Jason_R

1 hour ago, Hart said:

Any chance Buium makes the team out of camp next year?  He's the same age as Edvinsson.  Also, the fact Denver shut down a loaded Boston College team in the championship game is encouraging.  I know his brother is top prospect but Shai was right there with him in +/- on the season.  

This franchise is so conservative with prospects it is hard to be sure they will let Edvinsson make the team out of camp. 😉

7 hours ago, RedRamage said:

Tin foil hate time: They leaked fakes in order to keep people from trying to find other leaks and/or discredit other potential leaks.

I hope so. The leaks are pretty bad. 

6 hours ago, gehringer_2 said:

Just by the numbers, I don't see them being a 95+ point team without improving their goal differential over this season's, so the challenge will be to make up Kane's scoring if Yzerman declines to bid for his services or if Kane simply decides he prefers to go to a better team. His 20 goals are half the improvement from last season. Otherwise they have to hope they can get the improvement on the goals against side.

Detroit scored 38 more goals this season than last. Impressive improvement, but yes, they aren't likely to get better next year. They need better players on the back end. Edvinsson will have a full season. Hopefully Cossa is ready at least for a mid-season call up and can start to fulfill some of his draft expectations.

30 minutes ago, gehringer_2 said:

I've said before that I think Seider could play a more dominant overall role but Wings keep him tied down by scheme, which is a complaint about Lalonde. In Lalonde's defense, when you have a group of forwards who are as weak as defenders as this team, it's a lot easier to keep your big horse at home in front of the net than worry about 9 or 10 guys without the hockey sense (or ability really) to understand when to be ready and willing to rotate back so Seider can be more involved across 200 ft.

It is very surprising to see how much more difficult Seider’s minutes have been any other defenseman in the league. I don’t know if I would call this scheme, or a lack of faith in anybody else. But that kid needs help. And he deserves the big contract.

6 hours ago, Hongbit said:

There is something said for needing continuity but the rebuilding is done and they are ready to compete.   Since I don’t think he will ever be the right guy, my ideal time to fire him is right now.  

Sadly, their record shows the rebuilding is not done and they are not ready to compete. I don’t think they will be ready to compete until/unless Edvinsson, ASP, and one other defensive prospect are ready, until Danielson and Kasper are ready, and until Cossa or Augustine is ready.

Next year they will be treading water. Hopefully a full season of Edvinsson amounts to an improvement over the minutes that have been logged by a mediocre defenseman. 

Since they will be on the fence again next year, I doubt Lalonde will get fired but suspect there will be at least one change behind the bench. 

43 minutes ago, gehringer_2 said:

At the beginning of last season I thought Lalonde had them pursuing the puck better and generally being harder to play against than Blashill ever did, but his inability to snap them out of their March funk was disappointing, and I think they have gradually reverted to playing soft again. Part of that maybe because as has been noted, they are not a young team and it's been a grueling season and some of them were running on fumes. 

They are not a young team and yet nobody provided “veteran leadership” when Larkin was down. That’s what you’re supposed to do when you’re signed to a multi-year big money contract. 

Also, they signed these responsible two-way centers but the team still can’t keep the puck out of the net. 

Lalonde seems to be a replacement-level coach. Based on where the team is I don’t think it is the right time for a change there but I hope he shuffles his staff. 

I cannot believe what I just saw!

10 minutes ago, oblong said:

I'm fed up with the naysayers....  did anybody reasonably expect them to make the playoffs higher than a 7 or 8 seed?

I've listened or watched parts of every game this year and was fortunate enough to be able to attend 5 games.  Regardless of what happens tonight this has been the most fun Red Wing season since they lost to Chicago in the 2013 playoffs, after leading 3-1.  Yes they had the losing streaks and blown leads, etc..... but that's the mark of a 7 or 8 seeded team so what did you expect?

 

They are who we thought they were. Marginally a playoff team. No real personality yet… maybe soon Yzerman’s vision of having a bunch of hulking defensemen and a massive goaltender to clog up the back end will come to fruition. Meaningful hockey in April is good, though. 

