You are now GM.

[Motown Beatdown]

We need Tootoo next year. No one on this team can fight at all. Them boys in the East in our division like to drop the gloves all the time. Honestly, it would be a good idea to sign or trade for 1 or two more guys that can bring the ruckus.

We need someone, but not for 1.9 million.

 

[Xvash2]

We need someone, but not for 1.9 million.

Put Helm on a line with Tootoo and Tatar and you have a vicious unit that nobody can escape from. If Babcock used him right and consistently I'd say he's definitely worth it.

 

[pdd]

You obviously value Jiri pretty high yet you think that package would be enough? Most teams wouldn't take that package for a pick just because of the contracts.

Calgary's goaltending this season is currently Joey MacDonald and Miikka Kiprusoff. MacDonald basically stole the starter role during his time there and has significantly outplayed Kiprusoff this season. But he's a UFA, and probably not coming back to a rebuild unless he's guaranteed time. Kiprusoff is still signed. Which means Calgary will want a goalie. Gustavsson hasn't looked good for Detroit outside of flashes, but at one point with Toronto he was considered fairly good. Samuelsson is likely not the top-six winger he came to Detroit advertised as, but he still has the all-around abilities and if healthy he can play on any line for the Flames. Colaiacovo gives the Flames better defensive depth in their top six, and better puck movement and power play performance. If you like, Eaves gets traded in this package as well; Calgary does have a dearth of bottom-sixers and Eaves is the kind of guy they need.

And I don't think teams are going to trade for the signing rights to Cleary, Miller or Mursak. Maybe White if they're desperate.

Better to try than not to.

 

[mukluks]

Compliance buyouts on quincey and sammy.
Trade or buyout CC and Eaves.
Re-sign Flip @ 4.5 mil or Weiss at same
Sign Horton @ 6 mil or Clarkson @ 5.5 mil
Sign reliable stay at home dman for 2.5 mil or less (O'Bynre would be nice)

Nyquist/Dats/Horton
Zets/Flip/Mule
Tatar/Helm/Bert
22/Anderson/Gator
Emmerton

Kronner/E
Kindl/Kaiser
Smith/Stay at Home
Lashoff

 

[The Korean*]

Get rid of Babcock.

Get rid of Jimmy Howard.

Trade Datsyuk and Zetterberg. And pretend they never played in Detroit.

Rebuild. Properly.

 

[Point Shot]

Get rid of Babcock.

Get rid of Jimmy Howard.

Trade Datsyuk and Zetterberg. And pretend they never played in Detroit.

Rebuild. Properly.

Howard is the only reason this team isn't in 29th.

 

[19 for president]

Lets see...

1. Do not resign most of our UFAs. Flip is not worth what he wants, Cleary is done, Miller/White are replaceable. Offer Brunner 2.5 a year for 2 years. if he accepts great, if he doesn't well he hasn't proven enough to get more.

2. If we can only use compliant buyouts next season I buy out Z and Quincey. Z is not an elite player anymore and it is only going to get worse. He will be eating up 6 mil of cap space until kingdom come and the Wings simply cannot afford the cap hit in the later years. The cap circumvention deals were great pre-lockout now they are horrid. This will hurt in the short term but in the long term it will be good for the team. Quincey is just useless on this roster.

3. Resign Nyquist (1.25), Smith (1.25), Kindl (2.5), Anderson (1) and recall Tatar

4. Sign Weis for 4 years at 5 mil and Horton at 4 years for 5mil, sign Regher or Scuderi for 4 mil or less for a short term deal.

