Trade deadline fast approaching - who should we target?

[FlashyG 1,799]

Regardless of how close in the standings this team may be to these high picks, in the end our pick won't be anywhere near it. This team has too much pride to s*** the bed for a good pick. It isn't the Red Wing way, and I am proud of that.

Also, nobody is saying Ehrhoff is gonna come in and elevate us to new heights. He would be a piece that fits in well and make our team faster and harder to play against with his puck moving ability. We're not expecting him to come to Detroit and be Lidstrom.

I don't expect the Wings to tank either, but the odds of us falling to those points are the same as they are of us catching Tampa Bay or Montreal. All 4 are realistic finishing positions for the team.

I just don't see the point of giving up on blue chip prospects for a guy like Ehrhoff who is available every trade deadline. He's better than our #2 defenceman, but he's not even the best defenceman available right now. We can bolster the defence just as easily next year when we have a better idea of how Sproul and Ouellet will fit into our long term plans. For all we know Ouellet may be a mainstay on our blueline next season.

[T.Low 1,011]

People make mistakes all the time thinking someone else's life is better then their own, you might not like being in his life even with all his millions.

He is still in his prime and wants to play, nothing wrong with that. The Wings treat their minor leaguers better then Lou gets treated, not surprised Kesler wants out of there.

Trust me, it's no mistake. Pm me if you really want to discuss it.

[brooklynsour 31]

I was thinking McQuaid for Quincey, B's need a offensive defenseman and we need a stay at home.... Doubt their gonna deal him thoo

[nyqvististhefuture 1,002]

Would you trade those guys if it meant winning the Cup this year?

If you think if we traded all that for kesler and edler we'd have a Way better chance to win the cup then many other teams i don't know what to tell you

My personal opinion is no matter what a western team is winning the cup this year ... Time will tell

And we waited years to finally have a deep prospect pool with massive upside , why get rid of 3-4 of them for guys About to turn 30? .... We already got mule zetterberg and datsyuk mid 30s , you wanna be the next flames and oilers ?

Not saying I wouldn't be up to getting one depending on the player but I'm not willing to throw a massive blow to our future .... What happens if kesler leaves In 2yrs? Or god help us zetterberg or mule gets hurt again in 2yrs , then we'd really be f*cked

Trust me I wish we could make a big splash at the deadline , it makes it more fun when your teams involved,but sometimes the best thing to do is do nothing (or something small )

Biggest mistakes gm make is on trade deadline

Edited March 3, 2014 by nyqvististhefuture

[joesuffP 1,746]

Next draft is weak. You'd be fine with missing the playoffs if we got to pick 4 or 5 spots earlier? If we don't trade for Erhoff then we are going to have to resign Quincey or take another step backwards on Defense.

[Shaman 713]

Next draft is weak. You'd be fine with missing the playoffs if we got to pick 4 or 5 spots earlier? If we don't trade for Erhoff then we are going to have to resign Quincey or take another step backwards on Defense.

Weaker than 2013 and 2015 yes, but this class still has a lot of gems in the early to mid 1st round.

[marcaractac 3,963]

In the end, we have little experience on defense. Half our defense have very little playoff experience. One of the veteran half is Quincey. Ehrhoff would solidify our top 4 and give us nice depth at the position. We'd have to give up a 1st in a weak draft. Not a big deal. We'd have to give up one good prospect. Not a big deal. Then a 3rd piece that can range anywhere from a lower level prospect to a salary dump like Quincey. We'd also in return get a dman with big game experience in the NHL and international level. A guy who could put up 40-50 points a year on a good team. It is literally a risk free move that makes our team better.

[Shaman 713]

In the end, we have little experience on defense. Half our defense have very little playoff experience. One of the veteran half is Quincey. Ehrhoff would solidify our top 4 and give us nice depth at the position. We'd have to give up a 1st in a weak draft. Not a big deal. We'd have to give up one good prospect. Not a big deal. Then a 3rd piece that can range anywhere from a lower level prospect to a salary dump like Quincey. We'd also in return get a dman with big game experience in the NHL and international level. A guy who could put up 40-50 points a year on a good team. It is literally a risk free move that makes our team better.

Don't know where you heard it was a weak draft.

[marcaractac 3,963]

Don't know where you heard it was a weak draft.

