unless things change drastically down there, he's screwed. Can't wait to see which scenario unfolds.

Am I the only one who just doesn't give a s*** anymore? FA this year has been interminable! Pick a freakin' team and be done with it.

This thread has jumped the rails. Maybe everyone should continue the discussion in the "Has Detroit Lost Its Luster" thread, or one of the several others that cover the 4 different topics being discussed here.

I see many comments in several threads about what should change in the new CBA. I thought it was a very topic-worthy discussion. The issues that leap to mind are contract length and signing bonuses, besides the usual player percentage of profits and how many years before players reach UFA status. Personally, I think if a team wants to take the risk of signing a player to a very long-term contract, bon chance. I see no issue with that. I also don't see an issue with signing bonuses. It doesn't circumvent the cap. As far as being a tool that less-established teams don't have access to, I say so sorry. There's already revenue sharing; I see no reason why teams like Toronto, Philly & Detroit shouldn't be able to use their cap dollars as they see fit.

Okay, I get that. If someone is dumb enough to sign Pronger's contract, they should have to pay it and it should count against the cap. I totally agree with that. There has to be some wiggle room and there are definitely loopholes that should be closed, but not all of them. Teams with money to spend should be able to spend it however they see fit. I think front loading the contract was genius. Revenue sharing would pay for that contract if Nashville decides to match. I don't think it's even reasonable to pay teams merely because they exist; if they don't have quite the same playing field other teams have, then they should strive to get there. Isn't that what our whole economic system is based on? And since the system is in place and isn't likely to change, we're giving them a little leg up; why can't we use what we already have to our advantage? If you're going to hamstring owners with money, then again, just say everyone has to spend 40 million period and be done with it. That's true parity if that's what you're aiming for.

There's a cap in place to level the spending field. There's revenue sharing; teams are getting paid merely because they exist. Now you're saying that teams with a larger fanbase and/or more money shouldn't be allowed to spend up to the cap as they see fit? That's severe over-regulation IMO. Why not just say each team has to spend 40 million period then?

You were being disrespectful in the post I previously quoted. And you're very interested in telling other people what they would give their left nut for. You know what I'd give for Weber? Your left nut. I lost interest in him long ago. And that STILL doesn't mean he wants to be in Nashville, however you want to try and misdirect the attention.

Wow, truth hurts, eh? You're in enemy territory - please tread more respectfully. If Poile ponies up and matches, yay for the fans. However, the Preds will have one very expensive, sulky defenseman on their hands. It's a lose/lose for Nashville. Oh, and it's "you're." The signing bonus isn't subject to the possible lowering of the cap, which would affect his salary. He gets the 13 mil regardless.

They cannot trade him for a year. The "signing bonus" pretty effectively hamstrung Nashville.

Just to let everyone know, I am in this drawing. Considering the rabidity of Leafs fans, my chances are slim to none. The drawing is to be held today, and winners will be notified within 2 weeks via email how to activate their account and purchase tickets. IF I am selected, these tickets will be made available immediately here on LGW. I have my own source for tickets. I'll post in the Dumbo Drop thread IF I hear from the Leafs organization.

Matt drew the line in the sand two pages ago. Can we please cease the public flogging, however fun it may be, and carry on discussing what concerns us all here the most, which would be the Red Wings state of affairs, not Minnesota's.

I signed up to volunteer at the Alumni game. Received an email they'd let me know. Now that there's two, I stand a good chance.

So far I've heard that there are so many alum's they'd like to honor from both teams, there's going to be 2 games. Wings players thus far: Osgood and Vernon Dino Cicerrelli Ted Lindsay Joey Kocur Drapes Maltby McCarty Micky Redmond John Ogrodnik Luc Robitaille Hall of famer Larry Murphy Mark Howe They will announce more after some pictures.