Dougie knows best...

[Likewall32]

White proving to be perfect for Detroit's 'D'

Friday, 10.21.2011 / 11:17 AM / In The Spotlight

By Brian Hedger - NHL.com Correspondent

DETROIT -- After Brian Rafalski's unexpected retirement last spring, there were some who thought the Detroit Red Wings would be big spenders in free agency to help replace him.

Rafalski's departure not only left a gaping hole in Detroit's roster, but it also freed up about $5 million in cap space under the NHL's hard salary cap. Surely the free-spending Red Wings -- a team that prior to the salary cap was thought of as hockey's New York Yankees -- would spend big on July 1, the first day of free agency.

It didn't happen, though. Instead, July 1 came and went without Red Wings general manager Ken Holland making any real noise. He didn't go after any of the bigger-named unrestricted free-agent defensemen and hadn't pulled off any trades for high-priced stars or restricted free agents.

What he did do on July 2 was sign 27-year old two-way defenseman Ian White away from the San Jose Sharks -- the team that ended Detroit's season in the seventh game of a classic Western Conference semifinal series last spring.

Several months later, both White and the Wings are happy it worked out the way it did. White is off to a great start (2 goals, 1 assist) paired alongside legendary Wings captain Nicklas Lidstrom heading into Friday night's game at Joe Louis Arena against the Columbus Blue Jackets (7 p.m. ET).

"(White's) done a good job for us," Red Wings coach Mike Babcock said after Thursday's practice. "Rafalski is a star. Let's not take that away from Raffy. Whitey's a different type of player, but he's been a good player for us and we're early in the process. I mean, we're always interested in the best players we can acquire and try to make a pitch for the ones we think can help us long-term. Whitey's been able to fit in."

That last part was a big reason White landed in Detroit after playing last season for the Calgary Flames, Carolina Hurricanes and Sharks. He was a good fit for several reasons, including his right-hand shot, tenacity in the defensive zone and familiarity with Babcock's system after playing for Todd McLellan -- a former Red Wings assistant -- in his stint with San Jose.

It was also a great fit from White's perspective, despite reports that he initially wanted to return to the Sharks. After San Jose made a pair of splashy trades with the Minnesota Wild -- including one on the first day of the 2011 Entry Draft to acquire star defenseman Brent Burns -- it became clear White was likely headed elsewhere.

That destination became the Motor City, and White couldn't be much happier about it.

"You weigh a few options (as a free agent), but in the end, this team is one of the best," White said. "I just jumped at the opportunity to be a part of it."

Holland felt the same way, and later added veteran Mike Commodore as a free agent after giving 27-year old Jonathan Ericsson a contract extension just before free agency opened. As it's turned out, those moves are looking good early in the 2011-12 season. Even better, the Red Wings still have a nice chunk of cap space to use for either a trade or next summer's free agency period.

ALL IN THE SPOTLIGHT STORIES ›
As for White, who signed a two-year deal worth a reported $2.875 million per season, being back with an Original Six team and playing alongside Lidstrom has been quite a trip.

"These (Original Six) organizations go back many years and there's so much history," said White, who was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the sixth round of the 2002 draft (No. 191) and played five seasons there. "It's great to be a part of it (again). Any time you get a chance to play against (the Red Wings), you get to see how good they are … and now getting an opportunity to be a part of it is something special."

It was also a little odd when White walked into the Wings' locker room for the first time and saw familiar faces that he'd helped give an early summer vacation to just a few months before.

"It's funny how the business works sometimes," White said. "Sworn enemies last year and now you get a chance to be with the good guys this time. It was a pretty clean (series) for me, though. I didn't get too chippy with anyone. It's been a real smooth transition."

White's right-hand shot goes well with Lidstrom's lefty shot, especially when passing along the blue line. The linemates are currently the two points on Detroit's top power-play unit. White's two-way abilities have not gone unnoticed by the 41-year-old reigning Norris Trophy winner.

"We saw what he could do last year, especially when he was with the Sharks in the playoffs," Lidstrom said. "He's a guy who can move the puck on the power play, he's aggressive in his own zone … but he can also jump up into the play and be an offensive threat. It takes some time to get to know one another, but it's been a smooth transition for both of us."

