Friday’s skate update
Posted on March 7th, 2008 – 12:10 PMBy Michael Russo
Official from the NHL: No suspension for Voros, nor any discipline to Carolina for having too many men on the ice during the big scrum last night.
Going to be quick this afternoon as the sluggish one has lots of work to do.
– Not sure of the full lineup due to very optional skate, but Jacques Lemaire will definitely make changes. Kurtis Foster and his big power-play shot will be back in undoubtedly. Whether Foster goes in for Sean Hill or Keith Carney depends largely on which of their penalties last night Lemaire like least, perhaps. Lemaire wouldn’t divulge it.
– Chris Simon skated, but I doubt he’ll play. So it’s just a matter of whether Lemaire inserts Matt Foy in for someone, maybe Aaron Voros.
Lemaire was very displeased with his penalties last night, not only the hit from behind but the one in the final minute where he upended the Hurricanes player in the d-zone.
No matter how marginal the call (to the objective person who nicely called me a fraud), Voros has got to be smarter. At the very least, it was textbook interference because the puck was nowhere near them. Just stay away from the guy. You’re on in the final minute to go crash the net and score.
I am assuming Voros will escape suspension for the hit on Staal because I’m hearing the Hurricanes are escaping discipline for six skaters on the ice during the ensuing melee (Cole was coming on for Walker, and then Walker never got off).
And for the few emailers who complained that the Wild got screwed by the refs again, let this stand as my response: the zebras gave the Wild plenty of chances to tie that game. And they pretty much evened up the major by getting the call on Cole right — two for instigating, two for instigating with a shield.
– Speaking of Voros, apparently he got top play on SportsCenter last night with that sweet between the legs pass to Mikko Koivu for the tying goal 19 ticks into the second period.
– I couldn’t really say definitively today because the Thrashers had not yet announced it, so I sort of couched it. But Todd White definitely won’t play his old team tonight. He not only has an elbow injury, he’s got a shoulder injury.
– Tomorrow’s notebook will be a follow to Lemaire’s demeanor after the game last night, i.e. the continuous go ask them answers. Lemaire said today his job is to keep working, but he admitted that he’s never had a harder time getting a team to play the way he wants them to on a consistent basis.
– Forgot to throw this up the other day. It’s an OC Register story on the Ducks accusing the Blackhawks of being dirty against … Pronger. I just thought it was awfully, let’s just say, ironic.
Later…Everybody wish my brother a happy birthday.
Coincidentally, he lives here in Atlanta, so he’ll get to enjoy the Wild-Thrashers game tonight at Philips with some friends.
121 Responses to "Friday’s skate update"
I hope DR’s got a big file open on all the potential UFAs this summer. He needs a locker room leader, a couple centers, and at least 2 more defensemen.
Happy birthday to … Fredo? 
What shall we discuss on this thread? How about the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow? Anything but hockey.
VoR: With at least Rolston or Demo on the way out and Parrish in the dog house, the Wild will need some wings. Can anybody pull that UFA list? I know Huselius is on it - second time’s a charm DR? Also, like it or not, the D is pretty much set next year with KJ, Burns, Schultz and Skoula.
If there is a popular uprising amongst the Russotans, I will repost my entry that is at the tail end of the last Don entry… 
How about the people who think it’s ok to trash Russo because he’s the messenger? For crying out loud, it’s his freakin job to report the facts as he sees em. Don’t get mad at him for that, people.
And the Wild did not get jobbed by the refs. I thought they were very even-handed. If anything, Carolina would have every right to complain of getting screwed had the W’s scored on those chances to win the game.
Didn’t have time to read all of the comments on the last post.
I’m with KJ, Gaborik’s gone after this season. Could DR sign Demitra now to a 1 yr then trade both Gaborik and Demitra to xx for xx?
What if he could work a trade of Gaborik for two Koivu’s? Who wouldn’t take that trade? Throw Demitra in there and you could get 3-4 players who total put up the same number of points but are spread out around the lines so the other team doesn’t just have to shut down one line.
This flu thing is annoying. I’d almost rather they go with one guy gets it, have him cough on everyone. You miss a lot of players for 1 maybe 2 games but you get back to playing. The way it is, you miss 1 or 2 players every game for weeks.
