Confirmed with Link: Tommy Mac is coming back.

SpookyTsuki

Registered User
Dec 3, 2014
15,916
671
we know that the wings value character more than anything. none of those guys have had issues off the ice.

so if you are having issues both on and off the ice like mrazek has, then yeah you aren't going to be treated as well as others

but the point is that double standards are pretty much the norm across all professional sports. it's not something exclusive to the detroit red wings

Sheahan hasn't? Are you sure?
 

jkutswings

hot piss hockey
Jul 10, 2014
10,851
8,576
I don't have a problem with the Zetterbergs of the world getting more leeway than the Mrazeks of the world. And I'm totally fine with a given player sometimes needing a carrot, and sometimes needing a stick.

But some guys only ever seem to get the carrot, no matter how bad they play, or how long the problem persists.

Darren McCarty is tied to some of the most iconic moments in the last 25 years of this franchise. But when the salary cap hit, and they had to make some tough choices, he was bought out. Cold hard business. I know the guy has had more than his share of demons, but they looked at his performance versus salary, and made a call.

But now? There's a sizeable list of guys who know the secret handshake, and get a leash about 10 miles long, and I'm not talking about the Zetterbergs of the world.
 

Pavels Dog

Registered User
Feb 18, 2013
19,737
14,704
Sweden
Darren McCarty is tied to some of the most iconic moments in the last 25 years of this franchise. But when the salary cap hit, and they had to make some tough choices, he was bought out. Cold hard business. I know the guy has had more than his share of demons, but they looked at his performance versus salary, and made a call.

But now? There's a sizeable list of guys who know the secret handshake, and get a leash about 10 miles long, and I'm not talking about the Zetterbergs of the world.
I have zero doubt some "tough choices" would be made if we really needed the cap space. But you don't buy out players or pack assets together to dump contracts just in order to...have cap space.
 

Lil Sebastian Cossa

Opinions are share are my own personal opinions.
Jul 6, 2012
11,436
7,446
I have zero doubt some "tough choices" would be made if we really needed the cap space. But you don't buy out players or pack assets together to dump contracts just in order to...have cap space.

Exactly. Particularly when the anticipated use of said cap space is "Hey, we could make moves to take other peoples bad contracts and get an okay player!" Or "We could hope and pray that Winnipeg decides they want to trade Trouba for a stick of gum."

Something I've always said... if you have a true plan for the cap space. Like an actual move is held up by not having it available, not just the possibility of maybe doing a move, then you look at what you need to do money wise.
 

jkutswings

hot piss hockey
Jul 10, 2014
10,851
8,576
I didn't cite McCarty to say Detroit's problem is a lack of cap space. I cited him to contrast an era of putting needs of the team before loyalty, versus the current era, where I believe loyalty is both inconsistent from player to player, even within similar circumstances, and overall is significantly overinflated in the list of priorities.
 

Lil Sebastian Cossa

Opinions are share are my own personal opinions.
Jul 6, 2012
11,436
7,446
I didn't cite McCarty to say Detroit's problem is a lack of cap space. I cited him to contrast an era of putting needs of the team before loyalty, versus the current era, where I believe loyalty is both inconsistent from player to player, even within similar circumstances, and overall is significantly overinflated in the list of priorities.

If loyalty is inconsistent from player to player, it is by design. The Wings have pretty clearly done it based on what you make of the talent you have. As I've said in the past... if you're a 4 talent wise, but you give a 10 effort... they will be more lenient with you than a guy who is a 7 talent wise but gives you a 5 effort.

Some contracts are indefensible (Abdelkader, Ericsson) and some situations insane (I hope I ever have whatever leverage Dan Cleary had on Ken Holland at some point in my career)... but the Wings, if you remove your feelings of whether it should be done that way, pretty clearly and consistently have operated a certain way.

It was always hidden because the best players we had for decades were the same ones who outworked everyone... or were so god damned talented (Sergei Fedorov) that it didn't really matter.

And buying out McCarty in the lockout season is a god awful example for what you're trying to point out. The Wings were wildly over the newly instituted salary cap... and had to find a way to keep a Cup contending roster together. I just read an article from back then and before the rollback, they were 10M over the cap with 15 skaters. I'm sorry, but I don't care how much you value Darren McCarty, you're not going to trade away or let go of Nicklas Lidstrom to keep him. You're not going to let Henrik Zetterberg or Pavel Datsyuk walk out the door.

This is what PD was talking about. If the Wings need to make tough choices, they will. But the roughest choices they've had recently involve waiver wire fodder or a 35+ player leaving before his contract is done.
 

jkutswings

hot piss hockey
Jul 10, 2014
10,851
8,576
At this point, we're just talking past each other, so there's no point in continuing. I give up.
 

Henkka

Registered User
Jan 31, 2004
31,077
12,078
Tampere, Finland
Can't believe how debating about a 4th goalie at training camp can get this much of discussion.

It really is off-season. Freakout club gonna freak out about every possible needle in the sand.
 

jkutswings

hot piss hockey
Jul 10, 2014
10,851
8,576
Can't believe how debating about a 4th goalie at training camp can get this much of discussion.

It really is off-season. Freakout club gonna freak out about every possible needle in the sand.
McCollum is irrelevant. It's that, in some fans' eyes, the team has reached awful status, and there are a plethora of miniscule reminders about the disappointing way Detroit is running things these days. So each paper cut gets treated as a hemorrhage, because they're frustrated with years and years of paper cuts.
 

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