Wings D

[hckypete96 3]

I hear all this talk about how its either Sopel or Meech for the Wings 7th D spot but IMO they should both make it and Lilja's contract should be bought out. Meech deserves a shot and it will be a shame if he does not get his chance with the wings. Sopel has a cannon from the point and he would replace Schneider back there. I don't understand why this organization is so high on Lilja... I understand he is a big body but he doesnt do anything with it. Sopel is also a big body who doesnt use it as much as he should. What do u guys think? Sopel, Lilja, or Meech?

[Detroit # 1 Fan 2,204]

Lidstrom-Sopel

Rafalski-Kronwall

Chelios-Lebda

Meech

Fine defence. I do think theres no point in keeping Lilja, but they might.

[theman19 47]

lilja showed much improvement towards the end of the season. It's a shame that after all that hard work, everyones going to remember him gift wrapping a series altering goal to one of the best snipers in NHL history. I'm rooting for the guy, but i think they're better options out there.

[StaticWithABeat 0]

Lidstrom-Sopel

Rafalski-Kronwall

Chelios-Lebda

Meech

Fine defence. I do think theres no point in keeping Lilja, but they might.

I like the looks of that defense corps...Lilja makes a good #7 even though he was bitching about being benched last year...considering the dollars he gets payed and the fact that he's the only D-man we have with size+physicality I don't have a problem with him hanging around.

[Herr Hockey 0]

Trade Lidstrom for Fedorov and picks (since hitchcock has proven his skills as a blue-liner), trade rafalski for D-Hatch, and buy out Lilja and Kronwall to make room for youngsters, chelios will mentor.

Fedorov-Quincey

Meech-Hatcher

Chelios-Lebda

Kindl

GET IT DONE KENNY!!!!!!!!

</sarcasm>

Edited September 18, 2007 by Herr Hockey

[GMRwings1983 8,804]

I'd hate to admit this, but if we don't dress Lilja, then I'll lose much of my comedy material on these boards. Who's going to do the fighting for us since I don't expect Downey to make the team? Who's going to stand up to Boogaard and Laraque? We need the pain train.

[hckypete96 3]

ru serious? lilja gets his ass whooped and is hardly considered a fighter. cut him already.

[Cicada 4]

oh god...here we go again...

i can't believe we haven't even played a competetive game yet and we're already starting the lilja abuse

[rick zombo 3,739]

Lilja > Meech

This is how the team will look.

Lidstrom - Sopel

Kronwall - Rafalski

Chelios - Lebda

Lilja

[OsGOD 3]

Terminate Lil' Ja

[ben_usmc 253]

not that losing lilja would bother me or anything, but he did look pretty decent in the playoffs last year

[hckypete96 3]

yea that pass to selanne in ot was decent i would suppose

[Opie 308]

So everyone here that rags on Lilja for giving up the puck to Selanne has themselves never made a mistake in a pressure situation.

Or is saying that even Niklas Lidstrom has never made a mistake. Lilja played very well in the Playoffs and made one glaring mistake, so that means he is a s***ty D-man.

Some of you people need to get more realistic ideas of what a good player is or is not.

There is no one in the league that has played their whole career and not made a mistake!

[OsGOD 3]

I just don't like him though... the pass was just something i got a lot about from him. He has been on da cap'n's hate list predating his term here.

[VM1138 1,921]

I just don't like him though... the pass was just something i got a lot about from him. He has been on da cap'n's hate list predating his term here.

If people want to bash Lilja for the pass, then why aren't you all tearing Lidstrom apart for his own nasty deflection?

[Lamothe 5]

I hated Lilja for a long time and felt that overall his contract was a waste of Detroit's money, but regardless of the turn over to Selanne, I feel that he (as a whole) completely stepped up in the playoffs last season. He's got one year left, and if he has continued to play like he did last April, I see no reason why we would need to cut him.

Unfortunately, although I think Meech deserves a shot... I would probably rather go with Sopel, thus allowing Rafalski to play with someone other than Lidstrom. I think Sopel has the skills neccessary to be more t han a 7th D man, where Meech doesn't. Yet. If Sopel makes the team, I doubt Meech will appear in many or any games with Detroit in the future.

[GMRwings1983 8,804]

So everyone here that rags on Lilja for giving up the puck to Selanne has themselves never made a mistake in a pressure situation.

Or is saying that even Niklas Lidstrom has never made a mistake. Lilja played very well in the Playoffs and made one glaring mistake, so that means he is a s***ty D-man.

Some of you people need to get more realistic ideas of what a good player is or is not.

There is no one in the league that has played their whole career and not made a mistake!

Everyone makes mistakes, but not everyone makes mistakes which are so monumental, and are in that kind of an important game and setting.

[Opie 308]

So as someone else asked why not bash lids for deflected the puck past Hasek?

What if Lilja has a +20 year with 5g 10a and wins 5 fights, is he still a s***bag defenseman? Or is he a good defenseman who made a mistake a year ago?

