chrisdetroit

If you thought that we would get in a bidding war for Hossa when he is just a rental then you are on crack. And if you thought that Kenny would let Flip go, you haven't been watching many games. The price for Hossa is just too high and with Sundin and Blake not moving, Hossa's price is even more.

Thank God. Finally some cooler heads... Fillpula is going to be a superstar in a few years. Frazen, has great potential but he is not developing as fast as I like. And to think that some of the LGW posters want to trade him for a rental. Pleeeease...

Maybe you should have said that to begin with since it was not the topic of the thread.

The Wings lead the league in scoring and as far as it coming from the top line, only about 30% of the scoring is from the DZH line. You should check your facts before you post things that are completely wrong. Incidently the team with the LOWEST GFA in the league - the Mighty Ducks. But everybody wants to give them a free pass.

They showed that we are weak when we are playing without our starting goaltender, one of our top 6 fowards and our top 3 defenseman. And you know what? We lost to Calgary 1-0 on a fluke goal. You should actually start watching the games

You're not serious are you. You think that we are going to get 2 forwards and a defenseman and you want Hossa, Sundin, Foote and Fedorov. Out in 5 games in the first round? Do you even watch the games?

Perhaps but if Hossa is only a rental, there is no way Kenny would give up Flip for him. Kenny made that mistake last year and I don't see him doing it two years in a row. If we could get him with a 2-3 year contract, maybe. I guess we will know soon.

How in the hell did you come up with that steaming turd of knowledge. No weaknesses?! How bout the fact that they are ranked #30 in goal scoring, or #1 in penalties or the fact that they have no backup goaltender with any experience, or that they have lost young studs for injury prone old players like Bertuzzi and Schneider and Weight. No weaknesses. That is such a stupid statement that is is mind boggling.

OK I get it that everybody is drooling over Ericsson because he is big but let's be realistic. Given the choice between Meech, Lebda or Ericsson going down, there is no contest. Ericsson looked good in his 2 games but unless he turns into the next coming of Chris Pronger (without the dirty play) before everybody comes back in 3 weeks, Ericsson is going back to GR. Training camp is in August, that will be his next chance. The Wings have a reputation for not rushing kids before they are ready and Ericsson will not be an exception just because he is big. Sorry guys but reality can be a *****.

You are getting a little ahead of yourself. He's played a total of 2 games. Yes, he played well in those 2 games but hockey is about consistancy. To say he is not going back down based on 2 games is not realistic. I hope he continues to play well but its WAY to early to make statements like that.

Ah.. There was no salary cap in 2004. It was a different world, you could give up prospects and picks because you could always go out and buy more. Below market value? You are dreaming

You say that now but 1 year ago it was a different story. Who's to say that Hossa won't be a bust also like Guerin and Forsburg? Hossa has not exactly had good playoffs in the past.

You got it wrong. I would love to see Hossa in a Wings uniform. The problem is that he is the most sought after forward in the league except maybe Mats. Supply and demand. The price would be very steep indeed and based on past experience Holland will not overpay for anybody. If you think that we are going to get Hossa for a fair and reasonable price, you are kidding yourself. Atlanta is going to shop him to the highest bidder. How many prospects, draft picks and roster players is Kenny willing to give up? Not alot based on the bad experience from last year. I agree with you that the price would have to be right. I just don't see that happening though. I hope that I am wrong though and we get Hossa for a really great deal.

The Wings are NOT going to get Hossa (or Sundin). There will be a bidding war for both of these guys and Holland will not get into a bidding war for anybody. He's much to smart for that. Look at the recent past. When did he ever get the most sought after player? Never. Last year at the deadline everyody was chasing Bill Guerin and Peter Forsburg. Holland declined to bid. What makes you think that he will this year? And how much would it cost to get Hossa? Sorry to disappoint you but the Wings will end up with a second teir guy if anything at all. Brad Stuart - maybe. Hossa, not a chance in hell.