Compared to the last few years, it is.

[DickieDunn 2,571]

Would you trade those guys if it meant winning the Cup this year?If you think if we traded all that for kesler and edler we'd have a Way better chance to win the cup then many other teams i don't know what to tell you

My personal opinion is no matter what a western team is winning the cup this year ... Time will tell

And we waited years to finally have a deep prospect pool with massive upside , why get rid of 3-4 of them for guys About to turn 30? .... We already got mule zetterberg and datsyuk mid 30s , you wanna be the next flames and oilers ?

Not saying I wouldn't be up to getting one depending on the player but I'm not willing to throw a massive blow to our future .... What happens if kesler leaves In 2yrs? Or god help us zetterberg or mule gets hurt again in 2yrs , then we'd really be f*cked

Trust me I wish we could make a big splash at the deadline , it makes it more fun when your teams involved,but sometimes the best thing to do is do nothing (or something small )

Biggest mistakes gm make is on trade deadline

Adding Kesler and Edler would greatly improve the team not only this year but for the next several. Tatar and Nyquist are good, but they're small. The picks and prospects may or may not develop. I wouldn't trade much for an old guy like St. Louis, or a pending ufa like Vanek or Stastny, but for guys in their prime who are signed after this year? You bet your sweet bippy I'd do it.

[Shaman 713]

Compared to the last few years, it is.

Compared to last year every year after 2003 has been weak, compared to the period 2008-2012 the first round is pretty good.

[marcaractac 3,963]

Adding Kesler and Edler would greatly improve the team not only this year but for the next several. Tatar and Nyquist are good, but they're small. The picks and prospects may or may not develop. I wouldn't trade much for an old guy like St. Louis, or a pending ufa like Vanek or Stastny, but for guys in their prime who are signed after this year? You bet your sweet bippy I'd do it.

I think getting Kesler starts with Sheahan and a 1st. They want a young center who can develop into a similar role. Nyquist IMO should be untouchable, as we're gonna need him to make up for the eurotwins declining production when they get a little older. We pretty well need Gus now and down the road. Tatar is definitely expendable though.

Edited March 3, 2014 by marcaractac

[joesuffP 1,746]

Holland isn't going to trade out first anyways. Buffalo would still be interested in some prospects. There's a log jam at forward anyways

[nyqvististhefuture 1,002]

Adding Kesler and Edler would greatly improve the team not only this year but for the next several. Tatar and Nyquist are good, but they're small. The picks and prospects may or may not develop. I wouldn't trade much for an old guy like St. Louis, or a pending ufa like Vanek or Stastny, but for guys in their prime who are signed after this year? You bet your sweet bippy I'd do it.

Thank god your not the gm ....

Kesler can walk in 2yrs .... I'd only get rid of all those prospects if we got a Tavares .... And as much as I wanna make the playoffs nothing is assured , stupid habs got lucky somehow and got 5 out of 6 pts , wish Beene picking up pts , Columbus Thx to bettman we been sitting and waiting till Tuesday .... Next few games are big

Don't wanna risk losing our first pick if we miss the playoffs , a few good players in the top 5

Edited March 3, 2014 by nyqvististhefuture

[wings87 1,290]

Trust me, it's no mistake. Pm me if you really want to discuss it.

I really don't, your business is you're own. My point was I prefer not to presume what's going on in other peoples life's. If I offended you, I'm sorry I didn't mean to.

[DickieDunn 2,571]

Adding Kesler and Edler would greatly improve the team not only this year but for the next several. Tatar and Nyquist are good, but they're small. The picks and prospects may or may not develop. I wouldn't trade much for an old guy like St. Louis, or a pending ufa like Vanek or Stastny, but for guys in their prime who are signed after this year? You bet your sweet bippy I'd do it.

I think getting Kesler starts with Sheahan and a 1st. They want a young center who can develop into a similar role. Nyquist IMO should be untouchable, as we're gonna need him to make up for the eurotwins declining production when they get a little older.

Tatar, Sheahan, Kindl, Ouellet, Ferraro, and a pick for Edler and Kesler. With Zetterberg and Samuelsson on Ltir that will work for the cap and give Vancouver a bunch of young players.

[T.Low 1,011]

I really don't, your business is you're own. My point was I prefer not to presume what's going on in other peoples life's. If I offended you, I'm sorry I didn't mean to.

