How bad are we if our roster is now finalized?

[LeftWinger 4,936]

reading that Centcougar and Leftwinger ***** fest was ridiculous. Those two sound like two 13 year old girls arguing over which one is more in love with Justin Bieber.

Not a bitchfest, it would be fine if he came in here and said how good the Wild have gotten with these two siginings, but he comes in and says that the Wings suck and that is why they didn't come here...then when he is told the reason they signed in Min. he says its all lies, I just felt the need to prove him wrong...

BTW, Justin Bieber is ugly! ( I am more of a Haley Reinhart fan!)

[LeftWinger 4,936]

Not that he would be the end all be all, but signing Kubina would greatly improve our powerplay...

Sign Doan/Kubina/Abby/Q if the award is good enough and lets roll!

If Holland could pull a Nash/Ryan or Yandle/Bogosian* out of the air, I am all for that too!

It is not as bad as it seems...are we upset by the snubbing of Suter? Yes, we were betting a lot on him coming here...but look, and some will argue the other way, but Sammy is an improvement on Hudler as a whole, Gus is an improvement on Conklin and J Mac, and Tootoo will bring to this team something that has been lacking for a long time! I think this team got better up front and in Goal...nobody will replace Lidstrom, not even Suter, Suter is on a level with Kronwall, all we need to do is find a stop gap to shore up our D...It's up to Holland to do it...

If Holland adds Doan, we get even better up front and if he can land a #1 D, super! But little things work too... It's gonna be a challenging season, but they will compete and make the playoffs and then go from there...

[LidstromIsASuperhero 29]

I think if we keep this roster, a lot of it will depend on how Smith, Nyquist, and Brunner play. They are all rookies with huge potential to possibly make an immediate impact.

[Shaman 713]

The final answer to this thread is this:

This team is a playoff team if everything goes right. If all the players that need to take a step forward take it, if all the players that underachieved return to form, if all players that overachieved continue to overachieve, and there are no injuries. If all these things happen this team will be #4 or #5 in the West. If any of these things don't happen the team has a very real chance of regressing to a bubble team. If the worst case happens and more than one of these things don't happen this team may not make the playoffs. This is why a lot of us want Semin or Doan and another D-man, because it gives the Wings wiggle room, so that if something doesn't go perfectly they will not be hurt as much by it. With all the trends of the last 3 seasons, I would say that if the Wings do stand pat, it will be a very long season indeed.

Edited July 10, 2012 by Shaman464

[Bring Back The Bruise Bros 1,029]

This thread has been epic!

LeftWinger 1

Centcougar 0

[LeftWinger 4,936]

^^^^

The final answer to this thread is this:

This team is a playoff team if everything goes right. If all the players that need to take a step forward take it, if all the players that underachieved return to form, if all players that overachieved continue to overachieve, and there are no injuries. If all these things happen this team will be #4 or #5 in the West. If any of these things don't happen the team has a very real chance of regressing to a bubble team. If the worst case happens and more than one of these things don't happen this team may not make the playoffs. This is why a lot of us want Semin or Doan and another D-man, because it gives the Wings wiggle room, so that if something doesn't go perfectly they will not be hurt as much by it. With all the trends of the last 3 seasons, I would say that if the Wings do stand pat, it will be a very long season indeed.

Agreed...I think Holland should use his Balls and make that trade...he should give Doan a nice deal AND Semin his 1 year $Whatever million to play with Dats...Ryan or Nash would negate the missed Parise signing... Doan and Semin would only make this team better...sure getting Yandel would make our D great again, but realistically all that is not gonna happen...Although Holland can afford some of it, I feel he is just gonna sit on $16M in cap space...

This thread has been epic!

LeftWinger 1

Centcougar 0

Ya it got off on a tangent...but this guy is nutso...

[RyanBarnes! 293]

I think if we keep this roster, a lot of it will depend on how Smith, Nyquist, and Brunner play. They are all rookies with huge potential to possibly make an immediate impact.