 

[MrChangoT97]

I thought u were going to say "Doug is a dream KILLER!"

Cuz so far this team he built is a BONEHEAD move.

 

[Likewall32]

I thought u were going to say "Doug is a dream KILLER!"

Cuz so far this team he built is a BONEHEAD move.

LMAO I know Chango... the sarcasim was intended for all the posters that praised Dougies offseason moves...

 

[filosofy29]

Yup, he should have brought back, Friesen, Nolan, Cheechoo and Vernon.

I love how you can dump on the team after 5 games and at the same time tell the rest of us not to get too excited over 1 game.....I'm starting to think you just like to troll.

 

[Cbrower91]

Yeah Dany Heatley with the game winning slashing penalty for the Cannucks he is awesome!!!

 

[Likewall32]

Yup, he should have brought back, Friesen, Nolan, Cheechoo and Vernon.

I love how you can dump on the team after 5 games and at the same time tell the rest of us not to get too excited over 1 game.....I'm starting to think you just like to troll.

Dumping on the team and saying not get to excited are the same thing, you act like I changed my opinion of the team from day to day like most people here do when they bag on players/team during gameday threads with a bipolar view of them... This team blows, marleau (or insert any player you choose) is a joke, trade him he sucks blah blah. OMG WHAT A GOAL BY MARLEAU! SHARKSS WIN WHAT A GREAT GAME MARLEAU IS INCREDIBLE!!

Thats basically every game day thread in a nutshell, you can change marleau for whatever player you like, it makes no difference its bipolar shit & bipolar shit... So if you think my opinions are trolling, then maybe you should look at the whole board and open your eyes alittle..

Ive said it time & again, if you dont like my opinions bout Niemi, the trades, Nabokov etc. BLOCK me or dont read my posts, its not that hard man.

And while im trolling you dumbass, the bring back blah blah blah thing is getting stale. cause if you look at my thread bout what dougie shoulda did in the offseason, I didnt make a big stink bout nolan etc. There were plenty of more practicle options. like DUHHHH resign White and dont trade seto, coyle & 1st rounder...

 

[Likewall32]

Yeah Dany Heatley with the game winning slashing penalty for the Cannucks he is awesome!!!

I forgot Heatley was the reason SJ lost that series... Must have slipped my mind.

 

[Likewall32]

And PS I never bitched bout the Heatley/Havlet trade. I like Havlet when he's healthy

 

[filosofy29]

Dumping on the team and saying not get to excited are the same thing, you act like I changed my opinion of the team from day to day like most people here do when they bag on players/team during gameday threads with a bipolar view of them... This team blows, marleau (or insert any player you choose) is a joke, trade him he sucks blah blah. OMG WHAT A GOAL BY MARLEAU! SHARKSS WIN WHAT A GREAT GAME MARLEAU IS INCREDIBLE!!

Thats basically every game day thread in a nutshell, you can change marleau for whatever player you like, it makes no difference its bipolar shit & bipolar shit... So if you think my opinions are trolling, then maybe you should look at the whole board and open your eyes alittle..

Ive said it time & again, if you dont like my opinions bout Niemi, the trades, Nabokov etc. BLOCK me or dont read my posts, its not that hard man.

And while im trolling you dumbass, the bring back blah blah blah thing is getting stale. cause if you look at my thread bout what dougie shoulda did in the offseason, I didnt make a big stink bout nolan etc. There were plenty of more practicle options. like DUHHHH resign White and dont trade seto, coyle & 1st rounder...

It's still hypocritical to make fun of others for getting excited about one game and then basing the 82 game season on a 1-3 start. It makes ZERO difference whether you liked the offseason moves or not. I'm not surprised you don't get that though. Our board is bi-polar, just like every other message board. If you don't like it, ignore us or find another board right? Reason I don't mind as much with other posters is because they actually admit when they are wrong once in awhile or when they are caught up in the heat of the game. You're just a broken record whiner.