The comments from the Wings brass in the past have indicated that Flip is not going anywhere. He is extremely talented and most importantly, has excellent defensive abilities. But you are entitled to your opinion

Did you watch any of the games or are you just reading the headlines. Let's look at those games we lost: LA - we had the game in control and didn't show up for the 3rd period. Bad third period, ok it happens Toronto - lost in OT. Obviously one bounce of the puck and we win. Pretty even game Mighty Ducks - we lose by 1 goal because of a horrendous call by the officials. A very close high tempo game Nashville - a horrendous performance on our part. Maybe we are still thinking about the Duckies Columbus - 2nd horrendous performance Dallas - a 1-0 loss on a fluke goal in another good performance Colorado - a 4-0 blow out by the Wings Calgary - another 1-0 tough loss. At this point our defense has been renamed the Red Griffins. A very good performance by the boys from Grand Rapids Vancouver - a tight game until the 3rd when the inexperience of the Giffins catches up to us. This team does NOT suck. We've had 3 bad performances in which we had some key injuries, 1 bad performance by the boys from GR and 4 games that we lost by 1 goal on bad breaks. I know that injuries and bad breaks are part of the game but it is ignorant to jump off the bandwagon when they show up. As far as your dream about deadline acuisitions riding in on white horses, forget it. We are NOT going to get Hossa, Sundin or Blake. They are all way too expensive and we are not willing to get into a bidding war.

OK everybody calm down. Yes he is big, but from what I have been able to find on the net he is a very raw talent. Kindl and Smith are both regarded as better but they are more offensive minded defenseman. I think that Babs is giving him a look because Babs was impressed with him during training camp. Don't expect too much from him yet. Just because he's big doesn't mean that he is ready for the NHL. There is more to hockey than being big. Also, I can't find anybody that lists him as more than 205. I'm not sure where the 250+ weight came from.

Flip is off the table. He is not going anywhere.

They played very well against a good Dallas team and lost 1-0. They had several very good chances to win but Turco came up big. Sure it wasn't a fantastic outing but they only gave up 1 goal and Howard was outstanding. Good game and a huge step forward.

Carolina and Tampa were gritty teams? I don't watch alot of Eastern teams but I don't think of either of those cup winners as gritty but I know that they beat gritty Edmonton and Calgary teams. I agree that you need a combination of skill with "grit" but I don't agree that Canadian=grit and European=skill. That is just too much of a genralization. Here's something to think about. Look at the players that people on this board want us to pick up at the trade deadline. Sundin - Swede Hossa - Slovak Blake - Canadian Fedorov - Russian Now look at the top 10 players in the league (according to TSN) Zetterburg - Swede Ovechkin- Russian Lidstrom- Swede Heatly - Canadain Alfredsson - Swede Iginla - Canadian Datsyuk - Russian LeClaire - Canadian Crosby - Canadian Spezza - Canadian Only 5 of the top 10 are Canadian and only 1 of the top 5. The times have changed and guys like Don Cherry have been left behind.

Just one more thing to add. How does Sid the Kid fit in. He's Canadian but he doesn't fit the mold. He's not big and tough and he's highly skilled. Is it ok to have Canadians that aren't big? What about #99? I guess it isn't all black and white and generalities.

There are a higher percentage of Canadian players in the NHL therefore the odds of teams with Canadians winning the cup is much higher. DUH! I can't believe that when a team gets to the playoffs, that the Europeans on the team are not as passionate about winning as the Canadians. To insinuate this is just plain ignorant. I will buy the fact that there are more good players that are Canadian because there are more Canadian players. But to make a leap from that fact to "we need more Canadians on our team" - well, that is just unbelievable I will agree that IN GENERAL the Canadian style of play is more physical but nobody in their right mind is going to pick players based on such generalities. I'm all for adding Joe Thorton to our roster but that isn't going to happen. We could use a guy like him but frankly, I just as happy with a big tough Russian kid like Alexandar Ovechkin.

Perfect!

Feds IS NOT a proven scorer. He WAS one.

For Christ sake, this is a stupid discussion. Like Europeans aren't as motivated as Canadians. Now we are going to debate how many Canadians you need. And do Americans count also?