I keep seeing Brunner's name all over LGW and some place him in the top 6 even. I admit that I had never heard of the guy until he was signed, but I'm still confident that he will have a hard time cracking the roster, let alone play top 6 minutes.

He might have been the top scorer in the Swiss league and all, but frankly that doesn't compare to the NHL by any means. For example one look at Brunner's teammates this past season will show that NHL familiar's Josh Holden and Glen Metropolit posted similar numbers as Brunner over the past three seasons. Granted, Brunner is a lot younger, but still I think it says something as Holden struggled to crack the NHL rosters, while Metropolit was a journeyman good for about 30 points with the Bruins, the Thrashers and the Canadians.

I would be surprised if Brunner did not spend most of the season in GR.

[SwedeLundin77 460]

If Brunner doesn't work out, and assuming we don't add any more offensive firepower, I'd love to see the Wings give Jurco a chance... Put him on Datsyuk's wing and see what he can do. It can't hurt.

[kipwinger 8,496]

I keep seeing Brunner's name all over LGW and some place him in the top 6 even. I admit that I had never heard of the guy until he was signed, but I'm still confident that he will have a hard time cracking the roster, let alone play top 6 minutes.

He might have been the top scorer in the Swiss league and all, but frankly that doesn't compare to the NHL by any means. For example one look at Brunner's teammates this past season will show that NHL familiar's Josh Holden and Glen Metropolit posted similar numbers as Brunner over the past three seasons. Granted, Brunner is a lot younger, but still I think it says something as Holden struggled to crack the NHL rosters, while Metropolit was a journeyman good for about 30 points with the Bruins, the Thrashers and the Canadians.

I would be surprised if Brunner did not spend most of the season in GR.

At this point I'd say that there's even money that Brunner will show up and make a difference. You're right, the Swiss league is weak, but the kid did put up incredibly impressive numbers at the World Championships against NHL level talent. I know the international game is on bigger ice and isn't as physical, but it's not as though he's only ever played against garbage competition.

[Guest Johnz96]

It was awful every year since 2008 (including 2009 SC). Makes me think it is more about players not wanting to work hard rather than 3 coaches who tried to run it.

That is an ignorant statement

[Xraymind7781 4]

Personally, i'm really looking forward to next season. We aren't going to be favorites, but we haven't been for the last couple years. With Lidstrom and Stuart gone we get to see what Hollands really made of. I think there are going to be some unique situations for the franchise this season with so much cap space and so many holes that need mended in the lineup.

I'd really like a good solid look at some of the young guys next year. Smith, Nyquist, and Brunner should be fun to watch. In my opinion the wings have needed a Tootoo type player on the fourth line for a while now. Not sure Tootoo wil be a good fit. It will be interesting to see what he brings to the team.

I'm not really interested in the idea of signing Semin. While it would be intriguing to see him play with Datsyuk , i'm not keen on the idea of signing a guy like him to a long term big figure contract. Sure he might stop the bleeding over the next year or two but after that its one of those situations that could be an absolute nightmare. With that said I really wouldnt mind seeing a Shane Doan step in for a year or two and bring some leadership to the table.

I'm actually more concerned about leadership on this club than a lack of defense.

[SwedeLundin77 460]

Personally, i'm really looking forward to next season. We aren't going to be favorites, but we haven't been for the last couple years. With Lidstrom and Stuart gone we get to see what Hollands really made of. I think there are going to be some unique situations for the franchise this season with so much cap space and so many holes that need mended in the lineup.

I'd really like a good solid look at some of the young guys next year. Smith, Nyquist, and Brunner should be fun to watch. In my opinion the wings have needed a Tootoo type player on the fourth line for a while now. Not sure Tootoo wil be a good fit. It will be interesting to see what he brings to the team.