Don't get me wrong I am not saying he is a Norris candidate or anything, just that the guy made one mistake, which if he makes that mistake after the pp scores on either the 5-3 or the ensuing 5-4, the mistake is moot.

I guess it comes down to do people want to jump all over Lids, Dats, Z, Homer and others who couldn't do squat on the pp or do people want to get on a guy who isn't in the "untouchable" or "savior" category of this team because he made a mistake over a 5 second span. Or the guys who had over 2 minutes of pp time to put a team away in the closing minutes of a playoff game.

I personally would much rather say the pp lost that series, and Lilja didn't help by giving the puck away.

[GMRwings1983 8,804]

So as someone else asked why not bash lids for deflected the puck past Hasek?

What if Lilja has a +20 year with 5g 10a and wins 5 fights, is he still a s***bag defenseman? Or is he a good defenseman who made a mistake a year ago?

Don't get me wrong I am not saying he is a Norris candidate or anything, just that the guy made one mistake, which if he makes that mistake after the pp scores on either the 5-3 or the ensuing 5-4, the mistake is moot.

I guess it comes down to do people want to jump all over Lids, Dats, Z, Homer and others who couldn't do squat on the pp or do people want to get on a guy who isn't in the "untouchable" or "savior" category of this team because he made a mistake over a 5 second span. Or the guys who had over 2 minutes of pp time to put a team away in the closing minutes of a playoff game.

I personally would much rather say the pp lost that series, and Lilja didn't help by giving the puck away.

You kind of answered your own post. If Lidstrom, Cheli, or Hank made that mistake, we wouldn't be calling for their heads because they're too important to the team. In Lilja's case, he was already expendable before that play, so that is why so many posters on here want him gone. All "pain train" jokes aside, what does he exactly give our team that no one else does?

[Opie 308]

Not sure that he brings anything other than ok - decent defense, I think Quincey should get more time than Lilja mainly due to age, but also after the way Quincey played in the post season.

However I will not say that because of that play Lilja is a s***ty player. I am not saying you have said that GMR but others have. I think that because he made that one mistake he does not become Jesse Wallin or Maxim Kuznetsov, which is how some people make it sound. He is a sound defenseman and every team needs those types of players at the 6/7 position.

I also think that Lebda should get more time than Lilja, but again that is because of age and also skating ability.

But then again, Lilja is the size everyone wants, well it is not very often you find a gifted player with a lot of size. Joe Thornton is a rarity as is Chara.

[Rob the Badger 0]

Not trying to drag this thread back its original intent or anything... but, I think that the strength of this years team is going to be its defense. In other years, they were an offensive juggernaut. That isn't the case and hasn't been since losing Fedorov, Shanny, and some of our other gifted goal scorers. The Wings will still put up decent offensive numbers, but it will be the dedication to puck responsibility that will carry this team, like it has since the lock out.

That being said, We have four great top defensemen... and some talented youth to back them up. If Lilja plays as well as he did during most of the play offs last year, then great. If he doesn't, he's expendable. I would like to see more size and grit on the blue line, but who wouldn't. The only problem is with the new focus on speed, your blue liners had better be able to keep up with the opponents fowards. You can't hit what you can't catch, and if your giants on the blue line are left in the dust, what good is their size?

[DEVILSWATERBOY 10]

I hate to break off topic but does anyone know if the Wings are televised tonight or were I can look to find out

[OsGOD 3]

If people want to bash Lilja for the pass, then why aren't you all tearing Lidstrom apart for his own nasty deflection?

Go back the second it happened in the GDT for that game... Look at my posts.. I bashed him a ton after it happened. I am on record as saying it should have never been to OT if Lids handn't just tried to use his stick to block it and instead used his entire body... Lids was the Phucks MVP that game with an honor mention to Lil' Ja. but I digress.

But back to the above however.. Lids is much more valuable to this time even with his mistakes... Lil' Ja not so much so the tolerence is a lot less.

Edited September 18, 2007 by OsGOD

[Henkka 0]

Is Derek Meech really a guy we need in our future?

No.

He would be just average defenceman, which we can find anywhere. Like Lebda or Lilja.

And we have the better, more potential future corps behind Meech. In next 4 years, there's still Lidström, Rafalski, Kronwall, Ericsson, Kindl, Quincey and maybe Lebda. Bigger, better and younger defence. There's no room for Meech because of the the level of our another prospects and long contracts.

And for second,

we need physical Lilja for this years playoffs, so it would be better to sign Sopel because of his experience and PP skills and then we are forced to trade Meech away.

There just isn't room for Derek if we don't have a big injury before the season starts.

Sorry.

Edited September 18, 2007 by Henkka

[OsGOD 3]

Personally I will hold out on Kindl and Ericsson until I see them perfrom on the big stage. In the 5 games I saw Kindl live this past playoffs, he was far from anything spectacular. I am not saying he sucks, but I am also saying he is yet to show he is anything special in the big leagues.