achildr1

There's the keyword. Adequate. Ericsson is finally worth his ice time and I love seeing it. I'd be thrilled if this kid fulfills his potential. I've just watched his look like a deer in the headlights for almost five years and I was literally blown away we gave him that contract. Wings don't usually overpay for uselessness. That said, if he keeps this up, were better off for it. Keep it coming Big E.

I question whether you unbiasedly read what I post. I didn't say he was as good as Ericsson and i implied that he has been our second best defensive defenseman. I say that because Ericsson, I believe, is fooling your eyes a little bit. Ericsson is playing far better than he ever has but he is not playing any better than a #4 defensive defenseman on the Red Wings should be expected to play. Just because he's way better than he has been doesn't mean he's far better than Lashoff has been (a rookie playing two of the best players in the league after less than 30 games) being replaced by Ericsson (who has played with Lidsteom for 4 years and untill two months ago still looked lost on the ice). I wonder why Lashoff was out against the Sedins to begin with if Ericsson is the second coming of Rod Langway.Edit: Ericsson has been decent and worth his contract for as long as Lashoff has been in the NHL so they are both suspect. I've watched Ericsson blow coverage on a player more than any other player on this team in the last four years...pardon me if I'm not drinking the kool aid just uet.

Only in the defensive and that's even debatable. Kronwall has clearly led the offensive D category. Ericsson has probably been the best defensive defenseman on our team but that doesn't say much. A 22 year old, undrafted free agent who was never supposed to make this team is close to being the best defensive defenseman so far. Every other defenseman on our team is either primarily offensive or is simply awful...ie Quincey.

Medioce: Of only moderate quality; not very good Thank you. I had looked up the definition of mediocre for the sake of solid facts. Ericsson is, at best, of moderate quality. This is the best he's ever played and he's still just a bigger version of Brad Stuart, if that, a #4 guy. Holland gave him that deal before seeing him this year and it was certainly an overpayment at the time. Even the worst players can have good stretchs. While I hope this is the new Ericsson, he's been one of the slowest learners and worst defenseman we've had since he's been here. At the end of last year I remember watching him and you could see on his face that he had no confidance and next to no idea where to be on the ice. He also has/had a milder case of Franzenitis...otherwise known as being a big guy and not using it to your advantage. To save any unneeded drubbing...i agree that he has been far better than he has ever been. Im impressed. He's been my whipping boy for s o long it almost made me bitter to give up harping on him. That said, 30 games doesnt erase 4 years of history yet, so we'll see how it goes...

It means you never know...Ericsson is a mediocre, overpaid defenseman and not only is he on our team but Holland gve him that deal. It means its not a stretch to think we'd take a flier on him. That said, I dont think we will.

Lol...never know. Sounds like Ericsson to me.

Face to face works for baseball GM's though...the MLB Winter Meetings has become early Christmas for Tigers fans. Oh...your ugly.

Fact: ogreslayer likes facts. You know, the kind of thing thats hard to argue with. I am astounded by all the Nyquist hate i've been hearing lately. This kid leads the AHL in scoring in his second pro year. He's extremely talented. If anything this kid is held back because of Babcock's ever strange player fascinations...seeing as he isn't one of them. To whoever said that Tatar and Nyquist arent NHL ready...lets trade them to another team and see if they play in the NHL. My money is that they would both be playing full time in the NHL and with the way theyve played this year, they should be playing here too. They arent because we have too many forwards, too many over the hill veterans that have job security. If it actually went by who deserves the spots, Andersson, Tatar, and Nyquist would all be starting and any of Cleary, Samuelsson, Eaves, or Emmerton would no longer be on this team.

Smith has the upside of Kronwall, maybe a little better. Kronwall is a #2 guy on a Cup team. That said Smith was not, or should not have been, expected to be a #2 guy this year and probably not even next year.

I hate being dramatic but this thread really is nonsense. Step back and look at our defense without Kronwall...if that isnt the worst defense in the NHL, its right up there. I mean for real, we wouldnt have a top 2 guy at all. It would be shameful to call any defenseman on our roster more than a #3 guy. You dont trade a top 15 defenseman unless you have another one or your rebuilding/he's gonna be a free agent.

Hahaha...lets make it happen. There's more than enough dead space in Detroit to fit a small Russian city. Get er done Mr. I.

He finally looks legit to me now too. Confidant is the word...he looks like he's stepping up to make plays and he's not afraid to. Man Im glad Kindl and Lashoff stepped up cause I cant imagine this team if the hadnt.

There guys had been so bad that it was only a matter of time before someone started scoring again. Anisimov, Johanson, Dubinsky, Prospal, Brassard, and Umberger can score more than they have been. There D should start helping out the offense too with Johnson and Wisniewski back there. Bobrovsky looks like he may just be the guy theyve needed there too.

