My heart stopped for a minute there as the word "resigns" looks a lot like "resign" with a much different meaning.
Thanks for pointing that out, title has been fixed.
Someone get the_big_house 500th on the phone for his expert take on this!
I'm very happy both Nick and Homer are both staying. Holmstrom is the "human screen" in the NHL and having him play for another season is always a plus. I'm really looking forward to next season when these finals are over. I have high hopes with the Wings next year now that Lidstrom is playing one more year, Hudler is back and Holmstrom is re-signing. Hell I love every year of Wings hockey.
You don't get jokes do you?
Keep hating on the guy all you want, but I think he did get it and his serious response was dare I say fairly comical.
on how to best make a Tom Harmon jersey?
As soon as the season ended, I concluded that the wings were probably top 5 in the league, but definitely not the best (like I thought they were the previous two years). I felt that they needed to get a big pay cut out of Lids and get a 2nd line defenseman and 2nd line goal scorer from free agency (We got huds back though). However, with Lids signing for 6-7 mil, our cap prohibits another defenseman pickup which I feel we desperately needed. I have high hopes as well but I can't say they are the best team in the NHL, not even top 3. What is your opinion on this?
We've got a lot of our cap locked up in our most important players: Zetterberg, Datsyuk, Lidstrom, but there isn't a great market for 2nd line defensemen right now that are YOUNG.
This team has to get younger and right now the only way is through development. Signing Brendan Smith from UW was a huge step in the right direction as I feel that kid is going to be dominant relatively soon.
"but there isn't a great market for 2nd line defensemen right now that are YOUNG."
Actually there is. That's one of the places that this UFA class is extremely deep.
Also, Brendan Smith is easily two-three years away, so don't get your hopes up that he's an immediate solution to the defensive youth issue. He's essentially right behind Kindl on the overall depth chart, but that speaks more to the lack of depth in the system rather than to Smith current readiness.
Agreed, it's a pretty solid class for 3rd/4th pairing defenseman. Zybnek Michalek is a good option, and probably won't be too expensive. Not sure if the Wings will even have the 2-3 million he'll command though.
http://www.sportscity.com/nhl/2010-nhl-unrestricted-free-agents-by-position/#Defense
I agree that Michalek would be a good get because he fits the age and didn't have an exorbinate salary previously. However, I don't see a ton of 26-29 year olds on here that are in the sub $3 million category that wow me. Jones is overpaid and had an awful season, Martin is overrated and was so so for Jersey, Volchenkov was less than impressive (and he's been wildly inconsistent in his career), I would take Seidenberg, Leopold is inconsistent and a mess in the playoffs, Krajicek regressed and has really had an awful 3 years (after watching him get torched, no idea why he commands that salary), I would take Carlo Colaiacovo, Jurcina was unimpressive on a team that scored 90 goals a game and was completely loaded offensively, etc.
So I don't agree that it's loaded.
Also, I never said that Brendan Smith isn't 2-3 years away, I said "relatively". In the world of young defenseman, the standard is 2-3 years. With what the analysts say, after watching him dominate for Wisconsin, and the fact that he was a Hobey Baker finalist, if he continues his development he'll be a good player for the Wings. With the style the Wings play scoring from the Defense both 5 on 5 and on the PP is necessary and with his quick hands, passing vision, skating ability, and ability to score, he'll play sooner rather than later. Since Kindl is a very similar player with a bit more size, it'll be an interesting battle to see progresses quicker.
There is a great market for young second pairing defensemen because that market is the deepest segment of the UFA group this year. It might not have the best young top pairing talent available in it, but that doesn't really matter from the Red Wings' perspectve because there was no chance that the Red Wings would be in the market for that type of player. A better source for your evaluation would be this one: http://www.capgeek.com/ufa_finder.php#. If you want to define the group of players you're talking about as 26-29 years old and under $3M, it's hard to go wrong with Seidenberg, Michalek, Martin, Hamhuis, Volchenkov, Boychuk, or Foster. That group of second level talent is better, deeper, and cheaper than the comparable group at any other position this year. So from that standpoint, it is loaded.
Signing Brendan Smith or leaving him at Wisconsin doesn't do anything to make the Red Wings any younger since he won't be playing with the Red Wings any time soon. That's why I addressed it in my post. He was going to get signed this year or next year. If he signed this year (which he did) he was going to the AHL. If he signed next year he was going to the AHL. His signing literally has zero impact on the Red Wings getting younger.
To be fair, I think you have to look at what these players are likely to get on their next deal, not what they're being paid now. Volchenkov, Hamhuis, and likely Seidenberg will all get 3+ million. They're the headliners, and they'll probably be overpaid.
I think Michalek is what the wings need--a solid defensive defenseman who can block shots (led the league a few years ago). He also hasn't had any injury problems unlike Volchenkov. Coliacovo is also a good fit, and definitely within the price range that the Wings can afford. Solid defenseman on a not so great Blues team.
Oh I completely agree with you on virtually all accounts. Volchenkov is already a first pairing guy and Hamhuis and Seidenberg may be depending on where they end up. You're most likely right about the money, too, but I'm confident that one of those three will sign somewhere for under $3M. All three of them, however, fall into the second tier of the class, in my opinion, behind some of the more established guys who are a little bit older (e.g. Niedermayer, Gonchar, Corvo, Mitchell) who don't fit into the age classification. Regardless, I think we both agree that the depth of the defensemen available is the strong part of this year's UFA class.
