Is Jordan Staal Passing Malkin?

[frozenntimesports]

Don't worry Bammer, you're still my homey.

[BAMBAM]

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Don't worry Bammer, you're still my homey.

Thanks Big Daddy

[mcq91]

yikes, what happened to this thread? I'm away for a day and it's 3 pages of garbage! thank you KD, sorry KMD now, for trying to maintain some order here. I too hope Radulov is the real deal and can keep the preds competitive after their devastating off-season. other folks must be thinking the same thing given what his cup redemptions are going for on the bay. still concur that Malkin will continue to improve as he adjusts to "NHL" hockey. don't forget about Kopitar out west either! and the avs look like contenders again with Sakic, Smyth, Wolski, Stastny...

[allhockey]

Originally Posted by mcq91

yikes, what happened to this thread? I'm away for a day and it's 3 pages of garbage! thank you KD, sorry KMD now, for trying to maintain some order here. I too hope Radulov is the real deal and can keep the preds competitive after their devastating off-season. other folks must be thinking the same thing given what his cup redemptions are going for on the bay. still concur that Malkin will continue to improve as he adjusts to "NHL" hockey. don't forget about Kopitar out west either! and the avs look like contenders again with Sakic, Smyth, Wolski, Stastny...

ditto here- thought this was an excellent topic and the tread started out ok, but........guess this just demostrates the pure passion and dedication of the average hockey fan, even in August- just guess we need some games......

[frozenntimesports]

Originally Posted by mcq91

yikes, what happened to this thread? I'm away for a day and it's 3 pages of garbage! thank you KD, sorry KMD now, for trying to maintain some order here. I too hope Radulov is the real deal and can keep the preds competitive after their devastating off-season. other folks must be thinking the same thing given what his cup redemptions are going for on the bay. still concur that Malkin will continue to improve as he adjusts to "NHL" hockey. don't forget about Kopitar out west either! and the avs look like contenders again with Sakic, Smyth, Wolski, Stastny...

Hard to remember Kopitar when he doesn't start until 10:35 EST. I catch a 5 AM bus, hard to justify staying up past 10 for anything not called "The Bronx is Burning"

[Rabbit]

Originally Posted by mcq91

yikes, what happened to this thread? I'm away for a day and it's 3 pages of garbage! thank you KD, sorry KMD now, for trying to maintain some order here. I too hope Radulov is the real deal and can keep the preds competitive after their devastating off-season. other folks must be thinking the same thing given what his cup redemptions are going for on the bay. still concur that Malkin will continue to improve as he adjusts to "NHL" hockey. don't forget about Kopitar out west either! and the avs look like contenders again with Sakic, Smyth, Wolski, Stastny...

The Preds aren't going to be the team they were last year, but given how pathetic their division is, and the relative depth they still have (everyone forgets that they still have Arnott, Legwand, Erat, Dumont, Sullivan and Radulov...that's a deeper forward corps than Detroit has), they should remain competitive. If a couple teams in the Pacific slack off, and the Northwest beats up on itself like it has the past couple years, the Preds might actually backdoor their way into the playoffs.

The Avs are looking plush. They had two needs in the offseason and addressed both about as well as they could have. They also signed Jaroslav Hlinka, and that signing has the potential to be huge. He was the leading scorer in the Czech league last year, was signed for ~$500k, and was signed as a favor to Milan Hejduk.

Man, I would LOVE to see the Preds win the Central. I would LOVE to see Wings fans cry about that.

[andrew13]

anyone see what that one guy did to the BJ's? that kind of stuff is why i don't like russian players. he was mad he got a 2 way deal, so he bolts after signing a contract to go back to the super league.

i like the preds a lot. i'd like to see them overtake the wings, but they got gutted and i don't see it happening.

[Rabbit]

Originally Posted by andrew13

anyone see what that one guy did to the BJ's? that kind of stuff is why i don't like russian players. he was mad he got a 2 way deal, so he bolts after signing a contract to go back to the super league.

i like the preds a lot. i'd like to see them overtake the wings, but they got gutted and i don't see it happening.

