Michael Stuart: Comparing 2011 and Today

That team was full of stop gap and fringe NHL players and they happened to get hot at the right time. Yzerman's best work of 2011 was drafting Palat, Kucherov, and if he can stay healthy Namestnikov.

Give us stamkos

That team was full of stop gap and fringe NHL players and they happened to get hot at the right time. Yzerman's best work of 2011 was drafting Palat, Kucherov, and if he can stay healthy Namestnikov.
- Feds91Stammer

Absolutely.

The jerseys are also better now too

The jerseys are also better now too
- houseofcards74

I agree. But lots of people seem to like the old ones.

I agree. But lots of people seem to like the old ones.
- Michael_Stuart

Those are the people they make the alternates for.

I have a fun conspiracy theory I am working on that will really stirred some people up!

Those are the people they make the alternates for.
- Feds91Stammer

I have a fun conspiracy theory I am working on that will really stirred some people up!
- Artyukhin76

Oh goodie....

Oh goodie....
- Michael_Stuart

Why you know want me to share?

- Michael_Stuart

Black jerseys are so cool...

What if the Yzerplan actually doesn't include Stamkos? What if Stamkos to Toronto IS the plan? Think about it! Stamkos is an offensive dynamo, but he's not spectacular (not bad either) at the defensive side of it. What if Yzerman is targeting players more like Filppula, Palat, and Johnson great all-around players? Imagine the return at the 2016 trade deadline if they don't get him signed! This team plays a style offense and defense that is five-man orientated, not a team that has one superstar and a bunch of plugs.

What if the Yzerplan actually doesn't include Stamkos? What if Stamkos to Toronto IS the plan? Think about it! Stamkos is an offensive dynamo, but he's not spectacular (not bad either) at the defensive side of it. What if Yzerman is targeting players more like Filppula, Palat, and Johnson great all-around players? Imagine the return at the 2016 trade deadline if they don't get him signed! This team plays a style offense and defense that is five-man orientated, not a team that has one superstar and a bunch of plugs.
- Artyukhin76

Exactly. You have to get rid of 50 goal scorers if you want to win a cup.

Black jerseys are so cool...


- Feds91Stammer

Those are uglier than your sister!

What if the Yzerplan actually doesn't include Stamkos? What if Stamkos to Toronto IS the plan? Think about it! Stamkos is an offensive dynamo, but he's not spectacular (not bad either) at the defensive side of it. What if Yzerman is targeting players more like Filppula, Palat, and Johnson great all-around players? Imagine the return at the 2016 trade deadline if they don't get him signed! This team plays a style offense and defense that is five-man orientated, not a team that has one superstar and a bunch of plugs.
- Artyukhin76

This is a terrible, terrible plan.

If he's set on going to Toronto and everyone knows he wants to go to Toronto, the return at the trade deadline won't be stupidly high. It'll be decent, but I doubt it will knock your socks off.

Stamkos is fine at the defensive side of things. He's not a liability. He's not being paid to contend for the Selke. He's being paid to score goals, something at which he's proven quite effective.

This is a terrible, terrible plan.

If he's set on going to Toronto and everyone knows he wants to go to Toronto, the return at the trade deadline won't be stupidly high. It'll be decent, but I doubt it will knock your socks off.

Stamkos is fine at the defensive side of things. He's not a liability. He's not being paid to contend for the Selke. He's being paid to score goals, something at which he's proven quite effective.
- Michael_Stuart

Everybody thought we take it in the tailpipe from St. Louis trade to and look what happened!

Like you said, the ECF run was a mediocre team who got hot and rode an experienced and hot goaltender to within a goal of the SCF. It was Roli's last hoorah as physically and mentally he couldn't muster that kind of focus and energy again. One thing that wasn't mentioned was the "change" in philosophy from Boucher trying to adjust to a forecheck based system from the previous trap based system that quite honestly was the catalyst for the run through the playoffs. There is no doubt in my mind that the stall game against the Flyers (and the corresponding firestorm) caused a change and quite possibly a rift through the entire organization. It was embarrassing to both teams and IMO the Bolts shouldn't have shouldered the majority of the blame the way they did but that doesn't matter now. What did matter was how the Bolts system did change and for whatever reason we moved away from the 1-3-1 trap and more to a 2 man forechecking system which given the makeup of the team and the overall lack of team speed accelerated the demise. The trap system masked many of our deficiencies and following the change they were exposed.

It's hard to qualify the job Yzerman has done in one single move. When taken as a whole you have to truly nitpick to criticize and that is a testament to the truly excellent job he has done. That being said, IMO the best move he has made was turning Downie into Quincey into a 1st round pick (a rarely seen and even moreso following a rarely mentioned 3-way trade). Sure the drafting of Vasi with that pick makes the deal look even better, but the fact Yzerman turned a middling sparkplug type of player in Downie into a 1st round pick by simultaneously capitalizing on 2 different teams' needs was nothing short of brilliant. The Aves were looking for grit in a big way, had a surplus of d-man which Detroit was looking for during their playoff push, and Yzerman was looking for value as he rebuilt the Bolts on the fly. Fast forward a few years and Downie is bouncing from team to team on 1 year deals, Quincey is a fallback signing for Detroit, and Vasi has added to the embarrassment of riches otherwise known as the Bolts farm system.

Black jerseys are so cool...


- Feds91Stammer

It would be more like this ; http://shop.nhl.com/Tampa...ccelerator_Premier_Jersey

and they are very cool.. i'd like the letters and name to be white maybe the logo too but it still looks sick. that with black pants and black and white socks. get rid of the blue and white , although that looks nice too, id prefer black

Oh Mike, u make me blush it really must be quiet in bolts nation when taking topic edwise from me!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWJC08xbkog < highlights from that run, god i remember Brewer, Moore, Bergenheim stepping up big time and playing really hard. those behind the back passes from Gretzky position was sweet. Think Öhlund scored his only playoff goal that run and the goal was his first in like 300 games.

good read michael!

It would be more like this ; http://shop.nhl.com/Tampa...ccelerator_Premier_Jersey

and they are very cool.. i'd like the letters and name to be white maybe the logo too but it still looks sick. that with black pants and black and white socks. get rid of the blue and white , although that looks nice too, id prefer black
- RileyB77

those look sick! will be the Tampa Bay Darth Vaders

Oh Mike, u make me blush it really must be quiet in bolts nation when taking topic edwise from me!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HWJC08xbkog < highlights from that run, god i remember Brewer, Moore, Bergenheim stepping up big time and playing really hard. those behind the back passes from Gretzky position was sweet. Think Öhlund scored his only playoff goal that run and the goal was his first in like 300 games.

good read michael!
- Cloud

I aim to please. Thanks for the topic idea.

If you have a topic you'd like to see a blog on, PM me.

The new jerseys are hideous. I still prefer the original jerseys.

The new jerseys are hideous. I still prefer the original jerseys.
- GalacticStone

And that's why you still live in your parents basement.