Around The NHL Discussion 2021-22 Part II

[BlueOil]

 

[BlueDream]

Lol preseason superstar Sammy Blais. The only consistent thing about him.

 

[Thallis]

Wish nothing but the best for Blais and hope he becomes a great 3rd liner. Also no trade backsies on Buch.

 

[Davimir Tarablad]

Lol preseason superstar Sammy Blais. The only consistent thing about him.

I'd say he's also just as consistent at finding himself on the shelf with a random injury

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

That made me happy. I wish Blais nothing but success with the Rangers.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Did Evander Kane really submit a fake vaccination card? Can this guy get out of his own way? Seems like a lifetime ago I was giving my daughter the Kane bobblehead I got attending a road game in San Jose, of Kane and his chihuahua. She still loves it, but oi!

 

[izzy]

blais is going to f***ing kill it this year i feel it

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Also, no matter how much grumpiness shows up on this forum, or complaints about roster moves, etc. Can we just join hands, sing Kumbaya and thank our stars that we're not Sabres fans? I'd much rather be a Coyotes fan today than Sabres. They've been suffering a long time, and this season's most exciting hope for them is that they might win the lottery...again.

 

[ChicagoBlues]

Jah mahn! Pass the dutchie

 

[ChicagoBlues]

@TheDizee @Xerloris
I mean it's not exactly like the Wings are overwhelmed with viable options... Look at their candidates below.

I'm just listing league experience/age as a cursory data point because I don't know the candidates well...

Larkin "C" 25, 433gp for reference.

Fabbri 25, 246gp - 30 playoff games.

Vrana 25, 295gp - 38 playoff games (cup 2018 w/ Washington). On LTIR, to be reassessed in February.
Bertuzzi 26, 206gp - 0 playoff games. Also un-vaccinated, unable to play games in Canada.
Suter 25, 55gp - 0 playoff games
Erne 26, 215gp - 3 playoff games.
Namestnikov 28, 478gp - 41 playoff games.
Gagner 32, 886gp - 11 playoff games.
Rowney 32, 223gp - 23 playoff games (2017 cup w/ Pittsburgh)

Leddy 30, 776gp - 121 playoff games (2013 cup w/ Chicago)
DeKeyser 31, 448gp - 19 playoff games
Staal 34, 948gp - 107 playoff games
Stetcher 27, 330gp - 17 playoff games
Oesterle 29, 252gp - 9 playoff games.

Notice Fabbri is the 4th forward in NHL games played, counting Larkin, their captain? Fabbri is also 9th in games played among their skaters.

I'd suggest that among skaters on the Wings - only Staal, Leddy, Vrana and debatably Namestnikov should get considered for "A" over Fabbri. Staal isn't likely around for long (much like the omitted Gagner). Vrana is going to miss the next 4 months. Namestnikov has bounced around 4 teams between 2019-20 & 2020-21.

So Fabbri and Leddy seem like the obvious choices, assuming that the organization tries to maintain some continuity amongst their "veteran" players, as I expect both will be offered extensions of some sort with the majority of Wings being RFAs/UFAs this summer. It should be noted Vrana is the only one under contract for next season of the "veteran" Detroit players.

They have only four Stanley Cup winners?

 

[ChicagoBlues]

Lol preseason superstar Sammy Blais. The only consistent thing about him.

Bah humbug!

Blais is exactly the type of player that I love. One of the few that I latch onto after they’re drafted.

It takes me a while to warm up to newly drafted players. But not with Blais.

 

[illinidave]

Hope Carey Price gets better. Also, now Eichel to Habs Eklund E4

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Just like that Allen is the starter for Montreal. I think he'll probably hold down the fort reasonably well. I wish him luck in any game not against St Louis.

 

[Reality Czech]

Just like that Allen is the starter for Montreal. I think he'll probably hold down the fort reasonably well. I wish him luck in any game not against St Louis.

He was a recent guest on the Cam and Strick podcast. Super nice guy, great interview and I wish him the best.

 

[BlueOil]

 

[Bye Bye Blueston]

So odd. His only skill was his shot.

 

[Moose and Squirrel]

So odd. His only skill was his shot.

yeah... caught a game or 2 of theirs last year and I believe he was a 3rd line winger.. and a pretty invisible one at that

guess if ya got size ya keep getting chances

 

[rumrokh]

I remember several years ago, when Tage was at a Blues prospects camp, and he was stifling in the neutral zone. Used his wingspan to get his stick on pucks and create turnovers. Looked like center was a real possibility. Unfortunately, that type of impact didn't transfer to higher levels as everybody else got bigger and faster. Maybe it'll work out for them if he has improved his skating, but I won't hold my breath.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

I don’t think you ‘announce’ moving a guy to center unless you are trying to pump his tires and give him confidence.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

Am I the only one who doesn't want anything to do with Eichel right now? Best case scenario he's going to miss basically 2 seasons and have spinal surgery. I'd be pretty disappointed to see my GM pay a premium for a guy in that situation. I'm curious what the market is really like for him right now. What a mess.

 

[Thallis]

Am I the only one who doesn't want anything to do with Eichel right now? Best case scenario he's going to miss basically 2 seasons and have spinal surgery. I'd be pretty disappointed to see my GM pay a premium for a guy in that situation. I'm curious what the market is really like for him right now. What a mess.

2 seasons? The surgery he wants should have him ready for next season comfortably. The reason his agent put the screws on in the summer was because they expected to be ready for this year. There's risk, but he'd more than likely be instantly our best player by a fair margin.

Edit: Realizing you mean last season and this one.

 

[Stupendous Yappi]

2 seasons? The surgery he wants should have him ready for next season comfortably. The reason his agent put the screws on in the summer was because they expected to be ready for this year. There's risk, but he'd more than likely be instantly our best player by a fair margin.

Edit: Realizing you mean last season and this one.

He’s already missed most of one season.

 

[Davimir Tarablad]

 

[Davimir Tarablad]

Am I the only one who doesn't want anything to do with Eichel right now? Best case scenario he's going to miss basically 2 seasons and have spinal surgery. I'd be pretty disappointed to see my GM pay a premium for a guy in that situation. I'm curious what the market is really like for him right now. What a mess.

I have a feeling that the Eichel trade will potentially have the most conditions of any trade ever made. I’d personally have a hard time giving up any worthwhile asset that isn’t a pick. And even then, I’d want conditions on the picks sent. There’s so many question marks between his surgery, whether or not delaying the surgery further damaged his neck, and a massive layoff games played.

I think he’d be our best player if he’s completely healthy, but he could also just be a giant sinkhole of money.

 

[ezcreepin]

I understand that under contract, you can't do certain things or have certain surgeries without the consent of your employer, but Buffalo is ruining this guy's career and life. He wants spinal surgery, let him do it, because he's the only one walking around in that body and should get a say in how he handles this situation. Just trade the dude and let him live his life