+1 blueadams are you Jeff Loria? When did we become the Miami Marlins?...put down the kool-aid bro, this is some crazy speak. While I agree that some stuff needs to change for real, your post is incredibly shortsighted. The financials, fan reaction, and bad logic would be overwhelming. You think we'd even get decent value for our players if everyone knew we were having a fire sale? You think free agents will want to.come to Detroit after that?

Two years ago, sure. Now, no way. Ovie is a bad personality for this team. He has a lifetime deal, declining production, an unsustainable way of playing for his size, huge cap hit, and would be here several years after Datsyuk is gone. It would be fun to watch though for a few years.

This. ...and thats what ithink.

This. This.

This is a perfect situation in which my normal Holland admiration is almost completely squashed. Holland will almost certainly sign Filppula but not only that, he will be overpaid in dollars and term. The Filppula experiment is over. Filppula is worth more to us in a trade, impending ufa or not. He is simply not worth the contract that he will almost certainly get. On the open market the kid would probably get 5+ years at over 5 mill. That is not the kind of money we need to spend on a 50 point player. In reality it would be better for his career if he left anyway. Florida or Pheonix would probably throw the bank at him and he'd play on the top line everynight. I could actually see him on Pheonix...seems like their type guy. In reality, Nyquist should take over Fil's spot. He has just as much skill and a heigher ceiling. Probably wont rake him till he's 30 to figure it out too. Brunner and Howard need Fil's money and whatevers leftover needs to be focused on rebuildi.g our defense.

Get used to him...Panthers are in our division next year. That is so wierd btw.

This is incredibly unlikely. Holland doesnt do almost anything that requires risk. I am equally mad at people constantly bashing him and at Holland for playing it safe while Lidstrom was in his last year, our team was obviously aging, etc. Holland and co have done a great job establishing our current farm system, the best one that ive seen in the 18 years ive been follwing them. That has taken some patience and NOT making moves that we may otherwise have made. That said, some things he/they do are incredibly frustrating. Last years pick would have been the highest pick we've had in the last 20 years other than the Kindl debacle and we traded it for a joke, and a bad one at that. We needed a defenseman, knowing that Lidstrom and Stuart were leaving, so I get that. But Quincey? Classic Holland..former Wing, "known commodity". I would have rather had Downie in that deal than Quincey. Also, Its almost like we put all our eggs in the Suter basket last year. Instead of being proactive, we seemingly thought that was in the bag until It wasnt. I cant help but thinking that In the last two years we couldnt have used the Quincey pick plus a prospect to make something happen. It looks like we left a gap between the old guard and the kids. We should have been bridging the gap two years ago. Holland has become so predictable. He always likes the team, no matter how obviously flawed they are. The draft is trading our first for 2 second rounders (which is ok sometimes) and if we do keep our first it seems like its.always a "safe" pick. A guy that at worst should pan out as a 3rd pair/3rd line player but may not have the upside as 10 other guys on the board. Thats ok so long as your elite players arent approaching thier late 30s...and ours are. We need potential "elite" replacements and if you arent going to step up and be aggresive to draft them, you better start making trades. We are risking losing the distinctive mystique of Red Wingdom...something that allows us to sign free agents, which allows us to be a litte safer in drafting and trading. If we lose that, I see the house of cards falling.

I would almost rather not get anything for him than trade him and watch him suit up for another team. I'm sure he'd command the moon but I never want to see him in another jersey.

Colo wasn't insane, we had no defensive depth at all at that point. Imagine if Lashoff and Kindl didnt come out of nowhere this year, our D on paper is rough. Sammy, besides being a right handed shot, was a pure panic move though.

Kings trade Gagne to Flyers for a 4th round pick. Why is Kenny never in on stuff like this? I know we have a lot of forwards but were also injury ridden and Gagne, hurt a lot or not, is easily worth a fourth. Even if we did it just so we could flip Cleary, Miller, Eaves, etc out.

Right. Nyquist is clearly more skilled and bigger than Tatar. I dont see how Nyquist needs all the AHL he can get for his "frame" when he's out performed, is mre skilled, and is bigger than Tatar. Abdelkader is usless and will probably never be better than he is now and Cleary is 2 days from retirement. How is Nyquist playing with Datsyuk instead of in the AHL gonna hurt his development?

When we beat Pheonix in the playoffs right before Bryzgalov became a UFA, you could tell he just quit. His body language wreecked of it. It was so obvious he wasnt giving it his all. If I would have been looking to give him a crazy, super deal....I would have reconsidered immediately after seeing that. Pheonix is so much better off having let him go.