I can’t believe all of these comments on different sites bagging on Voros for his game last night. Sure he made a stupid play in the last minute followed by a marginal call but lets not forget he’s a rookie.
For the first time in almost two months he gets more than 5 shifts, after sitting two games out, and look what happens. He gets a great assist, is in on what could have been another goal and an assist by being a presence around the net and continues to hit. The hit on Stall should have been 5 minutes but he didn’t try to break his neck and there is no way Stall didn’t know he was coming.
I’m not saying Voros doesn’t have lots to work on but he continues to be one of the few hard workers in otherwise terrible efforts when he is getting minutes.
he’ll get to enjoy the Wild-Thrashers game tonight at Philips
maybe he will get to enjoy it.
when players start making lots o money, they start thinking they can play the way they want to play. look at the nba for an example.
when your motivation is cash, which tradition says is the motivation for eastern europeans, and you have the cash that is guaranteed, why listen to the coach? especially if you don’t like to do what the coach wants you to do? perhaps delta burke is right.
not that i am a fan of retreads but brunette is UFA.
voros has been not too good for a while now. definately lost his way after a strong start. probably could have used more quality minutes in houston than limited minutes up here but most certainly would have been scooped up in waivers.
G* then how do you explain Rolston apparent unwillingness to work hard?
Orpik and Mezei are both available. Orpik is a mean SOB who will hit, and Mezei is huge, which JL likes.
Hey Dave, an african or a european swallow?
Green*…amen on Delta Burke. Also, I think Voros tried very hard last night to play as he did when he was called up.
The penalty for the hit from behind was justified - but he was working hard, not being lazy.
The hook/hold/trip/too many men/it doesn’t matter penalty at the end was from a lack of discipline.
I still want him on the team next year.
Thanks, ATX. SOMEbody on here is a Monty Python fan.
G* then how do you explain Rolston apparent unwillingness to work hard?
i don’t buy that it is an unwillingness to work hard. i think he is working hard but it ain’t happening and he needs to dig a little deeper. i know i am in minortiy on rolston but i don’t think he has been complete bertuzzi this season. i will say the results are not as good as last season.
VoR - thanks for the link - UFA wingers I like best:
- Bruno - could be a good fit for a top line of OJ and PMB
- Huselius
- Ryan Malone - go SCSU
- Cleary
- Hossa - trading Gabby and getting Hossa would be funny
Also, I like the names VoR tossed out because you know JL and DR are going to opt for size and hitting.
G* I agree with you on Rolston’s effort. Rolston is a hard worker, he just needs to dig deeper. I said multiple times last night to the wife, “Rolston looks like he wants it”, “Man, Rolsotn is really skating out there”, etc. He has not been quite as effective as last year, but I still like him overall.
No problem Dave… now what is your favorite color!?
That was a nice between the legs from behind the goal pass by Voros.
Looks to me like Voros was trying to ease up. It looks like he was leaning back trying to put most of the energy into the low boards there. Had he not, Staal would have been in the bench.
Agreed Goody, he clearly eased up…If he hit him like he would normally go at someone on the boards stall wouldn’t have been back on the ice the very next shift. He’s just trying to play with as much intesity as possible to get minutes. I bet if you did a search (I don’t even know if it can be done) of his games with more than 9-10 minutes you’d see a pretty productive guy.
Blue. No, yellowwwwwwwww……..
Looking again, Staal bends at the waist prior to hitting the boards. I’m not sure Voros was the cause of that.
Don’t get me wrong, it was a bad hit and Voros should have been penalized but I don’t think it’s as bad as is made out.
It’s easy to bash the refs, and to be honest, they have been horrible in quite a few games (being comparable to the NBA). However, a team has to expect such things and do enough to overcome bad officiating.
Right now it seems this team has a mental issue. They are not ready at the beginning of games, they take questionable penalties, they worry about making a play and assist rather than shooting at an open net. It seems like they don’t think that they have a chance at the Cup, and are behaving accordingly. Alternatively, maybe they think they can back into the playoffs and then turn it on. In either case, it is not good.
they should have skipped the morning skate and went to the gold club for team bonding instead.
