Changes you would make

[Oddbob]

Considering last time he only brought in a conditional 3rd (and that's with salary retention by the Wings) that time may have already come. Especially given his full NTC.

I still say, that is on Benning not being good at GM'ing. Holland is pretty good at this in the past few seasons, with the Brendan Smith and Tomas Tatar returns as nice examples.

 

[Flowah]

I'd be talking with teams who think they can make the playoffs but who we think won't end up making it. Ask for their 1st rounder + whatever else for guys we have on the chopping block. Pray to god they miss. Get more shots at the lottery and top15 picks.

 

[Lil Bert]

This isn't GM mode people, ditching everyone on your roster is a bad move. I'd rather play with a bad NHL team with vets than a terrible AHL team with young guys who are gonna get their confidence shook. Maybe realistically move one of Mantha, Nyquist, or AA because they are not going to get any better playing for the wings specifically Mantha and AA because they don't even seem to want to be here. Ideally we would want a roster d-man maybe even a rental and a first/second pick. Keep some vets around so we don't throw the rookies in the fire while stripping any hope this team has of winning more than 15 games.

 

[Lil Sebastian Cossa]

Better idea. Find a way to put chips in the players heads that give control to someone with an Xbox or ps4 controller.

Then, it can be EA sports and we can totally win with a team of AHL players

 

[Lazlo Hollyfeld]

I still say, that is on Benning not being good at GM'ing. Holland is pretty good at this in the past few seasons, with the Brendan Smith and Tomas Tatar returns as nice examples.

I was referring to what the Wings got for him, a 3rd rounder and McIlrath with the Wings retaining 50% salary. The Canucks apparently wanted picks but settled for Jussi Jokinen and Tyler Motte.

I'm not faulting Holland, I just think word is out about Vanek's compete level (much as I'm tired of that phrase). He'll pile up some points in the regular season but isn't responsible defensively and doesn't have a good playoff track record.

And my understanding is that Vanek has a full NTC. So he can refuse any trade and play out the season in Detroit. Of course then Kenny probably won't sign him again this offseason.

 

[Frk It]

Fair enough.

I define skill as being able to make the puck do what you want, with regards to passing, stickhandling, shooting. Hockey sense is knowing how plays are going to develop so you know where to be and what do you. Right place right time to intercept passes from the other team, or to give your own team somewhere to pass to, being able to retrieve rebounds because you know where it's going. That kinda stuff.

I know your intended use of those words.

I meant how much skill or hockey sense someone has is purely subjective, in that different people are going to see a different amount of skill or hockey sense for the same player.

 

[Goalie guy]

I was referring to what the Wings got for him, a 3rd rounder and McIlrath with the Wings retaining 50% salary. The Canucks apparently wanted picks but settled for Jussi Jokinen and Tyler Motte.

I'm not faulting Holland, I just think word is out about Vanek's compete level (much as I'm tired of that phrase). He'll pile up some points in the regular season but isn't responsible defensively and doesn't have a good playoff track record.

And my understanding is that Vanek has a full NTC. So he can refuse any trade and play out the season in Detroit. Of course then Kenny probably won't sign him again this offseason.

Hopefully by the end of April 2019 it is announced that Kenny is no long running the team and Stevie is in charge.

 

[Rzombo4 prez]

At the end of the day I just want to see the systematic acquisition of picks and prospects. Our ugly contracts reflect poorly on management, but they aren't preventing us from doing anything we should be doing.


1. Move Jensen once you determine you need his roster spot (or at the deadline).
2. Move Gus at the deadline.
3. Move at least one of Helm, Nielsen or Glendening at the deadline (be aggressive with retention if need be)
4. Move one of Daley, Green or Ericsson at the deadline (be aggressive with retention if need be)
5. Move Howard if there is a market for him
6. Explore trading AA (or Mantha if his play improves) for a defensive prospect from another organization
7. Explore any draft-day moves that would give us a second, first-round pick in the middle of the first round (this will take multiple assets and requires some creativity). At some point we need to stop being shocked that our picks do not consistently out-play their draft positions.
8. Bring in a new coaching staff after this season (if you want to give Bylsma a shot in the captain's chair before then, I won't bitch...but I also won't expect much to change).
9. Keep Ras up with the big club even though he is not quite ready. He needs to be pushed by bigger, stronger, better players at this point.

 

[Winger98]

I was referring to what the Wings got for him, a 3rd rounder and McIlrath with the Wings retaining 50% salary. The Canucks apparently wanted picks but settled for Jussi Jokinen and Tyler Motte.

I'm not faulting Holland, I just think word is out about Vanek's compete level (much as I'm tired of that phrase). He'll pile up some points in the regular season but isn't responsible defensively and doesn't have a good playoff track record.

And my understanding is that Vanek has a full NTC. So he can refuse any trade and play out the season in Detroit. Of course then Kenny probably won't sign him again this offseason.