I've said it time and time again, I'm not a Niemi fan. How many times have we had that conversation??? You just lack reading comprehension and can barely write. Fair enough on the blocking thing though, I'd urge you to do the same as well.

You're just a conspiracy theorist, contrarian who comes to the board and assumes everybody is against him. Instead of having intelligent or respectful discourse, you just put others down immediately unless they insult the Front Office or the Sharks in general. You're either paranoid or dim.....probably both. There's really not much else to say. I get it, you HATE the regulars on this board.....yet you keep coming here day in and day out to let us know you think we're kool-aid drinkers. Get a new shtick man.

 

[Likewall32]

It's still hypocritical to make fun of others for getting excited about one game and then basing the 82 game season on a 1-3 start. It makes ZERO difference whether you liked the offseason moves or not. I'm not surprised you don't get that though. Our board is bi-polar, just like every other message board. If you don't like it, ignore us or find another board right? Reason I don't mind as much with other posters is because they actually admit when they are wrong once in awhile or when they are caught up in the heat of the game. You're just a broken record whiner.

I've said it time and time again, I'm not a Niemi fan. How many times have we had that conversation??? You just lack reading comprehension and can barely write. Fair enough on the blocking thing though, I'd urge you to do the same as well.

You're just a conspiracy theorist, contrarian who comes to the board and assumes everybody is against him. Instead of having intelligent or respectful discourse, you just put others down immediately unless they insult the Front Office or the Sharks in general. You're either paranoid or dim.....probably both. There's really not much else to say. I get it, you HATE the regulars on this board.....yet you keep coming here day in and day out to let us know you think we're kool-aid drinkers. Get a new shtick man.

Ive said it before point out one of my gripes that was wrong.. You havnt, cause their probably isnt one posted here. You point out lack of reading comprehension, yet in your post bring up the nolan frieser etc thing, like thats something I always post bout. And when in the post above did I say your a Niemi fan? Oh wait I didnt, I said if your going to say something, say it bout something I post opinions bout and included Niemi. Again, throwing out reading comprehension when you yourself apparently cant read/understand what I said.
I like your assessment of me to, but im guessing by the looks of it you dont study psychology. I like how you also keep throwing out the word contrarian too, just because my opinion differs on a few said things (mainly Niemi/Nabokov) You act as if I respond to every post with the exact opposite of whats said when again, heres the reading comprehension coming into play again, majority of my posts are about the SAME 3-4 gripes I have, Niemi, Nabokov, the trades (Burns, Seto) the lack of 3rd/4th lines...

So just so you know, heres again, things Ive said that im waiting to be proven wrong on. You can keep a running tab and as ive stated before (like Niemi's one good series in the playoffs) Ill admit wrong (like I did then), until then, dont say I always think Im right cause the only debated things that you could say I was wrong on was Cmon's vs mine opinion on the Eager hit & Niemi shoulda followed the puck on the GWG, and those are different opinions of different peoples view of it:

Prove me wrong (things Ive said):
Niemi wont win this team a cup.
Seto & Heatley will have good years in Minn.
The 3rd & 4th lines BLOW and SJ wont do shit with them.
Handzues is nothing special (I called him a bum).
The blackahwks will finish better then the Sharks.
SJ will be the Hawks of last year barely making the playoffs (with current roster)
Keeping White woulda been better then Burns.

Bookmark it

 

[Cbrower91]

I forgot Heatley was the reason SJ lost that series... Must have slipped my mind.

actually if he scored the sharks might have won,stop being a troll cock moker

 

[Likewall32]

actually if he scored the sharks might have won,stop being a troll cock moker

Its funny that the 2 people calling me a troll are the 2 people that started the shit talking or pointless comments in this thread, like ya 2 have before. Also, wasnt heatley playing with a broken hand, or a still recovering hand? I forgot that hands dont effect passing, stick handling or shooting. Again, silly me what was I thinking

 

[filosofy29]

Ive said it before point out one of my gripes that was wrong.. You havnt, cause their probably isnt one posted here. You point out lack of reading comprehension, yet in your post bring up the nolan frieser etc thing, like thats something I always post bout. And when in the post above did I say your a Niemi fan? Oh wait I didnt, I said if your going to say something, say it bout something I post opinions bout and included Niemi. Again, throwing out reading comprehension when you yourself apparently cant read/understand what I said.
I like your assessment of me to, but im guessing by the looks of it you dont study psychology. I like how you also keep throwing out the word contrarian too, just because my opinion differs on a few said things (mainly Niemi/Nabokov) You act as if I respond to every post with the exact opposite of whats said when again, heres the reading comprehension coming into play again, majority of my posts are about the SAME 3-4 gripes I have, Niemi, Nabokov, the trades (Burns, Seto) the lack of 3rd/4th lines...