However we will have our veteran players returning again plus with the draft more youthfull help in our lineup. The best news next to Holmstrom and Lidstrom staying is hearing that Hudler is coming back. This man brought a strong display to the playoffs in the 2008 and 2009. Him coming back is going to help out a lot. I do wish we could of kept Samuelsson. I thought he produced for us big time in 2008 and 2009 and felt that he was a big help in the finals despite losing it in 09. All things considered I can see us as possible cup contenders for 2011.
Yeah we'll be good, I was just hoping for Lids to take a huge pay cup to make a similar free agency to that of before the 01-02 season
This looks like a win/win. The Wings get to keep Holmstrom, but at a smaller cap hit. Same thing with the Lidstrom deal, it looks like the veterans are really taking a team first mentality.
re-sign but, then again, I am an engineer..
When I first read this, I saw:
Holstrom "leaves the" Red Wings.
Edit: nevermind. I type slowly..... (again, engineer)
Some Hawks fans I know were throwing around the Byfuglien comparisons to me the other day......just shut up.....just shut up! He's getting owned by Pronger this series and that's something that Holmstrom wouldn't let happen.
Really? Have you been watching?
Last night the Versus guys (who root for the underdog/a long series in everything) said there should have been 4 penalties (that i heard) on philly that went uncalled.
Pronger is a hack, and all he's doing is cross-checking buff.
That said, to get back to the point, good for the wings
Holmstrom gets cross-checked to no end, but he still doesnt move from his screening position.
If they were rooting for the underdog, wouldn't they be more liable to root for Byfuglien than they would the established semi-superstar in Pronger (I hate him too but I'm referring to his rep)? Anyways, Byfuglien has more penalties (not PIM, penalties period) than points and he's been kept on the outside for the most part. If the refs aren't calling it, why should Pronger change his style? Not to mention that Holmstrom would have adjusted....something Byfuglien either hasn't done or isn't capable of doing at this stage in his career.
"Stage in his career"
Buff's 25, and hasn't even been a full time forward for a whole season yet. He was a defenseman for his whole pro career until some point last season when Quenville said "Hey, go play wing". He even played D in the first couple of playoff games this year. Give him some time. He's the next big force in front of the net. Ask Luongo and the Canucks if he doesn't have the ability.
*Small nit to pick, When i said the announcers root for the underdog, i meant large stage, not the 1 on 1 matchup. They'll root for Philly as long as Chicago has a lead in the series. After games 1 and 2 were such highly rated games, they totally want another weekend game in Chicago on NBC (which they got with game 5)
Remember when Nick Lidstrom killed Chris Pronger with a slap shot? Pronger is a goddamn zombie.
You'd be better off credibility-wise quoting the talking dog sitting next to you at the bar.
The versus guys suck.
But when the announcers are commenting on how crappy the officiating is on 4 separate occasions....
Doc Emrick and Eddie Olczyk calling the game, right? One is a Hall of Famer and the other is widely considered as one of the bes,t if not the best color man in hockey (hence the national TV gig.)
I love Mickey as much as the next Wings fan but to hate on those two with their credentials is pretty weak.
Their "credentials" speak more to past accomplishments than current ability. For as much of a legend as he was when he was at his best, even Bob Cole ultimately got replaced at CBC.
Also, the problem, in my opinion, with the way that NBC does it is that they take individual broadcasters who work for individual teams (more accurately, the RSNs for individual teams) and assign them to games where they are supposedly to play the role of independent observer, whereas CBC (and most other major sports in the U.S.) does not use broadcasters employed by individual teams. Using these individuals to call national games that their "home team" is involved in, such as Emrick calling Devils games and Olcyzk calling Blackhawks games, for example, creates the problem that they try too hard to come across as neutral and disinterested which results in an incredibly disingenous broadcast, such as the OP to this portion of this thread is talking about.
but many announcers have to call games or events that they have some affiliation with. That's what makes them a professional at the top of there game and how they EARN the national jobs.
Doc and Eddie O aren't the only ones who call games or events they have ties to for example, Nantz with Couples and the Masters, Jon Miller with the SF Giants and ESPN, Joe Buck with the Cards and Fox plus a host of others I cant think of at the moment.
All I'm pointing out is that they are all very good at what they do and aren't just homer hacks like Hawk Harrelson or someone like that. They are doing solid work even with the Hawks in the finals.
There is something to be said for Emerick's credability.
I just don't care for the guy. I cringe a little every time I hear... "WAFFLE BOARDED AWAY!"
I would rather listen to Thorne and Clement, Clement, hands of Cement.
Another good one is Pat Foley, the play by play guy partnered with EO here in Chicago. He has a great old school style.
tre kronor lives on in detroit. first nick and now homer. keep those signings rollin kenny.
he's a class act. i've coached his son in hockey before and the whole family is great. pretty sure he took a pay cut so they can get some more talent in there.
Well he's dipped a little bit since growing older. Last year he was manning the 4th line in the Finals. Still, this contract was a steal. He's a monster on the PP. Nick and Homer's salary dump will help with signing Eaves, and Helm to richer contracts. Miller and Bertuzzi will probably stay around the same price. They'll prob have around $2 mil in cap space to sign a replacement for Williams' PP point spot.