J-Swift

Datsyuk's reputation as a disappearing act in the playoffs isn't built solely on what happened last season. I do believe we're approaching the fifth anniversary of his last playoff goal. I'm certainly not saying that Pavel will be a career post-season choker, but he definitely does have something to prove in the upcoming playoffs. With this new contract extension, people aren't going to be satisfied with just his regular season play (as stellar as it is).

If guys like Zetterberg, Dom, and Bert all return to the lineup at 100% we're obviously going to make some noise. I can't wait to get the Wings jersey out and start wearing it to school on game days. At my school, you're either a Detroit fan or a Toronto fan, and there's nothing better than bragging to Leaf fans.

How'd you know? I think we can both agree that only time will tell whether this deal is the right move or not. By signing this deal, the Wings are making the assumption that: a) the cap will go up, b) Datsyuk's level of play remains high for the next 7 years, and c) that Pavel's recent playoff scoring woes are the product of bad luck. I really hope that Detroit is right on all counts, because this contract will have a huge impact on this franchise for years to come.

Well I'd imagine Dats could probably get 7 million out on the UFA market, but I can't imagine anyone offering him that amount per season for longer than we did. And just because another team is willing to give a player that much money, doesn't necessarily mean that we should. Furthermore, if this is where Datsyuk really wants to play, why should we even be concerned with possible offers from other teams?

Given the contrast of our road record with our home record, I'm a little bit happier knowing that we have guaranteed home ice advantage all the way up to the Stanley Cup Final. I realize, however, that streaks like these don't always carry into the post-season.

Maybe they'll still want to clinch the Presidents' Trophy.

So this means we get Calgary in the first round, barring a mini-miracle by Colorado, right? Not sure how I feel about this. I realize the Flames aren't the same team we faced in 2004, but the Wings have a tendency to get opposing goalies on a hot streak for whatever reason. And I'd rather not face a hot Mikka Kiprusoff. But playoff matchups aside, it is pretty satisfying to again find ourselves on top of the West. The departures of Shanny and Stevie didn't slow us down at all.

a) So you honestly believe that the NHL cap is going to continue spiral upward because it has shown an increase in its very first two years in existence? b) I hardly think you can take a lot out of what was said today at face value. You cannot expect anyone within the organization to say anything other than postive comments about Pavel today. c) Previous to his injury, Zetterberg had more goals, more points, and a better plus/minus than Datsyuk. Not to mention the fact that he lead the league in GWGs. He was playing on the top line, the top PP unit, the top PK unit, and when the game was on the line with a minute to go, you knew Hank would be out there. There was an article on ESPN, I do believe, which discussed his chances for the Hart trophy, and the general consensus around here was that the Selke trophy had his name written all over it. You cannot downplay his contriubtions to this team. And when his contract is up in a couple of years, he is going to want the exact same deal. d) My "co-thinkers"? I love how you group me in with the people who hate Pavel Datsyuk. I have nothing against the guy, and I wanted him back just as much as anyone else. But there isn't a single player on this team I'd be willing to give a contract this long and for this much. No, not even Zetterberg. And I'm sorry, but Datsyuk's going to have more than just a decent playoffs this year to shut anyone up; the guy's going to have to be a scoring machine for any of this deal's nay-sayers to be satisfied. It seems to me that if Datsyuk really wanted to stay here, we should've given him a chance to show us that his past playoff disappearing acts were a fluke, and then offered him the same deal. I might have been a little more receptive to this contract extension if that were the case.

First off, you're making some pretty big assumptions over what will happen to NHL contracts in the coming seasons. And what about in 5 to 6 years time? Will he still look cheap then? Who really knows? We're taking a huge risk here. a) You're basing this on what exactly? b) As I specifically stated in an earlier post, you'd be crazy to say something like that back when Zetterberg was in the lineup. I can agree with this. Datsyuk has played great lately, and if he continues his high level of play into the playoffs and the coming seasons, it'll be hard to find fault with this deal. But it's sheer nonsense to think that Pavel will be going anywhere during the next seven years, regardless of his play.

You're not getting it. This isn't 6.7 million dollars for a season or two. This is 6.7 million dollars for the next seven years. If 50 million dollars isn't an "albatross" of a contract, just what is? I would have never have guessed that when initial reports were saying Datsyuk and Greenstin wanted 7 million dollars, Ken Holland's counter-offer would've been 6.7 for the next 7 seasons. I'm still in shock at this deal. I'm sorry, were you expecting Steve Yzerman to say that this deal blows? Not only does Datsyuk have to become a playoff performer for this deal to be justifiable, he has to become the team's MVP within the coming years. Some would suggest he already is, but keep in mind that when Henrik Zetterberg was healthy and in the lineup, there was absolutely no question who the best player on this team was.