So just so you know, heres again, things Ive said that im waiting to be proven wrong on. You can keep a running tab and as ive stated before (like Niemi's one good series in the playoffs) Ill admit wrong (like I did then), until then, dont say I always think Im right cause the only debated things that you could say I was wrong on was Cmon's vs mine opinion on the Eager hit & Niemi shoulda followed the puck on the GWG, and those are different opinions of different peoples view of it:

Prove me wrong (things Ive said):
Niemi wont win this team a cup. (Agreed here, but I hope I'm wrong)
Seto & Heatley will have good years in Minn. (Seto will, Heatley may number wise, but will have his usual crap season due to horrid defense, lack of effort and still get paid $7.5mil)
The 3rd & 4th lines BLOW and SJ wont do shit with them. 4th line is terrible, I'm not upset with 2/3rds of the 3rd line and the Sharks have money for the trade deadline
Handzues is nothing special (I called him a bum). (I believe you're wrong here. From the little I've seen, I've liked what Handzus has done and I think he'll be a solid contributor)
The blackahwks will finish better then the Sharks. (Agree here)
SJ will be the Hawks of last year barely making the playoffs (with current roster) (Disagree here too, they will not barely scrape into 8th on the last day, they'll probably range from 4th to 6th unless someone important gets injured)
Keeping White woulda been better then Burns. (agree and disagree here, if DWil new that White was only going to get $2.85mil on the market, then I'd agree. However, he had no way of knowing that at the time)

Bookmark it

I bring up the Nolan, Friesen, Cheechoo, etc. because a lot of posters on here believe it to be so and you have a propensity for ex-Sharks. Most of it is tongue in cheek. About the Niemi thing, you said "if you" after directly quoting my post. I didn't know you were referring to the "royal we". Hell, most of the time I'm not even sure you write in English, how was I supposed to know you meant everybody by "if you" after quoting my post given that you write in hieroglyphics most of the time? You are a contrarian even if you don't do it to just disagree with everyone else's opinions/posts. When everybody is in a good mood or generally happy, you're there with a bad attitude or snarky comment. You can't even dwell in one good game or make one positive post about the game. You then chastise people for getting all giddy after one game and then go and do the same thing to rip on those people. Although I'll admit, maybe I am wrong in you being a contrarian.....maybe you're just mad all the time and like arguing? I mean, you keep jumping down peoples throats who thought the Sharks had a good offseason when a lot of them have admitted it (i.e. - Rules and SJVP).

As for your thoughts, I've put what I disagree with in red (not saying I'm right, just that I strongly disagree).

Fair enough, since we're compiling information, here's a list of items from this offseason that you can quote me on and call me out later if need be:

- I loved the Zeus signing and still do.
- I loved the Heatley trade for Havlat
- I was on the fence about the Burns deal, somewhat excited, somewhat thought we overpaid.
- I'm not sold on Niemi being a playoff goalie. I think it was the Hawks exceptional team in front of him. I hope I'm wrong.
- I'm not happy with the 4th line, but I think the 3rd line is fine once McGinn and Mitchell are there. The Sharks have enough money to shore that up once the Trade Deadline rolls around.
- I think the Sharks will finish anywhere from 4th to 6th with the currently constructed roster.
-Niemi at this point in his career >>> Nabby. And I like Nabby and am not a fan of Niemi.

I'll give you credit though, your above post is one of the few that is well thought out and articulated. Hopefully that will be a more regular occurrence.