See, they got gutted, but they still have a quality team.

Erat-Legwand-Dumont
Sullivan-Arnott-Radulov
Gelinas-Bonk-Ortmeyer
Hordichuk-Nichol-Tootoo

Zidlicky-Hamhuis
Suter-deVries
Weber-Klein

Mason
Rinne/Ellis

That's not a bad team. Two good scoring lines, a really solid checking line, and an adequate 4th line. Defense is loaded with talent.

Compare that with:

Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Samuelsson
Holmstrom-Hudler-Cleary
Maltby-Draper-Drake
Ellis-Filppula-Grigorenko

Lidstrom-Rafalski
Ference-Kronwall
Lilja-Chelios

Hasek
Nogood

Yeah, Detroit's top two forwards are better than Nashville's top two (although Nashville has both Erat and Radulov, who have the talent and potential to make Datsuck and Iron Lung look like chopped liver). Yeah, Detroit's top two defensemen are better than Nashville's top two (though Zidlicky remains one of the most underrated defensemen in the NHL). And yeah, Detroit's starter is probably better than Nashville's.

But Nashville absolutely OBLITERATES Detroit as far as depth is concerned. That isn't even in question.

We'll see how things play out over the course of a season, but I wouldn't count Nashville out of the division title talks, as weird as that sounds.

[frozenntimesports]

Originally Posted by Rabbit

See, they got gutted, but they still have a quality team.

Erat-Legwand-Dumont
Injury, injury, and can you say injury
Sullivan-Arnott-Radulov
I love this line, not sure Arnott is the best center for those jackrabbits, I would swap Arnott down to line three and bring Bonk up to line 2.
Gelinas-Bonk-Ortmeyer
Nice grind line, Bonk is an underrated scorer. Its also cool to call a line the Bonk's adventure line.
Hordichuk-Nichol-Tootoo
More pi$$ and vinegar, but every team needs it.

Zidlicky-Hamhuis
Good unit, neither will be in the top pair at the end of the year
Suter-deVries
But Ryan Suter will, De Vries is a nice d-man too
Weber-Klein
Future Scott Stevens type in Weber, will pair nice with Suter in the #1 unit

Mason
Can he really be a number one?
Rinne/Ellis
Because I don't believe in either of these guys.

That's not a bad team. Two good scoring lines, a really solid checking line, and an adequate 4th line. Defense is loaded with talent.

While defense wins championship, you still need to score, and if that top line falters, I don't know if there is enough to carry the team without it.

Compare that with:

Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Samuelsson
Second best passer in Datsyuk with a cold blooded scorer in Zetterberg
Holmstrom-Hudler-Cleary
Holmstrom=Ryan Smyth, We have been waiting for Jiri Hudler to duplicate his European stats, this could be the year, and Dan Cleary was good enough to be a top ten draft pick and is still a developing power forward.
Maltby-Draper-Drake
Not much more than a grind line here, but Kris Draper can score
Ellis-Filppula-Grigorenko
Valterri Filpulla is an offensive machine in the making, but he doesn't have much help on his wings. Don't rule out a trade, I hear Zherdev can be had for Jimmy Howard.

Lidstrom-Rafalski
Best defenseman in the Western Conference, meet the best defenseman in the Eastern Conference
Ference-Kronwall
Its unfair for a team to have a second pair this good. A guy they talked about as the next Scott Stevens in Ference (unlikely at this point) paired with the next Lidstrom (also not likely, but pretty close)
Lilja-Chelios
Chelios is 146 years old or something, but he can still play, I don't know much about Lilja, and since I follow the Euro-leagues, that should tell you what you need to know. In all fairness, I didn't think much of Henrik Lundqvist either, so I've been wrong.

Hasek
One of the best when healthy.
Nogood
This proves to me that you are still a novice when it comes to hockey analysis. Chris Osgood was goaltender on two Stanley Cup winners and was the only thing that kept the Islanders from losing 60 games a season in the days of Mad Mike. Maybe he isn't the next Patrick Roy, but step off my boy!

