Your assessment of Today

[egroen 384]

You have to consider the precedent that it would have set giving Markov the amount of money that he was asking though. That is a really important point. Other players now and in the future would use his ridiculously high salary in their negotiations and that would have been bad for the Wings overall for a long time.

Right... because no one has overpaid for anyone this year -- especially a defenseman.

Sorry. It was a mistake to hold on to $5 million for the trade deadline. We should have filled up at the beginning of the year (maybe a $1 million cushion) figuring our prospects and draft picks do not warrant a heft price on the trade market.

Hindsight is 20/20 but I hope Kenny does not do it again. To have permission to spend up to the cap and *not* do so is a dreadful mistake.

[Zata fan 40 6]

Glad we landed Stuart and I'm glad with still have our youngsters like Hudler,Filppula, Ericsson, etc. Just wish we could have landed some kind of help up front.

[NomadFromKazoo 42]

while Stuart is a solid acquisition, I believe a 2nd line scorer should have been the number 1 priority. With that in mind, Holland did not succeed. To me, grade = D

Just curious, so what trade for a 2nd line scorer did you see that we could have offered more and it would have still been in our interest to make the deal?

[Winged Scooter 0]

Right... because no one has overpaid for anyone this year -- especially a defenseman.

Sorry. It was a mistake to hold on to $5 million for the trade deadline. We should have filled up at the beginning of the year (maybe a $1 million cushion) figuring our prospects and draft picks do not warrant a heft price on the trade market.

Hindsight is 20/20 but I hope Kenny does not do it again. To have permission to spend up to the cap and *not* do so is a dreadful mistake.

This is the most valid point of the whole day! This money could have been used to give the team depth at the start of the season, but NO! It had to be stuffed under a mattress for a rainy day. Now we have WASTED two draft picks on a MARGINAL D-man that we most likely will not resign! Brilliance, sheer brilliance!

[akustyk 84]

how Pittsburgh is a winner here if they traded a huge chunk of their youth

and didn't yet win anything important? it's beyond me. honestly

they may as well collapse just as Thrashers did last year

same goes to Dallas. yes, they got Richards but they traded young Jokinen

and Mike Smith who are both far from irrelevant and may as well become

great players in the future. Stars look better here but I'm still far from

calling them clear winners.

Wings, Caps, Ducks and Sabres are winners IMHO. none of them sacrificed

much (Sabres just sold what they had to sell anyway) and got solid

players in return.

I mean: former 1st round pick who developed into a steady top-4 defenseman

for just 2nd round pick (and 4th)? that's really OK with me

Edited February 26, 2008 by akustyk

[IceMunkee 15]

My assesment for today:

I think that Kenny did half of what I wanted him to. I wanted Stuart. I also wanted scoring depth. I love that Mac is back but I do not consider that scoring depth. The biggest thing that dissappoints me is the price some went for. The Federov trade was for a prospect. I would have gladly done that, the same goes for Prospal. Both of those are huge dissappointments. Hossa. Hossa. The only thing I can say there is I was hoping that we would pick him up but the price he went for? Man Pens really overpaid for him. He does not bring Stan with him. Pens still never bolstered what I thought they would... Scoring is not a problem for the Pens. Defense is there issue.

[gcom007 1,465]

Oh yeah, even with half our team injured and two NHL defensemen we're still first in the league. Stick to X-Box.

[Glubki 17]

Its about what I expected...

There really werent a lot of options with the limited number of players available and an empty cupboard in the farm system.

Ilitch must need the 4-5 million leftover for the Tigers!

[Frozen-Man 144]

Right... because no one has overpaid for anyone this year -- especially a defenseman.

Sorry. It was a mistake to hold on to $5 million for the trade deadline. We should have filled up at the beginning of the year (maybe a $1 million cushion) figuring our prospects and draft picks do not warrant a heft price on the trade market.

Hindsight is 20/20 but I hope Kenny does not do it again. To have permission to spend up to the cap and *not* do so is a dreadful mistake.

