Dawgs

We can get production similar to Penners for less than a million. Id rather see 4 or 5 of the Wings prospects than him. Abdelkader springs to mind. No thanks, Ill pass.

You guys talk about Downey like hes some big bad mutha that everyone in the league is afraid of. Hes a middleweight who probably would have gotten the same ass kicking Lilja did against Shelley.

This team needed to be embarrassed. They played just as bad the night before against LA.

Ozzies problems are mostly of his own making. The defense could have been one of the causes early in the season but its all Ozzie now. Clearing the front of the net hasnt been in the Wings repetoire for more than a decade. I do see opposing forwards coming from behind the goal line way more often than in seasons past tho. The D is staying closer at home perhaps because the forwards havent been as responsible in thier own zone. I thought giveaways were probably higher than years past, but according to the stats in another threed, turnovers are actually down. Yes alot of the little things it takes to stop GA arent being done with as much tenacity. They are just not aggressive enough on the penalty kill this season. They are content to stay in the box. Part of the Stanley Cup hangover thing. Most of these problems will be fixed when the games mean more. Ozzie may be a lost cause for the remainder of this season tho. When the problems in a goalies head it usually takes an offseaon to fix. Thats why I would have put Ozzie on LTIR in December instead of waiting til its almost do or die time.

Take aways are down by 2 per game. That is a big reason why shots against per game have increased. I was surprised to see the give aways so closely mimicing the past two seasons. That right there would lead an outsider to believe its all on Ozzie.

Its easy to tell Ozzie hasnt been right this season. Dont look at his GAA thats as much the defense. Look at the pathetically weak Sv%. Ozzies been fighting it since day one against Toronto. He can still make the spectacular save but his penchant for allowing weak goals has gotten worse as the seasons progressed. Ten days in late Feb and early March is too little too late if ya ask me. This should have been handled in December.

Completely misunderstood that sentence my fault sorry. I meant that maybe Ozzie would be right by now, instead of trying to get him right by not playing him for 10 days with 20 games left, and that we would have had the chance to see Howard at this level. I wasnt advocating Howard for playoff goalie.

That only works if the offending player is also an enforcer. And he wasnt. Hes just a little guy. Downey drops the gloves roughs him up and takes penalties. Sheer genius.

On the subject of Maltby: Hes done. Zero trade value. He will be a contract albatross next season. Well have to give up Hudler because hes on the roster. Retire already would ya. The Wings need Chelios, Maltby and Draper to realize everything this organization has given them and repay them in kind by retiring. Those three contracts will hurt our roster next season.

IMO theyve mishandled the goaltending this season. When Ozzies groin was hurting him, the writing was already on the wall. They should have jumped at the chance to put him on LTIR and brought up Howard then. Ten days isnt gonna fix Ozzie, his season is lost. I dont believe he will recover in time. If they had put him on LTIR in December then maybe wed have a decent goaltender right now along with knowing what we have in Howard. This misplay, paired with lax defensive play, could cost us the Cup.

Im not gonna read 6 pages of the same mindless argument thats been goin on for several years here. I do want to say tho that even if an enforcer were in the lineup that night he wouldnt have been on the ice with Hudler and Hossa. Unless said enforcer jumper over the boards that line was on its own.

Best thing to do with goalies is develop them in your own system. Its not like the D or forwards where there are multiple players playing one position. You can have 4 goalies in your system but only one really needs to pan out, the others are just system fodder. Signing FA goalies to big contracts is way to dumb for Holland to do and it will never happen. It cockblocks your entire payroll. You lose all flexibility. The only way Luongo ever comes to Detroit is if hes at the end of his career like Hasek and his 6 million dollar paydays are done. I think Lidstrom signs one more two year contract at least.

When Semin says, "I'll go apes*** on your ass", he aint bluffing.

There will be a need to trade a couple salaries to maintain a balanced salary structure over the next two or three years. Sammy, Lilja , Hudler, Lebda, Filppula all could be gone. Fortunately we are developing younger and cheaper alternatives. If the Wings were to replace Filpula, Lilja and Sammy with Helm, Leino and Erikkson the savings would be significant. The following year could see guys like Abdelkader and Kindl replacing Lebda and Hudler. We are in a good position and have enough depth to trade some of these salaries for prospects and picks. The money could even be there to resign Hossa and Franzen if Holland were to deem the 5 guys mentioned as being NHL ready right now. Im not overly concerned with the Wings financial position. They have everything they need to move in multiple directions, all seeing them maintain a competitive edge. I trust Holland to do the right thing. Hes the best GM Ive ever watched.

