joshy207

Roster is max. 23 for the whole regular season. No limit for the playoffs. (Not like baseball, where it expands from 25 to 40 on Sept. 1st.)

I think the suspension would have been similar no matter who hit who. The league said they were going to crack down on head checks. This is a good start. It was a cheap hit, dirty and late. You don't explode that far up when you hit someone--the point of checking is to separate the player from the puck. You can't do that and keep yourself in the play if you're 5" off the ice when your shoulder makes contact with the guy's head. 20 games, just like I called for in the original thread about the hit...

This is the only part of your statement that is correct. The rest of what you say could be used to argue the fact that Todd Bertuzzi never should have been suspended for the Steve Moore Incident. Hits---DIRTY, CHEAP hits--like this one have no place in hockey. Leaving your feet to throw a hit in any situation is unacceptable. Throwing your shoulder into a guy's head when you can see he's not looking is unacceptable. It's time for the NHL to make a statement about hits like this. I say Downie should get 20 games.

Ahahahahahahahahaha. Way to go RBK and NHL. I thought these uniforms spent 2 years in R&D... didn't they test them on anyone who sweats?

Out of curiosity, how old is your son? Just trying to get an idea if this would be a good stick for him. And as others have said, you won't find this stick for much less than $230...

The blue chest stripe on the white jersey hasn't been around in a long time, except for the Vintage jersey the Habs wore in recent years (the one in Doctor G's avatar). I liked those jerseys, too.

Then he'll be draft-eligible in 2008 at least, and maybe more because he's European. I know the North American guys are free agents if they're not drafted by age 20... Europeans used to always have to be drafted, even if they were in their 30s, not sure how that works under the new CBA though.

At age 18, he's not a free agent, he'd have to be drafted before the Wings (or any other team) could sign him. At this point, he helps fill out the Prospect Camp roster and the Wings' brass gets a chance to see him up close.

I agree, the relationship with GR is a natural, and the Senators did a wonderful job helping get them off the ground. I'm not complaining at all, just noting that a Red Wing-affiliated AHL team could have worked here despite the failures of every other minor-league and Junior A team in the metro area, for the lone reason that it's "Red Wings". As for the original post... I think for a team to work in GR, tickets would have to be cheap ($5-15). A good location would have been the DeltaPlex, they've hosted similar level hockey teams before, but they sold their boards and compressor, so that's out. There really isn't anything between a community-style rink and the Van Andel--nothing with real seats that would hold 2-4 thousand people. Michigan's a funny place, junior hockey has a real hard time gaining a foothold in most of our communities. The only teams that have done moderately well are Traverse City and Alpena, but they're both the only show in town--no college or pro teams to compete with. Detroit used to have 4 NAHL Jr. A teams 10 years ago, but they're all gone because none of them could make any money. Even Compuware, a nationally prominent team, lost 250K every year. They played to an empty arena at the end of their existence. The only time they drew really well was when Lindros played there for the first part of the 1989-90 season. Kalamazoo and Saginaw teams failed as well. Even college hockey doesn't draw well in Detroit, unless it's Michigan vs. Michigan State. Grand Rapids would face a similar battle for market share, fighting the WIngs, Griffs, college teams, and even the Jr. B Owls, not to mention all the high school teams. Having a roster laden with West Michigan talent would help, but it would still be a struggle. Overall, I don't think a USHL team would be able to make it in GR.

Is that where we talk about the new New Jersey jerseys?

Exactly. People cut him as much slack as they do the Lions.

I always thought, when the Wings were resurrecting their AHL affiliate, they should have put it in Detroit instead of hooking up with the Griffins. Not that GR hasn't worked out very well... just would have been a chance for the Wings to make a little more money, and for Wings fans who couldn't afford or get NHL tickets to still see some good, Wings-affiliated hockey.

Unfortunately, this translation makes NO sense.

I play once or twice a week in the winter. My regular team plays Fridays or Wednesdays in Hazel Park and I sometimes sub in an Over-30 league in Southfield. I also coach a travel team, the Southfield Warriors Bantam A.