I fully expect Vanek to not be moved or even really shopped. My guess is that the Wings were okay with him getting an NTC because they are fine keeping him around for the games after they deal Nyquist. Nyquist will get moved at some point, hopefully for a 1st this year or next, Vanek could then slot up the lineup and we can backfill with a kid somewhere.

 

[Winger98]

the only move I see really being there to make is moving Hicketts out of the lineup and putting Hronek in. I'm just not seeing the appeal of Hicketts who doesn't move the puck that well, doesn't have exceptional skating, and is becoming more of a liability in his own with each passing game. Hronek might not be Bobby Orr back there, but I'd rather play him than Hicketts.

Other than that, and just keeping an eye on what's available for trade, I'm not sure what moves are there to really make.

 

[TatarTangle]

I'd convert the seats back to red just to mess with people

 

[Winger98]

I'd convert the seats back to red just to mess with people

and bring back orange mesh.

 

[Oddbob]

I was referring to what the Wings got for him, a 3rd rounder and McIlrath with the Wings retaining 50% salary. The Canucks apparently wanted picks but settled for Jussi Jokinen and Tyler Motte.

I'm not faulting Holland, I just think word is out about Vanek's compete level (much as I'm tired of that phrase). He'll pile up some points in the regular season but isn't responsible defensively and doesn't have a good playoff track record.

And my understanding is that Vanek has a full NTC. So he can refuse any trade and play out the season in Detroit. Of course then Kenny probably won't sign him again this offseason.

These days, pretty much every player that isn't a lifer with a team, will waive to go from a losing to a winning team, for a shot at the Cup.

 

[Bench]

and bring back orange mesh.

It's symbolic! The team is under construction! It gets the people going!

 

[Run the Jewels]

Hey guys!

I’m not familiar with the team or roster, only know a couple players on the team tbh. Obviously not the best start but who cares it’s early and anything can happen.

I’m just curious on what you guys would change and how you would plan the future of the team. What seems to be the main problems? Are they an easy fix or is it more then that? Also on the bright side- who is looking good for the future? Any promising prospects?Perhaps I can get to know your team better!

Cheers guys!

The easiest fix is to build a time machine and convince Ken Holland to "retire" when Mike Ilitch inquired whether Holland would be willing to step aside so Yzerman could become GM. In that scenario Holland's record would be almost entirely unblemished and Yzerman would almost certainly have us in much better shape than where we are right now.

So yeah...no easy fixes. We let nature run it's course and hope Holland will do better at the draft table. This last draft appears to be much better than his drafts over the past 10 years. If he gets the #1 pick this year he will not be able to screw that up. The only thing he can screw up is trying to win some meaningless games and thereby bump down our lottery chances. He has enough pride for it to be a real concern.

 

[PelagicJoe]

1. I wouldn't mind shaking up our scouting department. I am surprised no one has mentioned that yet.
2. Get rid of Blashill.
3. If Erik Karlsson is available this off-season, throw the bank at him.

 

[The Zetterberg Era]

1. I wouldn't mind shaking up our scouting department. I am surprised no one has mentioned that yet.
2. Get rid of Blashill.
3. If Erik Karlsson is available this off-season, throw the bank at him.

We got a new scouting department sans Hakan recently, who nobody really wants out of our scouting department. That is probably a part of it. I think we are likely to see some changes if we do go to Yzerman though. I wouldn't be against bringing in some more talent. The Wings were one of the teams that talked to Hunter after he left Toronto which I found encouraging, but apparently our pitch wasn't good enough which is troubling.

That needs to be a point of emphasis in terms of Chris Ilitch and our upper management, our pitches aren't working as effectively for seemingly a decade now, we should really focus on that area in my opinion. What vision are we selling, how come since Suter we seem to be struggling with this? I think that is important to get answered.

 

[Ingvar]

We got a new scouting department sans Hakan recently, who nobody really wants out of our scouting department. That is probably a part of it. I think we are likely to see some changes if we do go to Yzerman though. I wouldn't be against bringing in some more talent. The Wings were one of the teams that talked to Hunter after he left Toronto which I found encouraging, but apparently our pitch wasn't good enough which is troubling.

That needs to be a point of emphasis in terms of Chris Ilitch and our upper management, our pitches aren't working as effectively for seemingly a decade now, we should really focus on that area in my opinion. What vision are we selling, how come since Suter we seem to be struggling with this? I think that is important to get answered.

I don’t think there is a system. We missed out on Suter because of Babcock and Suter and Parise package deal and Minnesota connections. We missed out on Stamkos and Tavares (did we actually want him?) because it was Toronto or original team choice for them first and foremost. I guess we missed out on Hunter because Yzerman rumors began to spread and he prefers managing Knights to AGM position with no chance of promotion to GM after Toronto fiasco.

I don’t think we missed anything significant else and I don’t see how the Wings can change vision to help these cases.