5. Trade Cola and Eaves as they are redundant parts on this roster.

CAPGEEK.COM USER GENERATED ROSTER
My Custom Lineup
FORWARDS
Johan Franzen ($3.955m) / Pavel Datsyuk ($6.700m) / Gustav Nyquist ($1.250m)
Mikael Samuelsson ($3.000m) / Stephen Weiss ($5.000m) / Nathan Horton ($5.000m)
Tomas Tatar ($0.840m) / Joakim Andersson ($1.000m) / Damien Brunner ($2.500m)
Justin Abdelkader ($1.800m) / Darren Helm ($2.125m) / Jordin Tootoo ($1.900m)
Cory Emmerton ($0.533m) / Todd Bertuzzi ($2.075m)
DEFENSEMEN
Niklas Kronwall ($4.750m) / Robyn Regehr ($4.020m)
Danny DeKeyser ($1.350m) / Jakub Kindl ($2.500m)
Brendan Smith ($1.250m) / Jonathan Ericsson ($3.250m)
Brian Lashoff ($0.725m) /
GOALTENDERS
Jimmy Howard ($5.292m)
Jonas Gustavsson ($1.500m)
OTHER
Buyout: Henrik Zetterberg ($0.000m)
Buyout: Kyle Quincey ($0.000m)
RETAINED SALARY TRANSACTIONS (0.060% of upper limit)
Carlo Colaiacovo ($0.025m—1.0%) Patrick Eaves ($0.012m—1.0%)
------
CAPGEEK.COM TOTALS (follow @capgeek on Twitter)
(these totals are compiled with the bonus cushion)
SALARY CAP: $62,000,000; CAP PAYROLL: $62,351,545; BONUSES: $1,010,000
CAP SPACE (25-man roster): $658,455

I don't really think that Horton is a 5 mil player but I think that's what he'll get as a UFA. Weis is about a 5 mil guy.

Offense

We have two top 6 centers that are good two way guys and that are good in the faceoff circles with Dats and Weis. We have two big body wingers in Franzen and Horton. Nyquist gets his top 6 spot with Dats, and Tatar gets a full time roster spot. He could take Sammys spot on the 2nd line but I'll leave him as a third liner for now. Whomever plays better Tatar, Sammy, or Brunner gets the 2nd line winger spot. Anderson is our big 3rd line shut down center and a hopefully healthy Helm is back for extended 4th line duties. I think Bert will end up on the LTIR but his cap space fits for now. Emmerton is the backup forward because he has a great cap hit and he is a good insurance policy for Helm. This also sets us up nicely cap wise for the following season when both Bert and Sammy are gone.

Defense
The motto for this off season should be get Kronner a defensive partner. E has done a great job but isn't a true defensive dman. Kronner needs a guy that will allow him to roam and can cover for some of his defensive gaffs and hits. Quincey, Cola, and White are gone, which on the whole is a plus for this defense. I would target Rehgher or Scuderi in terms of UFAs but I'd also look to trade in order to get a younger one if possible. Danny and Smith are both full time, and Smith gets a more reliable partner so that he can grow his offensive game. Open to switching E and Smith if the 2nd year guys struggle.

Goalie
Howie is number 1, Gus is the backup unless Mrzaek forces him out.

Overall I'd be very sad to see Z go but I think long term his contract is going to kill the Wings. I only keep Franzen over him because I think his deal is much more tradeable/ long term cap hit is more reasonable. A secondary scorer at 4 mil is ok, at 6 mil that's rough, especially when the player is constantly nagged by injuries. The team has a good sized blueline with a little more offensive vs defensive balance. We added some size to the top 6, let the kids play and develop (and hopefully get some more scoring through the lineup thanks to that development), and cut some bottom line junk that has been hanging around for a few seasons.

 

[VladTheImpaler]

Lets see...

1. Do not resign most of our UFAs. Flip is not worth what he wants, Cleary is done, Miller/White are replaceable. Offer Brunner 2.5 a year for 2 years. if he accepts great, if he doesn't well he hasn't proven enough to get more.

2. If we can only use compliant buyouts next season I buy out Z and Quincey. Z is not an elite player anymore and it is only going to get worse. He will be eating up 6 mil of cap space until kingdom come and the Wings simply cannot afford the cap hit in the later years. The cap circumvention deals were great pre-lockout now they are horrid. This will hurt in the short term but in the long term it will be good for the team. Quincey is just useless on this roster.

3. Resign Nyquist (1.25), Smith (1.25), Kindl (2.5), Anderson (1) and recall Tatar

4. Sign Weis for 4 years at 5 mil and Horton at 4 years for 5mil, sign Regher or Scuderi for 4 mil or less for a short term deal.