I'm not saying that we shouldn't have spent the money, what I am saying is that does not mean that we should have grossly overpaid for Markov. It is a bad precedent to set. Spend all the money I don't care but don't pay a $2.5-$3M player $4-4.5M because now everybody's price tag goes up. Guys like Lidstrom, Dats, and (hopefully) Zets (along with many other players) all agree to take pay cuts to play here and you use that money to go out and overpay a D man a sum that no team in the league is willing to pay AND for multiple years thus hurting us for years to come on the cap end. It was a great move to not overpay Markov for all these reasons, now saying that Holland should have used to cash to pay someone what they were worth would be fine with me but not overpaying for someone of Markov's talent.

[jpfalcon09 0]

When all is said and done, things will get better. The Wings are missing 90+ assists on the blueline. The offense is geared towards the defense jumping into the play and helping out, and right now it's showing with the players who are out. Keep this in mind...a trade for Hossa would not have solved anything if the Wings don't win the Cup and don't re-sign him.

I think many of you are spoiled with how things have usually been done at the deadline, but it hasn't yielded results. The Wings got their defensive help without losing a roster player. If you wanna ***** and moan about not getting a top-6 guy, save it for July when free agency opens up. For now, support the team and hope that kids like Franzen and Filppula step up their game.

[jerm8352 3]

There is alot of drama queens in this forum right now. Most likely the same ones who agreed with the critics about the salary cap being the end of the Red Wings winning ways. This is as good a team as we have had in the last 15 years and somehow some of you are too blind to see it. Ken Holland is an outstanding GM, maybe even the very best in Hockey. Rather than trash the Wings on a Red Wing site, go be a Dallas or Duck fan and bash us from there. We expect stupid senseless talk from them anyway. Do all of us "true Wings fans" a favor and don't get back on the band wagon. See ya in the playoffs, uh, maybe not Colorado though.

Really? You're telling me this team stacks up with the 02 team? Or even the 97 team? Just because some one is fed up with what the team is doing does not make them any less of a fan. If that were true, there would not be any Lions fans in existence.

[kevotron 3]

If you are lazy, and you suck--LOOK OUT!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nk2mcCSgHVU...feature=related

[Superman54 91]

BAM!!!

[Superman54 91]

Im gonna grade this one a C+

I am very excited so see Stuart here and am happy we got a physical defensemen

Unfortuantly as much as I would liked a forward it just didnt happen

Holland stated just now on TSN some things just did not work out so at least he did not go without trying

Though we could have just given Kopecky for Fedorov

I hate Kopecky.....

[stuart6 0]

while Stuart is a solid acquisition, I believe a 2nd line scorer should have been the number 1 priority. With that in mind, Holland did not succeed. To me, grade = D

I agree and unless people wanted to give up Filpula, Kopecky, Smith (1st round pick from last year) plus a 1st round pick in this years draft... people should be happy that we didn't do something stupid like that. Hossa could end up pulling a Forsberg and the Pens would be in deep s.hit, Armstrong had great chemistry with Crosby plus the 1st round picks are very important now a days.

[Opie 308]

Ken Holland is a moron.

I'm done with this place.

Sweet, you and leftwinger anyone else fed up, and want to leave, go now because the bandwagon isn't coming back around to pick up fair weather fans, good riddance!!!

So that we are all on the same page the following 2nd line scorers were moved today:

Fedorov and Lapointe, former Wings, that were being traded form the Central division, their is no way either of those two teams help the best team in their divisions get better.

Hossa, is not a 2nd line scorer. He is a first line scorer and him and a healthy Crosby will be unreal.

Edited February 26, 2008 by Opie

[dallas27 7]

I was under the impression that D was more of a priority. But do you believe what Presidential candidates say when running too?

It doesn't matter how good your d is in hockey if you can't put the puck in the net

[Viperar 16]

Sweet, you and leftwinger anyone else fed up, and want to leave, go now because the bandwagon isn't coming back around to pick up fair weather fans, good riddance!!!

So that we are all on the same page the following 2nd line scorers were moved today:

Fedorov and Lapointe, former Wings, that were being traded form the Central division, their is no way either of those two teams help the best team in their divisions get better.

