joshy207

That article is a little misleading. There's a difference between a morning skate and a pre-game warmup.

I didn't know you can "un-retire" a guy's number. It took Ilitch FOREVER to retire Sid Abel's number too. I understand it's the highest honor a club can give, but Abel put in a lot of years here and was a pretty good player.

I guess I cut my last post a bit short. You're right, the experienced guys will stick around (except Chelios) and Ericsson would have jumped ahead of Quincey anyway, as well as the other guys in the near future. While I don't think he's useless, Quincey's slow development meant his chances of playing regularly here were getting smaller by the day and the Wings made the best move for themselves and for Quincey.

I have always considered Ryan Miller to be the benchmark for Howard. Not that they're equal goalies--I think Miller is definitely better. But their developmental paths were similar, starring in college and playing in the AHL for an organization deep in goaltending. Neither goalie has been rushed to NHL duty. Buffalo allowed Miller to develop in the AHL until he dominated that league. He was 25 before he was on the NHL roster full-time. (Probably would have been 24 if not for the lockout.) Howard is still 23 and still on a similar path. While Miller put up better numbers in the A, Howard's NHL numbers are better than Miller's before he took over the #1 job in 05-06. I figure Howard will likely get at least a couple games for Detroit this year (injury/schedule/just a callup), will see 30-35 games playing behind Osgood next year, and will be in the Wings' lineup for some time.

There are a few ways of looking at this... What's best for the team NOW? Quincey was #9 on the depth charts, he couldn't beat out Meech, Lebda, Lilja, or Chelios even for the 8th spot, and by all accounts, the only reason Ericsson isn't higher than 10 is because he could be sent to GR without having to clear waivers. So at this point, all Detroit lost was a minor-league defenseman. What's best for the team IN THE FUTURE? If I was given the choice of having a 46-year old, a 32-year old, or a 23-year old, in most cases, the 23-year old would be my first choice. The 46-year old is at or very, very near the end of his career; the 32-year old is in his prime but can't crack the top pairings; at least the 23-year old is still developing. Who is most likely to still be playing here in 3 years, 5 years, 10 years? The 23-year old. Fortunately in this situation, Detroit's still chock full of defense prospects, so they haven't given up the future, but if Quincey still had the opportunity to develop here, he could have become a regular in the next year or two. What's best for the PLAYER? Quincey now has an opportunity that, for various reasons, he did not have here this season. He may now get a ton of playing time in LA if Johnson is in fact going to miss the next 3 months (tsn.ca). He may thrive in that situation and develop into a regular NHL defenseman. To say Quincey didn't have a future here, I think that was premature. He's still only 23. Defensemen take more time to develop, they can't all crack NHL lineups by the time they are 21. Had there been room here--if 2 of Chelios, Stuart, Lilja weren't back--Quincey may have been the 7th or 8th D and had more of a chance to prove himself in practice and games. Maybe, maybe not, but 23 is a bit early to completely write off a defenseman.

That makes no sense. If he's not on the roster then there is no cap hit, and if a guy is on a 2-way contract, he makes less in the AHL than he does in the NHL. If Quincey clears waivers, he can be assigned to Grand Rapids and his salary does not count against the cap. Same exact situation as Downey.

The Rebel League, about the World Hockey Association of the 1970's. VERY interesting book, some great stories, that league was a true gongshow. http://www.amazon.com/Rebel-League-Unruly-...201&sr=1-22 The Rink: Stories from Hockey's Hometowns, about some older rinks in Canada and their role in those towns. Some nice history. Stories are told by some of the CBC broadcasters.

None of them will be accurate. It is common to list players as being taller and heavier than they really are.

Exactly... they could be a #1 pairing on most hockey teams in the world, yes, but in the NHL, no way.

Neither do post-season stats.

Yup, but he ain't gettin' any younger...