Maybe its time to rebuild this team? JL’s clearly beyond frustration. I am not sure you can expect this team to turn its self around.
RogueGopher,
It would’ve been nice to know that a rebuild was necessary BEFORE the trade deadline.
RG…this team will be rebuilt in the offseason. DR has said this (it is this group’s ‘window’) and by not adding help at the deadline.
Given the inconsistent play all year long, I would have to agree as I mail my playoff $$$ in…
thing is, the team has shown signs that it can pull it together so blowing it up at deadline wasn’t a vialble option. problem is the team cannot seem to find out what it did to pull it together often enough.
find it kinda odd it is your bro’s birthday and the wild are playing in the city he lives in! Don Russo do you have input into schedule making, because if so I would like to see the Montreal Canadiens in St.Paul next year and perhaps the Sabres.
Some rebuilding will happen this summer, but the core will still be there, as will JL. My guess right now is that Rolston, Demo, Hill and Carney will all be gone. Parrish may get traded, as might Gabby. (I would not object trading him for the number 1 overall to grab Stamkos.)
But the rest are here for the long haul.
Maybe the Wild can jump on the T-Wolves “Let’s Build It” marketing campaign for next season.
It makes me so sad to think about what could have been for this team had they chosen to work hard consistently.
But the rest are here for the long haul.
And I like the rest of this group a lot (only a small sip of Kool-Aid required) - even 2 more years of Belanger as 3/4 center and Foster as a 5/6 D-man. I think PMB will be an easy re-sign so it all depends an what key UFA the Wild can get and what they can add though the Gabby trade which I am more than ever sure he plans to force.
I’m not 100% sure Gabby will get traded. I think it’s possible, but you never know, he may want to stay at the right price (which I think is in the 7.5-8M/year neighborhood).
We’re stuck with Johnsson
if you buy a cat out are you still on the hook for each year of the deal?
perhaps waive him and bring him back up and see if someone will take him for half?
Russo Writes: Wild players are severely under attack early like they’re still in the midst of their pregame naps.
Well I can’t remember the last time I had time to take a nap. This may be why they dont show up in the first period, they’re still waking up. JL no more naps!
Anyone forsee Lemaiure saying enough with this crap and hanging them up after this year? part of a coaches job is to motivate his players and he is clearly lacking at that.
I see only one prima dona on this team and that is the source of JL trouble whether is owns up the to C or not. As it should be the success if this team rides on its franchise player.
if you buy a cat out are you still on the hook for each year of the deal?
I don’t remember the details, but I think how it works is the team is still on the hook for a cap hit, somewhat reduced from the original salary, for however many years are left on the contract. It really doesn’t provide much relief, which is probably why you don’t see teams doing it.
As much as I have capped on Johnsson, as his contract rolls on, it becomes less and less onerous. He’s got one less year left and that cap hit is a smaller percentage of the overall cap, so he becomes at the very least, less untradable.
Anyone forsee Lemaiure saying enough with this crap and hanging them up after this year?
Maybe.
part of a coaches job is to motivate his players and he is clearly lacking at that.
I don’t know if I would put it that way, but it might be true that the relationship is getting stale.
it might be true that the relationship is getting stale.
i feel this only to be true with a few key players. if this were true with all then i don’t think schultz would have resigned and burns and mikko may not have either
Stuff about the salary cap:
- Performance bonuses can be earned by the following players only:
- players on entry-level contracts
- veteran players (400 or more games) signing one-year contracts. after returning from long-term injuries (100 or more days on injured reserve in their most recent year).
- players who sign a one-year contract after the age of 35.
- No player can earn more than 20 percent of the team salary cap. In 2005-06, that means a maximum individual salary of about $7.4-$7.8 million.
- Contracts can be bought out for two-thirds of the remaining value for players over the age of 26, and one-third of the remaining value for players under 26. Players who are bought out cannot return to the old team for at least one year.
- I agree with G* that a stale relationship is probabaly just with a few players
- Players who are bought out cannot return to the old team for at least one year.
Yashin retuns to the Island next year?
Green*…I agree that JL’s comments apply to a few key (re: veteran) players on the club.
Rolston is one.
Carney, Hill, PMB, Parrish, Gaborik, Johnsson, Demitra, Fedoruk and Backstrom are the others I would think.
