Frozen-Man

I keep thinking of reasons the Hawks will eat the Wings alive, and then I realize the same things were said of Anaheim.  Speed, firepower, goaltending.  

I know the Hawks are better but I can't help but feel like the series will be more run and gun.  As long as we can score more than 2 goals a game we will be fine.

GM: Shero

D-man: Letang

MVP: Crosby

Best team evah: Pens

 

Wait, sorry, the NHL has me conditioned to automatically respond this way..................

 

I have always been a supporter of Johnny...even when he struggled to find his game I always thought he could elevate. I thought last night that the Big E had the VERY best game of his career. I think it was overlooked by Pashas unbelievable shot and Bruns OT winner, but he has really impressed me in the playoffs and especially last night. He used his size to punish the quacks over and again. He has been a difference maker on the PK. He also made some really good decisions with the puck. Like a few guys on this team, he stepped up.
After being the goat on this roster, I wanted to give props where they are due. We are watching Ericsson turn into a legit shut down Dman and it's very cool to watch!

Would you feel better if we lost last night 1-0 instead of 4-0? The fact that we scored ONE GOAL in our two losses combined doesn't strike you as a problem? It's howard's fault? Like I said, NO. And I think the voting results are starting to balance out how absurd of a thread this is.

As soon as my editor posts my new blog entry, you should check it out.  It is a pretty heated slamming of Ken Holland for going against his word and stringing Nill along.  This is the WORST THING TO HAPPEN TO DETROIT in the past 20 years.  The only thing that would be worse is losing Hakin. Holland is spent and he said he was going to retire post Lidstrom.  Now he can't because the guy who deserved the job a year ago is leaving to Dallas and I am angry and embarrassed.  I have no faith in this organization if they string along Jim and then lose him in favor of Holland who seems too timid and tired.  I really hope this is wrong, and if it is right I hope Holland gets fired before Nill signs in Dallas.  I felt secured in the future of the team until tonight. 

If anyone took what Ken Holland said seriously about retiring when Lidstrom did, you have some serious issues.  Best of luck to Jim Nill. 

Jimmy's a decent goalie.  He doesn't win you games

 

 

You lost me right there.

What team is going to give up a draft pick/player for White?! He's a UFA at the end of this season, in and out of the lineup, and has already been on 5 teams.

 

A trade is a two-way street folks, and you need a team on the other side that actually needs/wants him. White ain't exactly jumping off paper as a vital acquisition and my guess is that he walks in the summer and a team signs him for next to league minimum.

 

He's one of the reasons why Wings PP doesn't work and he's one of the reasons why Wings don't score.

 

Are you watching the games? He's sixth on the PP depth chart, behind Smith, Kindl, Kronwall, White, and Brunner. He barely plays there anymore.

I wonder how many of the people whining about him here were among those who castigated Holland for giving him up in the first place.

 

Probably quite a few.

Very difficult to look at that in isolation and consider there to be some sort of depth problem.  Think about it this way: Datsyuk is on the 1st line, Zetterberg is on the second line....so, the 1st and 2nd line are combining for 57% of the scoring....so 43% for the 3rd and 4th lines.   Looking at it that way makes the percentage look really good from a depth perspective.

 

I know you can't look at like that, just pointing out that it is not that simple just to look at the stat the way it has been done in this thread either.

I thought this thread was about our chances of making the playoffs.  

It will be exciting!  We get to see how our young guys and new leadership respond to this type of adversity.

Why do so many of you want Holland to horde prospects?   After years of letting our prospects over-ripen in Grad Rapids, we literally have a glut of prospects.   Where are any of these guys supposed to play?  We could deal 5 of our prospects and never miss them.  They barely have room to fit in Tatar and Nyquist - where are they going to put the other 10 guys that are in waiting?  Make a mega-deal for Vanek/Stafford/Pominville.   Give them are first two picks and 5 prospects.  I don't care who ... Jurco, Jarnkrok, Sproul, Mursak, Tatar, Nyqvist, Sheehan, Oullet, the list goes on and on.  They're not accomplishing anything if they're gonna be stuck in GR for the next 3 years.  

 

and there goes the future of our team, thank you alienanxiety, or should I call you brian burke??

Fatigue isn't the only issue here.

 

He was an unknown commodity with no NHL experience when the season began.  He scored a few goals early off, had a highlight reel shootout experience, and a few weeks later he's among the lead leaders in goals.  Suddenly, teams stopped treating him like a soft Euro and started taking away his time and space.  He's more tightly covered whilst sneaking into the slot from the soft-side.  Defense are on him much quicker and harder in the corners, and while Brunner can mentally adjust to North American hockey, it will be a slower process to build up the physical strength to be able to fight through the coverage that he is now experiencing.

Secondly, Brunner has really focused hard on playing a more defensively sound game.  He is back-checking much more effectively than when the season began, and he's playing much deeper in our own zone instead of floating at the blueline waiting for a breakout.  He has also been more conscious of opponent's breakout potentials and is adjusting his game in the offensive zone to accommodate this.  His new-found defensive responsibilities are also going to lower his offensive output.

Combined with the brutal North American schedule and travel, its no surprise at all why Brunner has suddenly gone quiet.  He's with good role models though, and I suspect that he will be able to overcome the schedule and the added defensive attention he has over the next few years.  Given his commitment to learning the defensive side of the game, and how far he has come already, I'd say the guy is willing to do whatever it takes to be successful at this level.  Lets hope my assumption is correct.

I don't think it's unrealistic for him to step into the NHL and be an effective player.  The problem is, he's not a point producing defenseman so he's not going to show up on the score sheet much, which will draw the ire of some fans.  By all accounts he's a good physical shutdown guy, more of a Dan Girardi than a Justin Schultz.  So if people hold him to the wrong standard then they'll definitely be disappointed. 

 

Very, very big point here to be taken. Some may think he's going to be shiny and flashy, but that is not Danny DeKeyser. You don't hear much of his name because he doesn't make much mistakes. He plays a very basic game, but as a defensive defensemen, that's an outstanding quality. Of course you'll recognize when he makes a shut-down move, but many of the times, plays are forgotten on the defensive side of the game.

I don't think it's unrealistic for him to step into the NHL and be an effective player.  The problem is, he's not a point producing defenseman so he's not going to show up on the score sheet much, which will draw the ire of some fans.  By all accounts he's a good physical shutdown guy, more of a Dan Girardi than a Justin Schultz.  So if people hold him to the wrong standard then they'll definitely be disappointed.