Look at the picture again... that's Comerica Park on the right. Home plate to center field is what, 400-something feet? Hockeytown to Cheli's is not much farther than that. There's also Town Pump and Centaur to the left (west) of Hockeytown and Cheli's, and State Bar is on Woodward in the Filmore Theater. All good spots.

This is a sign... there's still a glimmer of hope for the Lions! Between the positive off-ice changes and the impressive young talent the Hawks have, they should be able to rekindle a serious rivalry with Detroit over the next couple years.

The Hour is a really good little show. The guests are interesting. George's interviews are much better than the late-night American shows and the questions for the guests aren't self-promoting fluff. If The Hour was on American TV, it would be pretty popular here... but it'd have to tone down some of the subject matter and language.

Definitely take the 401 through Windsor and use the tunnel. 402 through Sarnia/Port Huron is probably quicker to the north and east suburbs, but not to downtown Detroit, and the tunnel is much closer to the Joe than the bridge--and there's no construction closures near the tunnel. You won't need a passport, but if you have one, it's the best form of ID. Otherwise, have your drivers' license and some other form(s) of Government-issued ID. Where you go once you exit the tunnel depends on where you want to park. There are a lot of bars that have shuttles, so you could always go that route if you're 21 or older. If not, there's the People Mover all around downtown, you can find a place to park and ride the Mover to the game. If you're planning on parking in the Joe garage, turn right out of the tunnel, then take a quick u-turn left ("Michigan Left") and head toward Hart Plaza. Follow the signs for Jefferson Ave (don't get on the Lodge Freeway) as you go under Cobo Hall. The garage will be on your right as you resurface.

Really... thanks for the info

Franzen is a natural center... http://www.redwingscentral.com/stories/200...aftTracker.html http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php3?pid=62727 ...but he hasn't played center recently, so I'm sure he'd need some work on faceoffs to shake off the rust. I, too, like the current lines Babcock is using. As long as Franzen can produce close to what he did last year, and if Hudler thrives with more icetime and more talented linemates, Zetterberg's line will be fun to watch. Hossa replacing Zetterberg on Datsyuk's line, they don't miss a step. Third line looks strong too, they'll chip in some goals.

Basically, Chelios' injury just bought everyone some time. Lilja, Lebda, Meech, and Quincey have a few extra weeks to prove themselves (as do Helm, Leino, McCarty, and Downey if they consider going with 14F and 7D to start) and Holland has more time to evaluate everyone and make the best deal possible.

Is it the older style? I could see those being blown out for a cheap price. Also, consider you're in Japan, not exactly the biggest market for NHL jerseys...

Nice. While they're at it, have them look up "apparantly" also! Haha

You could go out near the Joe, to the Post Bar and/or Cobo Joe's... or to Greektown, the casino, the restaurants and bars there... near the other stadiums, Hockeytown Cafe, the State Bar, Town Pump, Centaur, Cheli's Chili... and some other places run shuttles to and from the game, like Nemo's, Old Shillelagh, and a few others. Or you could go back into Windsor, there's lots happening there too.

I play in Hazel Park, Labatt Hockey Detroit, B division. I'm on the Michigan Aces. Won a C-league title there 3 years ago and lost in the final series last year in the B division. Most of my team has been together for 8 years. We've lost a few guys along the way (job relocation, college, retirement) and added some. Great group of guys. Hanging out in the locker room and the bar makes even the bad games worthwhile.

Could have been worse, for sure. I really don't mind it. Maybe something in grey would look better.

I know they really weren't sure if Stuart was going to sign, but there are always a few veteran free-agent defensemen floating around in August and September. Other than the fact that Lilja is a known quantity, why the urgency in signing him when mgmt KNEW there'd be a number crunch at camp time? Maybe I just gave the only answer for that question... And "slightly less" than $850K, I'm thinking that'll be somewhere between 825 and 840. If Chelios plays half the season, that's like paying him $1.65M. I would have expected the deal to be for $600K or less.

Can't defer your salary anymore.