Thunderpriest

I feel like I've seen this movie before..........

The Bobble HeaDZ or my personal favorite Deke Squad

It's sad to see what can happen to a man's confidence when forced to face the prospect of utter humiliation.

Okay, just a real quick attempt from me as I sneak time at work.....

Actually, I did picture Franzen as a 15-20 goal scorer. I also envision Cleary, Hudler & Filpulla as being 20 goals scorers, and I actually think Flip has the ability to hit 30. A lot of it depends on lines & chemistry, and much of that was thrown out of whack by injuries. Hudler is cold, but he thrived when played with Zetterberg & Cleary. Filpulla's skating and playing style reminds me of Z's, and he has complimented Pavel nicely. Someone lamented the fact that Franzen was slted as the 3rd line center when everyone is healthy, but I see that as a plus. (I'd actually have him center the fourth line.) I think that our scoring will jump again once we have everybody back in the lineup.

The biggest detriment to Zetterberg's game right now is that Samuelsson is playing on his line. Samuelsson is the Flow-Killer. (I'm going to trademark that name for him.)

I was perusing the GDT for laast night's game and mention was made of Dom once again coming out of his net to stop a breakaway. Let's see if we can name his move, uh, 'cause I'm bored at work. A few suggestions: Instead of poke check , how about the "Czech Poke"? The "Flip Czech" The "Flying Domino!" The "At least he's not trying to stick-handle behind the net" maneuver. Discuss.

hahahahaha It actually went through a few versions: The DomiNO!! The DOMino I think The Flying Domino is my fave.

I think we'll see the following D pairs: Lidstrom, Rafalski Kronwall, Stuart Chelios, Lilja Reserve: Lebda, Meech, Ericsson

So, assuming that we get everyone back before the playoffs start, and McCarty is called up {in game shape}, Hartigan sent back down, how do you see our lineup shaking out? My lines: Forwards: Filpulla, Datsyuk, Holmstrom Hudler, Zetterberg, Cleary Maltby, Draper, McCarty (I love that I just typed that. ) Franzen, Kopecky, Samuelsson Depth: Drake, Downey Defense: Lidstrom, Rafalski Kronwall, Stuart Chelios, Lilja Lebda Goalies: Hasek Osgood That's not too bad if you ask me. I'd also like to see some juggling of the lines every now & then: Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Holmstrom Hudler, Filpulla, Cleary Maltby, Draper, Drake Downey, Franzen, McCarty Depth: Samuelsson, Kopecky Don't like Hudler on the 2nd line right now? Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Holmstrom Filpulla, Franzen, Cleary Maltby, Draper, McCarty Hudler, Kopecky, Samuelsson Depth: Drake, Downey All in all, it's a nice deep set of forwards. I'm just hoping for some quick healing.

