Echolalia

I like that he used the phrases "aircraft carrier" and "spectacular building" when referencing a new arena. Hopefully that's a premise to what he envisions when they finally get around to putting a new building up.

Don't worry, my poor post-college status keeps me from seeing more than one nosebleed seat in my pocket per year Usually when talks of a new ice arena pop up, talks of expanding Cobo Hall follow shortly after. I imagine somebody somewhere wants to draw up blueprints and find funding for it, but the ball's in Illitch's court.

Joe Louis Arena is uncomfortable, cramped, falling apart, lacks sufficient bathroom numbers (and the bathrooms they do have are disgusting and small), and when I walk into the Joe I feel like I'm walking into a concrete sarcophagus, not a historic arena. The Joe hardly has the charm that Fenway or Wrigley have. Implying otherwise is a bit laughable. Even though I'm a fan of the Wings I can't pretend that JLA is some wonderful historic landmark that needs to be preserved.

A couple folks have mentioned they like the Joe due to its old school charm. Unfortunately all I see when I go there is "old".

I think the Bruins could make a sweet logo with a ravage bear holding a hockey stick, but then you run into the problem of changing an O6 logo.

Do you happen to work at Smith-Barney? Also, you should have hit on Zetterberg's girlfriend.

My old hockey coach was a financial adviser for many of the Red Wings, and one day during practice Sean Burr shows up with his hockey s*** and laces them up. It was an especially awesome day because one of my linemates didn't show for practice, so Coach put Burr on a line with me. So when we got to practice break-out plays and 3-on-2s, I was getting set up by Sean Burr and vice versa. Same season, at the end-of-year hockey party at my Coach's house, we're all in the basement playing pool and arcade games that he has stocked up down there, and all of a sudden Stevey-Y comes down the stairs and is like "Hi guys, I'm Steve." We all shook his hand and told him how awesome he was and we each got something autographed. He seemed really shy, actually. Most of the day he spent just hanging out with my Coach, shooting the breeze like they're best friends. It was surreal.

Between posts here and at the few TB Lightning forums spread throughout the vast internet, I'm seeing a lot of Wings fans declare loyalty to the Blue and Black, second only to the Red and White. I'm just curious how many of us look at the Lightning as a second favorite team now that Yzerman is running things over there. I know I'll be rooting for them.

In his conference discussing his being fired he'll look to the cameras and say "Wing for life baby" and walk out.

Its hard to think of them as rivals when the two teams continuously have little/no success.

http://www.freep.com/article/20100519/SPORTS05/5190377/1053/sports05/Todd-Bertuzzi-Red-Wings-begin-contract-talks- There is a mention of a multi-year contract as well, as Bert has been riding 1 years for a while and wants to settle down. It also says they hope to re-sign Homer and Lils.

I wouldn't mind a subforum, but I realize this is a Wings site. I know the Lightning are officially my second favorite team now, and I'll be following them closely.

Huds certainly has his flaws but he's also the closest thing to a sniper the Wings can afford right now. If he can adapt to the competition that comes with playing on the second line, he will fit very nicely into a niche the Wings have been looking to fill for the past year. The Wings have two elite playmakers who also know how to score and play exceptionally well defensively in Datsyuk and Zetterberg. They (provided Bert and Homer come back) also have two big bodies who can crash the net and open up space down low in Bert and Homer. Franzen is a pure goal scorer that will be matched up with one of Datsyuk/Zetterberg and Homer/Bertuzzi. Hudler can be the scorer for the other line if he can step up his game the way the Wings organization expects him to. He has all the tools to do so, now its just a matter of giving him the opportunity.

Am I the only one who's excited for him and doesn't feel betrayed?

CHI/PHI 4-2

I think they have a better chance than most people want to give them. I'd rather come into the Finals after playing the Flyers/Habs than the Sharks/Hawks. Also, this is the same Flyers team that did what only two other teams in history could do, and have been playing lights out with Gagne back. This is also the same Montreal team that has eliminated both the defending Stanley Cup Champion and the Presidents Trophy winners.

This is my favorite: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Npxw1C8pHXg

Quick question, and possibly a stupid one with an obvious answer: Whats the advantage of signing a player to a deal that will make him a UFA vs RFA? Also stupid: How I spell UFA in the title.

Yes I started picking this out from Cali's post. I didn't realize that restricted/nonrestricted was a status that was determined by the player, not the contract. Thanks to you and him/her for the help

Well duh but its a lot easier to just say RFA/UFA contract. I assume you know what I'm talking about.

So beyond 27 years or 7 years in the NHL, you can't sign him to a contract that will make him an RFA? I'm just curious why we don't see more RFAs in the world today. It seems like the obvious way to go with GMs.

[quote name='dobbles' date='19 May 2010 - 03:28 PM' also i recall reading last year that bert would continue to take a lower salary to play where he wanted to. does anyone else remember that? I don't remember reading it anywhere, but he's not in much position to make demands. He has a very polarized fanbase and has been hit-or-miss on other teams. He's also getting old and I do know that he wants some consistency in his life and he's tired of moving every 365 days.

I'd prefer San Jose to win. Their internet fanbase is much more cordial than the Hawks' folks. I would hate to have to put up with the plethora of trolls next year scouring the internet should the Hawks win.

Hopefully this guy pans out.

25 is perfect. I have some friends who have never skated before in their life save for the occasional romantic date for a 50 minute "skate" with their girlfriends. They decided to join a D-beer league which is designed for people who have little/no hockey experience. They also signed up for a hockey clinic and they're improving nicely. These kids are right around your age, and their teammates are mostly 30-50 and most are beginners also. Seriously give it a shot. Get some friends together and get a team going. Its a ton of fun.