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matt198913

Official: Howard signs 6-year, $31.8m contract extension

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Moneys not bad. With the cap expected to rise every year, he'll seem like a bargain soon. Hopefully this doesn't effect the teams views on Mrazek. He needs, maybe one more season in the AHL and then he should be brought up to compete. Then our goaltending will be stellar.

My only thing with Howard is he's yet to prove he can play in the playoffs. Ozzie was a playoff goalie, not as good in the regular season. Howard is kind of the opposite as of now, and I realize the team isn't what it used to be and isn't a guarantee to make the dance, but if we get in I hope Howard answers the challenge. I don't expect him to carry us to the cup, but not being the reason we lose no matter how deep we get will be a start.

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Happy with the signing, now if we can get some decent #2 - 3 defensman on this team and another #1 sniper on the line could put us back on top!

We need a #1 defensman as well. Kronwall is a good #2 but he is not a true #1 guy, and by #1 I mean a franchise defensman.

Nice to have a goalie that can help the team win. Now if only the rest of the players would want to win like Jimmy all would be good.

Edited by dragonballgtz

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This signing has no impact on that. Mrazek can earn the backup job and outplay jimmy in 3 years. This signing ensures us of at least having a good NHL goalie for the term, we can't rely on mrazeks potential.

Good points! Nothing better then healthy competition to get the best out of the goalies.

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Guest Crymson

Money is right but 6 years is too long. I want to see Mrazek in net long before 6 years!

Congrats Jimmy! Look 6 years is perfect imo, Mzarek will more then likely spend 2-3 more years in GR then come up and back up Howard for a year or two then hopefully take over the net while Jimmy backs up for Mzarek for his remanding year or two. All while Mzarek is still on a nice petit rookie contract.

(I just noticed how many times I said "year or two", giving myself some grace I guess ;))

I feel obligated to note once again that no prospect is a sure deal. In this event, some people are counting Mrazek's proverbial egg years before it will hatch.

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My only thing with Howard is he's yet to prove he can play in the playoffs. Ozzie was a playoff goalie, not as good in the regular season. Howard is kind of the opposite as of now, and I realize the team isn't what it used to be and isn't a guarantee to make the dance, but if we get in I hope Howard answers the challenge. I don't expect him to carry us to the cup, but not being the reason we lose no matter how deep we get will be a start.

That San Jose series when we were down 3-0 a couple years ago, he basically willed it to 7 games himself. We just couldnt score to save our playoff lives.

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This signing has no impact on that. Mrazek can earn the backup job and outplay jimmy in 3 years. This signing ensures us of at least having a good NHL goalie for the term, we can't rely on mrazeks potential.

Absolutely. Mrazek can ease his way into the lineup then. He doesn't need all the spotlight of needing to be that #1 immediately, he can slowly take on more of a bigger role. It also allows Howard to gain a responsible, good back-up that can take some of the workload off of him. Jimmy is being overplayed season after season, exhausted by the time the playoffs hit. The only problem I could forsee is if Mrazek becomes one hell of a goalie, and they go split-time; the following contract on Mrazek's ELC, he could try and demand around Jimmy's money. If that happened, we obviously would take the better of the two, and better for the future which would most likely be Mrazek and move Jimmy. His contract isn't as binding as Luo's.

With all that said, I have no idea how the caphit works with the contract so for all I know Jimmy could be a lot cheaper down the road (I think it has to be like within a 5% decrease limit in the new CBA?). Him and Mrazek can turn into a really solid goalie tandem alongside our young solid defensive corps. Make our focus on our forward group and we'll be back before you know it.

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We need a #1 defensman as well. Kronwall is a good #2 but he is not a true #1 guy, and by #1 I mean a franchise defensman.

Nice to have a goalie that can help the team win. Now if only the rest of the players would want to win like Jimmy all would be good.

Agreed, but I just don't know how realistic it is to get a #1 franchise defenseman. They don't normally get traded or hit the market, and we just missed on Suter.

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Guest Playmaker

Moneys not bad. With the cap expected to rise every year, he'll seem like a bargain soon. Hopefully this doesn't effect the teams views on Mrazek. He needs, maybe one more season in the AHL and then he should be brought up to compete. Then our goaltending will be stellar.

My only thing with Howard is he's yet to prove he can play in the playoffs. Ozzie was a playoff goalie, not as good in the regular season. Howard is kind of the opposite as of now, and I realize the team isn't what it used to be and isn't a guarantee to make the dance, but if we get in I hope Howard answers the challenge. I don't expect him to carry us to the cup, but not being the reason we lose no matter how deep we get will be a start.

They say that about every goalie/player until they actually win a Cup. Osgood, Hasek...Said it about Yzerman, Fedorov, Lidstrom. Russians can't win Cups, Swedes can't win Cups.

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Don't mind the money. Like others, its the term that worries me.

What about Petr Mrazek? Is it going to be 6 years before he is ready? I was hoping to see him as the Wings starter in 3-4 years...

Mrazek can split the time with Howie in a few years if he's good enough. Howard is good enough, so we at least have a legit #1 tender back there for the next 6 years.

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I feel obligated to note once again that no prospect is a sure deal. In this event, some people are counting Mrazek's proverbial egg years before it will hatch.

Remember when Smith was a lock to win the Calder........about 3 months ago? Wings fans, like all hockey fans, massively over-rate their own prospects. When they're not instant all-stars we throw them under the bus.

In other news - congrats to James T Howard, you;ve deserved this.

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Guest Playmaker

I would like this deal much better if Jimmy were 24 or 25. Just really no reason to sign him to a six year deal. I don't think there would have been a huge demand for Howard league wide.

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You know, some of the people bashing Howard's salary are likely the same that bashed Ozzie whenever he struggled or had slow times. Probably the ones you'd hear say "We won the cup in 1998 in spite of Ozzie". gimme a break.

Had we let howard hit the open market, there's a good chance someone might have stepped up and grabbed for him. Yzerman just got Bishop, but he might have still gone for it. Florida needs a goalie since Theo isn't a long term solution and it looks like Markstrom isn't there yet.

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I would like this deal much better if Jimmy were 24 or 25. Just really no reason to sign him to a six year deal. I don't think there would have been a huge demand for Howard league wide.

Right. NJD don't need a new G, Toronto doesn't have any G issues. isles same. Howard would have gotten much more on the market. 6+ million per year.

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Five million dollars for a goalie who can't steal a game? Please.

2011 2nd round. he stole 2 of the 3 games leading into game 7.

Earlier this week vs Colorado when the Wings collapsed a 3-0 lead into a 3-2 lead, who outright robbed their chance with less than 30 seconds to go? Sure as hell wasn't Cheveldae.

How many games has he kept us in THIS SEASON ALONE while our offense has sputtered around in circles and given up horrific turnovers and breakaways?

2010 after the olympic break when Detroit was in 9th place, who stood and delivered a rock solid performance in the pipes to get us to the playoffs even though Lidstrom, Z, Datsyuk, and others were hurt that year?

say what you will, but he's done the job.

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