Sammy?

[NeverForgetMac25 483]

Never Forget Mac,

If you want to get personal, I'm game. But let's keep it to PMs.

Honestly, I'm not trying to get personal.

There are just some known posters on these boards that make certain claims about the Wings only to pretend like they never happened when they are proven wrong. Perhaps I jumped the gun a little with you, as you may have every intention of taking back what you've said if the Wings do in fact win it all, but thats waiting to be seen.

As for PM's...I'm down with that, and I agree.

[Dabura 12,232]

You down right were blaming Holland for this team not winning a cup this year

No, no I wasn't. I was blaming Holland for being Holland and needlessly handicapping this team (see our secondary scoring). However, I never once said, "This team absolutely will not win this year. Bank on it." But as you've shown in other threads, you're not too sharp when it comes to that stuff.

I didn't bother reading the rest of your post. If you have a big problem with me, which seems to be the case, send me a hate-filled PM or something.

[The Secret 304]

I always wonder why people think they can package Sammy with someone else and get a "decent replacement" if he is so clearly inept.

Please explain to me why anyone would be willing to part with a decent player for Sammy and some other guy if it is so wildly known that Sammy is useless.

My thinking is that he may be able to contribute better elsewhere, he's not any good on our team in our system! Also, maybe the other player they bundle him with may sweeten the deal and getting Sammy is an add-on for depth! My hope is to see him leave and someone more suitable to be in his place... hell give him away, let him work the pizza stand anything is better then seeing him on our PP.

[Dabura 12,232]

And just for the record, I'm not actually going to respond to any of these hypothetical PMs.

[NeverForgetMac25 483]

My thinking is that he may be able to contribute better elsewhere, he's not any good on our team in our system! Also, maybe the other player they bundle him with may sweeten the deal and getting Sammy is an add-on for depth! My hope is to see him leave and someone more suitable to be in his place... hell give him away, let him work the pizza stand anything is better then seeing him on our PP.

Then by the bolded comments, he's not useless. Catch my drift?

[The Secret 304]

Then by the bolded comments, he's not useless. Catch my drift?

He is useless on our team, thats what my point is! Got it? Get it! Good!! His wasted ice time could be more valuable given to one of our young guns to see what they can do with.

[NeverForgetMac25 483]

He is useless on our team, thats what my point is! Got it? Get it! Good!! His wasted ice time could be more valuable given to one of our young guns to see what they can do with.

Yeah? To a young gun, without the playoff experience and calmness that Sammy will be able to bring to the table? Or how about a young gun that you can guarantee me will have put up 9 points at this time of the postseason? Or a young gun that you can, again guarantee me will have the chemistry that he, Filppula and Franzen were playing with before Mule went down?

[Opie 308]

Please understand that in this post I am not telling you how to post, I am telling you why I post towards you they way I do. I don't think I am better than you or more of a fan than you, as mentioned below I don't know you!

I have 0 problem with you, hell I don't even know you.

I have a problem with your posts, no you never said 100% that the wings wouldn't win the cup, but your posts obviously inferred that you didn't think they would and the reason for that was Holland. You didn't completely bail like Leftwinger, but you came damn close.

And I won't PM you because I don't have an issue with you, I have an issue with your posts, and it is not just you.

Any of the other overreactors/realists whatever you want to be called, I post the same way to them. For instance Zion. When he completely freaked out in the middle of a game. He manned up admitted he overreacted and that he was wrong. I don't say crap about his posts any more, he admitted he overreacted.

You on the other hand stopped posting on here and then came back as the Stars series appeared to be over posting like you never had any doubts of the team.

Seeing as I am on this site almost all day at work, I get to read a lot of threads and posts as well as respond to them, it also gives me ample time to research threads, so if you want to continue to pretend that you never said those things than fine, I will find the threads and post your quotes only instead of doing it with out the name in it like I did in the 3 months later thread I will include your name as a friendly reminder to you of what you thought and typed about Holland and the players.

But there is really no need for that, just admit you freaked out and overreacted. And I don't mean you need a thread or a huge post dedicated to, but a sentence like, I guess Holland and co did the right thing by acquiring Stuart (which you thought to be a complete dumb signing) once in a while wouldn't hurt.

It is similar to the Roger Clemens deal, had he pulled an Andy Pettite and said I fuct up the world would forgive him.

