Official 2018 Off Season *Rebuild* Thread

[Dabura 12,232]

7 minutes ago, krsmith17 said:

3rd line left wing eh?

Bertuzzi - Zetterberg - Nyquist

Athanasiou - Larkin - Mantha

Rasmussen - Nielsen - Svechnikov

Abdelkader - Helm - Glendening

Frk / Witkowski

No way they have Helm and Abby both on the fourth line, at least not at the start of the season. I do like those lines, though. I'm ok with Frk being in and out of the lineup because we pretty much know what he is at this point and it's not an essential top-six winger.

I'm really interested to see what happens with AA. I think I'll be somewhat surprised if he isn't moved at the draft.

[kickazz 5,459]

15 hours ago, krsmith17 said:

Not sure what you seen there... 

The video

[krsmith17 7,191]

19 minutes ago, Dabura said:

No way they have Helm and Abby both on the fourth line, at least not at the start of the season. I do like those lines, though. I'm ok with Frk being in and out of the lineup because we pretty much know what he is at this point and it's not an essential top-six winger.

I'm really interested to see what happens with AA. I think I'll be somewhat surprised if he isn't moved at the draft.

Oh, I totally agree that Helm and Abdelkader won't be on the 4th line, but I just don't want Svechnikov down there. If the team is taking this "rebuild" seriously, they shouldn't either. I'd also like to see Frk in the top 9 as well, but with the forwards we have on the current roster, I see him as the likely odd man out. I hope there are some trades this offseason, but I'm not going to hold my breath... I'm open to trading Athanasiou, but only if the return is there. I wouldn't trade him just for the sake of trading him. I think any trade involving AA would have to be in a package for it to be worthwhile.

10 minutes ago, kickazz said:

The video

... maybe you should try watching it again...

[kickazz 5,459]

28 minutes ago, krsmith17 said:

M... maybe you should try watching it again...

Just did. Saw Jensen win the fight. 

[krsmith17 7,191]

12 minutes ago, kickazz said:

Just did. Saw Jensen win the fight. 

[kickazz 5,459]

48 minutes ago, krsmith17 said:

Yeah, I agree. I was funny to watch him beat Bert.

Edited May 3, 2018 by kickazz

[krsmith17 7,191]

41 minutes ago, kickazz said:

Yeah, I agree. I was funny to watch him beat Bert.

Hey now, "beat Bert" is putting it a little mildly don't ya think? He "kicked his ass"... 

[kickazz 5,459]

38 minutes ago, krsmith17 said:

Hey now, "beat Bert" is putting it a little mildly don't ya think? He "kicked his ass"... 

He beat Bert and also kicked his ass.

Edited May 3, 2018 by kickazz

[ChristopherReevesLegs 7,022]

1 hour ago, kickazz said:

He beat Bert and also kicked his ass.

Back in highschool I could beat/kick an ass a quarter mile

[Neomaxizoomdweebie 3,083]

6 hours ago, krsmith17 said:

3rd line left wing eh?

Bertuzzi - Zetterberg - Nyquist

Athanasiou - Larkin - Mantha

Rasmussen - Nielsen - Svechnikov

Abdelkader - Helm - Glendening

Frk / Witkowski

Love that 3rd line. Perfect opportunity for Nielsen to be worth his contract.

[Dabura 12,232]

Just now, Neomaxizoomdweebie said:

Love that 3rd line. Perfect opportunity for Nielsen to be worth his contract.

The big question is whether Blashill wants to continue using Nielsen's line as a designated checking/shutdown line. If yes, then that RW spot is probably occupied by Helm or Abdelkader.

...Unless, perhaps, Blashill and Holland have had a heart-to-heart and they've both decided it's time to let the kids run wild. Holland has stopped just short of admitting he's pretty much written off next season anyway, so I guess it's possible.

[krsmith17 7,191]

7 minutes ago, Dabura said:

The big question is whether Blashill wants to continue using Nielsen's line as a designated checking/shutdown line. If yes, then that RW spot is probably occupied by Helm or Abdelkader.

...Unless, perhaps, Blashill and Holland have had a heart-to-heart and they've both decided it's time to let the kids run wild. Holland has stopped just short of admitting he's pretty much written off next season anyway, so I guess it's possible.

Let's hope so... I really hope this is the year we see all the kids given a longer leash.

[kickazz 5,459]

2 hours ago, ChristopherReevesLegs said:

Back in highschool I could beat/kick an ass a quarter mile

Ima whoop yo ass

[ChristopherReevesLegs 7,022]

8 minutes ago, F.Michael said:

If I were a mod I'd lock this thread for going off topic...

10 bucks says I whoop yo ass

[Neomaxizoomdweebie 3,083]

4 hours ago, Dabura said:

The big question is whether Blashill wants to continue using Nielsen's line as a designated checking/shutdown line. If yes, then that RW spot is probably occupied by Helm or Abdelkader.

