Lidstrom made some interesting comments yesterday:
Lidstrom still played it very safe. He didn't call out any teammates or criticize the team sharply. He did, though, express serious concern. We'll see if that's enough. If the team continues to slide (1 win, 6 losses in the last 7 games), it'll be clear that Lidstrom either has zero pull or the team is simply not good enough. Either option is depressing.
Trader Ken
And just to continue my thoughts from yesterday... what should Holland do at the trade deadline? With so many players returning from injuries, my guess is that Holland will do nothing. He'll figure that the team will improve from within, and he may be right. Holmstrom and Franzen will certainly be big upgrades. I still believe, though, that Holland should put forth an offer or two.
Who on this roster is trade-able? I'd say everybody but Zetterberg and Lidstrom. Why Lidstrom? Loyalty, plain and simple. Unless Nick wanted a trade, he's earned the right to finish out his career in Detroit. No need to uproot his family. As for Zetterberg, I still contend he's a top player in the league and provides proof of that every Spring. The announcers always refer to him as "undersized" but I'd never have known that. He certainly doesn't play that way and rarely gets muscled off the puck. Z does everything necessary to win - the perfect leader and future captain.
Everybody else - including Pavel - should be available. It would pain me to see Pavel on another team, but he's a bit older than Z. He also is slightly less effective in the playoffs. Of course, the Wings nosedived when Pavel went down with injuries last year, but my guess is things would've been even worse had Zetterberg gone out. Just my thoughts. Hope they don't trade either, but, if Pavel and Ericsson bring in a Getzlaf, ya gotta pull the trigger. I've been pimping that trade for six months now and I'm sticking to it. It would help both teams. Getzlaf, with his two-way game, would be a perfect fit in Detroit's system. While Pavel would give the Ducks some star-power, and Ericsson could be the heir-apparent for Scott Niedermeyer.
Okay, I'll stop. Sports journalists always make fun of us fans for our outlandish trade proposals, and I can see why.
Things aren’t going to just take care of themselves when we get guys back. It doesn’t guarantee us winning any games. It starts in here with what we have.I bring this up in light of John's comments a few days ago. John's theory was that Lidstrom's leadership style does not have the same bite as Yzerman's or Shanny's. None of us are in the lockerroom, so we have no idea. Yet, the next few games will be a good test. How will the team respond?
Lidstrom still played it very safe. He didn't call out any teammates or criticize the team sharply. He did, though, express serious concern. We'll see if that's enough. If the team continues to slide (1 win, 6 losses in the last 7 games), it'll be clear that Lidstrom either has zero pull or the team is simply not good enough. Either option is depressing.
Trader Ken
And just to continue my thoughts from yesterday... what should Holland do at the trade deadline? With so many players returning from injuries, my guess is that Holland will do nothing. He'll figure that the team will improve from within, and he may be right. Holmstrom and Franzen will certainly be big upgrades. I still believe, though, that Holland should put forth an offer or two.
Who on this roster is trade-able? I'd say everybody but Zetterberg and Lidstrom. Why Lidstrom? Loyalty, plain and simple. Unless Nick wanted a trade, he's earned the right to finish out his career in Detroit. No need to uproot his family. As for Zetterberg, I still contend he's a top player in the league and provides proof of that every Spring. The announcers always refer to him as "undersized" but I'd never have known that. He certainly doesn't play that way and rarely gets muscled off the puck. Z does everything necessary to win - the perfect leader and future captain.
Everybody else - including Pavel - should be available. It would pain me to see Pavel on another team, but he's a bit older than Z. He also is slightly less effective in the playoffs. Of course, the Wings nosedived when Pavel went down with injuries last year, but my guess is things would've been even worse had Zetterberg gone out. Just my thoughts. Hope they don't trade either, but, if Pavel and Ericsson bring in a Getzlaf, ya gotta pull the trigger. I've been pimping that trade for six months now and I'm sticking to it. It would help both teams. Getzlaf, with his two-way game, would be a perfect fit in Detroit's system. While Pavel would give the Ducks some star-power, and Ericsson could be the heir-apparent for Scott Niedermeyer.
Okay, I'll stop. Sports journalists always make fun of us fans for our outlandish trade proposals, and I can see why.
Future Red Wing?
I think you also have to address the goalie situation. During the playoffs 2 years ago (when they won....sigh) Osgood was amazing. But having Hasek as the backup goalie was nothing to scoff at. I felt confident that if Osgood went down, Hasek would rise to the occasion, despite being rusty. Do I have that same confidence should something happen to Howard? No. I'd have more confidence in Conklin or Legacy at this moment. I've heard on the radio that Osgood has the numbers and stats to be a Hall of Famer...but does he really hold up to Patrick Roy or even non-HOFs Belfour or Hasek? Not to me.
ReplyDeleteHad Osgood won the Conn Smythe last season, he would have the credentials for the HOF. As it stands now, he likely won't make it.
ReplyDeleteThe Hall of Fame rewards players who were dominant during their tenure. Lidstrom, an obvious shoe-in, has six Norris trophies to his name. That's domination.
Last year, Hull, Robitaille, and Stevie Y got the invite. With 741 goals to his name, Hull was a no-brainer. Stevie Y (who I found out spells his name the correct way, "Stephen"), tallied 1,755 points, plus 185 points (.94 pts/game) in the playoffs. Plus he's got a Selke award and a cherished Conn Smythe. Robitaille, however, is a different story. He's like Osgood. Was he a great player? Or just a beneficiary from the talent around him?
Ultimately, Robitaille notched 668 goals, with a number of different teams. The 600 goal mark will get a player into the Hall, so Robitaille gets in.
But Ozzie? He's won the trophy awarded to the goalie with fewest goals-against. But it ain't no Vezina. No Hart. No Conn Smythe. He's only had two All-star games. He'll have a battle on his hands getting in.
No way Osgood gets in the HOF. The most damning stat to me is that in his 4 trips to the finals, he lost one and backed up one. The latter being the nail in the coffin. And that doesn't even address that the Wings one w/out with him sitting in NY.
ReplyDeleteOzzie aside, I was at the Wings/Wild game on Wed. The Wings are so far from the team they once were. It was so apparent that they had one good line and nothing else. That doesn't mean that with Franzen and Holmer back, they don't take that next step, but even then, they're not in the class of the Sharks or Hawks.
Babcock made a comment tonight about the Wings having better talent today than 10 years ago, but are not playing as well as a team. How laughable is that. Does Brad May even make "B" team from 10 years ago?
Getzlaf a better two way player than Pavel? Hasn't Pavel won the last to Selke's?
ReplyDeleteAnyone else notice that a Wings player has won 6 out of the last 15 Selke's? And that includes 4 different players?
I would argue that Getzlaf is a better 2-way player than Datsyuk this season. Sure, Datsyuk was a Hart-level talent last season, and he won the Selke. But Getzlaf is 24 years old - seven years younger. On an equally bad team, Getzlaf has 50 points to Pavel's 43.
ReplyDeleteGetzlaf doesn't have Pavel's defensive acumen, but he's superior in terms of putting points on the board. And he'll only get better.
And I'd agree that Babcock's comment about talent is absurd. Ten years ago, they had Yzerman, Shanahan, Fedorov, and Lidstrom - all before their 35th birthdays. They also had Larionov, Verbeek, Chelios and Larry Murphy. That's a lot of current and soon-to-be Hall of Famers.