I am not looking for you to say I am right or that I am a hockey god (although it would help, LOL) but, at least admit you pulled a freak job, we all do it. That is the problem with being a die hard fan, often times we overreact to things.

For me in a game it is when the other team takes the lead, anything in my apartment that is throwable and not breakable gets chucked around!

Again not telling you to post anything, just letting you know why I post like I do towards you!!

[BigWinston 15]

Sammy seems to be playing OK (ish) for the most part. He's a middle of the road player who may be a little underperforming at the moment, but then every player in a team is never all playing their best all at the same time. There are several others who are not carrying their usual stats at the moment.

Lack of good passing opportunities is probably leading to more shots.

[The Secret 304]

Yeah? To a young gun, without the playoff experience and calmness that Sammy will be able to bring to the table? Or how about a young gun that you can guarantee me will have put up 9 points at this time of the postseason? Or a young gun that you can, again guarantee me will have the chemistry that he, Filppula and Franzen were playing with before Mule went down?

Yup, to a young gun. Thats what I would do. I would n't use Sammy nearly as much or in as many situations as he is being used right now. Maybe Hudler could use some more of Sammy's time... I would not be opposed to that! I don't like Samuelsson, how he plays or what he has to offer.... especially for the amount of time he gets and his role! I think the time could be better utilized!

[Dabura 12,232]

You on the other hand stopped posting on here and then came back as the Stars series appeared to be over posting like you never had any doubts of the team.

Cry me a river. I came back because I wanted to talk about Brendan Morrow with people and logged in and posted without even thinking about my "hiatus." While, no, I hadn't posted on these boards during the postseason run up until that point, I was still following the Wings, watching every minute of every game. People keep saying I gave up on the team. I'm sorry, but there's no truth to that whatsoever. I was upset with Holland and needed to cool off -- i.e., take a break from these boards (not stop being Wings fan). I was also due for surgery, so I would have ended up taking time off regardless. People also complain that posters "like me" are "arrogant" and what have you. There may be truth to that, but the people doing the finger-waving are, ironically, just as guilty by virtue of their finger-waving.

So please, Opie, give it a rest. You're tired of fans like me? Well, I'm tired of LGW's morality police.

Moving on....

[NeverForgetMac25 483]

Yup, to a young gun. Thats what I would do. I would n't use Sammy nearly as much or in as many situations as he is being used right now. Maybe Hudler could use some more of Sammy's time... I would not be opposed to that! I don't like Samuelsson, how he plays or what he has to offer.... especially for the amount of time he gets and his role! I think the time could be better utilized!

Hudler has given the Wings a phenomenal 4th line threat that no opposition has been able to match this postseason. The Wings' second line, which will be defended by the Penguins shutdown line this series would likely take away a solid amount of Hudler's effectiveness if he's inserted on that line. It's not to say that Hudler can't thrive on the second line, but he's terrorizing the oppositions 3rd and 4th lines with timely goal scoring.

Why would you want to take that away by (I'm assuming) putting Sammy on that line, if he obviously isn't a scoring threat? Then its just a wasted 4th line to give the top 3 a breather.

Lastly, if thats what you would do, than that what you would do. Obviously you have your opinion about what should be done with Sammy and I have mine. Our's just differ.

[Graybeard 0]

I finally came to the realization a few games ago that the reason Sammy shoots the puck so much, even with zero angle, 100 ft away, etc, is because he literally cannot do anything else with the puck. I'm sure the coaches see this also, and that's why they tell him to shoot it. He's going to give it away one way or another, might as well fling it at the goalie right?

I literally laughed out loud when I saw him on that breakaway the other day....only Sammy could make something look so terrible.

I think you nailed it. What bothers me about Sammy much more than the fact that he seems to have lost any shooting skill he once had, is his lack of puck handling skills. He may not be the worst in the league but the fact that he's on the best puck handling team in the league really makes you notice the lack. Look at our Dallas series. Sammy coughed up the puck at the both blue lines. He may be sound defensively and a good forechecker but on the other end of it he simply blows. All it takes is a little pressure from the opposing forecheckers along the boards and you can count on him to cough up the puck. Missing shots sucks, but at least that doesn't put you in danger like his turnovers at the blue lines do.