 

[sjrules99]

Ive said it before point out one of my gripes that was wrong.. You havnt, cause their probably isnt one posted here. You point out lack of reading comprehension, yet in your post bring up the nolan frieser etc thing, like thats something I always post bout. And when in the post above did I say your a Niemi fan? Oh wait I didnt, I said if your going to say something, say it bout something I post opinions bout and included Niemi. Again, throwing out reading comprehension when you yourself apparently cant read/understand what I said.
I like your assessment of me to, but im guessing by the looks of it you dont study psychology. I like how you also keep throwing out the word contrarian too, just because my opinion differs on a few said things (mainly Niemi/Nabokov) You act as if I respond to every post with the exact opposite of whats said when again, heres the reading comprehension coming into play again, majority of my posts are about the SAME 3-4 gripes I have, Niemi, Nabokov, the trades (Burns, Seto) the lack of 3rd/4th lines...

So just so you know, heres again, things Ive said that im waiting to be proven wrong on. You can keep a running tab and as ive stated before (like Niemi's one good series in the playoffs) Ill admit wrong (like I did then), until then, dont say I always think Im right cause the only debated things that you could say I was wrong on was Cmon's vs mine opinion on the Eager hit & Niemi shoulda followed the puck on the GWG, and those are different opinions of different peoples view of it:

Prove me wrong (things Ive said):
Niemi wont win this team a cup.
Seto & Heatley will have good years in Minn.
The 3rd & 4th lines BLOW and SJ wont do shit with them.
Handzues is nothing special (I called him a bum).
The blackahwks will finish better then the Sharks.
SJ will be the Hawks of last year barely making the playoffs (with current roster)
Keeping White woulda been better then Burns.

Bookmark it

1. Jury is still out on Nemo. He had some HUGE games in the PO's and some stinkers. he is still pretty young in his career, and I feel he was a huge part of making the PO's at all last year. If you recall, niity was sucking it up and the sharks were floundering before nemo really just took over.

2. seto and heatley will have OK years. Not terrible but not great. Seto will got alot more prime ice time so his numbers may rise, but I dont see minny competing this year. I think this prediction will not come to fruition, particularly for heatley.

3. 3rd and 4th lines are the big problem as of now. Hopefully they can win enough games without them to get to a poiont where dougie can move for reinforcements. I fully expect multiple trades for depth scorers come nov/dec/jan.

4. Zues is nothing special. he has been solid thus far, but I too am not that impressed and 2.5M is somewhat steep. He clearly hasnt gotten the PK off to a great start. he's a reasonable 3rd liner.

5. Hawks may well finish higher than the sharks, but that's not a bold prediction. The hawks, wings, nucks, and sharks are the obvious contenders with LA somewhat so as well. I wouldnt be shocked to see this one end up true.

6. Sharks will very likely make the PO's, but nothing is guarenteed. They sure look better with havlat though. What a difference he is making on that 2nd line.

7. I woulda prefered keeping BOTH white and burns. They could have done that since Ian white makes a similar salary to vandy and C. white combined. Or, better yet, somehow ditch mitchell. Having a top 6 of Boyle, burns, Ian White, Demers, Vlasic, Murray would be pretty sweet. Oh well...

I will judge burns later in the year. He clearly adds a ton in the O-zone and once he figures out the D part of the game a bit better, he could be a legit #1. It's too early to judge, but I sure do worry about those bottom lines holding up until dougie can upgrade them...

 

[Likewall32]

>>Seto & Heatley will have good years in Minn. (Seto will, Heatley may number wise, but will have his usual crap season due to horrid defense, lack of effort and still get paid $7.5mil)<<