Yeah, Detroit's top two forwards are better than Nashville's top two (although Nashville has both Erat and Radulov, who have the talent and potential to make Datsuck and Iron Lung look like chopped liver).
Someone ate their Wheaties this morning. Pavel Datsyuk is a #1 centerman in the NHL who can score goals or pass, making him much more dangerous than Peter Forsberg, who preferrs to pass. Henrik Zetterberg is entering his prime and is one of the most cold-blooded snipers out there.

Yeah, Detroit's top two defensemen are better than Nashville's top two (though Zidlicky remains one of the most underrated defensemen in the NHL).

Detroit's top two are better than any tandem in the NHL, but if they are smart they will split Lidstrom and Rafalski up because Ference and Kronwall are both first pairing quality defenders.

And yeah, Detroit's starter is probably better than Nashville's.
... and Detroit's backup is definitely better than Nashville's starter.


But Nashville absolutely OBLITERATES Detroit as far as depth is concerned. That isn't even in question.

We'll see how things play out over the course of a season, but I wouldn't count Nashville out of the division title talks, as weird as that sounds.

They can win the division but they won't do anything in the playoffs, not this year, not without Kariya.

[mcq91]

the signing of Ference sure went under the radar. I didn't even realize until you mentioned it KD. yeah, the guy has kinda been a disappointment, but if he can be reborn it's in Detroit and they can sure use his toughness and big hits!! now if they can just sign Forsberg to play on the 2nd line with Filppula and whoever, they'll be right back in the Conf finals!!

[Rabbit]

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

They can win the division but they won't do anything in the playoffs, not this year, not without Kariya.

It would have been nice if you had formatted your response properly so that I didn't have to go back and cut and paste to respond to you. Oh well.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Erat-Legwand-Dumont

Injury, injury, and can you say injury

Copout, copout, copout. Players get injured. BFD.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Sullivan-Arnott-Radulov
I love this line, not sure Arnott is the best center for those jackrabbits, I would swap Arnott down to line three and bring Bonk up to line 2.
Gelinas-Bonk-Ortmeyer
Nice grind line, Bonk is an underrated scorer. Its also cool to call a line the Bonk's adventure line.
Hordichuk-Nichol-Tootoo
More pi$$ and vinegar, but every team needs it.

Zidlicky-Hamhuis
Good unit, neither will be in the top pair at the end of the year

Zidlicky clearly will.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Suter-deVries
But Ryan Suter will, De Vries is a nice d-man too

Suter could very well develop into a 1st pairing guy this year. He's not going to unseat Zidlicky just yet though.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Weber-Klein
Future Scott Stevens type in Weber, will pair nice with Suter in the #1 unit

Mason
Can he really be a number one?

I think he already showed that he can.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Rinne/Ellis
Because I don't believe in either of these guys.

Rinne's young, loaded with talent, and has done well in his transition to the NA game. Ellis is a more than capable backup.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

While defense wins championship, you still need to score, and if that top line falters, I don't know if there is enough to carry the team without it.

Heh, the same can be said of the Red Wings, but in the Preds' case, there actually are 2nd line forwards who score.

Basically, your argument just doesn't fit this situation under the circumstances.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Compare that with:

Zetterberg-Datsyuk-Samuelsson
Second best passer in Datsyuk with a cold blooded scorer in Zetterberg

Yep. And the only two legitimate scoring-line forwards on the entire team are paired up on one line with a loser. Or, you can split them up and have them play with two losers each. Your choice.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Holmstrom-Hudler-Cleary
Holmstrom=Ryan Smyth,

Wow. You couldn't possibly be any more wrong. Holmstrom is not physical. Holmstrom cannot skate. Holmstrom does not play defense.

Holmstrom is a guy the Wings prop up in front of the net on the PP because he scores garbage goals (and garbage goals count the same as pretty ones, so nobody's taking anything away from him for that). That's **ALL** he's good for. Go to any Wings forum where there are actual Wings fans who know hockey, and you will hear nothing but complaints about this guy whenever he plays a shift at ES.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

We have been waiting for Jiri Hudler to duplicate his European stats, this could be the year,

...which is what Wings fans have been saying for years...