I'm not really interested in the idea of signing Semin. While it would be intriguing to see him play with Datsyuk , i'm not keen on the idea of signing a guy like him to a long term big figure contract. Sure he might stop the bleeding over the next year or two but after that its one of those situations that could be an absolute nightmare. With that said I really wouldnt mind seeing a Shane Doan step in for a year or two and bring some leadership to the table.

I'm actually more concerned about leadership on this club than a lack of defense.

I'm not really as worried about leadership. Zetterberg, Datsyuk, and Kronwall will have everything under control, in my opinion.

[Xraymind7781 4]

I'm not really as worried about leadership. Zetterberg, Datsyuk, and Kronwall will have everything under control, in my opinion.

In my opinion these are all good, smart veteran players. I know this isn't going to be a popular statement but I don't think any of them are captain material.

[Drake_Marcus 890]

Interesting that you've allowed the Wings to carry a roster larger than the league maximum. Being able to roll 5 lines with a spare forward is true depth on the bench!

Should make the playoffs in the 6th spot. If everyone pulls their weight and clicks, we should make top4 in the west. We already improved the backup goalie, Zetterberg shouldn't start of cold this year, and Helm and Cleary will be healthy.

It's not that bad.

EDIT:

And we upgraded Hudler to Sammy.

Hudler out performed Sammy last season so it's not fair to call that switch an upgrade (25g/50pts for the little guy vs a pro-rated 21g/46pts for Sammy). Sammy has better size and a right hand shot, which is helpful, but he's injury prone and almost 10 years older than Hudler so I'd call Hudler-->Sammy a lateral move at best. The age factor makes it potentially a slight downgrade (based solely on age, one expects that Hudler should still be trending upwards and Sammy downwards, one being significantly more durable is an important distinction as well).

In my opinion these are all good, smart veteran players. I know this isn't going to be a popular statement but I don't think any of them are captain material.

Mr. Conn Smythe begs to differ.

Is the reality that we may just need to stand pat with the young guys and sink or swim? Picking in the lottery would really be a treat for once. I'd rather miss the playoffs and get a good pick than go out in the 1st/2nd round.

[haroldsnepsts 4,826]

In my opinion these are all good, smart veteran players. I know this isn't going to be a popular statement but I don't think any of them are captain material.

Honestly though when Yzerman retired, did Lidstrom seem like captain material? Great player but as the perfect human you didn't see a lot of emotion or leadership on the ice other than just being awesome.

Luckily Zetterberg got to be around Stevie for a few years and Lidstrom for several.

[chuckdee 7]

If we play Eddie Shore hockey, we'll be just fine.

[Guest Hatethedrake!]

CAPGEEK.COM USER GENERATED ROSTER

My Custom Lineup

FORWARDS

Valtteri Filppula ($3.000m) / Pavel Datsyuk ($6.700m) / Johan Franzen ($3.955m)

Gustav Nyquist ($0.875m) / Henrik Zetterberg ($6.083m) / Mikael Samuelsson ($3.000m)

Danny Cleary ($2.800m) / Darren Helm ($2.125m) / Todd Bertuzzi ($2.075m)

Patrick Eaves ($1.200m) / Justin Abdelkader ($1.800m) / Jordin Tootoo ($1.900m)

Drew Miller ($0.838m)

DEFENSEMEN

Niklas Kronwall ($4.750m) / Ian White ($2.875m)

Brendan Smith ($0.875m) / Kyle Quincey ($3.250m)

Jonathan Ericsson ($3.250m) / Jakub Kindl ($0.883m)

GOALTENDERS

Jimmy Howard ($2.250m)

Jonas Gustavsson ($1.500m)

------

CAPGEEK.COM TOTALS (follow @capgeek on Twitter)

(these totals are compiled without the bonus cushion)

SALARY CAP: $70,200,000; CAP PAYROLL: $55,983,712; BONUSES: $37,500

CAP SPACE (21-man roster): $14,216,288

[Dimaline312000 51]

I honestly can't see this being our finalized roster right now. We still have so much of the off-season/signing period to go, granted I'm getting nervous over not hearing anything in the past few days but I don't think Holland can think we can go into the season like this. Hopefully something big is coming we still have close to $17 Million in Cap Space and a lot of possible scenario's to go. I just don't see this being all the Wings do up until the season starts. Perhaps I'm wrong but unless Holland has totally flipped his lid (which I'm starting to wonder) he can't think this is a team capable of competeing successfully in the NHL this coming season.