Okay, so I've been reading the reports of the Wings shopping for Mats Sundin, but I don't buy it. I'm sure that inquiries have been made, if for no other reason than to get a feel for what's available on the market, but I don't see Sundin coming to Detroit. So, what moves should Kenny make, if any? It's difficult to break up a team that's on pace to set a new points total record, but I have an unsettling feeling that we should make one or two moves, because you know that other teams will not sit pat and just wait for us to walk over them in the playoffs. Also, should we even consider a rental player? I think that anyone we would trade for should be a permanent addition, as we're getting thin in Grand Rapids. Do we have a team geared for the playoffs or just the regular season? Let's analyze a bit.......... Goaltending. Rock solid. Best in the league. When we win the cup, Dom can retire.....again....and let Ozzie man the helm with Howard as the backup next year. Howard needs time as a full-time NHL backup for a full season. Let's not throw him to the wolves as the starter as the Lions like to do with QBs. Defense: Also, solid, but I can see us making a move for depth. Kronwall has a propensity for injuring himself, so a solid top-4 defenseman would be a nice addition. I miss Markov. I miss Fischer. We can use the snarl in front of the net, because you know that teams will crash the net harder in the playoffs, and that has been our defenses only real weakness. We don't have big bodies to clear the crease, and I think that we should get one. Hold that thought. Forwards: Where do we improve? We score more goals than anyone. We are fast & skilled. Where do we improve? On the second and/or fourth lines. We are still without an elite presence on the second line.....unless we split up Hank and Pavel. Me, I just love them playing together. I know that Babs likes them split, but that could change with a real scoring threat on the second line. So some second line firepower is next to be addressed. Lastly, what about the fourth line? Tell you what, I love having Downey on the ice, so I wouldn't want to part with him. Drake could leave and I'd be just fine with that. Same goes for Sammy, but I'll bet that Babs wants his size & grit in the playoffs, so if he's not packaged for that second liner, then he'll stay. Ellis has made a nice showing, providing good energy & grit, but he's expendable. So, the fourth line could see a depth move if nothing is done for the second line. Let's throw the chips in a pile and see what we come up with........... Needs: Defensive depth, and either 2nd line scoring or 4th line depth. Who's expendable? On D: Lilja, Lebda, Meech & Quincey are all available, depending upon who we could get in return. I wouldn't offer up Lilja unless we'd be bringing in a big, defensive blueliner, as Lilja is our only real physical presence - though he is prone to bad plays at the wrong time. (*cough* Anaheim, turn-over, Selanne, all done.) Up Front: Drake, Kopecky, Samuelsson, & Ellis. (Though I doubt anyone would take Drake at this point.) Next: Who is out there to trade with? With all of the parity in the league, very few teams are really out of the playoff hunt. The Eastern Conference is brutal. There is only one team above 50 points - Ottawa - whereas there are 6 teams above 50 in the West. (And one team has nearly 70 points already. Guess who. ) In the Atlantic Division, only 5 points separates the first and last place teams, so some bottom feeders still have hope. Toronto, Washington & Tampa Bay seem like the only viable trade partners there. Who in the West would want to trade with us? Clearly only a team that is out of the running, or close to it. LA is done. Chicago is very shaky, but I don't see them trading with us. They've already gotten Lang & Williams. Any more & they'll be the Chicago Junior Wings. Columbus & Nashville are possibilities, but we again have an inter-divisional trade situation which would make terms unfavorable. So that leaves Edmonton & Phoenix. So, we've got Toronto, Washington, Tampa Bay, Edmonton & Phoenix. (Okay, I've got a secret desire to trade for Fedorov, so I'll throw Columbus out there as well.) So, looking over the players on those teams......the cupboard seems bare, with a few exceptions: All of those teams have a similar problem.....they have a few very good players, (read: young, expensive, not going anywhere) and a complete lack of second tier talent, which is what we need. Toronto: Toronto appears to be the most likely trade partner at this point, and I'm not considering Sundin. Nik Antropov & Hal Gill would be nice additions, especially Gill. Both are affordable and signed through 08-09. Both are big bodies....Antropov at 6'6" & Gill at 6'7". Antropov is only 27, and on pace for 30 goals at +12. Price: $1.95M/year. Gill is 32, +6, is enormous and likes to hit & clear the crease. Price: $2.075M/year Washington The only player I'd even consider is AO, and we know that's not happening. LA: Lots of talented youngsters that aren't going anywhere. Blake is not attractive to me. So, LA is a wash. Edmonton: Another young team where anyone worth looking at is not going to be available. Pass. Tampa Bay: Ditto. Not getting Lecavalier, Richards or St. Louis. I'll pass on the rest. Phoenix: JovoCop would be nice. Not for $6.5M/year through 2011 unless we're trading away the same kind of salaries.........uh, likely not. Radim Vrbata is an option. He's young at 26, is +6 and on pace for 38 goals this year. He's UFA at season's end, too, so we wouldn't have to give up as much. Columbus: Fedorov. Sure, Sergei's older and not putting up a lot of numbers now, but I do believe that he would produce more back home in Detroit. Pipe dream, though. Not likely to happen. (Sorry, he was my favorite player when with the Wings. I can dream, can't I?) Rostislav Klesla. He's 23, 6'3 & 216lbs. He's +8 and signed through 09/10 for $1.6M. Could be a nice addition on the blue-line. So, what've we got? Forwards: Antropov & Vrbata (Feds ) Defensemen: Gill & Klesla. What would it take to get one of them? Two of them? Any of them? I'd love to see us acquire Antropov & Gill from Toronto. Put Antropov on the 2nd line w/ Filpulla & Hudler. Yummy. Play Gill opposite Kronwall. Send any combination of Sammy, Ellis, Kopecky, Lilja, Lebda, Meech, Hartigan, & Quicney for them. How about Samuelsson, Kopecky, Lilja, Meech + late draft pick for Gill & Antropov? Would they do that? How would this look? Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Holmstrom Filpulla, Antropov, Hudler Maltby, Draper, Cleary Drake, Franzen, Downey Ellis & Hartigan for depth Lidstrom, Rafalski Kronwall, Gill Chelios, Lebda Quincey Hasek Osgood Scary, right? Rolling all 4 lines, right? Discuss.