Clearly the team has had scoring issues most of the year. The consistent effort hasn’t been there.
Remember back at the start of the season we all thought they weren’t playing all that well but continued to win? That probably set the tone for the year - show up for a few minutes and get rewarded with a ‘W’.
JL has seen it and still is unable to correct it. It’s the guys in the room not the one behind the bench.
I was fooled yesterday, but alledgedly DR is supposed to be on with Hartman again now.
i think they have gotten more out of fedoruk then they thought they could get.
DR on the teams inconsitency. (paraphrasing)
“I think you see that around the league with all the races. It’s just the nature of the parity in the league”
G*–A few key players might be enough for JL to decide he’s had enough. I noticed you compared NJ in ‘98 to this year’s Wild in the previous thread… that was the year JL decided he’d had enough there!
Also, the guy is 62. He’s about 10-15 years older than most of his peers, and I kinda have to wonder if–assuming the season ends with the fizzle that it’s kinda looking like at the moment–he’s really going to feel like doing it again. There’s a good reason why old guys don’t stay with the job. It takes an awesome amount of energy, more than most 60-somethings have. I guess what I’m saying is that it really wouldn’t surprise me if after this year, Jacques decides the time has come to move up to an office job.
Hartman: Are you happy with the PP this season?
DR: Keep putting pucks at the net, and some will eventually go in. Need more “effort” goals.
DR on Parrish: It’s not a question of how hard he plays. It’s how can he get better. His season has been interrupted by injury so it’s tough to get his timing back.
I would guess JL likes the young core of this team well enough to stay with them but toivo makes a great point, it does take a ton to get through an NHL season. Once more, if JL is going to try to get one more team to the conference finals, I would want him to help buy the groceries during the off season.
toivo…I disagree. The players he is having trouble with are UFAs or not part of the long term plan.
JL loves to teach and is responsible for Burns, Schultz, Sheppard, Koivu.
He will want to continue.
DR on fan reaction to Simon: We were trying to make the team better. People that don’t follow the game only get glimpses of the negatives. We had him to the blog on Wild.com to explain his side.
hartman thinks this is his marconi moment grilling DR on simon.
did dr just say on hartman that voros is suspended, or did i hear it wrong
no award for hartman as DR played “the letter from fan who isn’t now that simon signed” brilliantly.
I did not hear him say Voros is suspended.
ok, must have misunderstood. thanks kirk
I actually wouldn’t mind seeing Fedoruk back withthe WILD next year. I have been very happ with his play. And think he makes an ideal 3rd, 4th line player for this team.
While he hasn’t scored much, I also have been happy with Belanger.
Dampland, I agree with the Fedoruk comment. I wouldn’t mind one bit if he stayed in MN for awhile. Belanger I am on the fence about… I like him, but he just can’t seem to finish.
Remember the Wild have at least three maybe four top prospects coming into the club next year, Jones, Fiala, Gillies & Aiello. Now all four may end up in Houston but that’s a heck of a sight better than what is there now. Irmen is down to his last shot, may not get another one after his performance this year. Wouldn’t mind seeing what Adrian Foster could do at NHL level and at some point they have to test or trade Olvecky & Pouliot. That doesn’t leave a ton of room for free agents. They’ll make a push to sign Rolston, but it will depend on what the market is like, the Wild aren’t going to go super long and ge screwed like with Johnsson. They’ll need some defensemen after probably letting a couple guys go as I don’t see them giving more than Reitz a real shot (unless Aeillo stars in camp) next season. Course they could shock at the draft and trade someone for high first round pick and blueliner.
Please help me out
Who are, and what’s the story on these
“Jones, Fiala, Gillies & Aiello” players I’ve seen mentioned a few times.
I know who Colton Gilles is …. supposed to be an agitator …not a scoring forward.
But the others I have never heard of.
Here ya go Damp, give this a looksy: http://www.hockeysfuture.com/articles/10176/wild_ncaa_prospects_update/
Thre is also this: http://www.hockeysfuture.com/articles/9956/wild_top20_prospects_fall2007/
Russo above says no suspension for Voros. Good. Now we just have to wait and see if JL gives him a ‘popcorn suspension’.