[Opie 308]

I think you nailed it. What bothers me about Sammy much more than the fact that he seems to have lost any shooting skill he once had, is his lack of puck handling skills. He may not be the worst in the league but the fact that he's on the best puck handling team in the league really makes you notice the lack. Look at our Dallas series. Sammy coughed up the puck at the both blue lines. He may be sound defensively and a good forechecker but on the other end of it he simply blows. All it takes is a little pressure from the opposing forecheckers along the boards and you can count on him to cough up the puck. Missing shots sucks, but at least that doesn't put you in danger like his turnovers at the blue lines do.

Well if he is such a turnover machine it must show up in his plus/minus right?

Or you would have at least 1 or 2 examples of his turnovers leading directly to goals against?

Or is it that he is a decent hockey player that from time to time makes mistakes, but since he has been adopted as the LGW whipping boy his mistakes stick out more or make people feel like more a part of the board when they join in the bashing of some one.

The guy scores goals and points yet most of the people on this board attribute that to others on the ice with him, yet when Mule tips a pass in from Sammy it is Mule who did everything and Sammy gets lucky.

I find it so funny that a team that has had the success the wings have had lately some of the fans on this board act like the wings have had the same amount of success as the kings.

Everyone trashes Sammy, fine suggest a replacement that is on the roster who can guarantee you

2g 7a and 9 points because right now there are only 8 wings with more points than the atrocious turnover machine know as sammy and one of them is injured. Oddly enough that is the same amount of people with a better +/- than him, however he and homer are tied so really only 7 are above him.

[P. Marlowe 748]

On a side note I have really laid off of people who say 'WE" when they talk about the wings, as fans we like to think we are apart of the team, and saying we makes it seem like they were on the ice helping out.

We did it, is still my favorite, no you didn't do s*** except drink beer and cheer!!!!!

Amen. That's why I can't wait for the games to start. After all these days it's funny to remember that nothing that matters has happened between Red Wings and Penguins yet.

[OsGOD 3]

On a side note I have really laid off of people who say 'WE" when they talk about the wings, as fans we like to think we are apart of the team, and saying we makes it seem like they were on the ice helping out.

We did it, is still my favorite, no you didn't do s*** except drink beer and cheer!!!!!

I would like to say we as fans did more... I mean we (well a few on here) paid out of our asses to attend games just to be ripped apart by those not in attendance across the world.

I think fans play a huge part in helping the team ergo, there is a sense of "we" Sure we didn't skate on the ice during a game but we sure as hell helped pay a fraction of the paycheck and if "we" weren't important why not just play to an empty arena and post the results on the web... "we" as fans are important and despite what other say, "we" are an indirect part of this red wings team.

[Dabura 12,232]

Are "we" seriously debating the use of "we" in reference to a sports team?

Saturday night can't come too soon. oi

[OsGOD 3]

Yup we are i guess.. but its better than ripping on a player i imagine

[Dabura 12,232]

Where's Bobby Lang when you need him?

[OsGOD 3]

We could have used him to clutch us to 12-0 instead of 12-4 right nw.

[Guest GordieSid&Ted]

I'm feeling some discontentment in the community for Mr. Samuelsson.....

What's up?

Useless trivia...in 2003...the Pens traded their 1st round pick (#3 overall) and Samuelsson to move up to #1 and drafted Fluery

For all the bashing he takes I will say 2 things:

1. He's got 9 points and IMO that's fantastic for him. At least he's producing something. Imagine if he only had 2 points right now? So IMO he's doing his part offensively. A few more goals wouldn't hurt though!

2. He's one of the best stickhandlers I've seen. I don't know how he does it skating 2 miles per hour all the time, but time and again he makes dekes that I swear he's going to cough up the puck yet he manages to get around people and maintain possession. Now what he does after he's juked somebody is the problem.

[Third Man In 2,091]

So uh, ThreeRiversFan--have we answered your question yet?

[Guest Crymson]

I'm sure he's being cheered tonight, on these boards, on the streets of Detroit and in the locker room.

[Izzy24 44]

I have no discontentment. Rock on Sammy, rock on.

Totally, good call.

[truebladearmy 33]

LGW needs a whipping boy at all times. The Wings didn't resign Lang after last season. Sammy boldly stepped in to fill his shoes.

Lang was the biggest disappointment I've seen us acquire in quite a while. One year he almost won the scoring trophy with the capitals, then he came to us and went on Vacation for a few years.

Sammy at least has goals in the playoffs, and he obviously showed up tonight. Big game. Big goals. The game winner. And the insurance goal. Both unassisted.

I think he's earned himself a little more room, even though I'm sure next game he'll be back to shooting 0% on 14 shots