11/19 GDT : Red Wings 4 at Kings 1

[redwingfan19 293]

Smith is the reason I didn't want the wings to sign white and to ship out kindl in the off-season. kid is that good, nothing left to prove in AHL make some room for him keny.

[St. Michael (the Red Wing) 422]

Smith is the reason I didn't want the wings to sign white and to ship out kindl in the off-season. kid is that good, nothing left to prove in AHL make some room for him keny.

I agree but now it becomes a problem when White returns. Both Ericsson and Kindl aren't very good. :/ Let's not even mention Commie. Somehow though Babs is playing Big E a lot as the minutes don't lie. Having said that Kindl will be the odd man out if we keep Smith up which unfortunately I doubt we do.

[IllinoisRedWingsFan 49]

I agree but now it becomes a problem when White returns. Both Ericsson and Kindl aren't very good. :/ Let's not even mention Commie. Somehow though Babs is playing Big E a lot as the minutes don't lie. Having said that Kindl will be the odd man out if we keep Smith up which unfortunately I doubt we do.

I wouldn't be shocked if the Wings try to trade or put Commie or Ericsson on waivers Then again no GM in their right mind would take either of them.

[St. Michael (the Red Wing) 422]

I wouldn't be shocked if the Wings try to trade or put Commie or Ericsson on waivers Then again no GM in their right mind would take either of them.

I doubt any team is interested in Commie. Maybe Ericsson cause of his size. I think he would attract SOME interest but I don't really think we could get much in return.

[MDtizzle 2]

I wouldn't be shocked if the Wings try to trade or put Commie or Ericsson on waivers Then again no GM in their right mind would take either of them.

I'd be beyond shocked about ericcson. No way unfortunately after that contract. Unfortunately he's an "investment" and supposed to improve over the next eternity, because he hasn't had ample time yet.. What a joke. I WISH they would try putting him on waivers.

Commie at a million bucks isn't so bad honestly.. Someone might grab that...? Or perhaps we could play him?

If ericsson can play, why not let smith develop in the NHL? He can't do much worse

[redwingfan19 293]

Kindl would be the most tradeable of the three. Young, cheap, and has a bit of potential. Maybe a mid pick or a forward prospect, possibly include him in some sort of package.

Who am I kidding, Kenny is prepared to ride this thing out I bet..

[Nightfall 871]

Jimmy's on pace for an incredible season.

I agree. Jimmy has been given better defensive help this year which only helps his numbers. Last year, most Wings fans were all over Jimmy for having a higher than normal GAA and lower than normal save percentage. Now, he is really tearing it up. During that 6 game losing streak, if the team in front of him would have been able to score a goal or two more, then they would have probably won a few of those games.

Course, its not all defense. Jimmy has really picked up his game this year. If this continues all season, he has an opportunity to really lead the Wings into the playoffs.

[Yzermania 156]

This was a fun game. I was on the glass in the corner where the Wings shot twice. Anybody notice a blue Sweden jersey on tv by any chance? I had the perfect view for Howie robbing kopitar's penalty shot attempt. It was a lot of fun.

[Nightfall 871]

Smith is the reason I didn't want the wings to sign white and to ship out kindl in the off-season. kid is that good, nothing left to prove in AHL make some room for him keny.

I believe that Smith could use one more season in the AHL this season. Especially from an ice time perspective. If he stays up at the NHL level, he will be a 3rd pairing which will hurt him more than develop him.

IMHO, if you are going to keep Smith up at the NHL level, you pair him with Lids and you have him learn from the master. Give him 2nd pairing minutes, and you also have to make sure that all wings fans realize he is going to make mistakes.

[Konnan511 1,736]

Ericsson 26 SHF 20:31 TOI 2:57 SH TOI

Smith 20 SHF 13:22 TOI 1:14 PP TOI

Kindl 15 SHF 10:48 TOI 0:00 SH 0:00 PP

I guess Babcock is an idiot.

Miller 11 TOI

Holmstrom 10 TOI

Hudler 8 TOI

or Cleary 18 TOI

Franzen 17 TOI

Filppula 16.5 TOI

Helm 15 TOI

Is Miller better than Holmstrom and Hudler? Is Cleary better than Franzen, Filppula, and Helm? Just because someone plays more than someone, it doesn't mean they are better.

This is more of a case of Babcock mismanaging the team. Babcock, over the years, has shown that he has a weird obsession with certain players, regardless of their performance.

But if it makes you feel better, Kindl + Smith > Ericsson.

[dragonballgtz 273]

Nice to see one of our superstars step up and lead this team to victory.

[St. Michael (the Red Wing) 422]

I believe that Smith could use one more season in the AHL this season. Especially from an ice time perspective. If he stays up at the NHL level, he will be a 3rd pairing which will hurt him more than develop him.

IMHO, if you are going to keep Smith up at the NHL level, you pair him with Lids and you have him learn from the master. Give him 2nd pairing minutes, and you also have to make sure that all wings fans realize he is going to make mistakes.

I agree 100%

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

Miller 11 TOI

Holmstrom 10 TOI

Hudler 8 TOI

or Cleary 18 TOI

Franzen 17 TOI

Filppula 16.5 TOI

Helm 15 TOI

Is Miller better than Holmstrom and Hudler? Is Cleary better than Franzen, Filppula, and Helm? Just because someone plays more than someone, it doesn't mean they are better.