Lebda has to go there are better options to pair with Lilja. Maltby and McCarty have outlived thier usefulness as well. The biggest problem though is this team still isnt skating, they are watching. Zero forecheck cant break out of our own zone. When we finally do get the puck in our zone nobody is moving thier feet. The forwards just kinda stand there waiting for the turnover to happen. Well the turnover is happening because the forwards arent moving thier feet. They arent creating passing lanes with thier speed. The D holds the puck waiting to find someone thats open and then turn it over because they need to make a tough pass. Lidstrom, the captain, was brutal last night. SJ first goal was his fault. Why is Zetterberg defending behind our net? Finally Lidstrom comes back there whiffs on a weak poke check and bang goal SJ. Im very displeased with this team. They are too satisfied with themselves. They are outworked shift after shift, game after game. If our talent level and depth wasnt so much higher than everyone elses the Wings could easily be staring at 1 or 2 wins in these first 11 games. Absolutely brutal.

I agree with the bolded part and I question how a team territorily dominates an opponent, often out shooting them by more than a 2-1 margin, yet has 10 5-3's against in 10 games and 7 penalties/game for 5 straight. You dont see something wrong here? Ill bet there isnt any two teams in the league that together have 10 5 on 3's against in 10 games. My problem isnt the calls being made against us but why, when the opponent does the same, the refs look away. A penalty is a penalty now matter time or situation. Just call the game even and consistent thats all i ask.

I just dont get the officiating in the NHL. Obvious calls are let go and seconds later touch fouls are called. Its embarrassing for the league. This is the worst Ive seen it in 45 years of watching NHL hockey.

Open your mouth and further prove my point.

Yea they are still off and on but the off part is becoming less frequent. I suspect they may come together on this road trip and be closer to mid season form when they return. Five games in 7 days with two back to backs against your top division rival and a couple teams that like to call themselves contenders is a tough trip. They better come together or it could be ugly. Come home with a few wins and momentum is with you heading towards the quarter pole.

Id say that they used the Ogrodnick version over the MacLean version because Ogrodnick is one of the Wings all time greats. Second player to have a 50 goal season, the one bright spot in the dead things era. He was nearing the end tho. My opinion is the MacLean version was much better. The points that Abel, Lindsay and Howe put up in an era of 1-0 games put them over the Delvecchio centered line. Left together, I think the Datsyuk-Hank line had a chance to move up to the second spot in the future.

The battle for the 6th defensemen's spot may have come down to who is the better pairing with Lilja. He was going to be here no matter what, having just signed a new two year deal. The Wings just dont operate in a way that would allow them to turn around and move him right away. Thats part of thier allure to top players. Lebda has reached his ceiling. He is what we see, a decent 6th defensemen with speed but like you described doesnt create offense and doesnt handle the puck well. Hes a decent fit with Lilja tho because of his speed. Quincy is a guy with size but doesnt use his body well. His skating and offensive upside are limited. I think pairing him with Lilja would have been disastrous. The sample size is small but Meech has been less than impressive. He hasnt added on the offensive end and his positioning and puckhandling at the defensive end leave alot to be desired. Style-wise he is a decent matchup with Lilja. All three of these guys though dont have a huge upside. All are basicall 5th or 6th defensemen on even mediocre defenses. Id like to see Ericsson called up soon and Lebda or Meech moved. Hes got the size to push the forwards out of the slot and a much higher offensive ceiling than either Lebda, Meech or Quincy. Let Ericsson play everyday with either Lilja or Chelios. IMO that would be best for his development too.

This amazes me. 30 years ago I had my appendix removed. I was in the hospital for 5 days, have a 4 inch long scar to this day and was limited from any physical activity for 2 months.

Offensively were ready to explode but that first pass out of our zone is still holding us back a bit. Each game we are looking better and better in our own zone. Still some lead in our legs and still chasing a bit too much but there is definately improvement. We need to get more physical. I dont mean play McCarty or Downey physical I mean throw your shoulder into someone like Pavel during the playoffs.

You, Sir, win worst post of the day. This crap adds nothing.

You guys are arguing who is the better 6th or 7th defensemen. None of them should be anything more than that. I am less than impressed by Meech. He looks out of place and has trouble handling the puck and making the breakout pass. Bring up Ericsson and pair him with Lilja and trade or waive either Meech or Lebda.