5. Trade Cola and Eaves as they are redundant parts on this roster.

CAPGEEK.COM USER GENERATED ROSTER
My Custom Lineup
FORWARDS
Johan Franzen ($3.955m) / Pavel Datsyuk ($6.700m) / Gustav Nyquist ($1.250m)
Mikael Samuelsson ($3.000m) / Stephen Weiss ($5.000m) / Nathan Horton ($5.000m)
Tomas Tatar ($0.840m) / Joakim Andersson ($1.000m) / Damien Brunner ($2.500m)
Justin Abdelkader ($1.800m) / Darren Helm ($2.125m) / Jordin Tootoo ($1.900m)
Cory Emmerton ($0.533m) / Todd Bertuzzi ($2.075m)
DEFENSEMEN
Niklas Kronwall ($4.750m) / Robyn Regehr ($4.020m)
Danny DeKeyser ($1.350m) / Jakub Kindl ($2.500m)
Brendan Smith ($1.250m) / Jonathan Ericsson ($3.250m)
Brian Lashoff ($0.725m) /
GOALTENDERS
Jimmy Howard ($5.292m)
Jonas Gustavsson ($1.500m)
OTHER
Buyout: Henrik Zetterberg ($0.000m)
Buyout: Kyle Quincey ($0.000m)
RETAINED SALARY TRANSACTIONS (0.060% of upper limit)
Carlo Colaiacovo ($0.025m—1.0%) Patrick Eaves ($0.012m—1.0%)
------
CAPGEEK.COM TOTALS (follow @capgeek on Twitter)
(these totals are compiled with the bonus cushion)
SALARY CAP: $62,000,000; CAP PAYROLL: $62,351,545; BONUSES: $1,010,000
CAP SPACE (25-man roster): $658,455

I don't really think that Horton is a 5 mil player but I think that's what he'll get as a UFA. Weis is about a 5 mil guy.

Offense

We have two top 6 centers that are good two way guys and that are good in the faceoff circles with Dats and Weis. We have two big body wingers in Franzen and Horton. Nyquist gets his top 6 spot with Dats, and Tatar gets a full time roster spot. He could take Sammys spot on the 2nd line but I'll leave him as a third liner for now. Whomever plays better Tatar, Sammy, or Brunner gets the 2nd line winger spot. Anderson is our big 3rd line shut down center and a hopefully healthy Helm is back for extended 4th line duties. I think Bert will end up on the LTIR but his cap space fits for now. Emmerton is the backup forward because he has a great cap hit and he is a good insurance policy for Helm. This also sets us up nicely cap wise for the following season when both Bert and Sammy are gone.

Defense
The motto for this off season should be get Kronner a defensive partner. E has done a great job but isn't a true defensive dman. Kronner needs a guy that will allow him to roam and can cover for some of his defensive gaffs and hits. Quincey, Cola, and White are gone, which on the whole is a plus for this defense. I would target Rehgher or Scuderi in terms of UFAs but I'd also look to trade in order to get a younger one if possible. Danny and Smith are both full time, and Smith gets a more reliable partner so that he can grow his offensive game. Open to switching E and Smith if the 2nd year guys struggle.

Goalie
Howie is number 1, Gus is the backup unless Mrzaek forces him out.

Overall I'd be very sad to see Z go but I think long term his contract is going to kill the Wings. I only keep Franzen over him because I think his deal is much more tradeable/ long term cap hit is more reasonable. A secondary scorer at 4 mil is ok, at 6 mil that's rough, especially when the player is constantly nagged by injuries. The team has a good sized blueline with a little more offensive vs defensive balance. We added some size to the top 6, let the kids play and develop (and hopefully get some more scoring through the lineup thanks to that development), and cut some bottom line junk that has been hanging around for a few seasons.

Brutal. Z may not be a top-10 player in the league anymore, but he still one of the best centers in the world and will put up 65-80 pts for the next 3-4 years at least. Not to mention he is the captain of the team and that there is no guarantee Pav sticks around after the 2013-2014 season.

 

[Number1RedWingsFan52]

Kronwall + # 12(1st) for Yakupov and a 2nd rounder.

Understand Kronwall has a full NTC for 4 years he cant be moved, What is it that Wing fans wanting to trade Kronwall so bad.