No one is going to be taking on this albatross of a contract if Datsyuk falters. When you sign a deal like this, you're showing that you are totally committed to a player's ability to carry the franchise, and you have to ride it out. The guy is not going anywhere no matter how he does in the coming seasons. And the fact that this contract puts "pressure" on Datsyuk hardly justifies giving him a guaranteed 6.7 million dollars a season until 2014. Given his playoff track record and his current position as the Wings highest paid forward (disregarding Bertuzzi of course), I assumed this "pressure" was already there.

I find it hard to accept that our second-highest paid forward on the team is an absolute liability in the regular season, regardless of whether he's a decent playoff producer. And if you think he's going to put up another solid point total in this post-season if he continues to play the way he has throughout this season, you're wrong. Keep in mind, I was never a "Lang hater" before this year. But let's just say his shameful laziness, constant giveaways, and stupid penalties have hardly endeared me to him. The only time he's looked like a good scoring-line centre was early on in the season when Cleary was red-hot.

Could you drop that garbage? Where were you when we re-signed Zetterberg for four years? Now that was a good long-term deal. And just who exactly was against the trade for Todd Bertuzzi? I think it's rather hard to compare the gamble of signing a guy to a huge 7-year contract to the gamble of acquiring Todd Bertuzzi or Dominik Hasek. If Todd Bertuzzi didn't work out, we only gave up a few picks and a prospect, and could let him go at the end of the season. If Dominik Hasek didn't work out, we're only paying him 750K, and we still had Chris Osgood as an insurance policy. But this is totally different. Datsyuk's contract will make him absolutely immovable if his play declines for any number of reasons in the next seven years. Sure this deal might look better towards the back end of it, when the cap goes up and so do contracts around the league, but who honestly thinks that Datsyuk is going to be the same player in his mid-30's? That's an excellent way to stimulate hockey discussion.

No team is stupid enough to offer a player the league max for this long, unless the player's name is Sidney Crosby. Not giving Datsyuk the oppurtunity to at least show us he's capable of having one good post-season before shelling out almost 50 million dollars is a big mistake, IMO. Maybe this deal might look better towards the end of the contract, but keep in mind Datsyuk will be in his mid-30's by then, and we have no idea if he'll be the same player. Regardless of how this looks in five to seven years, it looks does not look like the right move to me at the moment.

I really dislike the timing of this deal. Many in the "pro-Datsyuk" crowd suggested that we sign Pavel before the playoffs, because a good post-season from him would drive his price on the free agent market up too high. But regardless of how good of a playffs Datsyuk has this year, I can't possibly imagine him getting more than this from another team. I like Datsyuk and I think he's played great this season. I know Detroit is truly where he wants to play, and I'm glad to see he's coming back. But I just cannot wrap my head around this deal. Usually when players sign for such a long period of time, the amount of money they make per season is a little lower than what it would be had they signed a shorter contract. That definitely didn't happen in this case.

I'm really excited about Emmerton. I watched him play when the Frontenacs came to Windsor a couple months ago, and he looked great. He's a little like Z in the sense that he's an under-sized, hard-working, two-player with some pretty sweet moves. I've read some scouting reports that have panned his skating ability a bit, but he certainly didn't look slow when I saw him.

To be fair, Hasek has indeed shown some of his little, somewhat unnecessary, quirks this season. He's gotten burned for wandering more than once, and there was a span of a couple weeks just a little while ago where that "poke-check at the blueline" play of his wasn't working for some reason. But he's played great for most of the season, which is really what I think a lot of us expected out of him if he was able to stay healthy. As of right now, he is top five in every major goaltending statistical category, with the exception of save percentage, but the .913% he holds as of right now isn't bad at all. I've been happy with his conduct off the ice as well. From all accounts, him and Ozzie seem to be getting along fine. And after Babcock called him out for his embellishment against the Flames, he really seemed to elevate his game, which is contrary to what all the Canadian hockey analysts thought would happen. I just hope Dom can stay healthy in the post-season. Playing almost every other night can't be easy for a 40-year old with injury problems over the past couple seasons.

Good for Dom after being robbed of a shutout on Sunday. He appears to be ready for the post-season.

I believe he stopped Doug Weight's shot, did he not?

Something very similar to this happened earlier in the season where Roloson made a big glove save on Draper, but it was ruled a goal because, although you couldn't really see the puck in the net, the goaltender's glove was clearly across the line.

The refs absolutely refused to call penalties in the third for whatever reason. Now I know I'm sounding like a bit of a whiner here, but the reffing had as much of an effect on our four-game losing streak as the Wings' sloppy play has.

They were rushing the ice to celebrate the win when the play was obviously going to be reviewed. Furthermore, I'd hardly call Ville Niemenen's hit "classy", and it's not the first time the Blues have gone head-hunting this season.

That's unbelievable. Judging by his reaction after Cleary's attempt, Babcock is going to have some interesting things to say.

And we're on the PK? That's ridiculous.

Exactly what I was thinking.