🫡

In the 2025 NFC Championship Game Brock Wright is going to leak out behind San Francisco’s DL, across the field, into the flat, for an uncontested, game winning 60 yard TD, and it will all be worth it. 

The Steelers have the most interesting storylines in the NFL next season. 

2 hours ago, RandyMarsh said:

Lions resigned Sudfeld today.

I don't know what to make of it other than Get you somebody that loves you like the Lions love Nate. 

He will never see the field. 

I hoped they could bring back Chark last season. He would be a solid addition for a year. 

9 hours ago, gehringer_2 said:

they are just not there yet. Two centers and 2 Dmen  - maybe one of the later if Edvinsson sticks.

Yeah, before the season everyone thought they would be on the playoff bubble and they are. They fell apart without Larkin. Seems like a fragile team. 

5 hours ago, MichiganCardinal said:

I agree, though I think it goes to show that behind-the-scenes guy is only as effective at his job as the football guys are. He wasn't very useful to the fan experience until we got good again. He was named President in 2015 but wasn't really impactful until 2021.

It is hard to know what goes on behind the scenes but there’s a lot in his bio: https://www.detroitlions.com/team/front-office-roster/rod-wood

He and Sheila seem to have a very strong partnership and a shared vision that has allowed for such a strong relationship to emerge between the front office and the football operations. 

5 hours ago, Motown Bombers said:

Rod Wood said he showed up unexpectedly to Allen Park. Leads me to believe he knew he was wanted in Florida and decided to get out of Dodge. Still not sure his end game. I'm assuming he thought it wouldn't go public? 

 

Remember when Rod Wood got hired and the board almost melted down because he wasn’t a football guy? Seems like he’s been good for the franchise. 

1 hour ago, RedRamage said:

I totally do not understand the Global Markets Program. I don't get why teams need to make a "bid" for certain countries given that there doesn't seem to be a limit on how many teams can get awarded a given country.

 

I’m guessing teams have to develop marketing proposals and pledge a certain amount of money to brand building in that foreign market. 

Will we see Cossa next year? Will he have a shot out of training camp? Would they make him play in GR at the start of the season and consider calling him up late like Edvinsson? I don’t follow closely enough to know when the rebuild should really, finally start to turn the corner. 

I don’t follow the Wings closely these days but it seems like Edvinsson’s arrival promises a massive upgrade on the number two defensive pairing. The Yzer-plan of having defensemen who are big and difficult to play against starts to take effect next season. 

What I don’t know is whether we should expect any other prospects to break through next year. Or whether they will be able to (or try to) re-sign Kane. 

2 hours ago, Motown Bombers said:

 

“…he homie still wanted”? Really Dave Birkett?

34 minutes ago, Shinzaki said:

The lack of news on Sutton's whereabouts leads me to think there's some back channel discussions going on.  Or...he's cut ties with everyone around him and done a runner

I’ve heard it rumored that snitches get stitches. Don’t know if it is true. 

I would retire McCarty’s #25 before Osgood’s #30. He had the iconic fight against the villain Claude Lemieux which I think most of his teammates agree was the catalyst for the 1997 Stanley Cup run, which broke the 40+ year drought, and which McCarty famously capped with a majestic breakaway goal which became the game winner and Cup clincher. 

He was the heart and soul of the Grind Line, which epitomized the grit of the Red Wings dynasty and the city of Detroit (before Dan Campbell had ever uttered the word). He also reminds us of some of the great tough but skilled forwards from that era like Bob Probert, Joe Kocur, Martin Lapointe, and, dare we add Brendan Shanahan… or does #14 deserve to be retired too?

Maybe Al Cowlings has seen him. 

1 hour ago, Motown Bombers said:

 

What kind of message does it send to other free agents if they try to claw back his bonus?

/ducks/

18 minutes ago, Motown Bombers said:

 

What took them so long? My hands are all raw from clutching my pearls since yesterday afternoon.