GDT 12/31 NYE GDT : Pittsburgh Penguins at Red Wings, 6:00 EST

[Rivalred 630]

Hard to play when ahead and keep a lead?

Sorry too soon?

[GoWings1905 2,694]

It doesn't even faze me anymore when they blow games like that. I know going in it's either a squeaker win, or a loss. They could be more competitive if Holland would make some gutsy trades for once and try to fill the obvious holes, but he won't. it's been embarrassing yes, but the Wings have been elite or at the least competitive for a quarter century. Right now the veterans are showing age badly, team is soft, goalies flip flopped so much neither can establish a rhythem, defense needs serious help, forwards can't seem to do much. I think it's time Kenny commits to a rebuild if they miss or get smashed in the first round of the playoffs. Can't keep going like this. I can think of 10-12 guys on this current team i'd keep and ditch the rest. It's been a good run, but with this current team, nothing will get accomplished that actually matters.

Agreed. I was thinking about this last night too. At best this season, what are the Red Wings? Maybe third in the division, wild card spot -- basically a borderline playoff team again. They are stuck in the same place and the biggest problem is, you aren't going forward soon if Holland doesn't change because your two best players are slowing down considerably.

Which brought me to my thought: it will NEVER happen with Holland, but shouldn't the Red Wings consider trading Pavel Datsyuk? If you really want to turn this around quicker, you almost have to take some risks in trades, which Holland has been extremely reluctant to do. Teams just don't let quality free agents get away much anymore, or if they do, you have to throw money around to compete with all other interested parties in that player. Howard is the most obvious trade piece, but you aren't getting anything significant back for him.

I'm not bringing this up, just based on the past three games either. This is looking big picture and the fact this Red Wings team looks exactly like the ones of the past five or six years. Talented enough to get into the playoffs, but nothing more. Mediocrity is the worst place to be in the NHL and Holland is so stuck on embracing this stupid playoff streak that it overshadows the organization from getting out of that complacency rut. Something has to be done differently. I'm sick of hearing about "24 consecutive playoff appearances." Call me spoiled, but that isn't a good enough reason to celebrate a season.

[LeftWinger 4,934]

Well, I am so upset that Sparty could't even muster a point! With my wife's entire family being from Alabama with it wasn't a good evening. I was upset the Wings pooped themselves, then back it up with the in-law situation, twas not a good Eve sports-wise...

I am glad Smith is doing better, maybe he needs to be the #1 guy here now, demote Kronner because ever since he took over as the #1, he has been worse than when he was #2. I'm sorry, say what you will about stereotypes and stuff, but the rep on Swede's is they get their money and take the rest of their career off. I didn't make that up, nor am I saying it applies to them 100%, but it sure seems like before their life-long contracts were signed, Franzen, Kronwall, Erection and thus far Nyquist (even though his isnt quite a life long deal) have all dialed back their production and effectiveness since they got their's. Sure Franzen got hurt, but when you aren't giving your all, and taking it easy out there, you get hit in more vulerable situations...anyhow, if Smith isn't going to be traded, then he needs to be our #1 with a d-minded guy next to him. I don't know how we will be able to acquire a big D-man without having Smith as trade bait, but somehow we need to get him. I love Danny D, but he really needs to get better and grow more into the game. He is still kind of jenky out there for his size. He needs to bulk up more and learn how to say better balanced. K, E and Q (even though he was dong alright early on) need to be off this team by October. If somehow we could deal E aong with K and a prospect D for an upgrade, I am ready to do so. At this point, we need to find a buyer (or seller for that matter) who isn't going to encite a bidding war with all teams. As much as I think Byfuglien would help this team, the forthcoming bidding war for him is going to be insane, even if he hits UFA status, the offers will be astronomical. It's best maybe to be in contact with the likes of Calgary or Anaheim or Columbus or Edmonon. Then again, we could dangle Richards and or Nyquist out there to make a better offer to some teams.

At this point I am ready to do what it takes to make this team better, and not just a little better, I'm talking earth shaking better. We need to get into some serious talks with Nashville if indeed the are looking to shed Shea Weber's contract. I know he'd have to approve a deal, but sometimes players can be persuaded to include certain teams on their OK list. If Weber were to become available, I'd have no issue including Nyquist AND Mantha in a packag deal. I'd go, 1st rounder, Mantha, Nyquist, Sproul to start. If they needed another NHL D-man, I am open to Smith, K and E as well. Have at it. This team is that desparate, in my eyes, and major changes are needed. I'd even contact Edmonton about Hall and see what they would need in return.

This team is going nowhere with its current roster, its obvious. Z and D are just too old ad broken now-a-days to carry the team like they used to. We have some great young talent here, but not enough to make up for the (rapidly) declining D and Z....

Edited January 1, 2016 by LeftWinger

[Wingnut1989 165]

we got alot of small skill forwards, we can afford to dump some. we need some grit cant always finesse the puck in

[Buppy 1,720]

Well, I am so upset that Sparty could't even muster a point! With my wife's entire family being from Alabama with it wasn't a good evening. I was upset the Wings pooped themselves, then back it up with the in-law situation, twas not a good Eve sports-wise...

