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It was a typo - he meant Lebda was easily better than a "rusty sleigh".

That's pretty sweet... Would have loved to watch Dionne and Redmond on a line together for the Wings.

Yeah, I would fire that agent.

Every single Wings' goalie ever. Robert Lang Boyd Devereaux Brett Lebda Kopecky will always grind my gears. Nothing infuriated me more than the Wings down 1 or 2 goals in the third, and Babcock puts in Kopecky (while sitting Hudler) who promptly flops around on the ice like a fish out of water for his entire shift.

My wife is a pretty casual fan and does a pretty good job understanding my fanaticism. She does enjoy going to live games a lot, but rarely will get into a game on TV. Knows most of the players on the Wings, but very few from other teams, asides from Crosby of course... whom she hates. Steve Yzerman is still "A beautiful man, like Johnny Depp, but with scars". She's ben hit on by Darren McCarty and knew who he was.... but she did not know who Brett Lebda was when he hit on her ("a drunk, short, hairy, greasey guy" He had to actually tell her who he was)

I've actually spoken with Ansar Khan about it. Devellano pretty much is the head cheese in regards to everything, but The buck always stops with Illitch, and he does stay on top of things.

Technically, it is the president's call (Devellano in the Wings' case), but the owner can step in and do whatever he wants.

He's got a decent chance But has a few things working against him: He is no longer head and shoulders above the rest. The media has more than made it apparent his time is over and they will use any opportunity to push the younger generation. Pronger will be getting some residual votes from yet another great post-season. Though Lidstrom's 10 pts in 12 games is awfully impressive.

Datsyuk and especially Zetterberg are still the best PKing forwards the Wings have, and they will be out for key situations, but it is nice that the Wings can give plenty of PK time to Eaves, Cleary, Filpulla, Helm, Abdelkader, Draper, and even Franzen... Even Modano. They just have so many better options on special teams this coming year. Great to see!

I understand that all Sid's mild antics will be used against him in the future, perhaps unfairly, but there is no question great, young leaders like Yzerman, Gretzky, Beliveau, Trottier and Sakic never pulled the combined diving/whining/cheap-shotting that Crosby has been guilty of. They simply did not, not even a scum like Messier, and ultimately I have a feeling Crosby will end up being compared to them as a leader... Already is, in fact.

Remember that time when Yzerman was a young immature captain and punched that one guy in the balls, from behind?

Hopefully they play like they have something to prove, like in 08 after the loss to the Ducks and played like they wanted it from the start of the season till the end of the post-season.

Agreed, but a tough 20 goal-scorer also cost 2 to 4 times as much as a wimpy one. Surely you can see this team has a bit of a cap constraint, and at the end of the day 20 goals is 20 goals.

The problem is there are so many others ahead of him and not in yet. Skaters and goalies. You know Belfour is going to have to wait, and he is a given... Then you've got Vachon, Barrasso, Vernon plus a lot of skaters waiting. If osgood gets in, I think he waits a long time.

I'm seeing it! Lol Some zingers in this thread....

Which is fine, and I actually do agree with, however, the play is not reviewable in the case the puck was in before the net - and it should be. Just as an on-ice incorrect call allowing a call is overturned when video review proves otherwise (puck was kicked in, high-sticked, etc.), a good goal disallowed by an incorrect call should also be overturned if video review shows the call was in error. Now this should only be for instances where the puck was in the goal before the whistle, and thus will not cause numerous delays in a game.

Great explanation... The only way these guys are overpaid is if they are playing like Draper the last couple years; and if that is the case, I wouldn't be surprised to see them retire (and the whole cap hit comes off the books) if their games fell so much.. The beauty of these front-loaded contracts is they are great for the players as well -- they've already made 90% of their money by that point, and will not need to still lace them up for a paycheck at that point, if their game has really fallen.

Absolutely love those stairs... Really adds to the atmosphere of the event.

Though Osgood was the runner up in 96. If the Wings had won game 7 in 09 he is literally a lock... As he most likely wins the Conn Smythe as well.

The bar for goalies is significantly higher than it is for skaters. Osgood could get in, after a wait, but there are still some better goalies waiting (like Vachon).

But those guys (accumulators) will always have to wait, if they ever do get in. For instance Andreychuk finished 9th once in the league for points, and that was his best. He never earned a post-season all-star team nod, and was never considered a top player in the league. He has almost 500 more points than Forsberg, but I guarantee Forsberg does not have to wait nearly as long (and will probably get in before), simply because Forsberg's prime was at another level - he earned a Hart and was considered the best player in the world for a time. Forsberg only has 6 or 7 seasons where he was relevant... A few extra injury-plagued seasons, where he still managed 50-60 points is not what is getting him in the Hall.

You think all they consider are career numbers? I believe they come into the discussion only when a guy comes up who was not league leader for any period of time. Gartner was never a flash in the pan period. He needed incredible career points or he would never have gotten in. The committee members have shown they value peak far more than career in their voting. It's why someone like Forsberg will most likely be a first-year inductee, and someone like Andreychuk, with much greater career numbers, is not in. A single Hart will ensure Sedin is talked about for the Hall of Fame, whereas he would be virtually ignored without it. Same thing with St. Louis. Finally, who would you rather have - Gartner for 20 years or Ovechkin for 5?

Bobby Orr only played 8 healthy seasons... 3 less years would have made no difference. These guys are no Orr but they already have more elite seasons than many Hall of Famers... Tacking on some extra decent seasons would not make or break them for the Hall. There are certainly career marks needed for a 'good for a long time' player, but the 'best in the world' players do not need them. I'd actually be shocked if they were not inducted. Besides, a shortened career actually gave Neely a boost in getting in, and he was not nearly as good as ovechkin and Crosby. Imagine the nostalgia if an injury took them out of the game right now? They'd get in for sure.

it would be unprecedented to keep a 2-time Hart winner out. Almost all 1-time winners are in. These guys are not Mike Gartner, relying on years of accumulation to get in while never leading the league in anything; they have been universally acknowledged as the two best hockey players in the world for a significant stretch of time.

If Ovechkin and Crosby both had career ending injuries tomorrow they would get in the Hall. Both of them have already done more than say, Lindros, who will probably make it in. 2 Harts is a lock for Ovechkin and while Crosby only has one, a Cup and Olympic gold gets him in no question.