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If (hopefully when) Jimmy Howard gets traded, the Red Wings are going to be abysmal. Jonathan Bernier is just a dumpster fire, and we have literally no one available in the system to even be a backup. Filip Larsson and Keith Petruzzelli are both in college.

Our defense isn't really even average but two "2nd" pairings of Kronwall with Green and DeKeyser with Hronek, with Ericsson/Daley and Jensen on 3rd, isn't the worst. The problem will be that without an elite goalie (and with pure trash) I can't see the team out-scoring ANYONE.

Our offense isn't good enough to make up for our below-average defense (this has been a problem all year even WITH an elite goalie). Out Top-6 is okay, with 2 elite forward (Larkin and Nyquist) and 4-5 other Top-6 guys (Athanasiou, Mantha, Nielsen, Vanek, and Bertuzzi) but our Bottom-6 is ALSO complete trash with the exceptions of Rasmussen and Glendening.

Compounding the issue is that I DO NOT want Jack Hughes. I want Kakko or Podkolzin.

If they trade Nyquist we may never see them score more than 1 goal per game (that Larkin generates). It's looking very bleak right now. I hope they bring Lindstrom over next year to start pushing youth on the back end. It's just a matter of patience on forwards/offense for all of the young prospects we have.

Holland fleeced WSH on that Jensen-Bowey trade. We upgraded defensemen, got younger, and upgraded draft picks.

Not a fan of the Nyquist trade, since he was my favorite player, but it looks like Zuccarello set the bar for the market of this player type. I hope SJ wins it all for him.

Looks like there was no market for Howard. That's fine, I guess.

TwoPiece wrote:Holland fleeced WSH on that Jensen-Bowey trade. We upgraded defensemen, got younger, and upgraded draft picks.

Not a fan of the Nyquist trade, since he was my favorite player, but it looks like Zuccarello set the bar for the market of this player type. I hope SJ wins it all for him.

Looks like there was no market for Howard. That's fine, I guess.

As bad as Hollands signings are, his trades are every single time on point. Tatar deal was a slam dunk. Mrazek deal was pretty good. Sheahan deal was a low key nice deal. Brendan Smith deal was a slam dunk. Jurco trade was great. Datsyuk trade was amazing. Getting anything from Jakub Kindle was an accomplishment. After that we go back to times were the trades were not so good... *cough* Legwand *cough* Erik Cole *cough*

Smart move would be to resign Howard to a 1 or 2 year deal if he wants to stay and see if he can be moved next season. If not, oh well, at least they have a sold goalie that makes sure the young players don't have to lose every single game, although playoffs aren't a reality yet.

Ottawa needs contracts to get to salary floor next season... I wonder if they could dump a guy like Helm to them, or maybe Abdelkader if the long term is no problem for them. Nielsen and Franzen are other potentials, Franzen will be off the books after next season and he won't take a roster spot from a young Sens player and Nielsen, while overpaid, is still a guy that belongs to the NHL and would make the Sens better.

I'm almost certain that Lucic and Callahan play for the Senators next season as well.

Räpylätassu wrote:As bad as Hollands signings are, his trades are every single time on point. Tatar deal was a slam dunk. Mrazek deal was pretty good. Sheahan deal was a low key nice deal. Brendan Smith deal was a slam dunk. Jurco trade was great. Datsyuk trade was amazing. Getting anything from Jakub Kindle was an accomplishment. After that we go back to times were the trades were not so good... *cough* Legwand *cough* Erik Cole *cough*

Smart move would be to resign Howard to a 1 or 2 year deal if he wants to stay and see if he can be moved next season. If not, oh well, at least they have a sold goalie that makes sure the young players don't have to lose every single game, although playoffs aren't a reality yet.

Ottawa needs contracts to get to salary floor next season... I wonder if they could dump a guy like Helm to them, or maybe Abdelkader if the long term is no problem for them. Nielsen and Franzen are other potentials, Franzen will be off the books after next season and he won't take a roster spot from a young Sens player and Nielsen, while overpaid, is still a guy that belongs to the NHL and would make the Sens better.

I'm almost certain that Lucic and Callahan play for the Senators next season as well.

The Legwand and Cole trades were actually good for us. They both helped push us into the playoffs in one of Pav and Z's final years. Jarnkrok and Janmark aren't anything special.

The Quincey trade is worth criticism.

I like Howard a lot. As you mention - without him - the kids are going to experience a LOT of losing. If we can move him for an asset, that would also be ideal. You're on-the-nose here.

Helm isn't having a great year, but he gives every shift and game his all. Abdelkader seems to suck, now, so I'd be all-for moving him. I doubt they have the balls to trade a Michigan man who's also an Alternate Captain. I would also be all-for moving Frans Nielsen.

This team needs to play like they did last night to get Blashill fired. They're talking about extending this moron? He's garbage and none of the players listen to him. It's so blatantly obvious. Get a coach that these kids can respect.

Järnkrok and Janmark aren't game changers but they are both still in the show! They are both 30 point guys with cheap contracts, you need to have good players in the bottom 6 that don't cost much so you can save as much money as you can to have it for the maxium ammount of game changing talent on the top players. As for Legwand and Cole, yeah they helped them to the playoffs for the sake of keeping the streak alive, not for the sake of winning anything.

It's hard to move players that are good sports but being too sentimental and giving every single good sport a ridicilous contract is what got them to the bottom of the standings in the first place. If they can move Abdelkader, they have to take it as who knows if they get another shot at it. He has been in rabid decline for a few years now, what happends if by next season he becomes as effective as Dan Clearly by the end of his career? Then they are stuck with that for several years, with no chance of moving him.

Nielsen, Helm, Abdelkader, DeKeyeser... You dump as many as you can. Give the prospects a shot, sign a few free agents (codename Duclair) to CHEAP contracts. See if you find anything worthwhile from Europe.