I am glad Smith is doing better, maybe he needs to be the #1 guy here now, demote Kronner because ever since he took over as the #1, he has been worse than when he was #2. I'm sorry, say what you will about stereotypes and stuff, but the rep on Swede's is they get their money and take the rest of their career off. I didn't make that up, nor am I saying it applies to them 100%, but it sure seems like before their life-long contracts were signed, Franzen, Kronwall, Erection and thus far Nyquist (even though his isnt quite a life long deal) have all dialed back their production and effectiveness since they got their's. Sure Franzen got hurt, but when you aren't giving your all, and taking it easy out there, you get hit in more vulerable situations...anyhow, if Smith isn't going to be traded, then he needs to be our #1 with a d-minded guy next to him. I don't know how we will be able to acquire a big D-man without having Smith as trade bait, but somehow we need to get him. I love Danny D, but he really needs to get better and grow more into the game. He is still kind of jenky out there for his size. He needs to bulk up more and learn how to say better balanced. K, E and Q (even though he was dong alright early on) need to be off this team by October. If somehow we could deal E aong with K and a prospect D for an upgrade, I am ready to do so. At this point, we need to find a buyer (or seller for that matter) who isn't going to encite a bidding war with all teams. As much as I think Byfuglien would help this team, the forthcoming bidding war for him is going to be insane, even if he hits UFA status, the offers will be astronomical. It's best maybe to be in contact with the likes of Calgary or Anaheim or Columbus or Edmonon. Then again, we could dangle Richards and or Nyquist out there to make a better offer to some teams.

At this point I am ready to do what it takes to make this team better, and not just a little better, I'm talking earth shaking better. We need to get into some serious talks with Nashville if indeed the are looking to shed Shea Weber's contract. I know he'd have to approve a deal, but sometimes players can be persuaded to include certain teams on their OK list. If Weber were to become available, I'd have no issue including Nyquist AND Mantha in a packag deal. I'd go, 1st rounder, Mantha, Nyquist, Sproul to start. If they needed another NHL D-man, I am open to Smith, K and E as well. Have at it. This team is that desparate, in my eyes, and major changes are needed. I'd even contact Edmonton about Hall and see what they would need in return.

This team is going nowhere with its current roster, its obvious. Z and D are just too old ad broken now-a-days to carry the team like they used to. We have some great young talent here, but not enough to make up for the (rapidly) declining D and Z....

I think maybe you did make that up. Not going to get into Franzen, but Kronwall has had 3 of his best years since getting his big deal and taking over as number 1. Ericsson is in the second year of his, and while not much offense he hasn't been worse either. Maybe over-matched when on the top pair, but he's been greatly effective defensively this year. Nyquist is in the first year of his deal, a little off his pace from last year but not by much. Been slumping lately, but prior to that he was on a better pace than last year.

And for all those hoping for a big trade/shakeup...remember that as often as not (more really) trades can have a negative impact or just no real impact at all. Sure, Dallas is doing great so far this year, but the last two years weren't really any better than where they were at for years prior to the Seguin deal. Not to say that we shouldn't look at making a trade or three, but just that we shouldn't expect anything we do to make some huge difference.

Two of our top scorers have been slumping lately. None of the rest have been particularly hot. Not coincidentally, we've had trouble scoring and winning games because of it. No player in the league is immune to slumping, and few teams in the league have better scoring depth. We need to play better much more than we need better players.

[Shaman 713]

Well, I am so upset that Sparty could't even muster a point! With my wife's entire family being from Alabama with it wasn't a good evening. I was upset the Wings pooped themselves, then back it up with the in-law situation, twas not a good Eve sports-wise...

I am glad Smith is doing better, maybe he needs to be the #1 guy here now, demote Kronner because ever since he took over as the #1, he has been worse than when he was #2. I'm sorry, say what you will about stereotypes and stuff, but the rep on Swede's is they get their money and take the rest of their career off. I didn't make that up, nor am I saying it applies to them 100%, but it sure seems like before their life-long contracts were signed, Franzen, Kronwall, Erection and thus far Nyquist (even though his isnt quite a life long deal) have all dialed back their production and effectiveness since they got their's. Sure Franzen got hurt, but when you aren't giving your all, and taking it easy out there, you get hit in more vulerable situations...anyhow, if Smith isn't going to be traded, then he needs to be our #1 with a d-minded guy next to him. I don't know how we will be able to acquire a big D-man without having Smith as trade bait, but somehow we need to get him. I love Danny D, but he really needs to get better and grow more into the game. He is still kind of jenky out there for his size. He needs to bulk up more and learn how to say better balanced. K, E and Q (even though he was dong alright early on) need to be off this team by October. If somehow we could deal E aong with K and a prospect D for an upgrade, I am ready to do so. At this point, we need to find a buyer (or seller for that matter) who isn't going to encite a bidding war with all teams. As much as I think Byfuglien would help this team, the forthcoming bidding war for him is going to be insane, even if he hits UFA status, the offers will be astronomical. It's best maybe to be in contact with the likes of Calgary or Anaheim or Columbus or Edmonon. Then again, we could dangle Richards and or Nyquist out there to make a better offer to some teams.