Im a heatley fan & Havlett fan, the thing that ticks me off tho is that everyones main bag on Heatley is his contract/defence and I really dont get that. He signed a contract that was offered to him so you cant blame that on him, who wouldnt sign that deal?? He's a sniper & thats what he's been known as his whole career, thats what he does and he's damn good at it. Its not like he was known for D then suddenly stopped playing it in SJ. The contract doesnt come out of my pocket, so I dont really care that he makes that much. The 7.5 for heatley wasnt as outrageous as say what huskins & wallin were making. In terms of salary dumping, I like the Heat for Havlett trade, but what I dont like about it is the dump was made when there were guys still available to round out the forward lines and DWil chose not to do it. Thats my gripe on that. They lost the combined offensive numbers of Wellwood, Heatley & Seto, and replaced them with Havlett & Handzus. Thats a gaping hole. Heatley & Havlett, Wellwood & Handzus, White & Burns all have the possiblity to cancle out each other number wise, but then your still missing goals Seto put in and thats going to hurt. I dont think Heatleys bad D ='s his seasons to be considered crap as their are tons of forwards in the league that are bad at D. Which brings me to this: Burns is a DEFENCEMAN and his D is downright horrendous so far. Thats a person that gets payed to play D, and he doesnt seem to know how to do it. So I dont understand how people said that getting Burns makes the Sharks D so much better (some said BEST EVER), cause it really doesnt. How is Boyle, Burns, Vlasic, Murray, Demers, Vandeemer so much more superior then Boyle, White, Vlasic, Murray, Demers, Wallin? Its not being a downer, or agurmenative or going against the mood. Its stating something that has yet to be proven right or wrong. Some people like to look at any situation as somewhat delusional, just to make it positive in their mind, I tend to look at things with a more realistic view and a lot of times that view is just something people dont want to hear & deem it as being negative even tho its probably right.

 

[Epic Voidfield]

>>Seto & Heatley will have good years in Minn. (Seto will, Heatley may number wise, but will have his usual crap season due to horrid defense, lack of effort and still get paid $7.5mil)<<

Im a heatley fan & Havlett fan, the thing that ticks me off tho is that everyones main bag on Heatley is his contract/defence and I really dont get that. He signed a contract that was offered to him so you cant blame that on him, who wouldnt sign that deal?? He's a sniper & thats what he's been known as his whole career, thats what he does and he's damn good at it. Its not like he was known for D then suddenly stopped playing it in SJ. The contract doesnt come out of my pocket, so I dont really care that he makes that much. The 7.5 for heatley wasnt as outrageous as say what huskins & wallin were making. In terms of salary dumping, I like the Heat for Havlett trade, but what I dont like about it is the dump was made when there were guys still available to round out the forward lines and DWil chose not to do it. Thats my gripe on that. They lost the combined offensive numbers of Wellwood, Heatley & Seto, and replaced them with Havlett & Handzus. Thats a gaping hole. Heatley & Havlett, Wellwood & Handzus, White & Burns all have the possiblity to cancle out each other number wise, but then your still missing goals Seto put in and thats going to hurt. I dont think Heatleys bad D ='s his seasons to be considered crap as their are tons of forwards in the league that are bad at D. Which brings me to this: Burns is a DEFENCEMAN and his D is downright horrendous so far. Thats a person that gets payed to play D, and he doesnt seem to know how to do it. So I dont understand how people said that getting Burns makes the Sharks D so much better (some said BEST EVER), cause it really doesnt. How is Boyle, Burns, Vlasic, Murray, Demers, Vandeemer so much more superior then Boyle, White, Vlasic, Murray, Demers, Wallin? Its not being a downer, or agurmenative or going against the mood. Its stating something that has yet to be proven right or wrong. Some people like to look at any situation as somewhat delusional, just to make it positive in their mind, I tend to look at things with a more realistic view and a lot of times that view is just something people dont want to hear & deem it as being negative even tho its probably right.

 

[Likewall32]

What are you a lemming? One person mentions "troll" and you come out of the woodwork to post that? That post wasnt a bash or being rude or anything to Filo... Now would you kindly crawl back into the hole you came from, may I suggest sherdog.com, people love posting little pictures all over that site thinking they are funny.