Hossa, is not a 2nd line scorer. He is a first line scorer and him and a healthy Crosby will be unreal.

Dabura is hardly a bandwagon fan. I love how he shows dissent from the crowd and you write him off as a bandwagon fan. Seriously grow up.

Your everything is ok or take the highway approach is no better than those telling Holland to go F*** himself right now. People need to chill

[Dabura 12,206]

I don't think Ken Holland is a bad GM. In fact, I think he's a very good one.

But let's be realistic. He has openly acknowledged this team has weaknesses on a number of occasions, dating all the way back to the Wings' last postseason exit. He stood pat over the summer because he thought it wise to wait until the deadline. Fair enough. He stood pat in the regular season because, even though it was painfully obvious that our youngsters weren't going to cut it, the emergence of Henrik Zetterberg bought him some time, allowing him to keep looking forward to the deadline, not the here and now. Fair enough.

Then deadline day comes. Surely after all of this waiting and hyping, and with all of this cap room, Holland would finally make good on his talk. Right?

Folks, the answer is a resounding "NO."

That, to me, is inexcusable. Holland had a fantastic opportunity to make some quality moves for dirt cheap today, but in the end, he only has Brad Stuart to show for it. All of that waiting, all of those "tough decisions" (e.g. letting Markov walk because of cap concerns) -- they all ultimately led up to...Brad Stuart? As much as I like Stuart, this whole saga gets a big "WTF" from me.

Now, I'm not one to advocate trading just for the sake of trading; if there are no genuinely palatable deals to be made, then you don't make any deals. But when you hear that a guy like Prospal was had for dirt cheap, and then you juxtapose that with all of Holland's talk about needing some more secondary scoring at "the right price" (whatever that is)...something's not adding up.

This roster has issues, guys -- and I'm not talking about its current injuries. Has it dominated thus far? Yes, but as history shows us, the regular season means little. More specifically, it's not an especially reliable indicator of postseason success. Just ask the Wings, who have developed a knack for fizzling out in the playoffs despite strong showings in the regular season. The way you, as a GM, put an end to such a trend is by taking a good hard look at the team's weaknesses and doing everything in your power to ensure that these weaknesses are either as small a factor as possible or eliminated altogether. I thought Holland did a great job in seeing to it that this team got grittier and more resilient last season. It's no coincidence that that was the Wings' deepest run in years.

But the problems don't stop there, which is troubling because it seems like Holland did stop there. Sure, the Wings are tougher, but that doesn't cover other issues like their lack of scoring depth and their lack of a big, physical, crease-clearing, top 4 guy on the blue line. No matter how much anyone wants it to be true, a secondary scoring group consisting of Hudler, Flip, Sammy and Cleary will not cut it in the postseason. You think Hudler's having problems now? Just wait until he goes up against the likes of the Ducks in the playoffs. This secondary scoring group would be excusable only if the Wings were well-equipped to handle a long, taxing, one-goal series against a monster shutdown squad like the Ducks. But, seeing as how that would require an extremely solid, well-rounded blue line, which the Wings lack (undersized, too o-minded, not much snarl), the secondary scoring group remains unequivocally pathetic.

This will be my last post here. I simply can't stomach the kind of crap Holland pulled over on Motown this season.

Inexcusable, unacceptable. Goodbye.

[GoalieManPat 1,007]

If a team is only going to get depth at forward or depth at D I would take the D.

And Dabura please dont let the door hit you in the ass

Edited February 26, 2008 by GoalieManPat

[BuckeyeWingsfan80 209]

Hossa, is not a 2nd line scorer. He is a first line scorer and him and a healthy Crosby will be unreal.

Pittsburgh is ok until the playoffs start.

they have shaky goal-tending right now (unless you believe in Ty Conklin) and they really could have used another servicable or even top 4 defenseman.

Unless they planning to win playoffs 5-4, it isn't going to work for them and they paid through the nose.