No worries and certainly not offended, and thanks.

Mainly, it s too big of a tangent for this thread, and the rest, well, also not for this thread.

Back to trade talk...

[Dabura 12,207]

There will always be players of their caliber available at the trade deadline, and I wouldn't be opposed to trading prospects to get them if I thought it would make us legitimate contenders for the cup, but this year I don't think there is any moves available that put us in that category given our injury situation

No offense, Flashy, because you're a good dude who makes kickass GDTs - but I'm an immature, impatient, impetuous Wings fan and I grow weary of "Let's wait until next season, because..." There will always be high-quality players available at the deadline, true - but there will also always be reasons, excuses, rationalizations as to why we shouldn't do anything.

We have to improve significantly if we want to win one more Cup with Datsyuk and Zetterberg. I'm high on our young guns and Griffins, but Ouellet, Sproul, Pulkkinen, Jarnkrok - they're all at least one more season away. And even then, they'll only be rookies. (Brendan Smith is a reminder that being a very good defenseman in the NHL is very, very, very hard.) Meanwhile, our core will be that much older and probably less effective.

Free agency sucks. We know the script: most of the top guys will re-sign, and the ones who don't will be looking to Get Paid and therefore won't be coming to Motown, because we're generally averse to bidding wars these days. We can't realistically expect a Daniel Alfredsson to fall into our collective lap every summer. (Collective Lap. Add that to the band name list.) Even Weiss was sort of a stroke of luck, as he was very keen on becoming a Wing. And, given Weiss's monumental struggles, I fear Kenny's never going to take a chance on a high-end free agent again.

The only other option? Trade.

I feel like maybe the stars are aligning for us here on the trade front. The cap room we'd need? Suddenly we have it. The attractive young roster players we'd need? Nyquist, Tatar, Sheahan, Jurco. Potentially high (and therefore quite valuable) first-round pick? Yep. And, of course, a wealth of promising prospects. (In Mantha - who may be having his first and last this-kid-is-just-plain-better-than-everyone-else season - we have, for the first time in a long time, a prospect that any and every GM in the league would probably love to have.)

I'm not saying we should sell the farm, our future.

I'm not saying we should be in on high-priced rentals like Vanek.

I'm not saying we're a contender who just needs one big trade to put us over the top.

I'm not saying we absolutely must make a big trade.

I'm saying...Why not now? Why not do something this season?

I feel we're in a position to make a significant move. I don't know that such a move is there to be made, but I've always believed that the possibilities are never limited to the rumors. Nearly any player can be had for the right price; a smart, creative, wily GM might make things happen. Easy for me to say, of course. But it's also easy to do nothing.

/rant

Edited March 3, 2014 by Dabura

[marcaractac 3,963]

@Daubura, totes agree. Also, getting a top 4 dman gives guys like Smith more time to grow as a player.

[FlashyG 1,799]

No offense, Flashy, because you're a good dude who makes kickass GDTs - but I'm an immature, impatient, impetuous Wings fan, and I grow weary of "Let's wait until next season, because..." There will always be high-quality players available at the deadline, true - but there will also always be reasons, excuses, rationalizations as to why we shouldn't do anything.

We have to improve significantly if we want to win one more Cup with Datsyuk and Zetterberg. I'm high on our young guns and Griffins, but Ouellet, Sproul, Pulkkinen, Jarnkrok - they're all at least one more season away. And even then, they'll only be rookies. (Brendan Smith is a reminder that being a very good defenseman in the NHL is very, very, very hard.) Meanwhile, our core will be that much older and probably less effective.

Free agency sucks. We know the script: most of the top guys will re-sign, and the ones who don't will be looking to Get Paid and therefore won't be coming to Motown, because we're generally averse to bidding wars these days. We can't realistically expect a Daniel Alfredsson to fall into our collective lap every summer. (Collective Lap. Add that to the band name list.) Even Weiss was sort of a stroke of luck, as he was very keen on becoming a Wing. And, given Weiss's monumental struggles, I fear Kenny's never going to take a chance on a high-end free agent again.

The only other option? Trade.

