achildr1

Lol...thanks for that laugh.

Franzen really is only motivated from April on, isn't he? We just sit around and watch him float all year and then he becomes captain clutch, powerforward man overnight...and its like every year. So wierd.

Lol. For real.

I didn't get to see any of it but dang if it's not satisfying to google DRW and see that we held the defending Cup champs to one goal, won back to back must win games, and Franzen is actually scoring.

Someone is a little optimistic...

A month ago everyone was calling for the kids head...euro, too small, perimeter player...all the while I thought the kid should have been in a top six role all year. I would have picked him as a Calder finalist had he got top 6 much minutes here all year. I'm glad he's showing people what's up.

Nyquist? You kiddin'? You'd think the kid was 5'5" 120lb Alex Daigle clone by the way LGWers hate on him.

All you Gus haters are rediculous. This kid is for real.

Yes. That was the only vote I left blank.

Stempniak and Wideman....haha. Must be fun to be a Flames fan. And how in the hootenany did Brandon Yip make it on there? Sheesh.

Enrico Ciccone...lol...nice

This is why keeping veterans around too long is a slippery slope. You must play the player who deserves toplay, period. Unless you want a culture of entitlement and pissed off prospects.

Yep. The NHL had an intriquing, unique event that celebrates what's great about our sport. Keeping the intrique is/was vitale to it. Now...I mean seriously, who cares? Lets just call it the K-Mart Cup of the Winter Generic.

Yes. Thank you.

I would argue the Wings/Leafs being original six, probably highest attended hockey game ever, and Toronto's first outdoor game (Canada is collectively wetting their pants a little more everyday in anticipation) is a novelty as well. The Pens game can't be anything but blatant cash grab. Same for NJ/NYR.

This is seriously pathetic. Is this a money grab or what?! Couple more years of this and I can't see why people would even care to watch it in the kind or ratings the NHL wants because it will be just another game...nothing special. I can legimatly see Pittsburgh getting an annual game. Why not? Essentially they already do. Crosby will probably be hurt during it anyway...I don't see the point. I really thought the NHL wouldn't just go with the Wings/Leafs. Say what you want but two middle of the pack teams, one Canadian...the other without Crosby, don't seem to do it for ol' Gary and his lemming owner group. Why isn't Buffalo playing NJ and NYR playing NYI...Instead of two Ranger games? Three outdoor Ranger games in two years...way to have a "unique" event guys. This game had such potential from a marketing standpoint but they are just pissing all over it. Whatever.

Just watching the replay....Hawks 2-2 tying goal just happened. Jimmy blew that big time...was terribly out of position and just watched the play develop.

Bahaha! Yes! My favorite post of the year.

So...who else was positive Marleau would score there?

I think it might be more about the super long contracts in general. Zetterberg is great but I would not want to give an 11 year contract to any player, and to be completely honest, if i did it would have to be a player that I thought had skills so superior that at age 40 he would still be a point per game guy. I dont believe Z is that guy. Franzen...i was baffled then and im still baffled as to how that guy was handed a 10+ year deal for less than two years of proving himself. Howard, while great and one of my favorites, is a goalie. Maybe I live in dreamworld but i dont remember Broduer or Roy getting 6 year deals. I also feel that goalies are in a unique postion and really kind of need to be pushed, to stay on top of their game. 6 years/30 million is not bad for Howard. Id rather it be 4-5 years...but no biggie. I just think these longer contracts for both players and goalies have become a huge stumbling block for the league.

Howard was a very good goalie coming out of college but for some reason I have the feeling that Mrazek is one of the next wave of elite goaltenders. He has dominated every level that he's played at, especially against the best of his peers at the WJC and is tearing up the AHL. I think Howard is more of a positional, structured goaltender where Mrazek seems to be a athletic/skill guy. Positional goalies can be very good but i think I guys like Mrazek that take the position to its next level. Point is, i wouldnt be surprised at all to see Mrazek pushing out Jimmy by the end of year two and almost certainly in year three. The kid will turn 24 in year three...if he is what he's touted to be, he should be well coming into his own by then.

I don't mean to be a negative Nancy but how much do see the point of them making the playoffs right now? This team hardly ever plays like the truly want to win...which btw has been a big part of the problem the last few years. I'm not sure the core of this team is all that concerned with giving it their all to win. The last few playoffs, Datsyuk, Helm, and Howard were the only true standouts to me in terms of looking like they gave a crap whether or not we won. I hope we make the playoffs, i hope everybody decides to do a 180 and play like they mean it but i dont think its going to happen. To win the Cup we would have to pull the Cinderella run...but we don't have the chemistry, the Cinderella element. Guys like Franzen, White, and Quincey are like cancers to me...that lockerroom can't be what it should be. Exactly.

I watched Dekeyser out there the other night and while i seen potential...that kid looked fairly lost at times and incredibly nervous/anxious. In a must win game right now I'd take the pissed off veteren NHL defenseman playing his former team over a a rookie three games out of college hockey. And im not a big White fan either... Exactly! Tootoo is exactly the type of player you need on the ice tonight...when the Wings start loafing like theyre great at doing, we need Toots to get out there and fire up the guys. This is why we miss Helm so much...Tootoo is our closest answer to Darren Helm right now.

Maybe Cory Scnieder did think that way. Obviously Loungo is very uphappy. What if Mrazek clearly won the starting job 2 years from now? Then you have a situation where your backup is vastly overpaid and most likely, very unhappy. How do you think players like signing a 10 year deal, firming planting thier family in a city because the team commited to them, only to lose their job, house, land, schools, kids friends, blah blah blah? Loungo lost his job and not just because Scnieder has been great but because of his contract. Now Vancouver looks bad for signing him to it, for not trading him last year, for not trading him now...if I was Loungo I'd be furious. If I was Schnieder I'd think its a giant circus and Id wonder why they ever signed Loungo that long if they thought so highly of me. So please, consider all the factors. This is not as bad as Loungo's deal but what I said makes plenty of sense and if not likely is surely possible. Goaltenders should not be signed to huge deals...and Bryzgalov, Loungo, and DiPietro can attest to that. If Mrazek does become an elite goalie in the next three years (which is entirely possible considering his continued meteoeic rise), it can create a dicey situation akin to the Curtis Joseph debacle. To be clear.. I like the price for Jimmy. I am actually one of Howards bigger fans in a see of haters that seem to bash him constantly. He is much better than people give him credit for. But I don't like the term, mainly because of Mrazek's presence. Situations like Loungo's or Joseph's can make players not want to sign here...and since Iginlaand Bouwmeester were coming from the Flames and niether wanted to play for us...I think we ccan't afford to gamble too much. I'm not saying that any of this will happen, I'm just saying that I believe most people don't consider these truths when judging a contract.

Mrazek has about as much "track record" as you can judge a goalie by at his age. This kid steals games...the type of goaltender everyteam wants. Yes, he is still a prospect. That said, that doesn't mean you don't take him into account when signing Howard to a 6 year deal. What do you think Mrazek thinks about it? Do you think it doesn't weigh on him that the Wings (who called him up at an earlier age than any goaltender I remember) basically said, without saying, that Mrazek isn't going to be the guy for 6 years? What does that do to a kids mindset? Yea, if he's professional he'll get over it. But its just like sending Tatar down or burying Nyquist all year...do you think they don't know that they are better than half our forwards? Yet they ride the bus in GR. I don't know about you...but that would drive me crazy. I want to KNOW that I can win the job whenever I'm the best option. There arent 10 top goalies in the league. A top notch goaltender is as hard to find as a franchise defenseman. I like the Holland/Howard comment though...well said.