I do realize this, but I believe that those teams may part with one or two of those players if they were able to upgrade the team as a whole. Antropov & Gill are affordable - not cheap - and Antropov will be up for a raise, as he's only signed through next season. Same with Gill, but I think he's making about what he should. I actually meant to throw Lebda in instead of Lilja........not sure where my head was at. So, the trade would send approx $4M/year of salary from Toronto to Detroit. That salary is good for 1 more year, and will likely grow with Antropov receiving a raise. The Wings would send 4 bodies; Samuelsson, Kopecky, Lebda & Meech all signed through 08/09 (Meech is actually signed through 09/10) - for $2.83M. So Detroit actually only increases payroll by a little more than $1M - easily absorbed if you figure that Hasek, Chelios & Drake will be gone next season, which I do. Toronto improves as a team - marginally - and they drop salary for use in the off-season. Let's not forget that Ferguson really has to be sweating his job security and he's going to have to shake the team up if he hopes to remain employed. Under this scenario, we're at $37M towards the cap next year with Osgood, Cleary, Filpulla, Lilja & Downey to resign and Howard to add. That should be easy enough to do, as well as accomodating Zetterberg in 09.

Okay, so is the problem with suggesting that Sammy play on the fourth line vs. the third? To me, that's just semantics. The third line can be called the 4th and the 4th the third, it doesn't really matter. I wouldn't place Samuelsson on the "third" line because I like the chemistry there. I simply do not like Samuelsson's play, though he has been contributing points. My beef is how he seems to constantly turn the puck over, be it via a bad hold in on the point during the PP, by an ill-advised pass on the rush, or by shooting the moment he crosses the blue-line, effectively giving the puck over to the other team. This is not my first season watching Samuelsson, and I've noticed these types of plays before. Is he playing better than previously? Yes. Is he putting up respectable points? Yes. Does he have a tendency to kill flow in the offensive zone? Yes. Now, I'd simply advocate moving him to another line to see if Hudler, Franzen, Filpulla produce together. Moving Samuelsson to play with the likes of Kopecky & Cleary (when did anyone call them scrubs?) is not exactly like throwing the man down a flight of steps while bound & gagged. We've got enough depth where he should still be able to contribute in that role. Personally, I've never liked his play. Count how many times he turns the puck over the next time he plays.

Okay, here's what really needs to happen...... Neither Hudler nor Franzen should be moved from the second line. Sammy should be demoted. That guy does nothing but shoot as soon as he crosses the blue line. He's been brutal. I really don't see what the coach sees in him. He has size and can score every now & then, but the man is a turnover machine. {Pssst: Babs could just think of it of balancing the attack by putting the scoring machine that is Samuelsson on the fourth line.} I'd play Hudler with Franzen & Filpulla in this scenario, or if Babs is intent on splitting the twins, we could line everyone up thusly: Hudler, Zetterberg, Holmstrom Filpulla, Datsyuk, Franzen Maltby, Draper, Drake Cleary, Kopecky, Samuelsson Depth: Downey & Ellis Keep the top line together: Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Holmstrom Hudler, Filpulla, Franzen Maltby, Draper, Drake Cleary, Kopecky, Samuelsson Depth: Downey & Ellis Better?

Call them the Bobble HDZ.

I imagine that Sopel is going to eventually sign on and replace Markov. I'd like to see him sign for less than the 2.4M he made last year. He's a solid top4 defenseman with a good shot and he stays out of the penalty box. I'll bet that he makes the team. ( I don't think that Cullimore or Downey will make the roster. ) We've also got Brad Ference who may serve in Grand Rapids, but fits as a 7th defenseman as well. He likes to bang and is aggressive in clearing the front of the net. The problem is, we've got so many 6-7 defensemen. Plus, when will we get to see Kindl and Quicney come up, not to mention Meech? I think Kindl has a much better upside than the other two, but I'll bet he winds up getting some "seasoning" in GR. With all of these defensemen, we're really quite deep on D. Perhaps we're gearing up for a trade to help the forwards out? That is where we're thinnest. Our defense would look thusly with Sopel: Lidstrom, Kronwall Rafalski, Sopel Chelios, Lebda one of....Lilja, Kindl, Quincey, Ference, Meech Minus Sopel: Lidstrom, Lilja Rafalski, Kronwall Chelios, Lebda one of Ference, Kindl, Quincey, Meech Personally, I feel more comfortable with Lilja as a #7 rather than #2. We all know that Datsyuk & Zetterberg have to be split due to the departure of our 2nd line. (Which is addition by subtraction, if you ask me.) So how do the forwards shake out? I've read that Kopecky will likely center the 4th line, Grigorenko will pair with Datsyuk, and Draper was mentioned as being considered for the wing........which I hate. He needs to center the Grind Line. I'll list 2 rosters with him at Wing and in the preferred center ice positions. Cleary, Zetterberg, Holmstrom Filpulla, Datsyuk, Grigorenko Maltby, Draper, Drake Hudler, Kopecky, Franzen Samuelsson or Hudler, Zetterberg, Holmstrom Filpulla, Datsyuk, Draper Maltby, Franzen, Drake Cleary, Kopecky, Samuelsson Grigorenko Or better yet.... Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Holmstrom Filpulla, Kopecky, Cleary Hudler, Franzen, Grigorenko Maltby, Draper, Drake Samuelsson Okay, I guess the forward corp is not too shabby........ I say that we trade Maltby & Samuelsson along with a defenseman (Meech/Quincey) to try to pick up a scoring forward for the 2nd line.