Do you want to rest your Stanley Cup hopes on a "could be"?

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

and Dan Cleary was good enough to be a top ten draft pick

So was Pavel Brendl. You want him on the 2nd line of your contending team?

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

and is still a developing power forward.

He's 30 years old. He's not developing. He is what he is. He had a career year last year, and he will not replicate it.

He's Boyd Devereaux 2.0

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Maltby-Draper-Drake
Not much more than a grind line here, but Kris Draper can score

No he can't. He had a 40pt career year two years ago, and has dropped off since. The entire line is in a steep decline, and last year Maltby's game fell off as badly as anyone's in the NHL. He's completely useless.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Ellis-Filppula-Grigorenko
Valterri Filpulla is an offensive machine in the making,

No he isn't. He was drafted to be a 3rd liner, and that's what he is. He's never scored more than 20g at any level, and he's not capable of anything more than that.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

but he doesn't have much help on his wings.

Grigorenko is a better player than Filppula is.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Don't rule out a trade, I hear Zherdev can be had for Jimmy Howard.

I doubt that.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Lidstrom-Rafalski
Best defenseman in the Western Conference, meet the best defenseman in the Eastern Conference

Rafalski? Best defenseman in the Eastern Conference?

Defensively, he was average at best. Offensively, he was in the top 10 in defenseman scoring in the East. He's a good defenseman, but not even the blindest Wings homer has called him the best defenseman in the East.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Ference-Kronwall
Its unfair for a team to have a second pair this good. A guy they talked about as the next Scott Stevens in Ference (unlikely at this point) paired with the next Lidstrom (also not likely, but pretty close)

Ference is nothing special. And Kronwall has been just awful. For you to compare him to Lidstrom...is this Andrew13 I am talking to?

They don't even play the same style. It's like saying that Robyn Regehr is the next Paul Coffey.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Lilja-Chelios
Chelios is 146 years old or something, but he can still play, I don't know much about Lilja, and since I follow the Euro-leagues, that should tell you what you need to know. In all fairness, I didn't think much of Henrik Lundqvist either, so I've been wrong.

Lilja has been better than Kronwall so far. He's been in the NHL for six years now. He played for Florida before he came to Detroit, if that helps. Stay-at-home defenseman who plays without any physicality whatsoever.

Chelios is a solid #6 at this point in his career (and my current favorite NHLer). I hope he plays another 10 years.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Hasek
One of the best when healthy.
Nogood
This proves to me that you are still a novice when it comes to hockey analysis.

Wow.

I spent three years scouting the OHL, then a year in the Wings organization before working as a scout for a major scouting publication (watch the Draft sometime...the publication I scouted/wrote for is constantly cited). After that, I left for college, where I received funding to conduct a statistical analysis of the NHL Draft, the likes of which had never been done before or since.

But yeah, I don't know anything about hockey analysis.

*rolls eyes*

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Chris Osgood was goaltender on two Stanley Cup winners

He was the starter on one Stanley Cup winner, and that was the only playoff season in which the team was able to overcome his constant errors and his tendency to lose focus late in games.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Someone ate their Wheaties this morning. Pavel Datsyuk is a #1 centerman in the NHL who can score goals or pass, making him much more dangerous than Peter Forsberg, who preferrs to pass.

Peter Forsberg is the best two-way player of his generation. Datsyuk is a one-dimensional #1 center whose career high in goals is equal to that of Forsberg's career high. Basically, he's no more of a goal scorer than Peter Forsberg was, except Forsberg was a much better passer, was more physical (which isn't saying much...Crysby is more physical than Datsyuk), and ACTUALLY SHOWED UP IN THE PLAYOFFS.

