OFFICIAL: 12y, $62.4m makes Hossa a 'Hawk

[xtrememachine1 795]

Wow. I am appauled at some of the replies that I have seen since I last posted here....

You're a Hawks fan on a Wings message board. If you don't like it, nobody is forcing you to post here.

Drugs and Alcohol? How degrading! I have never tried either in my life, and I think it was very unprofessional of you to go there.

joke - A noun, verb, joked, jok⋅ing.

Use joke in a Sentence

–noun

1. something said or done to provoke laughter or cause amusement, as a witticism, a short and amusing anecdote, or a prankish act: He tells very funny jokes. She played a joke on him.

2. something that is amusing or ridiculous, esp. because of being ludicrously inadequate or a sham; a thing, situation, or person laughed at rather than taken seriously; farce: Their pretense of generosity is a joke. An officer with no ability to command is a joke.

3. a matter that need not be taken very seriously; trifling matter: The loss was no joke.

4. something that does not present the expected challenge; something very easy: The test was a joke for the whole class.

As for the Hawks, I think we can work something out. The salary cap may go down, but if Tallon isn't worried, why should the fans be? I think he has this all figured out, or else he wouldn't have signed Hossa to the contract that he did.

Also, I would not call Khabibulin a bad signing. It's not like he had a team in front of him his first two years. That third year, when we were fighting for the 8th seed, that's when he got good, and carried us on his back until we fell slightly short. Last year, he was brilliant. Not a bad signing whatsoever in my mind.

Tallon doesn't seem like he has anything figured out. He keeps throwing money at players and hopes it works out. He picks up Khabibulin for $6 mil, he sits on the bench or plays poorly for most of those years. Then they sign Huet for $5.6 and he sits behind Khabibulin. They throw $7 at Campbell and he was practically invisible. Now they're throwing money at Hossa. I think he's intending to load up for a Cup run this year. After this year, he'll try to trade off the big salary players so he can sign Kane and Toews, but its not happening. No one took Khabibulin, no one is taking Huet or Campbell.

[HawksFan4Life 0]

I think one of the reasons no one took Khabibulin was because he was 35 at the time, and apparently the other 29 GM's thought his best days were behind him. Apparently not.

I just don't understand. Maybe Dale lacks common sense, however, why would he sign all these players unless he had a plan?

[titanium2 867]

I think one of the reasons no one took Khabibulin was because he was 35 at the time, and apparently the other 29 GM's thought his best days were behind him. Apparently not.

I just don't understand. Maybe Dale lacks common sense, however, why would he sign all these players unless he had a plan?

One year plan.

[flip 5]

I think one of the reasons no one took Khabibulin was because he was 35 at the time, and apparently the other 29 GM's thought his best days were behind him. Apparently not.

I just don't understand. Maybe Dale lacks common sense, however, why would he sign all these players unless he had a plan?

They had the money to sign Khabibulin, so they did. Did the Hawks have any cap issues because of it? Nope. That's why this "xtrememachine" (incredibly cool name, by the way - how you took the "e" off the beginning of "extreme" is awesome. Maybe you could do some alternating caps too so people know what a badass you are) couldn't make a decent point to save his life.

[HawksFan4Life 0]

I just don't get it. Why a one year plan? I don't want just one cup (Even that's not guaranteed) and then we suck. I remember Mike North saying if the Blackhawks win just one Stanley Cup in the next ten years, he'd be disappointed. All of a sudden there is this change. I'm just scratching my head over this. I love this team unconditionally, and I don't know what to think anymore.

[titanium2 867]

I just don't get it. Why a one year plan? I don't want just one cup (Even that's not guaranteed) and then we suck. I remember Mike North saying if the Blackhawks win just one Stanley Cup in the next ten years, he'd be disappointed. All of a sudden there is this change. I'm just scratching my head over this. I love this team unconditionally, and I don't know what to think anymore.

It's not the worst plan in the world. One cup, that's a lot more than many other teams can vouch for. They'd probably kill for one cup and then years of sucking instead of languishing at .500, which means mediocre draft picks and years of teasing fans into thinking they'd go deep into the playoffs.

[HawksFan4Life 0]

Well one cup is better than nothing. I'll be going to the Hawks Convention in a couple weeks. And if I see Dale Tallon, I will be professional about it, but I will be sure to ask him the tough questions how he can keep the big 3.

[xtrememachine1 795]

They had the money to sign Khabibulin, so they did. Did the Hawks have any cap issues because of it? Nope. That's why this "xtrememachine" (incredibly cool name, by the way - how you took the "e" off the beginning of "extreme" is awesome. Maybe you could do some alternating caps too so people know what a badass you are) couldn't make a decent point to save his life.

LOL Yes it is a cool name. I like it

As for my point, which apparently you missed while you were trying think up a way to mock my name, Tallon "the genius" is making bad investments and then throws more money at it to try to cover it up and it gets worse. They sign Khabibulin for $6 mil. Whatever. He does bad, they try to trade him, they can't, so they pick up ANOTHER high priced goalie and he does bad. They have great young players entering free agency this year and next and they have $17 mil tied up in three players (Hossa, Campbell, Huet) and two of them are not playing up to their contracts.