The new uniforms are just fine. They are a stretch material that wicks the water away from the player, so there is actually greater range of motion and a decline in water weight throughout the duration of the game when compared with the previous jerseys. Additionally, the tightness is meant to aid in keeping the pads in place in an attempt to reduce injury. I actually like the V-Neck collar with the NHL logo. I don't like the C & A on the opposite side, but I can understand their placement as to not conflict with the tip of the logo. There's just more room over the wheel than over the wing. They may not have had the option of using a smaller letter there. Give it a few games and you won't even notice the differences. You can tell that there was a concerted effort to ensure that the look of the Wings' uni remained consistent. I'm sure that fans complained about the big, loose sweaters when they came out, too. If you're a bit on the hefty side and don't want a tight fitting jersey, just buy a bigger size. (I really don't think that fitting the fans played a large role in the design of the new uniforms. Most NHL players are fit and trim........Tkachuk exempted.)

I think that Kindl has more potential than either Quincey or Meech, but he could still use some development in the minors before coming up to the show. Meech & Kindl are a few years older and should be depth defensemen right now. There's only one year left on Quincey's contract, so it would be nice to evaluate him for a full season in the bigs before he signs again. If Markov doesn't sign, then one or both of them will make the roster this year. (Meech is still currently unsigned, correct? I wonder what the holdup is there.)

Whoops. Don't know where my head was at regarding Samuelsson. I should've swapped Sammy & Cleary. I think I put him there because Babcock likes the guy and will likely play him in the top 6. And yes, as I said, Lilja played well in the playoffs alongside Lidstrom. I'm just not comfortable with him there full time. He's not a top 2 defenseman. This is precisely why I hope they can still land Markov. I'd feel much better with Markov playing next to Lidstrom. There's your physical presence. So, if we were to re-sign Markov, I'd line up us thusly: Lidstrom, Markov Rafalski, Kronwall Chelios, Lebda Lilja, Quincey

The problem is this: I didn't want Lilja in the top 4. I wanted him booted from the lineup during the regular season last year. However, his play during the playoffs acquitted him in my eyes. He played much better than I had anticipated. I still had a bad taste from the regular season, though. So, should we play Lilja with Lidstrom or Rafalksi? I don't think so. You play Kronwall with Lidstrom. That's solid. Rafalski has been known to turn the puck over, so you put Lebda out there to use his speed to help cover any turnovers. That leaves Lilja & Chelios on a regular basis, and Meech/Quincy can get time when Chelios or Lilja sit.

Personally, I like having Zetterberg and Datsyuk play on the same line, but I can see the attraction in separating them to better distribute the scoring. I really liked the way that Filppula played on Pavel's left when Z was out of the lineup. It was like watching "Z-Lite". However, I don't think you'll see Filppula there, as Grigorenko has already been slotted to play on Datsyuk's line, and I don't think they'd want Pavel out there with those two. So, I'm betting that Filppula plays with Zetterberg & Samuelsson or Cleary and that Pavel will center Grigorenko & Holmstrom. That's not too bad. We've got enough parts to play a number of different players in the top 2 lines and have very respectable 3rd & 4th lines. My preferred line combinations as the roster stands now: Filppula, Zetterberg, Samuelsson Grigorenko, Datsyuk, Holmstrom Maltby, Draper, Drake Hudler, Franzen, Cleary Kopecky Lidstrom, Kronwall Lebda, Rafalski Chelios, Lilja Meech, Quincey Hasek, Osgood Really....what other options do they have if they keep the Datsyuk/Zetterberg/Holmstrom line together? A second line of Cleary, Filppula & Samuelsson?