 

[Xvash2]

This was supposed to be a realistic movement thread. Kronwall + a first for the Yak + a 2nd and suggesting we buy out Zetterberg isn't exactly realistic.

 

[19 for president]

Brutal. Z may not be a top-10 player in the league anymore, but he still one of the best centers in the world and will put up 65-80 pts for the next 3-4 years at least. Not to mention he is the captain of the team and that there is no guarantee Pav sticks around after the 2013-2014 season.

Right now I'd say Z is probably top 15 in the league center wise and worth his 6 mil cap hit. I disagree on the pts number, especially if Dats retires. If Z is the main offensive threat on a team he gets eliminated very quickly, because he is about a step and half slower than he used to be, which wasn't fast to begin with. In the past 3 seasons I can think of about 10 games where Z just completely dominated. Dats will be lucky if he puts up a true PPG pace over the next 3 years, and of the two he is the much more dominant offensive player.

Now if Z were still playing Selke level defense then I could still take a 6 mil 65 Pt, selke center. But at this point he doesn't play Selke lvl D like he used to either. And if the wheels continue to go, like they have been, then he likely won't be playing as a center much longer either. So is a above average two way 65 point winger worth 6 mil? Some may say yes, and I'd lean towards yes myself.

The issue is that his contract is for 8 more years. If he makes it relatively injury free for the next 4 years, the Wings will be lucky. And I'm not just talking about games lost, because Z often gets nagging injuries that greatly limit his effectiveness but which he plays through. Is 4 years of an above average 65 point two way winger worth 4 years of a 6 mil anchor on your 3rd or 4th line? I'd say no because if these young guys develop as we hope they do, the Wings will need that space to sign them. And it is only if the Wings have these young guys develop that we will compete for a cup in the near future. If Z were signed for 4 or 5 more year I wouldn't even consider buying him out, but when they closed the loophole for these lifetime contracts they became a major issue for teams. Especially now that players are getting big time contracts early on in their RFA years.

**on a side note if the Wings can buyout someone the following summer, I'd wait until then to buy out one of Z or Franzen.

 

[19 for president]

This was supposed to be a realistic movement thread. Kronwall + a first for the Yak + a 2nd and suggesting we buy out Zetterberg isn't exactly realistic.

The trade is not realistic because the Oilers would never accept it unless we had a lottery pick. The Zetterberg buyout is only unrealistic if you are looking at it from a Holland POV... as he is so loathe to move personel. The Wings could very realistically buy out Zetterberg... in that they have bought out players in the past (Hatcher, Whitney, and Mac) and that it is a move the solely requires an organization decision. What I think the Wings should do based on his stipulations and what Holland would do are likely very different.

 

[LeighDx59]

• Buyout Mikael Samuelsson
• Buyout Kyle Quincey
• Trade Patrick Eaves for picks
• Trade Carlo Colaiacovo for picks
• Recall Tomas Tatar
• Re-sign Gustav Nyquist to a two year contract (1.3m per)
• Re-sign Brendan Smith to a two year contract (2.0m per)
• Re-sign Jakub Kindl to a three year contract (2.7 per)
• Re-sign Damien Brunner to a two year contract (2.5m per)
• Re-sign Joakim Andersson to a two year contract (1.0m per)
• Sign Stephan Weiss to a two/three year contract (4.3m per)
• Sign Mark Streit to a two year contract (4.5m per)
• Sign David Clarkson to a two year contract (3.8m per)

May not be the best lineup but it's stronger then what we have now. This obviously would depend on whoever is available come FA-day. And Clarkson could be interchangable with Simon Gagne or Clark MacArthur. Streit would be our anchor defensman and would hopefully help mentor Smith, DeKeyser and Lashoff as well as help Kronwall, Kindl and Ericsson.


