That Lidström replacement..

[Unfriendly Ghost]

We can pretend nothing could have been done, and that's real easy. Doesn't require any thought! However we do have some possible options.

1. Trade Kindl and Hudler for Zach Bogosian
2. Trade a 2014 first round pick + prospects for Jay Bouwmeester

Hell, if we traded for Bogosian - there were plenty of rumors to suggest it was close to getting done - then Holland might never waste a first on Q. This is not baseless speculation, this is working with legit trade info that became public.

So let's say Ken Holland would have been aggressive and pulled the trigger on both trades. What does our defense look like right now?

Zach Bogosian and Jay Bouwmeester are both getting TOP PAIRING minutes. Big E is also a top pairing d-man this season. Kronner gets top pairing minutes but he's not a top pairing d-man. If we acquire both d-men and never traded for Q our defense would probably look like this right now:

Jay Bouwmeester-Zach Bogosian
Jonathan Ericsson-Niklas Kronwall
Carlo Colaiacovo-Danny DeKeyser

How does that defense look? Are we a lock for the playoffs with that defense? I sure as hell think so.

#1 was never officially on the table and #2 is just an awful, awful deal for a team on the downswing. That's, ironically, a Calgary move.

 

[Run the Jewels]

#1 was never officially on the table and #2 is just an awful, awful deal for a team on the downswing. That's, ironically, a Calgary move.

Nah, it's taking calculated risks to address something you knew was going to happen. The irony is we could have easily traded Bouwmeester or Bogosian if we were able to get Suter this past summer. All you have to do is look at what players are bringing back on the trade market and we'd have no problem moving either guy if necessary. Bouwmeester just got traded less than a month ago.

I'm telling you, that defense would be rock solid and it would give Sproul, Ouellet, Backman the time necessary to fully develop. In another thread I am pushing for Sproul to be brought up to Detroit because our defense is so very bad. Jimmy will certainly be earning his contract until we get some semblance of a legit NHL-quality defense.