Speaking of money as a motivator, G*, the better half said the other night every player should be paid the same. At the end of the season the one’s that performed get a bonus those that did not perform, don’t.
Simple but I think with this team it just might work…..if your theory is correct…
“At the end of the season the one’s that performed get a bonus those that did not perform, don’t.”
There is a big problem with that strategy though. Performance is often times subjective. How many times have many of us here disagreed about which players gave effort and which ones did not? What qualifies as “effort”? Goals and Assists? Hits? There is a lot more to the game than just putting up stats… and it would be impossible to give bonus’ based on how hard a player “tries”. I just don’t see this being viable at all.
Austin - it’s not a perfect science but under the circumstances it could be a motivator. JL is obviously lost for an answer.
I think if Gaborik found that his pay check was directly affected by not only how fast he got into the offensive zone but the defensive zone you might see a little more jump in his step….
Did anybody see that Ducks/Hawks game?
I kinda question the “Pronger’s jaw is broken” thing. It sure didn’t keep him from jackin’ his jaw all night. He could have gotten called for “Instigating with a shield”.
Pronger’s an a$$ and ’stach….don’t get me started.
Well, how is Pronger going to be able to kiss his wife’s a** with a broken jaw?
weed; the question is how pronger is going to kiss someone elses wifes’a**
Pronger is a complete a$$clown. I’ll bet my last flippin’ dollar that if there is a player on another team on the ice two games after a “broken jaw”, he would do the same or worse than was done to him.
Pronger needs to go lay down by his dish.
Touche, kjr.
Slapshot, I agree that there needs to be something changed… but that is not the answer IMO. It sounds pretty good in theory, but in practice it would be disastrous.
Of course, Russo’s borther and his friends are doing the ‘Shane’s Rib Shack Family Pack’ (4 tickets, 4 BBQ sandwiches, $89) tonight. That’s how he and his friends are going…
And, with NASCAR nearby at Atlanta Motor Speedway this weekend, it’s ‘NASCAR night’ at Philips Arena tonight. If your stomach can stand it, read more about it here:
http://thrashers.nhl.com/team/app/?service=page&page=NewsPage&articleid=356173
Of course, I screw it up. It’s ‘brother’, not ‘borther’… my apologies, Don Russo…
NiNY: Have you checked your e-mail lately?
my god! there will be more toothless people in the stands than the ice.
I agree Austin, but if the league could make it work…..
It would be very interesting, very interesting.
Players jobs would be more specific, coaches would know what to expect, players would know what to expect and not have to wonder why they are in the dog house. Or why they are only skating 2 mins. a game. Cry babies may be no more, “I don’t like to play center in this system”….was that out loud????
WRT - I can’t believe you’re feeling to bad about missing “Nascar Night” at the Philips Arena. Do they know you can’t spit chew on the floor in the arena?
Thanks for the links AUSTINTX!
Some great info there for sure.
I can hear it in the stands now…
Bubba: That Kovalchucker is a rooskie.
Cooter: A rooskie? I thawt we done beated them in that Miracle Whip thingy.
Bubba: I guess he done runnoft and got away.
Cooter: D’ya think there’s a Hemi in that there Zamboner?
Bubba: Nah…it aint a Dodge ya dern fool.
kj - you’re killing me…..
….small topic change…I would think our Lovely Marney would be ready to pop any day now. Does anyone have a due date on the Gelner prodigy?
ss6…I am not an English major (C# is my native language) but I think it is progeny.
Green* would have the $$$ for the birthday pool…
Knowing Atlanta as I do (used to have friends who worked there), I wouldn’t be surprised if they DID spit chew on the floor at Philips Arena. Don’t forget, the club/suite level holders at Philips Arena sit separately from the rest of the rednecks there…
The only thing worse would be to drag in Darrell Waltrip. Instead of ‘Let’s Play Hockey’, he starts the game with, ‘Boogity! Boogity! Boogity! Let’s git ‘er dun!!’
…lolol. I stand corrected, Thank you kj. That’s what happens when it’s Friday, you worked 12 hours on Thursday and you try to multi-task. The English goes right out the window. I guess I could add to that list and wearing a mullet….:)
In Atlanta, most of the population is still waiting for General Sherman to return so they can “give ‘em what’s comin’ to ‘em”.
