Trade Deadline: What To Do?
So Monday's the big day; the NHL trade deadline. At one point in my Red Wings fandom, it was like Christmas. Who was going to be sitting under the tree? Chris Chelios? Larry Murphy? Mathieu Schneider?
But since Gary's lockout, Christmas has been a little more like Chanukah-instead of the XBOX 360 your buddy got, all we have to look forward to is a stupid Dreidel. So rather than picking up Chelios, we got Kyle Calder. Instead of Larry Murphy, we got freaking Cory Cross (yeah, I forgot about him too.) Hell, last year we were sellers. So the excitement has really wained the past few years.
This year appears to be no different. Our deadline pickup is likely going to be Mikey Mo...which sorta feels like your mom buying you a crappy sweatshirt at the beginning of the year, wearing it to school for a few months and then for Christmas opening up your only present to find the dirty piece of cotton staring you in the face. Thanks Mom.
Certainly our closet is full. I like our team a lot and think it could walk to the Cup if everyone plays to their potential. But our rivals have been improving. Chicago picked up Frolik. San Jose picked up White. Dallas picked up Goligoski (but gave up Neal, so that's perhaps a minus.)
Do we need to do anything? I'm hesitant to mess with this core. I like our forwards. I don't think we need anything there. I love our top five at the backend and actually am an Ericsson supporter. And I'm good to go with our goaltending, provided Osgood is back at the level he left at.
So if we did anything, it'd be one of two things: A seventh D in case of injury, or, perhaps, another goaltender. Osgood coming back at the level he left at is a risk I'm not sure is worth taking. If they could get a decent tender who'd be willing to play in the AHL at a discount price, I'd be ok with that (I'd love to see Jonas Gustavsson in the Winged Wheel, but that's not going to happen.) It's a stretch.
So I'd be ok if Modano is our only move, but I'd like to hear your ideas. Do we need to do anything?
Updated 6:46: What about Craig Rivet? He'd be a veteran presence that I'd trust over Kindl in case of an injury.
But since Gary's lockout, Christmas has been a little more like Chanukah-instead of the XBOX 360 your buddy got, all we have to look forward to is a stupid Dreidel. So rather than picking up Chelios, we got Kyle Calder. Instead of Larry Murphy, we got freaking Cory Cross (yeah, I forgot about him too.) Hell, last year we were sellers. So the excitement has really wained the past few years. This year appears to be no different. Our deadline pickup is likely going to be Mikey Mo...which sorta feels like your mom buying you a crappy sweatshirt at the beginning of the year, wearing it to school for a few months and then for Christmas opening up your only present to find the dirty piece of cotton staring you in the face. Thanks Mom.
Certainly our closet is full. I like our team a lot and think it could walk to the Cup if everyone plays to their potential. But our rivals have been improving. Chicago picked up Frolik. San Jose picked up White. Dallas picked up Goligoski (but gave up Neal, so that's perhaps a minus.)
Do we need to do anything? I'm hesitant to mess with this core. I like our forwards. I don't think we need anything there. I love our top five at the backend and actually am an Ericsson supporter. And I'm good to go with our goaltending, provided Osgood is back at the level he left at.
So if we did anything, it'd be one of two things: A seventh D in case of injury, or, perhaps, another goaltender. Osgood coming back at the level he left at is a risk I'm not sure is worth taking. If they could get a decent tender who'd be willing to play in the AHL at a discount price, I'd be ok with that (I'd love to see Jonas Gustavsson in the Winged Wheel, but that's not going to happen.) It's a stretch.
So I'd be ok if Modano is our only move, but I'd like to hear your ideas. Do we need to do anything?
Updated 6:46: What about Craig Rivet? He'd be a veteran presence that I'd trust over Kindl in case of an injury.