This is more of a case of Babcock mismanaging the team. Babcock, over the years, has shown that he has a weird obsession with certain players, regardless of their performance.

But if it makes you feel better, Kindl + Smith > Ericsson.

Actually your entire post makes me feel better.

Kindl had probably his worst game of the season and played less than 11 minutes as one of six defenseman. Even Smith had more even strength TOI. But you're seriously arguing that Ericsson's having nearly double the TOI of Kindl in spite of being an inferior defenseman is because of a weird obsession Babcock has with E? AND you try and disprove my argument by using forwards, and even then their ice time is only a couple minutes apart?

I feel pretty good about where I stand.

The little equation is cute though.

Edited November 20, 2011 by haroldsnepsts

[Doc Holliday 1,888]

You guys are silly.

Glad to see the Wings win. I was unable to watch after the first period (freaking Mike Richards), but from what I heard, the Wings played a solid 60 minutes.

[Hockeytown0001 7,652]

Listened to the whole game at work, glad to see the win and hear about the solid effort. Props to Jimmy for the penalty shot save on Kopitar.

[brett 1,029]

jimmy turning out to be a good goalie.

i knew once pavs turned it up wings would win. he was dominate tonight. like the good ol pavs. i hope he stays that way

im almost considering brunnstrom over hudler.

i dont understand why he keeps getting chances. hes not doing anything productive and sucks defensively.

I think E looks good out there.

[Turd Ferguson 4]

Actually your entire post makes me feel better.

Kindl had probably his worst game of the season and played less than 11 minutes as one of six defenseman. Even Smith had more even strength TOI. But you're seriously arguing that Ericsson's having nearly double the TOI of Kindl in spite of being an inferior defenseman is because of a weird obsession Babcock has with E? AND you try and disprove my argument by using forwards, and even then their ice time is only a couple minutes apart?

I feel pretty good about where I stand.

The little equation is cute though.

babcock has favorites and non favorites. hudler can average a point per game for a month and then one bad game he will be on the fourth line. ericsson can suck all year and get a 3 million dollar raise.

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

babcock has favorites and non favorites. hudler can average a point per game for a month and then one bad game he will be on the fourth line. ericsson can suck all year and get a 3 million dollar raise.

I don't want to derail the thread any further with tinfoil hat theories about Babcock's player obsessions.

Wings won 4-1 and had one of their best efforts all season. You guys have fun bashing Ericsson though.

Edited November 20, 2011 by haroldsnepsts

[Jusek 437]

So many Wings fans there.

[VM1138 1,921]

I'm not so sure Smith can benefit from playing lots of minutes in GR. What more does he have to learn there? I don't see what would hurt him about getting 13-15 minutes of ice time every night at the NHL level. He needs to learn from Lidstrom before he's gone, and Kronwall could teach him a lot, too. Smith looks supremely confident out there when he's moving around, you don't want to lose that by forcing him to finish the season in GR. He's proven he can hang at the NHL level, let him stay.

[Nightfall 871]

I'm not so sure Smith can benefit from playing lots of minutes in GR. What more does he have to learn there? I don't see what would hurt him about getting 13-15 minutes of ice time every night at the NHL level. He needs to learn from Lidstrom before he's gone, and Kronwall could teach him a lot, too. Smith looks supremely confident out there when he's moving around, you don't want to lose that by forcing him to finish the season in GR. He's proven he can hang at the NHL level, let him stay.

I believe its how wings fans tolerate mistakes. Kronwall was in Grand Rapids way past his prime because there was already a group of defensemen in the mix. When he came to the Wings in his first full season (aside from the injury problems) he was berated for his offensive playmaking at times and making bad decisions with the puck. It wasn't until the 2008 playoffs when he really started to make his mark. I still believe Smith has a lot to learn at this level. I do agree with you that playing with Kronwall and Lids would be the best way to bring him up. If you are going to pair him with one of those two, then thats a great way to help him learn. I believe if he is only going to get 13-15 minutes per game, I think he would be much better off getting the 22-26 minutes of ice time per game he is getting at the AHL level.

[CaliforniaWingsFan 464]

So many Wings fans there.

Yeah and a hell of a game to watch I was like 3 sections over from where you were haha great game to watch live

[czappia19 2]

Zetterberg is beyond awful this year. I don't see him beating 1 on 1 anyone in recent memory. But we can only go up from here. Maybe this game lit a fire under there asses.

LET'S HOPE SO....

[BlueMonk 102]

babcock has favorites and non favorites. hudler can average a point per game for a month and then one bad game he will be on the fourth line.

Yeah. The good news for Babs is Hudler has had 1 1/2 bad years now, so his personal agenda against Hudler has been a lot less obvious. It almost looks like it's based on Hudler's performance.

[Guest Crymson]

babcock has favorites and non favorites. hudler can average a point per game for a month and then one bad game he will be on the fourth line. ericsson can suck all year and get a 3 million dollar raise.

If Hudler isn't producing, he can't hang out on one of the top two lines. All he can do is score; he can't hope to compete defensively against the top two lines of other teams. In my opinion, he doesn't deserve to be out on the ice at all; he's been just horrible since returning from Russia. Perhaps he should see a sports psychologist, because he's clearly hesitant in every fashion.

I despise Ericsson's play, and I don't understand what Babcock sees in him.