...Unless, perhaps, Blashill and Holland have had a heart-to-heart and they've both decided it's time to let the kids run wild. Holland has stopped just short of admitting he's pretty much written off next season anyway, so I guess it's possible.

That would be dumb. You have 3 offensively talented guys on that line. If he wants a shutdown line, roll out Glen, Helm, Abby.

10 hours ago, krsmith17 said:

3rd line left wing eh?

Bertuzzi - Zetterberg - Nyquist

Athanasiou - Larkin - Mantha

Rasmussen - Nielsen - Svechnikov

Abdelkader - Helm - Glendening

Frk / Witkowski

These are  the lines ur rolling with and you think the team won't be better next year?

[krsmith17 7,191]

49 minutes ago, Neomaxizoomdweebie said:

That would be dumb. You have 3 offensively talented guys on that line. If he wants a shutdown line, roll out Glen, Helm, Abby.

These are  the lines ur rolling with and you think the team won't be better next year?

IF they run with those lines, they have the potential to be better. However, the chances of them running with those lines are slim. There's no guarantee all of those players will even be with the team in October. Also as much as I'd like to see it, there's about a zero percent chance Blashill runs that defensive shutdown 4th line. It'll be Glendening and some combination of Svechnikov, Frk and Rasmussen (if he even makes the team)...

I love your optimism, and I'd usually be right there with you, and maybe (hopefully) I will be in the next couple months, when Holland maybe (hopefully) makes a few shrewd moves to get this team back on the right track...

[Dabura 12,232]

21 hours ago, Neomaxizoomdweebie said:

That would be dumb. You have 3 offensively talented guys on that line. If he wants a shutdown line, roll out Glen, Helm, Abby.

Well, yeah. Rasmussen-Nielsen-Svechnikov wouldn't be a shutdown line. At least, not in theory. I'm just saying we don't know how Blashill intends to use Nielsen -- and his line -- next season. If he wants three scoring lines, @krsmith17's lines would be a good place to start. If Blashill wants to continue with the 2 scoring lines + 1 designated checking/shutdown line + 1 designated whatevz line scheme, I'd expect Nielsen's RW to be a veteran checking guy like Helm or Abby.

Personally, I'm ok with both Helm and Abby being in the top nine because I want at least one of them traded within the next couple of years and no one's going to want them if they're putting up meh numbers as expensive fourth-liners on a meh Red Wings team. Even fi we aren't able to move either of them, we'd basically be giving up on trying to get our money's worth out of them if we're using them as fourth-liners.

[krsmith17 7,191]

5 minutes ago, Dabura said:

Well, yeah. Rasmussen-Nielsen-Svechnikov wouldn't be a shutdown line. At least, not in theory. I'm just saying we don't know how Blashill intends to use Nielsen -- and his line -- next season. If he wants three scoring lines, @krsmith17's lines would be a good place to start. If Blashill wants to continue with the 2 scoring lines + 1 designated checking/shutdown line + 1 designated whatevz line scheme, I'd expect Nielsen's RW to be a veteran checking guy like Helm or Abby.

Personally, I'm ok with both Helm and Abby being in the top nine because I want at least one of them traded within the next couple of years and no one's going to want them if they're putting up meh numbers as expensive fourth-liners on a meh Red Wings team. Even fi we aren't able to move either of them, we'd basically be giving up on trying to get our money's worth out of them if we're using them as fourth-liners.

I don't think any team looking to trade for Abdelkader, Helm or Glendening are going to do so for their offensive upside though. If any team is interested in acquiring any of those three, it would likely be a Cup contender looking for depth in their bottom 6... defensively responsible, can kill penalties and shut down other team's top lines.

We would likely have to eat a little salary on Abby's contract, but he's not going anywhere anyway. I think Helm and Glendening are easily tradeable now, and will only get easier to trade over the next year or two.

I think the best way to get the most out of those three players is to put them together and formulate one of the better shutdown 4th lines in the league. Stop f***ing putting offensively talented kids on the 4th line with Glendening!

[Dabura 12,232]

1 hour ago, krsmith17 said:

I don't think any team looking to trade for Abdelkader, Helm or Glendening are going to do so for their offensive upside though. If any team is interested in acquiring any of those three, it would likely be a Cup contender looking for depth in their bottom 6... defensively responsible, can kill penalties and shut down other team's top lines.

We would likely have to eat a little salary on Abby's contract, but he's not going anywhere anyway. I think Helm and Glendening are easily tradeable now, and will only get easier to trade over the next year or two.

I think the best way to get the most out of those three players is to put them together and formulate one of the better shutdown 4th lines in the league. Stop f***ing putting offensively talented kids on the 4th line with Glendening!

I just feel like keeping them on the fourth line is kind of throwing the towel in on getting the most out of them, whether we're talking about getting our money's worth out of their contracts or maximizing their trade value.

And, to be fair to them, they're both perfectly capable top-nine complementary wingers. Like, Athanasiou-Larkin-Mantha looks super-sexy on paper and they had that fantastic game against Arizona -- but if we're placing any value at all on underlying numbers, we have to acknowledge that that line spent the vast majority of its time together getting caved in. AA was the weak link there; Helm and Abby made for a more dependable, capable line.

