Primis

It's much more likely Lowe's gaffe will haunt him. Because even if Penner turns into a pretty good, solid player for the Oilers, those 3 picks could yield more good players, or a better player even than Penner. And since the OIlers aren't probably going to be very good again this next year, their 1st Rounder wil be a pretty good pick. Or to be a little more blunt -- Penner is just way overhyped to begin with and I'd be very surprised if he is even able to replicate this past season in any team situation. Burke's comfortable with the picks, and he should be. -- Primis.

I don't agree with this one bit. It wasn't Skeldon that sucked (OK, it *did* suck, but that's not why people didn't go) -- it was the Tigers' farm system that sucked so badly. It coincidental that shortly after 5/3 Field gets built and around the time the New Shiny Factor wears off that the Tigers and Hens both got good and so they continue to draw great crowds. Don't get me wrong -- 5/3 is a fantastic place to take in a ballgame. I just don't think it's just the field that keeps bringing the crowds in. A good Tiger farm organization has more to do with it. And by the way -- Toledo does *not* have that great of a hockey atmosphere or sense of community. I often wonder how it is the Storm have even lasted this long. In comparison to farm teams in other cities of similar size, the Storm aren't really even on the radar in Toledo most of the time. And it's a shame, because they have some good players come through there. But I don't know that the mythical "new downtown ice arena" is any real fix or solution for anyone, because the Hens are an integral part of everything Toledo and have been forever. The Storm aren't. -- Primis.

Red - McCarty White - Osgood I like how Osgood left, then McCarty left and now Ozzie's back, so I can at least wear one of them still. -- Primis.

I can't vouch for why 100% of the booers boo Fedorov, but the guy did manage to build up a decent amount of ill will toward the end of his time in DET. The thing that does it for me is the sheer number of times the guy used to miss an open net. He'd miss it from 5 feet away and put it wide right or over the crossbar. Maybe he was just snakebitten, maybe he got lazy, I don't know. But that's why I was actually glad to see Fedorov go and why I don't care for him still. Yes he had some great years in DET. Yes he did things for the team. But he was also a distraction (one big reason why regardless of what Hasek does for the WIngs I'll never care for him), and he seemed to be an offensive liability at times when the WIngs really needed him (which I now find ironic that Datsyuk at his age gets criticized for the same thing). The smugness, the attiutude, the disappointments... it just all adds up to a lot of WIngs fans hating the guy. And I guess I understand it entirely. -- Primis.