Datsyuk is a good player in the regular season. When things matter, Datsyuk folds like a wet napkin. He had a decent playoff year last year, but prior to that, he had scored a total of 15 playoff points over the course of four playoff years.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Henrik Zetterberg is entering his prime and is one of the most cold-blooded snipers out there.

Zetterberg isn't a sniper. He's a finesse player.

Jason Freaking Pominville scored more goals than Zetterberg did last year.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Detroit's top two are better than any tandem in the NHL,

You mean other than Pronger and Neidermayer, Phaneuf and Regehr, Gonchar and Whitney.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

but if they are smart they will split Lidstrom and Rafalski up because Ference and Kronwall are both first pairing quality defenders.

Dude, seriously, either you are smoking crack, or you have Brad Ference confused with Andrew Ference.

Brad Ference has played FIVE NHL GAMES since 03-04. During the lockout, he wasn't able to catch on with a team in the better Euro leagues like the SEL, FNL or RHL. He wasn't even able to catch on with the second-tier leagues in Slovakia, Switzerland and the Czech Republic, or even the third-tier league in Germany. No, he played in France.

If he's a 1st pairing defenseman in the NHL, then I am a lock hall of famer.

And Kronwall is in no way 1st pairing-caliber. You've clearly based your opinion on the hype you read or some Beckett article and not on actually seeing him play. I had a buddy who was the absolute biggest Kronwall slapdick in the world, talked about him as being a "solid NHL defenseman" during his rookie year, despite that clearly not being the case. Even he has backed off of the predictions of greatness, because Kronwall has just been plain disappointing.

His offense isn't there yet, his defense is horrible, and he's too afraid to get injured to play with the physicality that got him drafted in the first place.

[Rabbit]

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

... and Detroit's backup is definitely better than Nashville's starter.

That's not even remotely true. Not even close.

Methinks you don't have much of an idea who Chris Mason is and what he did last year.

Here's a hint - the Preds didn't let Vokoun go because of money. Look at his numbers. He put up better numbers than Miika Freaking Kiprusoff last year.

I was impressed when you identified Eric Fehr as a guy with good investment potential. I even told my wife that here was a guy who gets it. But after this, I am starting to think that you just looked at where he was drafted and the hype that surrounded him, and not anything based on his actual game itself.

[frozenntimesports]

Originally Posted by Rabbit

Brad Ference has played FIVE NHL GAMES since 03-04. During the lockout, he wasn't able to catch on with a team in the better Euro leagues like the SEL, FNL or RHL. He wasn't even able to catch on with the second-tier leagues in Slovakia, Switzerland and the Czech Republic, or even the third-tier league in Germany. No, he played in France.

If he's a 1st pairing defenseman in the NHL, then I am a lock hall of famer.

And Kronwall is in no way 1st pairing-caliber. You've clearly based your opinion on the hype you read or some Beckett article and not on actually seeing him play. I had a buddy who was the absolute biggest Kronwall slapdick in the world, talked about him as being a "solid NHL defenseman" during his rookie year, despite that clearly not being the case. Even he has backed off of the predictions of greatness, because Kronwall has just been plain disappointing.

OK, you caught me, I screwed up and was discussing the wrong Ference. My bad.

I don't really put much stock in the Beckett articles, I know of Kronwall from the Euro-leagues.

I was actually a player back in the 90s, not much of one, and when I saw Kronwall play in the Euro leagues (on TV) I was impressed.

The reason Fipulla never scored a lot in the Euro-leagues is because the league is much more defensive. There is a lot more low class stuff that goes on because the players are discouraged from policing themselves. Did you see Ovechkin or Kovalchuk the first season they were here, it looked like they had gotten out of prison.

I'm not questioning your credentials... well not much, I was prodding you a bit with the Wheaties comment and it clearly worked .

... and you went after my boy Osgood, who was one of the most popular Islanders in his tragically brief tenure (thanks Mad Mike).

... as for Eric Fehr, you can see the natural ability is there, as are the tools, I just wonder how long it will take him to develop. Power forwards take time, sometimes a lot of time like Cleary did.

Dan Cleary, 35 goals this year. Write it down.