[thedisappearer 291]

This will be my last post here. I simply can't stomach the kind of crap Holland pulled over on Motown this season.

What? You are quitting a fan site because of the GM? Dude, we don't need "fans" like that here. Get a life, get over yourself, and get a Ducks jersey.

[SouthernWingsFan 854]

While more player movement obviously yields to more excitement, the trade deadline day for the Wings was neither a success or failure to me. Pretty much a flat C in terms of grade, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

We've seen that it can certainly happen, but do you realistically think that the Wings will continue to be without their top-4 defensemen out. We've seen two top defensemen out last playoffs, but the team right now has somewhat of a larger "minor league prescence."

This team, when healthy, was winning more often than not. This team after the trading deadline when they get most people back, is going to be pretty identical to the one that was winning more often than not before the beginning/middle of this month.

I don't see why that can't happen in the playoffs once everybody starts getting used to each other again and getting their timing back once healthy.

[J-Swift 0]

Sorry if it's already been posted, but here's Melrose's in-depth analysis of who lost at the trade deadline.

Any idea what prominent Western Conference team Melrose refers to as a loser today?

[vangvace 12]

I don't think Ken Holland is a bad GM. In fact, I think he's a very good one.

But let's be realistic. He has openly acknowledged this team has weaknesses on a number of occasions, dating all the way back to the Wings' last postseason exit. He stood pat over the summer because he thought it wise to wait until the deadline. Fair enough. He stood pat in the regular season because, even though it was painfully obvious that our youngsters weren't going to cut it, the emergence of Henrik Zetterberg bought him some time, allowing him to keep looking forward to the deadline, not the here and now. Fair enough.

Then deadline day comes. Surely after all of this waiting and hyping, and with all of this cap room, Holland would finally make good on his talk. Right?

Folks, the answer is a resounding "NO."

That, to me, is inexcusable. Holland had a fantastic opportunity to make some quality moves for dirt cheap today, but in the end, he only has Brad Stuart to show for it. All of that waiting, all of those "tough decisions" (e.g. letting Markov walk because of cap concerns) -- they all ultimately led up to...Brad Stuart? As much as I like Stuart, this whole saga gets a big "WTF" from me.

Now, I'm not one to advocate trading just for the sake of trading; if there are no genuinely palatable deals to be made, then you don't make any deals. But when you hear that a guy like Prospal was had for dirt cheap, and then you juxtapose that with all of Holland's talk about needing some more secondary scoring at "the right price" (whatever that is)...something's not adding up.

This roster has issues, guys -- and I'm not talking about its current injuries. Has it dominated thus far? Yes, but as history shows us, the regular season means little. More specifically, it's not an especially reliable indicator of postseason success. Just ask the Wings, who have developed a knack for fizzling out in the playoffs despite strong showings in the regular season. The way you, as a GM, put an end to such a trend is by taking a good hard look at the team's weaknesses and doing everything in your power to ensure that these weaknesses are either as small a factor as possible or eliminated altogether. I thought Holland did a great job in seeing to it that this team got grittier and more resilient last season. It's no coincidence that that was the Wings' deepest run in years.

But the problems don't stop there, which is troubling because it seems like Holland did stop there. Sure, the Wings are tougher, but that doesn't cover other issues like their lack of scoring depth and their lack of a big, physical, crease-clearing, top 4 guy on the blue line. No matter how much anyone wants it to be true, a secondary scoring group consisting of Hudler, Flip, Sammy and Cleary will not cut it in the postseason. You think Hudler's having problems now? Just wait until he goes up against the likes of the Ducks in the playoffs. This secondary scoring group would be excusable only if the Wings were well-equipped to handle a long, taxing, one-goal series against a monster shutdown squad like the Ducks. But, seeing as how that would require an extremely solid, well-rounded blue line, which the Wings lack (undersized, too o-minded, not much snarl), the secondary scoring group remains unequivocally pathetic.

This will be my last post here. I simply can't stomach the kind of crap Holland pulled over on Motown this season.

Inexcusable, unacceptable. Goodbye.

Sane and rational post. I like it.