I feel like maybe the stars are aligning for us here on the trade front. The cap room we'd need? Suddenly we have it. The attractive young roster players we'd need? Nyquist, Tatar, Sheahan, Jurco. Potentially high (and therefore quite valuable) first-round pick? Yep. And, of course, a wealth of promising prospects. (In Mantha - who may be having his first and last this-kid-is-just-plain-better-than-everyone-else season - we have, for the first time in a long time, a prospect that any and every GM in the league would probably love to have.)

I'm not saying we should sell the farm, our future.

I'm not saying we should be in on high-priced rentals like Vanek.

I'm not saying we're a contender who just needs one big trade to put us over the top.

I'm not saying we absolutely must make a big trade.

I'm saying...Why not now? Why not doing something this season?

I feel we're in a position to make a significant move. I don't know that such a move is there to be made, but I've always believed that the possibilities are never limited to the rumors. Nearly any player can be had for the right price; a smart, creative, wiley GM might make things happen. Easy for me to say, of course. But it's also easy to do nothing.

/rant

I'm not saying we shouldn't go all in for a chance to win a cup with Datsyuk and Zetterberg around, I'm saying that we'd be better off doing so next season than we are right now.

Basically any move we make right now is to improve our chances next season anyways because regardless of what we do, this season is in all likelihood a lost cause as far as cup chances are concerned.

The deadline is the worst time to make a trade anyways, prices are through the roof, only a handful of guys are available and a bunch of teams are outbidding one another to get them. If we're going to improve for next season do it at the draft, at least then we know what pick we're giving away, and hopefully we've gotten a better feel on our prospects so we're less likely to give away the good ones.

[marcaractac 3,963]

Montreal, Toronto, Tampa, Rangers, Philly, Washington, Columbus, Ottawa. These are all very beatable teams, even with our current roster. Boston and Pittsburgh are the 2 teams to worry about. If we can avoid those 2 teams in the first round, The Wings can make some noise.

A couple moves and the return of Hank, and we can beat the Bruins or Pens as well. We can't worry about the favorites out west here. Only one of them can make the finals, and in the finals anything can happen. The east is weak, and anything can happen. I think this team is closer to being a contender than a lot of people think.

[Richdg 267]

As a few others have mentioned, it takes time for prospects to turn into regulars or stars. Very rarely do guys come into the NHL and put up 80 points. The far more common route is a guy come up, plays 60ish games and has 30ish point. Next year more games and more points. 3rd year the same. That was the route with most of our stars now. It took them 3-5 years to hit their potential. So, are we a really good team in 3 or 4 years by standing pat? Maybe. First not all of our prospects will work out. Second Datsyuk is then gone. Third, will Z's back hold up? Fourth, will Franzen still be around or will concussions have ended his career by then?

Four years from now, Kronwall may also be done. same with Howard. E will be in his mid 30's. Most if not all of those guys will playing fewer games and putting up fewer points as they travel through their mid and late 30's. In other words, we will be treading water.

[brooklynsour 31]

Flashy I disagree I think we have a good chance in playoffs (albeit make them first) 100% agree with @marcaratac we just need that top 3/4 dman that won't be a liability with someone's first line out in the last mins of game,,,,, when were leading by a goal lol

Edited March 3, 2014 by brooklynsour

[e_prime 1,936]

As a few others have mentioned, it takes time for prospects to turn into regulars or stars. Very rarely do guys come into the NHL and put up 80 points. The far more common route is a guy come up, plays 60ish games and has 30ish point. Next year more games and more points. 3rd year the same. That was the route with most of our stars now. It took them 3-5 years to hit their potential. So, are we a really good team in 3 or 4 years by standing pat? Maybe. First not all of our prospects will work out. Second Datsyuk is then gone. Third, will Z's back hold up? Fourth, will Franzen still be around or will concussions have ended his career by then?

Four years from now, Kronwall may also be done. same with Howard. E will be in his mid 30's. Most if not all of those guys will playing fewer games and putting up fewer points as they travel through their mid and late 30's. In other words, we will be treading water.

Yes. This is how typical hockey players develop and age as they grow older. ...and they all do.

[Richdg 267]

We also have to look past this year. No rentals is and should be our motto. But good players that are here for 2+ more years, grab them if we can. We have more prospects than roster spots and a ton of cap room the next few years. True, not all prospects will work out. That being the case, how can you count on them? Or maybe better asked, which ones do you count on?