[robb himself 143]

In the event that we actually head into next season with the roster we currently have, I think we will be fine. I have a feeling that Nyquist and Smith are going to step in and have monster rookie seasons.

I would start the season with these lines:

Nyquist - Datsyuk - Franzen

Filppula - Zetterberg - Brunner

Bertuzzi - Helm - Samuelsson

Cleary - Abdelkader - Tootoo

ex.Miller/Emmerton/Eaves/Mursak

Kronwall - Smith

Quincey - White

Ericsson - Kindl

Howard

Gustavsson

I think that is a good enough line up to make the playoffs as long as they stay healthy. If we start running into the usual injury issues, that could be a major problem. But I like to be optimistic.

[mmamolo 287]

Not a bitchfest, it would be fine if he came in here and said how good the Wild have gotten with these two siginings, but he comes in and says that the Wings suck and that is why they didn't come here...then when he is told the reason they signed in Min. he says its all lies, I just felt the need to prove him wrong...

BTW, Justin Bieber is ugly! ( I am more of a Haley Reinhart fan!)

Don't worry, every now and then Centcougar shows up and acts like a jackass until he inevitably disappears again. Everyone who reads this forum on any kind of consistent basis knows his posts are crap.

To your other point, I think Kubina is all but washed up. I wouldn't be completely opposed to it if the Wings signed him to a 1 year deal for the bottom pairing but I dont know that he'd be ready to accept the role of a 6/7 d-man rotating time with Kindl. I think whoever the Wings sign (assuming a trade for a top 4 guy isn't made - which I don't believe it will be) will be a bottom pair guy so that Smith is in the line up every day and Kindl gets a lot of time too.

[Guest Hatethedrake!]

I could see a guy like Sean O'Donnell being signed as the 7th dman. A vet guy who has been around who has solid character. 1 year/1 mil.

[LeftWinger 4,936]

I could see a guy like Sean O'Donnell being signed as the 7th dman. A vet guy who has been around who has solid character. 1 year/1 mil.

Whoa! You are cruising for an all out attack suggesting that Holland sign a 40 year old...

I wonder if O'Donnell has anything left?

[mmamolo 287]

Any one get a chance to see Cam Barker in EDM much last season? Last year I thought that he would have been have been a good reclamation project on a one year deal and DET ended up grabbing Commodore. At 26 years old the guy has fallen off pretty far considering the hype around him when he was in CHI but I was wondering if any one got a chance to see him last year. Would he be worth a shot on a 1 year deal?

[Guest Crymson]

I could see a guy like Sean O'Donnell being signed as the 7th dman. A vet guy who has been around who has solid character. 1 year/1 mil.

O'Donnell is even slower now than he was five years ago, and he was pretty darned slow back then. Now he skates at a glacial pace. No thanks.

[Xraymind7781 4]

Honestly though when Yzerman retired, did Lidstrom seem like captain material? Great player but as the perfect human you didn't see a lot of emotion or leadership on the ice other than just being awesome.

Luckily Zetterberg got to be around Stevie for a few years and Lidstrom for several.

I agree with you about Lidstrom. Obviously he was the right guy to put the "C" on at the time. There was really no way around it. I'm not dissing Datsyuk or Zetterberg either. You can say what you want about awards that they've won or what have you. I just don't feel comfortable putting a "C" on either of those guys.

With that said I'm sure that if Suter or Parise signed here, neither Dats or Z would have worn the "C".