... and since you are such a hockey wiz, why don't you join our fantasy league, you should be able to crush us mortals... but I doubt it.

Cheers!!!

[frozenntimesports]

I could be too biased toward Euros too. But I'm willing to recognize that.

[mcq91]

KD,
where did you hear the zherdev for howard rumor? with macdonald shipped off to Boston, I thought that cleared the way for howard once hasek finally retires. would they sell off their future in net for a guy like zherdev? or is there someone else in the ranks? certainly not Liv??

[Rabbit]

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

OK, you caught me, I screwed up and was discussing the wrong Ference. My bad.

Wow, someone screws up and has the maturity to admit they were wrong? I am shocked. I know of a certain someone here who could learn a lesson from that. Kudos to you.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

I don't really put much stock in the Beckett articles,

Heh, well, good. I read their review of the 06-07 rookie class. Just awful. IIRC, it wasn't signed. The pathetic attempts at humor seemed like Al, but the analysis was bad, even for him.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

I know of Kronwall from the Euro-leagues.

I was actually a player back in the 90s, not much of one, and when I saw Kronwall play in the Euro leagues (on TV) I was impressed.

He was impressive in the Euro leagues. Which is why he was hyped, and that in turn caused the Wings slapdicks to verbally fellate him non-stop. But he hasn't been good in the NHL. He hasn't made that transition at all.

Don't get me wrong, I know full well that it can take defensemen longer to make the leap, but the things he screws up are not rookie mistakes. He's just not an NHL-caliber player, not a star anyway. He'd be a star back in Sweden, but he just doesn't have the game to do it in the NHL.

We've seen it before from guys like Pavel Rosa and Jiri Dopita. They (and Kronwall) can play in the NHL, but they aren't of the same stature that they were/are over across the pond.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

The reason Fipulla never scored a lot in the Euro-leagues is because the league is much more defensive. There is a lot more low class stuff that goes on because the players are discouraged from policing themselves. Did you see Ovechkin or Kovalchuk the first season they were here, it looked like they had gotten out of prison.

See, when I said the Wings drafted Filppula to be a 3rd liner, I didn't mean that the book on him was that he was 3rd line-caliber. I meant exactly what I said. They drafted him with the intention of developing him into a 3rd liner. That's the role he's suited for. He's not offensively gifted. He doesn't have the hands to do the things with the puck that he'd have to do to be a legitimate scoring line player. He's an interesting player, and as he develops and grows into his role in the NHL, he should become more and more useful. But he's not ever going to be a star or a big time scorer. He's a 3rd liner, and that's okay.

The player he reminds me of, honestly, is Steve Konowalchuk. Not quite as good defensively (yet, anyway), but similar in ability and similar role.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

I'm not questioning your credentials... well not much, I was prodding you a bit with the Wheaties comment and it clearly worked .

I'm used to it.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

... and you went after my boy Osgood, who was one of the most popular Islanders in his tragically brief tenure (thanks Mad Mike).

We're probably talking about two different Osgoods. His weakness has always been between the ears, and he just doesn't have the mental toughness it takes to be a starter in Detroit. I saw him cry (literally) too many times over what the media and fans said about him, and saw him blow playoff games too many times because he just couldn't maintain his focus to ever have any use for him as a player. Then when he faked that knee injury to avoid playing the Avs in 1999...I lost any respect I might have had for him. You just don't do that.

Unless you're Dominik Hasek. And then you still don't do it.

But then, when he was in St Louis and NYI, he wasn't under that same microscope and he didn't suck quite as hard or as often.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

... as for Eric Fehr, you can see the natural ability is there, as are the tools, I just wonder how long it will take him to develop. Power forwards take time, sometimes a lot of time like Cleary did.

Dan Cleary, 35 goals this year. Write it down.

Dan Cleary, 13 goals this year. Then playing for Phoenix in 08-09.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

... and since you are such a hockey wiz, why don't you join our fantasy league, you should be able to crush us mortals... but I doubt it.