 

[sjrules99]

>>Seto & Heatley will have good years in Minn. (Seto will, Heatley may number wise, but will have his usual crap season due to horrid defense, lack of effort and still get paid $7.5mil)<<

Im a heatley fan & Havlett fan, the thing that ticks me off tho is that everyones main bag on Heatley is his contract/defence and I really dont get that. He signed a contract that was offered to him so you cant blame that on him, who wouldnt sign that deal?? He's a sniper & thats what he's been known as his whole career, thats what he does and he's damn good at it. Its not like he was known for D then suddenly stopped playing it in SJ. The contract doesnt come out of my pocket, so I dont really care that he makes that much. The 7.5 for heatley wasnt as outrageous as say what huskins & wallin were making. In terms of salary dumping, I like the Heat for Havlett trade, but what I dont like about it is the dump was made when there were guys still available to round out the forward lines and DWil chose not to do it. Thats my gripe on that. They lost the combined offensive numbers of Wellwood, Heatley & Seto, and replaced them with Havlett & Handzus. Thats a gaping hole. Heatley & Havlett, Wellwood & Handzus, White & Burns all have the possiblity to cancle out each other number wise, but then your still missing goals Seto put in and thats going to hurt. I dont think Heatleys bad D ='s his seasons to be considered crap as their are tons of forwards in the league that are bad at D. Which brings me to this: Burns is a DEFENCEMAN and his D is downright horrendous so far. Thats a person that gets payed to play D, and he doesnt seem to know how to do it. So I dont understand how people said that getting Burns makes the Sharks D so much better (some said BEST EVER), cause it really doesnt. How is Boyle, Burns, Vlasic, Murray, Demers, Vandeemer so much more superior then Boyle, White, Vlasic, Murray, Demers, Wallin? Its not being a downer, or agurmenative or going against the mood. Its stating something that has yet to be proven right or wrong. Some people like to look at any situation as somewhat delusional, just to make it positive in their mind, I tend to look at things with a more realistic view and a lot of times that view is just something people dont want to hear & deem it as being negative even tho its probably right.

I understand your arguments Likewall, and I agree that you cant blame heater for getting lots of money. However, his effort was... well... subpar at times and he was a bonehead at the wrong times. Losing him is no huge loss. Seto is a loss ,but burns is a legit player. he has been suspect defensively, but I expect that will improve as it is also a function of familiarity. Last year, the sharks D was god awful in the O-zone. It was painful to watch, but Burns really changes a ton. He is a great skater, and has a monster shot, something the sharks have lacked since blake retired. He is better than Ian White, and once he gets his legs in SJ, I think we should all see the difference.

few are disagreeing with you about the scoring depth. The only thing is that acquiring depth scorers throughout the year is much easier than #1 Dmen. Look at the transactions last year:

2010?11 NHL transactions - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You will notice lots of midlevel forwards going for midround picks. However, not a single true, bona finde #1 dman was moved except for perhaps kaberle (though I wouldnt want him), Erik Johnson and shattenkirk or Goligoski. Each of those trades required a 1st rounder+ or a top line player in return. Dougie will be able to add later on and I would be shocked if the bottom 6 today even close to resembled the bottom six in april.

 

[SJVP408]

I understand your arguments Likewall, and I agree that you cant blame heater for getting lots of money. However, his effort was... well... subpar at times and he was a bonehead at the wrong times. Losing him is no huge loss. Seto is a loss ,but burns is a legit player. he has been suspect defensively, but I expect that will improve as it is also a function of familiarity. Last year, the sharks D was god awful in the O-zone. It was painful to watch, but Burns really changes a ton. He is a great skater, and has a monster shot, something the sharks have lacked since blake retired. He is better than Ian White, and once he gets his legs in SJ, I think we should all see the difference.

few are disagreeing with you about the scoring depth. The only thing is that acquiring depth scorers throughout the year is much easier than #1 Dmen. Look at the transactions last year:

2010?11 NHL transactions - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You will notice lots of midlevel forwards going for midround picks. However, not a single true, bona finde #1 dman was moved except for perhaps kaberle (though I wouldnt want him), Erik Johnson and shattenkirk or Goligoski. Each of those trades required a 1st rounder+ or a top line player in return. Dougie will be able to add later on and I would be shocked if the bottom 6 today even close to resembled the bottom six in april.

Totally agree on all points.

 

[rares]

Totally agree on all points.

... except for the Burns > Ian White thing... I am waiting to be convinced of that. So far, Burns is very very far behind in that race, IMO.