The Ducks/Hawks story is HILARIOUS!!!
ss6: It would drive my wife nuts if we attended ‘NASCAR Night’ at Philips Arena tonight. She hates racin’ almost as much as she hates the ‘Nucks!
Weed: in the pre-planning last fall for this season’s WRT road campaign, I had thought of going into Atlanta with special made-up T-shirts:
On the front:
‘William Tecumseh Sherman - 1864
Jacques Lemaire - 2008′
On the Back:
‘Northern Aggression Returns!’
I thought it was good…too bad we decided to do the western Canada swing (later this month) instead…
My sister moved down to Savannah about 22 years ago and my parents moved down there about 10 years ago. My first trip down there, we went to the grocery store and when the bagger asked me if I wanted paper or plastic (at least that’s what I think he asked me) I stood there with my gob hanging open like a moron and said “What?” Thankfully my sister intervened and I wasn’t called a “Yankee”… at least not to my face…..
Another topic change, but doesn’t the Don seem unusually testy lately? Isn’t his job supposed to be fun?
Y’all need to learn how t’say it…
It’s ‘Co-Cola’, not ‘Coke’…
ss6: I hear you, loud and clear…I do feel for your poor sister, though…I had one of the best seafood dinners ever at a place on the riverfront in Savannah. Shucker’s, I believe…Great food…
Just got back from vacation and watched the last two games on my DVR. I’d just like to say:
Ugh.
If you’re down there long enough, you talk like ‘em too.
Sister-in-law lives in Booneville, NC.
You’d think that she was born shoeless and toothless to hear her and her progeny talk…
mbrose: You think it’s fun to cover this group of ‘Debbie Downers’ every day? Yeah, right, travel 100,000 miles plus and listen to the same old B.S. after 82 games. Yeah, right…lay off Russo.
If he’s testy, he’s just mirroring what he goes thru, which is mirroring what the team is going thru. That’s a newspaper reporter doing his job. He brings that which is part of the team to us, the readership. He does it better than most, and that shows in what he puts up with from us.
Deal with it.
Welcome back BeantownChris…
Another dose of Rock-a-Dile Red for ya???
kj: Booneville, NC? OMG, I envision the theme from ‘Dukes of Hazzard’ in my mind when I think of places like that…Is her husband the local ‘Boss Hogg’? (Ok, ok…j/k)
Hey WRT,
I’m not trying to badmouth Russo, just commenting that he seems more sensitive than his usual jocular self. I like his coverage too or I wouldn’t be here.
You are probably right though that he is frustrated like most of us.
WRT…it is even worse than that.
They were happy ‘cuz they bought a hot tub for $50.
I asked how many quarts it held…
On River Street? Yea they have alot of good resturants down there. It’s a really cool town, lots of history. I love the architecture. Have you been to the BonaVenture Cemetary? Not a place you think of for vacation, but it’s worth a couple hours in the morning when the weather is cooler. My sister doesn’t live too far from BonaVenture. Within walking distance. Nice place to visit, wouldn’t want to live there. Too many bugs and too much humidity.
mbrose…how frustrating would it be to try and get comments from the coach and he says ‘ask them’.
Them in this case is the problem and their ‘we have to work harder’ schtick can only be written so many ways.
Add to that that this team cannot seem to have anything but a close game - therefore added deadline pressures - so the game notes cannot be written ahead of time.
Lastly, the company you work for adds a new ‘feature’ for know-nothings to spew venom your way.
I don’t even have to mention the airports and security to know why he is crabby…
JL’s lack of answers for what to do now reminds me of the Ducks playoff series last season. It was the first time when I really felt that Jacques was out of ideas. Ultimately I think it was because there just weren’t any tactics that were going to make up for a lack of the right personnel.
This time, it looks like it’s lack of leadership in the room. We just don’t seem to have that player who can get the guys going on a consistent basis.