Granted, I'm really down on AA after the season he just had. Decent production, but he's playing like a 16-year-old. No possession game to speak of. Defensive liability. No growth. I'm genuinely unconvinced that he's more competent and effective than Helm or Abby.

[Neomaxizoomdweebie 3,083]

2 hours ago, krsmith17 said:

I don't think any team looking to trade for Abdelkader, Helm or Glendening are going to do so for their offensive upside though. If any team is interested in acquiring any of those three, it would likely be a Cup contender looking for depth in their bottom 6... defensively responsible, can kill penalties and shut down other team's top lines.

We would likely have to eat a little salary on Abby's contract, but he's not going anywhere anyway. I think Helm and Glendening are easily tradeable now, and will only get easier to trade over the next year or two.

I think the best way to get the most out of those three players is to put them together and formulate one of the better shutdown 4th lines in the league. Stop f***ing putting offensively talented kids on the 4th line with Glendening!

Any team looking for a player with the speed of a scoring F and the hands of a defenseman, or a top 6 paid 3rd liner who blocks fists with his face would be interested for sure.

Pretty sad when Glendening is probably the most tradeable of those 3. That said, that would be one very expensive 4th line, although a very good one.

1 hour ago, Dabura said:

I just feel like keeping them on the fourth line is kind of throwing the towel in on getting the most out of them, whether we're talking about getting our money's worth out of their contracts or maximizing their trade value.

And, to be fair to them, they're both perfectly capable top-nine complementary wingers. Like, Athanasiou-Larkin-Mantha looks super-sexy on paper and they had that fantastic game against Arizona -- but if we're placing any value at all on underlying numbers, we have to acknowledge that that line spent the vast majority of its time together getting caved in. AA was the weak link there; Helm and Abby made for a more dependable, capable line.

Granted, I'm really down on AA after the season he just had. Decent production, but he's playing like a 16-year-old. No possession game to speak of. Defensive liability. No growth. I'm genuinely unconvinced that he's more competent and effective than Helm or Abby.

He's not even a Helm 2.0. Sad.

[krsmith17 7,191]

1 hour ago, Dabura said:

I just feel like keeping them on the fourth line is kind of throwing the towel in on getting the most out of them, whether we're talking about getting our money's worth out of their contracts or maximizing their trade value.

And, to be fair to them, they're both perfectly capable top-nine complementary wingers. Like, Athanasiou-Larkin-Mantha looks super-sexy on paper and they had that fantastic game against Arizona -- but if we're placing any value at all on underlying numbers, we have to acknowledge that that line spent the vast majority of its time together getting caved in. AA was the weak link there; Helm and Abby made for a more dependable, capable line.

Granted, I'm really down on AA after the season he just had. Decent production, but he's playing like a 16-year-old. No possession game to speak of. Defensive liability. No growth. I'm genuinely unconvinced that he's more competent and effective than Helm or Abby.

I've always been a big Helm supporter. I think he's a very good bottom 6 player. Abdelkader and Glendening are meh. In saying that, I'd much rather "throw the towel in on them", than potentially stunt the growth of a talented young kid by playing them 10 minutes a night with Glendening. If it's not Abdelkader and Helm on the 4th line with Glendening, who will it be? Svechnikov and Rasmussen? I think that's what we will end up seeing. But it's definitely not what I'd like to see...

Realistically what more could we expect to get in a trade for one of them by playing them for a year on the 3rd line with Nielsen, rather than the 4th line with Glendening? A 3rd round pick instead of a 4th? A 4th instead of a 5th? I don't think it's going to make a whole lot of a difference in their overall trade value. 

How would you structure the lines?

1 hour ago, Neomaxizoomdweebie said:

Any team looking for a player with the speed of a scoring F and the hands of a defenseman, or a top 6 paid 3rd liner who blocks fists with his face would be interested for sure.

Pretty sad when Glendening is probably the most tradeable of those 3. That said, that would be one very expensive 4th line, although a very good one.

He's not even a Helm 2.0. Sad.

Yeah, it would be a very good 4th line. To be honest, I don't care too much about individual player cap hits when it comes to making up lines though. As long as the team is under the cap, that's all that should matter to a coach. That's what young players on ELC's are for. The coach shouldn't care if his 3rd line produces twice as much, making half as much money as his 4th line. That's on the GM.

[krsmith17 7,191]

 

[LeftWinger 5,153]

This is good news!

[Neomaxizoomdweebie 3,083]

2 hours ago, krsmith17 said:

 

Will he be lined up with this guy?

Edited May 6, 2018 by Neomaxizoomdweebie

[robb himself 143]

I used to watch Pope play here in West Kelowna when he was in the BCHL.  He was leagues ahead of all other players on the ice.  He then left for the college route and looks like he has continued to impress.  

 

He is certainly worth keeping an eye on.  He could really surprise a lot of people.