FORWARDS
Henrik Zetterberg ($6.083m) / Pavel Datsyuk ($6.700m) / Johan Franzen ($3.955m)
David Clarkson ($3.800m) / Stephen Weiss ($4.300m) / Todd Bertuzzi ($2.075m)
Damien Brunner ($2.500m) / Joakim Andersson ($1.000m) / Gustav Nyquist ($1.300m)
Tomas Tatar ($0.840m) / Darren Helm ($2.125m) / Justin Abdelkader ($1.800m)
Jordin Tootoo ($1.900m) / Cory Emmerton ($0.533m) /
DEFENSEMEN
Mark Streit ($4.500m) / Niklas Kronwall ($4.750m)
Jonathan Ericsson ($3.250m) / Jakub Kindl ($2.700m)
Danny DeKeyser ($1.350m) / Brendan Smith ($2.000m)
Brian Lashoff ($0.725m) /
GOALTENDERS
Jimmy Howard ($5.292m)
Jonas Gustavsson ($1.500m)

CAPGEEK.COM TOTALS (follow @capgeek on Twitter)
(these totals are compiled with the bonus cushion)
SALARY CAP: $64,300,000; CAP PAYROLL: $65,014,879; BONUSES: $1,010,000
CAP SPACE (25-man roster): $295,121

 

[Motown Beatdown]

Not sure about the Horton love fest. I dont like signing guys long term with a concussion history like his. Everyone in Boston was holding their breath yesterday when he dropped his gloves with Ignila afraid he'd be re-concussed. I'd rather go after Ryder instead

 

[InjuredChoker]

 

[kerjuxaxaxa]

why does he always need to mention LA last year run as an example that anything can happen in playoffs?....

 

[Run the Jewels]

Good interview. I've been critical of a few decisions as most here know but these were the interesting things I took from the interview.

1. He doesn't expect Jurco, Tatar etc to be stars, just solid NHL players.
2. Considers a goalie's prime years to be 27-32 or 33.
3. We are only a couple wins from being in the middle of the pack of 8.
4. Defense has been good lately limiting shots on goal.

If Jurco, Tatar, Nyquist, Jarnkrok are not going to be high level forwards it will be interesting to see how he tries to address the complete lack of scoring.

 

[GT500x]

I believe he will be counting on free agency because he said he won't trade away prospects. I also believe that he's fine with being mediocre every year because all you have to do is get into the playoffs to have a shot at the cup.

 

[detredWINgs]

I'm all for "bold" moves, but some of you guys are completely ignoring the business side of things.

No team is going to trade a bunch of crap for the #1 overall pick. No one.

Mike Illitch is not going to sign off on buying out Jordin Tootoo and his $1.9M. You don't burn money on a contract that is nowhere near an albatross.

Buying out Quincey? Look around the league at what second-pairing defenseman make. Look at some of the ugly contracts that have been moved over the years. You could easily find a taker for that contract without buying him out.

Then buying out Zetterberg? Are you insane? That's brand suicide. With Datsyuk possibly leaving, Zetterberg will be the Red Wings ONLY marketable name remaining for the time being. There are many more casual fans than fans like us, and it'll be a few years before those fans realize Zetterberg isn't a superstar anymore. No to mention, the gap between a 70 point center and anything less is a big one.

 

[DatsyukToZetterberg]

• 
  
  House keeping issues
• Re-sign Andersson to a 2 year 1.575M contract (787,500 cap hit)
• Re-sign Nyquist to a 3 year 5.25M contract (1.75M cap hit)
• Re-sign Kindl to a 2 year 3.0M contract (1.50M cap hit)
• Re-sign Smith to a 3 year 5M contract (1,666,667M cap hit)
• Re-Sign Brunner to a 2 year 5.50M contract (2.75M cap hit)
• Buyouts used on CC & Eaves (And we could keep Eaves around I just want to have Tatar in the lineup)
• Let all other UFAs walk
  
  UFA Signings
  
• Sign Roy to a 4 year 22.6M contract (5.65M cap hit)
• If Roy was signed go after Weiss. Sign Weiss to a 4 year 20.8M contact (5.2M cap hit)