I just wonder if that’s something you can bring in from the outside.
ss6: Yes, on River Street. Was down there to ride a steam-powered passenger train to Atlanta, of all things. Took a walk around the cemetery and thru the neighborhood in the historic area. Really a neat place, sometime when the wife and I aren’t so stressed out I’d like to go back there and walk around in the morning. Fun area…
mbrose: How would you like covering a team that is so Jekyll-and-Hyde? Where you don’t know what you’ll find behind the locker room door? I’m sure he knows much, much more than what he’s telling us, but professional courtesy prevents him from doing so.
kj: You sure they bought the hot tub for its’ intended purpose? Or to make some ’shine in the evenings..??? For $50? Sounds to me like the ‘revenuers’ ought to pay your sister-in-law a visit…
mbrose, I think you are spot on. Testy is a nice way refer to Russo’s willingness to call out posters on this site (he’s done it twice lately). It has reached the point where he can’t take criticism. It has been very deep in here for a long time and apparently he is now believing he really is a Don.
I said before that Gabby probably shouldn’t get the “C” but that maybe he’d grow into it….the boy is off to a poor start even if only a couple games…He’s been poison with his attitude most of this year and I think we should trade him for a Malkin type, we can not afford to have a prima donna in the line-up. Many of these “skill” guys have no work ethic this year, no drive at all and it’s embarassing. The Wild should have beaten those guys 6-1. Just think that the Wild have recently beaten a few teams by one goal even playing half-arced, just imagine what would happen if they put away their purses and ego’s and actually played hockey for 60 minutes. And maybe that’s the problem, the skill guys know/think they’re so good they don’t have to work hard…and if something isn’t going right..it’s my team mates fault or the refs fault or JL but never me. JL was right to send a message because the play offs won’t mean a thing if these boys don’t get their heads wired right…another 1st round bounce. And he was right to refer questions to the whiners that don’t play with any passion. Never in all the annals of hockey has so little been done with so much talent.
Oh, and Happy B-day Don Russo’s brother…Guido! HA!
Compared to the rest of the hockey coverage in the papers around here, he’s not just a Don, he’s a God.
Cut him some slack. Not everybody loves their job all the time.
This team is very frustrating. For the fans, coaches, management and Russo.
These bloggy things have a funny way of twisting topics around….I think we need to be fed.
Any thoughts on where the season took the downward spiral? I look at the last Detroit game. I think losing that game demoralized this team more than anyone would ever admit. To play as well as they did then the soft goal, and losing in OT. I feel their spirit was broken a bit there.
Yea it’s sad. These guys really have no heart. They are starting to treat playing hockey as a job. I’ll tell you what, I’d love to get paid half of what any of these guys gets paid to play a game for a living. To get paid to stay in shape. I’m not saying that it’s an easy life but geez. After pulling a 10 hour shift throwing freight in a Target warehouse when the avg. temp is about 98 degrees and doing that 6 days a week it’s hard for me to see why these guys don’t have any enthusiasm to play. I know that’s probably a cliche, but I’m just sayin’…they need a bit of perspective.
kj - check my spelling 
Kirk - but that was also the last really good game they played.
True. I remember thinking though that the Stars game after that Detroit tilt would be the measuring stick for how this team would react to adversity after expending that much energy then losing. Didn’t work out too well then things continued to decline from there IMO.
They played a nice game against Columbus at the beginning of Feb. Then again that was the Jackets so…………
Hey Austin, you want to correct slapshot about the money thing?
ss6…looks good to me, but then again so does this:
System.DateTime starttimeDT = (DateTime)starttime;
Sorry. That Jackets game was the one right before the Wings.
Parrish scratched!! Good grief is this what it’s come to?
Huh. “Shoot the puck, you say?” Jim Souhan, surely you have a dizzying intellect.
Gee, I hate showing up late for the party. I’m glad to see that there are a few people who entertain the notion of a trade. Really the Slovakian experiment has failed. Demo has never been happy playing here and should be allowed to leave UFA. Neither of them likes to play defense, which is the most basic expectation JL has of all of his players. Regretably I don’t have an easy replacemnt for Gabby in the line up. The guy is a capable scorer,and shows flashes of brilliane, but he seems to refuse to be a complete player.
Happy Birthday to your brother, he shares mine! Great day!
“Kurtis Foster and his big power-play shot will be back in undoubtedly”.
YA RIGHT!!! He’ll be bringing his big purse and skirt in front of the net too.
