Zetts

People here trash Franzen, then suggest Alexander freaking Semin?  Really?  Semin is softer, has fewer points, and makes way more money.  I'll pass.  

Suter would be great.  As would Parise.  It should be easy to make one work, but would be hard to make both work.  However, as has been mentioned, there's a fair amount of uncertainty with regards to the CBA, so who knows.

Are we even sure that Crosby can stay healthy for more than 10 games?  How do we know that he'll hold up to the physical grind of the playoffs?  

I'm sceptical.

We'll almost certainly end up either 5 or 6.  I'm actually rooting for 6th though...we'd have an easier opponent (Dallas).  We're on a horendous streak, but there's no reason to be too negative.  We all know that the Wings can play better, and often do for the playoffs.  If we play Dallas I'm pretty confident that we'll at least win that round.

Perhaps that's blind optimism, but you've got to find some hope somewhere here...

On the flip side, Jagr is making the transition look pretty easy, especially for a 40 year old.

The level of play in the KHL isn't as high as in the NHL, but I'm guessing the bigger factor is how hard you train/practice/play over there. It's probably easier to take nights off and remain in the lineup.  Something tells me Hudler wasn't hitting the gym in his KHL days as much as he does now.

While I have no idea how it is now, Radulov had reported work ethic issues around the time he was drafted, and for a couple of years thereafter.  But even ignoring that, I'd suggest Radulov is a lot more comparable to Hudler, than an elite talent like Jagr.

same coach, same system, and a lot of the same players.

how long would it take, really?

Ask Hudler.

I agree with the OP that the negativity around here is frequently overboard...

However, when you're going to start saying that a group of people know nothing and that they're ignorant about a certain player, it would behoove you to actually spell the player's name correctly.  

At least it was good for a laugh though.

F*** you fans.  If the fans gave up on the team already, what do you expect the team to do?

Earn their multi-million dollar paycheques?

And nobody has given up on anything.  Or at least, I haven't.  I'm still pissed though.

What's your point?  Everyone knew he was having a bad start statistically, that's not really in question.  You could also project Phil Kessel to an 82 goal season right now.  

His numbers will improve. I'm not sure if we'll ever see the 90+ point Zetterberg again, but he'll still return to looking like an elite player.

don't care about the weight, he doesn't use his size and weight to his advantage.

I do know for a fact he was a -3 last night

The whole team got lit up last night.  Let's not use that as an excuse to single out a third pairing defenseman who has been otherwise fine this year.  

He's also been more physical this year, although I do agree that he could use his size much more effectively.

Edit: He's definitely not worth the contract right now either, but we're 6 games into it.  I'll hold off on judgment for a while.

I'm glad that the Wings are trying new things - that was the whole point of the new, young assistant coaches.  Likely it was one of their ideas, and no, it's not really working.  But I like that the Wings are trying to be innovative.

It might not work now, but we're still winning games, so I'm fine with them experimenting.  Some different looks may serve us well in the playoffs, especially if we find some new things during the year that really click for the players.

Yeah...no.  

Not going to happen.

If they over-achieve they'll squeak into eighth.  I don't see them winning a round though.  No high-end goal scoring, extremely mediocre defense and questionable goaltending.  They just spent money (in arbitrary ways IMO) to get up to the cap floor.

There's no reason to think that the roster will click what-so-ever.  Could it?  I guess, but I wouldn't bet on it.

So are you suggesting he deserves this big payday, more than the 7.4 million cap hit contract that has be reported as turned down by him?

Because I don't.

I think that we have to keep in mind that this is a different market from when players such as Datsyuk or Zetterberg signed their contracts.  7.4 isn't that much for a player of his caliber anymore, although obviously Stevie would like him to take less.  I'd certainly be concerned about his poor showing in the playoffs, but based on the market, he's definitely worth at least 7.4.

Having said that, I wouldn't blame Stevie for dealing him either, particularly due to Lecavalier's contract.  Just because values above 7.4 are fair doesn't mean that it's what's right for the team.

Not to be rude, but would giving you my friend's source really matter in this topic, when I am just asking a simple question out of curiosity?

I think that it's reasonable for me to ask.  I understand that you're asking others' opinions, but if you start out by asserting that this is a perception of Babcock by some, obviously people are going to ask questions.

In answer to your question, yes, I have heard that Babcock is disliked.  My sources are entirely hearsay / online posts similar to yours though.  Thus my personal curiosity.  

If someone doesn't give further elaboration, I just assume that he's disliked by his players like many other coaches in the league and leave it at that.

My first question would be what your friend's source is.