My predictions: 1. Wil Kronwall reach #1/#2 Dman status within his current contract (next 5 years)? -No. #3/4 defenseman. Will play well but struggle to stay healthy. 2. Will Grigorenko prove to be a capable top 6 forward this season? -Not this year (as in Not Yet.) May need some AHL time this year and will need a few NHL seasons under his belt first. 3. Will Hudler score 20+ goals this season? -Yes, unless his icetime is reduced from last year. 4. Will Filppula have a 45pt season? -Will get close... between 35 and 50. 5. Will Lilja get in more than 5 fights? -Legitimate fights? No. 6. Will Rafalski have a career offensive year? -No. Detroit's not going to score a ton of goals. Rafalski will help, but we're not looking at the '80s Edmonton Oilers. 7. Who will be the alternate captains when Zetterberg gets the C? -Depends on when Lidstrom retires and who's left. 8. Does Cleary turn out to be a one hit wonder, or does he repeat with another 20+ goal showing? -Will have another excellent year but won't approach 20 goals again. May get 12. 9. What one forward, that is an 08 UFA as of now, would you like to see the Wings get at the deadline? -TBD. Depends on where the Wings are in the standings, what they need on the ice, and the market prices in the spring. They don't need to overpay, and they don't have a lot of prospects to deal. 10. Of the players whose contracts expire in either 08 or 09, which ONE top 6 winger and ONE top 4 Dman (both in the 3M-5M range) and which ONE bottom six player (less than 2M) would you like to see the Red Wings sign? -Zetterberg, Lidstrom, Cleary.

I heard from a guy who works in the hockey equipment industry and has seen some of the new (unreleased) jerseys, that a lot of the logos will be smaller, like what is used on kids' size replica jerseys.

My guess is he may play a few games in GR but will spend most of the season in Port Huron (IHL--former UHL). The Flags-turned-Icehawks may take Toledo's spot as Detroit's second affiliate.

He's like a "4-A" baseball player... too good for the minors, not good enough for the bigs. Could make the team, should be a better fill-in than Langfeld or Ellis.

Goalies take a long time to develop. Only the rare ones can play well in the NHL at 21 or younger.

Exactly. If all 4 teams were on equal footing, only the true diehards would pay much attention to the Wings, Pistons and Tigers. The Lions would completely dominate the sports scene... Detroit is a football city, Michigan a football state first and foremost.

There's a HUGE difference between the NCAA and NHL... that said, Howard is very capable of being a #1 goalie in the NHL. He still needs a year or two of AHL development. He should be able to dominate that league before he's pressed into *regular* NHL duty.

As people have already said, the Lions run this town and they haven't won a title in like 60 years. The Tigers are the new Red Wings/Pistons, the hot team of the hour--but Detroit is, has been, and always will be a huge baseball city. The Pistons are 3rd, the Wings 4th, and the evidence of that was this spring, when the Wings and Pistons had so many conflicting playoff games. It was virtually impossible to find the Wings game broadcast over the Pistons game at a local bar. My buddies and I spent a couple Saturday afternoons driving all over Royal Oak and Berkley trying to find a bar carrying the Wings game as their primary draw... and there wasn't one. If we were lucky, we could find the Wings on one of the corner TVs while the Pistons occupied all of the big screens and all of the speakers. My list, both now and if all were championship caliber: 1. Lions 2. Tigers 3. Pistons 4. Red Wings

I saw a pic of a roller hockey team wearing jerseys like that, and they couldn't have been more than 14...

Maybe I'm letting a bunch of bad apples spoil them all, but I think hockey players are *generally* classier than football or basketball players. Hockey is a sport that requires a lot of time and commitment, as well as a lot of family time spent together. Practice and games involve a car ride to and from, where a lot of football/basketball practices are after school and the kids can walk home, plus hockey is an 8- to 12-month season, where the other sports are over in 3 months or less. Most hockey players don't have the time or the desire to get into trouble--not that some don't, for sure. And there are PLENTY of good people in basketball and football, but we don't hear about them as much as the ones in trouble. Another factor could be that hockey isn't as big of a high school or college sport, so the star player with the horrible grades isn't given an A to keep him eligible for the championship game, or his legal troubles aren't swept under the rug. Most of the top hockey players are in junior hockey, where grades aren't a factor.

This is from Eklund? It's drivel. The NHL has a better chance of getting on CSPAN than on ESPN. And, GARY THORNE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!and Steve "Mar Tan Bro Door" Levy are AWFUL. I could call a better game through my butt hole.