 

[saska sault]

Watching teams like Carolina and Tampa play us.. really shows we have no identity or system. Carolina is all about pressure, and shots on goal .. Tampa bay offensive creativity and transition. Sure we dont have the horses those teams have, but we wouldn't know what to do with them even if we did. Through drafting and development you need a clear idea of how your team is going to play.. I dont see how Blashill has made any strides in his years here in that department. Unless his system is... off the boards... play our vets regardless and bench and youthful mistakes. I'd be alot happier if there was a clear path.. in that sense. Get someone new, young and innovative that can create that plan.

 

[Winger98]

Watching teams like Carolina and Tampa play us.. really shows we have no identity or system. Carolina is all about pressure, and shots on goal .. Tampa bay offensive creativity and transition. Sure we dont have the horses those teams have, but we wouldn't know what to do with them even if we did. Through drafting and development you need a clear idea of how your team is going to play.. I dont see how Blashill has made any strides in his years here in that department. Unless his system is... off the boards... play our vets regardless and bench and youthful mistakes. I'd be alot happier if there was a clear path.. in that sense. Get someone new, young and innovative that can create that plan.

I think a fair part of that is just where the Wings are in their rebuild. the Wings have focused on bigger guys who can/do play a hard, grinding game. Smith, Pope, Svechnikov, and Rasmussen can all go out and play that game. Larkin's game can fit that mold. They seem to really want to see Mantha add more of it. On the backend, I think they see guys like Lindstrom, McIsaac, and Hronek as guys who not only have some skill but also some jam.

It might seem a bit off kilter with where a lot of the league seems to be right now, but I think the Wings are definitely trying to put together a larger, rougher team that moves well and wears teams down. TBH, the possible make-up reminds me more of the first two Cup teams, who were a pretty darn rough group. I think folks forget how hard those teams were to play against and how much teams hated playing Shanny, Mac, Maltby, LaPointe, Holmstrom, Sandstrom (for one playoff run anyway), etc. all night.

 

[Killerjas]

Lol at the people who recommend us to trade all the veterans. This isn't NHL 2019...

 

[GMR]

If I'm God, I'd do this:

1. Fire the ownership. When your owner is more concerned with painting seats than fixing the team, that's a problem. Need to get to the underlying problem of why those seats aren't filled. And no, it's not because there's exciting amusement park rides and private dance clubs inside Little Caesars Arena. It's because the team stinks. People in Detroit is enthusiastic about the team the last several seasons. The ownership needs to show a lot more passion. I believe the fans sense that ownership doesn't give a crap.

2. Fire Holland and pursue a young GM with fresh ideas. Holland has tried hard the last several seasons and actually made some good moves. The problem is the many seasons before that when he was handing out idiotic contracts. It's hard to overlook that he's the biggest reason for the downward spiral in the last few years. Two years in a row they had the highest salary in the league and were among the league's bottom feeders. That's embarrassing and means the team was overspending on garbage players. Here's a question for everyone. How many good young defenseman and goalies has this team developed in the last 10 years? I think we all know the answer. That's on Kenny more than anyone.

3. Fire Blashill. He's not as much to blame as the ownership and the GM, but the players haven't bought into his message and there's no sign of improvement in the young players. It's like a failed marriage. The two sides just need to split.

4. Give Witkowski an important role on the team. The man's beard and attitude inspire confidence and leadership. He needs to be playing every night.

 

[Mlotek]

The Redwings are right up against the cup despite being a losing team. Not just this season...since years this idiot Holland, once the league's best GM, is wasting money for no reason. Not sure what's wrong with Holland but this isn't a rebuild, it's bs.
Not the most popular opinion I know but here's what I'd do:

Waive/buyout: Daley, Ericsson, Jensen, Helm
Trade: Nyquist, Nielsen, Bertuzzi
AHL: Frk, Hronek
Claim, Acquire: Fora, Lettieri

With everybody healthy that would result in something like that:


Athanasiou, Larkin, Lettieri
Mantha, Rasmussen, Vanek
Smith, Glendening, Abdelkader
Ehn, Turgeon, Witkowski
de la Rose

Cholowski, Green
DeKeyser, Fora
Kronwall, Lashoff
Sulak, Hicketts

Just curious why you would want to get rid of Daley? I know he isn't great but he is much better than DK.

Also why you wanna get rid of lil' Bert?

 

[Mlotek]

Lol at the people who recommend us to trade all the veterans. This isn't NHL 2019...

That is a want, not necessarily what would be plausible. It isn't hard to find cheaper veteran replacements especially at the offseason. Plenty of older guys struggling to find a spot.

Look at guys like Parenteau. Around 1.5 mil for a guy who puts up 30-40 points in 2nd/3rd line.

 

[GMR]

Lol at the people who recommend us to trade all the veterans. This isn't NHL 2019...

It's funny you mention the game, because my sorry ass HUT team that I started with isn't much worse than this team.