At this point I am ready to do what it takes to make this team better, and not just a little better, I'm talking earth shaking better. We need to get into some serious talks with Nashville if indeed the are looking to shed Shea Weber's contract. I know he'd have to approve a deal, but sometimes players can be persuaded to include certain teams on their OK list. If Weber were to become available, I'd have no issue including Nyquist AND Mantha in a packag deal. I'd go, 1st rounder, Mantha, Nyquist, Sproul to start. If they needed another NHL D-man, I am open to Smith, K and E as well. Have at it. This team is that desparate, in my eyes, and major changes are needed. I'd even contact Edmonton about Hall and see what they would need in return.

This team is going nowhere with its current roster, its obvious. Z and D are just too old ad broken now-a-days to carry the team like they used to. We have some great young talent here, but not enough to make up for the (rapidly) declining D and Z....

Teehee..

But I agree.

Edited January 1, 2016 by Shaman

[xtrememachine1 795]

So after driving 4.5 hours to get to Detroit and see my Wings play, ironically enough, my hometown team, I get to see them play well for about 20 minutes before crapping the bed. Is there a reason we're paying Mike Green $6 mil to play on the second PP unit? Z looks a little slow out there. Neither goalie apparently wants to be the starter. Did Brad Richards forget how to pass softly? Its like he's trying to break his teammates sticks with his passing. Thank God Larkin made the team.

However, problems with the Wings play aside, I had the most AMAZING night ever at the Joe! Anyone that was at the game last night, got to see a good portion of my family. First, the dance off between the brother and sister during the 2nd period were MY KIDS!

And then second, the woman on the zamboni during the second intermission, the "First Lady of Hockeytown", was my wife, Maria. Thus, the reason why they played "Maria" from the West Side Story. 10 years ago we were at the Joe for the New Years Eve Wings game and I asked her to marry me.

Both were kind of spur of the moment things that just sort of happened. My kids were randomly selected for the dance off and then whomever was supposed to go on the second zamboni with the guy dressed as Abe Lincoln didn't show, so my wife, who was already down there with the kids was like, "I'll do it!!" I was absolutely floored! We won 3 practice pucks, 4 gift cards for Massage Green Spa and a $25 merchandise gift certificate.

Since we don't live in Detroit and don't have a Massage Green Spa near us, my wife was just going around Detroit last night and today just handing them out to people. lol She felt bad that I didn't get the ride on the zamboni (I totally didn't care, I loved seeing her out there, plus NOW she's a big Wings fan) and gave me the certificate, so I got a sweet Stadium Series Abdelkader t-shirt. So despite the unfortunate play of our guys, it was a pretty unforgettable night for our family.

[HadThomasVokounOnFortSt 878]

Looks like a great night for everyone! That's awesome!!

[DrRoCkSo_46 6]

not sure if someone made mention of it or not already but Harry Potter was at the game yesterday

here he is with Tomas TaTar.

[Bill Berzeench 310]

So after driving 4.5 hours to get to Detroit and see my Wings play, ironically enough, my hometown team, I get to see them play well for about 20 minutes before crapping the bed. Is there a reason we're paying Mike Green $6 mil to play on the second PP unit? Z looks a little slow out there. Neither goalie apparently wants to be the starter. Did Brad Richards forget how to pass softly? Its like he's trying to break his teammates sticks with his passing. Thank God Larkin made the team.

However, problems with the Wings play aside, I had the most AMAZING night ever at the Joe! Anyone that was at the game last night, got to see a good portion of my family. First, the dance off between the brother and sister during the 2nd period were MY KIDS!

And then second, the woman on the zamboni during the second intermission, the "First Lady of Hockeytown", was my wife, Maria. Thus, the reason why they played "Maria" from the West Side Story. 10 years ago we were at the Joe for the New Years Eve Wings game and I asked her to marry me.

Both were kind of spur of the moment things that just sort of happened. My kids were randomly selected for the dance off and then whomever was supposed to go on the second zamboni with the guy dressed as Abe Lincoln didn't show, so my wife, who was already down there with the kids was like, "I'll do it!!" I was absolutely floored! We won 3 practice pucks, 4 gift cards for Massage Green Spa and a $25 merchandise gift certificate.

Since we don't live in Detroit and don't have a Massage Green Spa near us, my wife was just going around Detroit last night and today just handing them out to people. lol She felt bad that I didn't get the ride on the zamboni (I totally didn't care, I loved seeing her out there, plus NOW she's a big Wings fan) and gave me the certificate, so I got a sweet Stadium Series Abdelkader t-shirt. So despite the unfortunate play of our guys, it was a pretty unforgettable night for our family.

Good lookin family! What an awesome story. Go Wings, brother.

[Euro_Twins 4,475]

not sure if someone made mention of it or not already but Harry Potter was at the game yesterday

here he is with Tomas TaTar.

Holy cow. How short is Daniel radcliff? Cause Tatar is only like 5'10" and he towers over him.