FORWARDS
Henrik Zetterberg ($6.083m) / Pavel Datsyuk ($6.700m) / Damien Brunner ($2.500m)
Gustav Nyquist ($1.750m) / Johan Franzen ($3.955m) / Mikael Samuelsson ($3.000m)
Todd Bertuzzi ($2.075m) / Derek Roy ($5.650m) / Tomas Tatar ($0.840m)
Jordin Tootoo ($1.900m) / Darren Helm ($2.125m) / Justin Abdelkader ($1.800m)
Cory Emmerton ($0.533m) / Joakim Andersson ($0.788m) /
DEFENSEMEN
Niklas Kronwall ($4.750m) / Jonathan Ericsson ($3.250m)
Jakub Kindl ($1.500m) / Danny DeKeyser ($1.350m)
Kyle Quincey ($3.775m) / Brendan Smith ($1.667m)
Brian Lashoff ($0.725m) /
GOALTENDERS
Jimmy Howard ($5.292m)
Jonas Gustavsson ($1.500m)
OTHER
Buyout: Carlo Colaiacovo ($0.000m)
Buyout: Patrick Eaves ($0.000m)
------
CAPGEEK.COM TOTALS (follow @capgeek on Twitter)
(these totals are compiled with the bonus cushion)
SALARY CAP: $64,300,000; CAP PAYROLL: $63,507,046; BONUSES: $1,010,000
CAP SPACE (23-man roster): $1,802,954

I felt it was more important to address our need for another scoring forward then to go out and overpay for a dman we don't need like Streit. I think with Smith & Kindl having a "full" year under their belts and Kronwall getting used to being our #1 dman we'll have a much better year from our defence. The forwards you can switch around, mix & match but moving to the East I think being able to roll 3 scoring line will greatly help us. Also having 3 scoring lines was the only way I could get Tatar into the lineup.

I think Clarkson re-signs in NJ, he loves that place too much to leave, Horton is to much of a risk and I'd rather Roy at 5.65 then Horton at 5M+. Weiss is a good 2nd option to Roy but I really like Roy's game and I think he'd be a great fit here.

 

[Frk It]

DEFENSEMEN
Mark Streit ($4.500m) / Niklas Kronwall ($4.750m)
Jonathan Ericsson ($3.250m) / Jakub Kindl ($2.700m)
Danny DeKeyser ($1.350m) / Brendan Smith ($2.000m)
Brian Lashoff ($0.725m) /
GOALTENDERS
Jimmy Howard ($5.292m)
Jonas Gustavsson ($1.500m)

That pairing might go about -30 over 82 games

 

[RedWingzz]

Alex Pietrangelo offer sheet?? 6 years, 42 million.

 

[DatsyukToZetterberg]

Alex Pietrangelo offer sheet?? 6 years, 42 million.

Blues match and say thanks for the easy contract. I think we'd have to go to around 8-9M before they consider not matching, so 4 1sts for AP. I'm honestly not sure if I'd do it. We're already having trouble scoring and Holland said that you build through the draft, kinda hard to do that without picks for almost half a decade. On the other hand you get a top 5 dman for the next 6 or 7 years and your defence is set. If we had a stud can't miss prospect I'd do it in a heart beat but even with someone like AP we could still end up in the bottom 10 if we lose Datsyuk and we don't hit a home run with one of our prospects.

 

[RedWingzz]

Blues match and say thanks for the easy contract. I think we'd have to go to around 8-9M before they consider not matching, so 4 1sts for AP. I'm honestly not sure if I'd do it. We're already having trouble scoring and Holland said that you build through the draft, kinda hard to do that without picks for almost half a decade. On the other hand you get a top 5 dman for the next 6 or 7 years and your defence is set. If we had a stud can't miss prospect I'd do it in a heart beat but even with someone like AP we could still end up in the bottom 10 if we lose Datsyuk and we don't hit a home run with one of our prospects.

Ya but the Blues have 4 key RFAs. So if we did this and they matched, toss Shattenkirk an offer sheet and see what happens. I know none of this will ever happen, Holland is too scared to do anything, but one can only dream.

I am almost convinced Jarnkrok is a can't miss prospect. He's gonna be a great player in the NHL in the future. With Jarnkrok, Nyquist, Tatar, Frk, Jurco we have some extremely skilled and talemnted offensive prospects that should develop into regular NHLers, if our organization would just give them a legitimate chance. But ya giving up 4 first rounders would be a steep price to pay, but I'd do it for Pietrangelo. The guy is unreal.

 

[InjuredChoker]

Holland wouldn't offer sheet anyone.