[OsGOD 3]

Wow. I am appauled at some of the replies that I have seen since I last posted here....

Drugs and Alcohol? How degrading! I have never tried either in my life, and I think it was very unprofessional of you to go there.

Alcohol is fun in moderation... you should give it a go sometime... Jim and Jack make for great company!

[titanium2 867]

Alcohol is fun in moderation... you should give it a go sometime... Jim and Jack make for great company!

The Captain too. Not Stevie, though he'd be awesome as well.

[HawksFan4Life 0]

Guys! I'm 17. Gonna be 18 in October. I'm not gonna do underaged drinking for one.

I really don't think Khabibulin was as bad as everybody thought he was here. Because, he didn't have a team in front of him. I shalt repeat a previous statement: he got good in the second half of 07-08, and we just missed the playoffs. He was getting better. I don't know if I have a favorite Hawk, but I certainly appreciated Khabby here. I stuck up for him plenty more times than I put him down. Best of luck to him in Edmonton.

[titanium2 867]

Guys! I'm 17. Gonna be 18 in October. I'm not gonna do underaged drinking for one.

I really don't think Khabibulin was as bad as everybody thought he was here. Because, he didn't have a team in front of him. I shalt repeat a previous statement: he got good in the second half of 07-08, and we just missed the playoffs. He was getting better. I don't know if I have a favorite Hawk, but I certainly appreciated Khabby here. I stuck up for him plenty more times than I put him down. Best of luck to him in Edmonton.

A good majority of Wings fans thought he was the reason the Hawks lasted as long as they did against the Wings. An even greater majority remembers the frustration they use to feel even as far back as his days in Winnipeg. He always seems to give the Wings a good run for their money.

[Snazzy 0]

Guys! I'm 17. Gonna be 18 in October. I'm not gonna do underaged drinking for one.

I really don't think Khabibulin was as bad as everybody thought he was here. Because, he didn't have a team in front of him. I shalt repeat a previous statement: he got good in the second half of 07-08, and we just missed the playoffs. He was getting better. I don't know if I have a favorite Hawk, but I certainly appreciated Khabby here. I stuck up for him plenty more times than I put him down. Best of luck to him in Edmonton.

When Hawks put Huet in net, I was a happy-happy man. It was a blessing for us to end the series sooner so we could move on to the finals. I hope Huet is in net next year so we can destroy him again. --providing the Hawks / Wings meet up.

[HawksFan4Life 0]

Did you watch that game 5? Yeah we lost, but did Huet ever keep us in the game. The only reason Huet hasn't one a playoff series yet is because of retarded refs (See: 2008 Easten Conference Quarterfinals Game 7). Although on the flip side, how could he just give up a 2-0 lead like that when he was in Montreal? I have reason to be skeptical, but in order to have the good, you have to deal with the bad too I guess.

[flip 5]

LOL Yes it is a cool name. I like it

As for my point, which apparently you missed while you were trying think up a way to mock my name, Tallon "the genius" is making bad investments and then throws more money at it to try to cover it up and it gets worse. They sign Khabibulin for $6 mil. Whatever. He does bad, they try to trade him, they can't, so they pick up ANOTHER high priced goalie and he does bad. They have great young players entering free agency this year and next and they have $17 mil tied up in three players (Hossa, Campbell, Huet) and two of them are not playing up to their contracts.

It wasn't a bad investment, as I pointed out. Please, put more effort into following along. They had the money and Khabibulin played well. They likely wouldn't have made it as far as they did in the playoffs without him. What'd they gain from that? Invaluable experience. You know, the kind of experience the Penguins relied on to beat the Wings in the Finals.

Hossa will play well beyond $5.2m per season. 40 goals alone prices him beyond that. Huet is a number 1 goalie, so he deserves to be paid what he is. As I said, Campbell is probably overpaid, but he could be moved if push came to shove. So what it boils down to is that your evidence of "Tallon's bad signings" is one player. Congratulations, you suck at this.

Meanwhile, Holland has saddled the Wings with Holmstrom, Maltby, and Draper. Enjoy that geriatric minus line. They might put up 10 even-strength points between them this year!

[BewareThePenguin 1]

We lost NOTHING for Hossa coming here. We gave up nothing for his one season being here and it was GREAT having him! Hossa took his best chance to win the cup here, and it was his best chance. Penguins got lucky they played cream puff teams and were healthy, nobody could predict that the Wings would get injured and banged up... just to fall short by one goal and assist to win it all again.

Detroit will be the best team in the NHL for the 12 for sure and probably longer (as we have the best duo players in the NHL in Zetterberg and Datsyuk - and a very promising prospects). Penguins will be lucky to make the ECF again in the next 20 years. Hossa knew this, which is why he decided to come to the championship team. Tough break Wings suffered from the hangover and a colossal of injuries. It happens.

Interesting take on things... before the finals, around here the Pens were just another creampuff Eastern conference team to be taken lightly, who would fold once they met a big bad Western team. In other words, they had no chance to beat the Wings, coming from the creampuff Eastern conference.

