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Nothing feels better than beating the Leafs… Of course the Leaf fanbase will blame it on injuries, bad coaching, etc… they still feel the Leafs are the superior team. Wings are 3-0 against them and two of the wins came against a healthy Toronto team. I guess their fanbase need to look at the standings. Toronto is on on the inevitable decline… Wings are on the rise. Would like to see Yzerman pick up the phone and call Winnipeg’s GM about the availability of Dylan DeMelo… read he’s a solid shutdown defenseman. Not crazy about his age at 32 though. Only if they can get a good deal and not give up too much.
DeBrusk would look good in red & white… but he’s a winger and the Wings really need a top 4 defenseman above all else. After that their next most pressing need is another talented center. Yzerman has the cap space and the assets.. but we don’t want him to trade the whole farm either. Some pick and GR players could help move the needle to get some new talent.
Nothing feels better than beating the Leafs… Of course the Leaf fanbase will blame it on injuries, bad coaching, etc… they still feel the Leafs are the superior team (which I disagree). Wings are 3-0 against them and two of the wins came against a healthy Toronto team. I guess their fanbase need to look at the standings. Toronto is on on the inevitable decline… Wings are on the rise. Would like to see Yzerman pick up the phone and call Winnipeg’s GM about the availability of Dylan DeMelo… read he’s a solid shutdown defenseman. Not crazy about his age at 32 though. Only if they can get a good deal and not give up too much.
I don’t see Yzerman giving up the assets necessary to obtain Werenski, but I do believe he’ll make a trade relatively soon for a solid top 4 LD. A big physical stay at home type with decent puck skills to pair with ASP would be ideal. All the D-men currently in the pipeline project as bottom pairing types at the NHL level.
Yzerman may not give up the assets if the price is too steep… but it’s worth making an inquiry to find out. If Columbus wants to “retool” or start a new rebuild he is their most valuable piece. He’s not worth the same haul that Vancouver got for Hughes. The price would be less. I know Werenski is pretty unhappy right now with his team and he’s already called them out publicly. If Werenski is not available or the price is too high… I think as you mentioned Yzerman will be looking to shore up our top 4 defensemen. Problem is those guys aren’t cheap… and not many available. It’s Yzerman’s top priority right now to fix the defense. The rumor I read somewhere is that Vancouver probaby wanted Edvinsson… so Yzerman backed our of the deal for Hughes. Which was the right call IMO. Makes no sense to get Hughes if it leaves too many holes to fill on our roster. Yzerman wouuld have been dumb to give up the equivalent of what Minnesota gave up for him.
Seider is now in Norris trophy territory. Anybody who disputes that is insane. Wings sitting in a good spot heading into the XMAS break. May be time to send Kasper down to GR to get his game back on track. Disappointing.. but probably necessary. Appleton is back from injury to take his place for now. Love how Leonard has stepped in seamlessly and been so effective. He has all the tools and intagibles… now he has to be consistent and keep putting up points to say in Detroit. Good to see Hamonic sitting on the bench. Yzerman needs to pick up the phone call the Columbus GM about Zach Werensky’s availability. He has ties to Michigan (U of M) and playing with a couple current Red Wings… He would be a legit top 4 defenseman and make Detroit instantly better.
And how about those Griffins ??!! Simply awesome. Never seen a team this effective in all my years living in GR. Talk about a well-oiled machine.
Still not sold on Gibson… never was from the start. To me he looks like Husso 2.0 version. Gets caught out of position too often and I see the puck go through him.. which shouldn’t happen to a goalie. Hope he proves me wrong. He’s a stop-gap at best. Cossa is ready to come up. Put Gibson on waivers if he doesn’t shape up quick. Now if we could just keep getting some secondary scoring. Our defensemen are terrible at helping with secondary scoring… last in the NHL I just read. That needs to change. This team still needs to dump Compher, Rasmussen and Berggren. I wouldn’t mind keeping Copp if he could actually provide more offense on a consistent basis, but he would have to do a full 180 degrees for that to happen (which I don’t think will). Time to cut the dead weight and bring up some Griffins… Leonard, Lombardi and maybe Wallin on defense. Would really like to see this team get more aggressive on the PK. They still look timid and fall back letting the other team pass the puck around and do whatever they want. It’s not quite as bad as last year… but still pretty bad. PP still looks solid. We really need more 5-on-5 scoring on a consistent basis or forget the playoffs.