Räpylätassu wrote:Järnkrok and Janmark aren't game changers but they are both still in the show! They are both 30 point guys with cheap contracts, you need to have good players in the bottom 6 that don't cost much so you can save as much money as you can to have it for the maxium ammount of game changing talent on the top players. As for Legwand and Cole, yeah they helped them to the playoffs for the sake of keeping the streak alive, not for the sake of winning anything.

It's hard to move players that are good sports but being too sentimental and giving every single good sport a ridicilous contract is what got them to the bottom of the standings in the first place. If they can move Abdelkader, they have to take it as who knows if they get another shot at it. He has been in rabid decline for a few years now, what happends if by next season he becomes as effective as Dan Clearly by the end of his career? Then they are stuck with that for several years, with no chance of moving him.

Nielsen, Helm, Abdelkader, DeKeyeser... You dump as many as you can. Give the prospects a shot, sign a few free agents (codename Duclair) to CHEAP contracts. See if you find anything worthwhile from Europe.

If Cole didn't suffer a career-ending injury prior to the playoffs, who knows what would've happened?

The high-salary contracts that we have aren't preventing the Red Wings from being successful. They didn't stop us from signing Athanasiou, Mantha, or Larkin. Or Green. Or Nielsen. It's a false narrative that you're being mislead by, or have come to this incorrect conclusion by yourself.

Being in the playoffs for 10 straight years during the Salary Cap Era, trading assets to chase Cups (rightfully so), and drafting low have all resulted in the Wings' rebuild. It's not a salary problem - it's just the cost of success. There was no preventing this. We were going to hit this wall at some point once Lidstrom, Datsyuk, and Z all left/retired. High salaries is just an excuse - and a bad one. We had no problems keeping guys like Tatar and Nyquist, either. It's just historical fact that all dynasties must come to an end.

In a couple of years we may be one of the most talented teams in the league. AA, Mantha, Larkin, Svechnikov, Cholowski, Hronek, Larsson, Rasmussen, Lindstrom, Zadina, Veleno, Berggren, McIsaac, probably Kakko, three 2019 2nd Round Picks, etc. By that time all of these high-salary contracts will be gone and no problem. There wasn't a feasible way of preventing this rebuild. The future looks really bright.

Bruins - Leafs game 1.

Enter the Dragon Slaying

For the record, my predictions were:

Tampa Bay in 5.
The Capitals in 4.
Maple Leafs in 7.
The Penguins in 6.

The Avalanche in 7.
Golden Knights in 7.
The Jets in 6.
The Predators in 6.

Well, 2 of my predictions were completely wrong.

I really underrated the NY Islanders.

TwoPiece wrote:Well, 2 of my predictions were completely wrong.

I really underrated the NY Islanders.

These playoffs are not going how I thought they would at all!

Press conference @ 3:00 PM EDT to announce new General Manager Steve Yzerman. Ken Holland to remain Senior Vice President.

GO LEAFS GO!



Jay

Going to game 7.

I just don't see how Leafs would win that game... GOD DAMNIT!

Crying. Very winnable game, they fell asleep for a while. Game 7 with Boston once again. Leafs will win.

I did say Toronto in 7. Don't let me down...

Leafs locker room before game 7:

Matthews: The Bruins did everything they said they would do. They wiped out half of all the hockey fans from the last years playoffs.
Rielly: I keep telling everybody they should move on. Some do. But not us.
Andersen: Even if there is a small chance, we owe this. To everyone that is not in this room to try.
Rielly: We will. Whatever it takes.
Marner: Whatever it takes.
Matthews: Whatever it takes.
Andersen: Whatever it takes.
Hyman: Whatever it takes.
Kapanen: Whatever it takes
Gardiner: Whatever it takes.
Muzzin: Whatever it takes.
Tavares: Whatever it takes.

They didn't do whatever it takes.

Regardless of my 12.5% success rate for guessing the Round 1 winners...

My Round 2 Predictions:

- Blue Jackets over Bruins in 5.
- St. Louis over Dallas in 7.
- New York over Carolina in 5.
- Colorado over San Jose in 6.

At this point, I'm kinda thinking that the Avalanche might win the Stanley Cup.

Räpylätassu wrote:PLAY GLORIA

Oh yeah! One station here played it for 24hrs when the Blues won game 7. We are about to win again! Could this be the year?

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And we just played it again! Blues win! Going for the cup!

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STLBluesNut wrote:

Räpylätassu wrote:PLAY GLORIA

Oh yeah! One station here played it for 24hrs when the Blues won game 7. We are about to win again! Could this be the year?

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I hope so.

Hate David Perron, but I love Pietrangelo and Tarasenko.

KUN SUOMI PELAA LÄTKÄÄ,
SE ISKEE JOKA JÄTKÄÄ,
KALJAA KONEESEEN
JA UKKOMETSOON!

Finland 5, Sweden 4. The salary of William Nylander alone is most likely higher than the entire Finnish team.

I was getting pissed last night, because I swore the Finals began, and they were nowhere to be found on my TV guide.

Why the f&*k don't they start until Monday? Ugh.

I'm sure for scheduling they had to take into account a st Louis game 7 which would have been tonight and an extra day break.

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AAAAAAAAAAAAA PERKELE VENÄJÄ ON LYÖTY VENÄJÄ ON LYÖTY!!

MARKO ANTTILA MÄ RAKASTAN SUA!

FINLAND IS A HOCKEY SUPERPOWER!!!! AAAAAAA PERKELE!

Räpylätassu wrote:FINLAND IS A HOCKEY SUPERPOWER!!!! AAAAAAA PERKELE!

They have dominated international tournaments over the last decade or so.