Now that they won, it's BECAUSE they came from the creampuff Eastern conference they had an unfair ADVANTAGE. Hmm.

I'd say with the Pens' young nucleus of stars they just might have a shot to break the conference finals again sometime between now and 2029. Who knows, maybe even 2019 if we're lucky! You never know, playing as they do in the creampuff Eastern conference.

Edited July 2, 2009 by BewareThePenguin

[xtrememachine1 795]

It wasn't a bad investment, as I pointed out. Please, put more effort into following along. They had the money and Khabibulin played well. They likely wouldn't have made it as far as they did in the playoffs without him. What'd they gain from that? Invaluable experience. You know, the kind of experience the Penguins relied on to beat the Wings in the Finals.

Huet and Khabibulin were BOTH bad investments. Khabibulin played awful, that's why they brought in Huet. Huet comes in and he's replaced by the guy that he's supposed to replace. Now he has $12 mil wrapped up in goaltending. Its called "throwing money around" and that's what happens with GM's that don't have a clue.

As I said, Campbell is probably overpaid, but he could be moved if push came to shove. So what it boils down to is that your evidence of "Tallon's bad signings" is one player. Congratulations, you suck at this.

He could be moved if push came to shove? How's that? Who's going to take a $7 mil cap hit for a defenseman that doesn't produce? The Sens can't even move Heatley and he had a couple 50 goal seasons. Congratulations, I blew up your lame argument yet again.

[HawksFan4Life 0]

I think it was rather impulsive of Tallon to sign Huet. I know you guys are Wings fans, but the Hawks were doing good the second half two years ago, and Khabby was much to thank for that.

[xtrememachine1 795]

Interesting take on things... before the finals, around here the Pens were just another creampuff Eastern conference team to be taken lightly, who would fold once they met a big bad Western team. In other words, they had no chance to beat the Wings, coming from the creampuff Eastern conference.

Now that they won, it's BECAUSE they came from the creampuff Eastern conference they had an unfair ADVANTAGE. Hmm.

I'd say with the Pens' young nucleus of stars they just might have a shot to break the conference finals again sometime between now and 2029. Who knows, maybe even 2019 if we're lucky! You never know, playing as they do in the creampuff Eastern conference.

Quit worrying about what Wings fans think... you just lost Scuds to the Kings.

[Johnny Diamonds 25]

This IMO is kind of a slap in the face. By their actions are Hossa and Kopecky saying the Wings are weak? That with their new team they can beat the Wings on a regular basis? Why else would they both choose to play their former team 8 times a season?

I think I am right here, There is more to this than just the money. But now it's not only by their actions that they are saying the Wings are past it. It's also by their words as Hossa implies that the Wings are not hungry enough for him.

Hossa quote:

"It was time for me to move on. Chicago is hungry. They haven't won the Stanley Cup in a long time (since 1961). Detroit is a great hockey town with lots of history. This is a young team; they want to go for it."

[cusimano_brothers 1,655]

Quit worrying about what Wings fans think... you just lost Scuds to the Kings.

That means the ceremony to retire his number is cancelled, right?

[Nero 20]

I think I am right here, There is more to this than just the money. But now it's not only by their actions that they are saying the Wings are past it. It's also by their words as Hossa implies that the Wings are not hungry enough for him.

Hossa quote:

Hahaha. Hossa talking about hunger.

[Johnny Diamonds 25]

Hahaha. Hossa talking about hunger.

Exactly! Wasn't he the one who was supposed to have all the hunger? Yet he played in the playoffs like it was just any other game. See he wants a team to win a cup for him because he knows he cannot hack it in the playoffs. Maybe if he had more hunger he would've drove to the net hard instead of doing pirouettes along the boards and firing weak 35ft. wrist shots at the goalies and defensemen.

[LidsFan 68]

I used to feel bad for Hossa when he did not win the cup with us, but after reading his comments about the Hawks being hungry, I don't feel bad at all. I do find it funny that he used the word hunger since he did not have the hunger when he played with us. With all of our injuries we really needed him to step up his play and he was not able to, if he had he would be a Stanley Cup Champion right now. The Hawks can keep him.

The only one I feel sorry for is Conklin. I wish that we could of kept him, he played real well for Detroit and it would of been nice for him to win the Cup since he was also on the losing side two years in a row.

[Johnny Diamonds 25]

I used to feel bad for Hossa when he did not win the cup with us, but after reading his comments about the Hawks being hungry, I don't feel bad at all. I do find it funny that he used the word hunger since he did not have the hunger when he played with us. With all of our injuries we really needed him to step up his play and he was not able to, if he had he would be a Stanley Cup Champion right now. The Hawks can keep him.

The only one I feel sorry for is Conklin. I wish that we could of kept him, he played real well for Detroit and it would of been nice for him to win the Cup since he was also on the losing side two years in a row.

Yeah the Conk blocker was the shiz, it's a shame he got crunched out. He and Mason will be a damn good duo with the Blues this season. It's gonna be tough to get points from the Blues every game.