Not seeing a path to the playoffs with this roster. Too much dead weight and useless, overpaid veterans that can’t get the job done and play reliable team defense. Why the hell Hamonic is still getting ice time defies logic. Comphor, Copp, Rasmussen, and even Berggren have been a bust. Still desperately need more talent up the middle… nobody worth a crap to play 2nd or 3rd line center. Desperately need a true top 4 defenseman… While Talbot has been a steady reliable tandem type goalie, the Gibson experiment is looking worse every game he plays. Giving up at least 4 goals in 8 of his last 12 games. Still lacking a solid #1 starter in net (who isn’t 38 years old). Time to sit some of these guys and call up a player or two from GR… like NOW !! Definitiion of hockey insanity: keep playing the same crappy players over & over again and expecting to win (or make the playoffs).
Side note…. I’ll be at the Griffins game tomorrow night against the Iowa Wild. I’ll get a chance to see Nygard play in person. He’s only 20… so the kid still has time to improve.
I have to say… I really think Leonard has earned the first call-up. I mean what else does a guy need to do to earn the call-up ? He’s leading the AHL in points ! MBN and Lombardi would be next on my list. And please…. keep Hamonic on the bench !! He’s like -7 in his last couple of games. Terrible. Call up Wallin or Tuomisto if you need to… but keep Hamonic off the ice. Hoping somebody will take Gustauffson and/or Holl off our hands before the trade deadline. Could happen as injuries keep piling up around the league. Time to shop Rasmussen or even Berggren if a good return is there to be had.
Same crap, different game. Not sure what it’s going to take for this team to learn how to score the first goal or even score a goal in the first period. It’s mind boggling why they can’t put in a full 60 minutes effort. Maybe McClelland needs to start benching people who get caught out of position or who are not covering their man in the D-zone. Hamonic, Compher and Rasmussen need to just stay on the bench. I’m really sick of seeing this team playing from behind every game. Not a good formula to win if you’re always playing catch-up. It puts more pressure on the goalies too.
Bernard-Docker needs to be playing every game. They win when he’s in the lineup. So much better than Hamonic. Gee… looks what happens when you get traffic in front of the other team’s goalie… you score goals. Wings should be doing this EVERY game. I hope McClelland hammers this idea into their skulls. Wings still need to tighten up their defense. Use their speed and take away time and space from the other team like they did on that hot streak they had earlier in the season. And be aggressive on the PK ! This was a must win game. Had they gone on to lose 4 in a row then I think Yzerman would have gotten serious about shopping some of these players.
Finally… the Wings showed some life tonight. This really was a must-win game. It’s amazing what happens when you actually get bodies in front of the other team’s goalie and take away his vision. Wings need to do that on a nightly basis… which they don’t. Good to see Bernard-Docker back out there. He is a big impromvement over Hamonic, who should just stay on the bench. You know you’re having a good night when Rasmussen actually scores (which is rare). The PK still looks timid and weak to me. They’re still collapsing back and letting the other team do what they want with the puck… they need to be much more aggressive !! It has gotten better overall though… unlike last year which was a complete dumpster fire for the PK. Would really like to see Danielson get that first goal or at least get some assists in his next game.
Wings did about what I was expecting. Not a bad trip… this team will have more growing pains this season as they try to find their identity. Winning at home for the next few weeks will be crucial to stay in the playoff race. Wings need Kane to get their PP back on track.
And…. how about those GR Griffins ?! Looking forward to going to one of their games on Black Friday. They are the only undefeated team in the AHL at 8-0. Danielson needs a call-up and they can bench Rasmussen who doens’t add any value to the team at this point. He is good at taking bad penalties though. Gotta think Leonard or Daneilson will get a call up if there is another injured forward in Detroit. Watson didn’t get any ice time on the trip and was sent back down to GR.