I was in a keeper league once. Won it all the first two years, then left for lack of challenge. They split my team into two for year 3. Those two teams were the champion and runner up in year 3. League folded.

If it's a keeper league, I am in. If not, I wouldn't be able to stay interested.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Cheers!!!

Fun battle, for sure.

And see, everyone? I am not a complete bastard. Pompous, sure. But KD and I showed each other some respect and got it in return.

[Rabbit]

Originally Posted by mcq91

KD,
where did you hear the zherdev for howard rumor? with macdonald shipped off to Boston, I thought that cleared the way for howard once hasek finally retires. would they sell off their future in net for a guy like zherdev? or is there someone else in the ranks? certainly not Liv??

Jim Howard took a huge step back in 06-07. After what he did at Maine and the near-dominant year he had in the AHL in 05-06, the Wings expected big things from him in 06-07. He choked. Mediocre year, but he didn't play like the guy who was making the Wings question whether they would re-sign Hasek after 06-07. His play in 06-07 left the Wings with huge questions in net.

Liv's now 27 and just signed in Sweden, IIRC. There was a time when he was the heir apparent in Detroit. That ship has sailed.

There is nothing between the pipes in the Wings' system, and Holland has made it obvious that he's going to buy his goalies rather than develop them (and with good reason - other than Datsyuk and Zetterberg, he hasn't produced any other quality NHLers through the Draft since taking the reigns in 1998 - Fischer was on his way, but his career was cut short)

[frozenntimesports]

21-21-3, .911 SV, 2.70 GAA with three shutouts doesn't seem that bad to me. I heard the Howard rumor from a friend who works at TSN. I won't name drop because it would cut me off when I need a scoop for an article here and there. I'm going to be freelancing a bit again as a sports columnist in the area and might pick up a column in Beckett, I'm crossing my fingers on for that one, it would be a big break.

Detroit could deal Howard and possibly pick up Marc Denis who seems to have worn out his welcome in Tampa. They could go with Hasek again and deal for Theodore or Raycroft or any number of 1A goaltenders that are out there... except I think Theodore has another Hart and Vezina in him, but I'm biased.

[Rabbit]

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

21-21-3, .911 SV, 2.70 GAA with three shutouts doesn't seem that bad to me.

It's mediocre, and it's especially disappointing when his line the year before was 27-6-2, .910, 2.58

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

I heard the Howard rumor from a friend who works at TSN. I won't name drop because it would cut me off when I need a scoop for an article here and there.

Heh, I broke the Bourque-to-Colorado trade on Rivals.com back in the day. My editor and I had a source high within the Avs' organization. Didn't bother him then, but apparently he got into some hot water when my editor ran with the Blake-to-Colorado talks two days before the deal got done. Lacroix HATED loose lips.

Stick to your guns. If someone asks for your source and says they won't believe you if you don't name your source, screw them. Let them not believe you. Having a good source is worth a lot more than...well, you have a source and you already know this.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

I'm going to be freelancing a bit again as a sports columnist in the area and might pick up a column in Beckett, I'm crossing my fingers on for that one, it would be a big break.

I look forward to reading your stuff, and Beckett would be lucky to have you.

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

Detroit could deal Howard and possibly pick up Marc Denis who seems to have worn out his welcome in Tampa.

Denis would be absolutely incredible in Detroit. He'd finally live up to those lofty expectations coming out of junior (though, I have to say, for a year or two there back in CBus, he was a top ten-ish goalie if you judged him based purely on ability and performance rather than numbers).

Originally Posted by KaraandMelliesDaddy

They could go with Hasek again and deal for Theodore or Raycroft or any number of 1A goaltenders that are out there... except I think Theodore has another Hart and Vezina in him, but I'm biased.

The Avs aren't trading JoeTed, and there would really be no reason for them to do it. Wall is garbage, Weiman is an AHL backup, and JoeTed is a positive in the locker room and still has the potential to snap out of his funk and be the dominant goalie he was a couple years back. The cap hit really isn't an issue for the Avs, and thankfully management realizes that.