Jeremy Laura: Rassle Dazzle and Wings beat Sharks in OT

Thank you for the recap. I wasn’t able to watch the game.

I know I’m in the minority, but Hughes is vastly overrated as a defenseman. He isn’t physical, and I suspect without Pettersson I don’t think he gets all these points. Hard pass for me as he is more of a liability.

Thank you for the recap. I wasn’t able to watch the game.

I know I’m in the minority, but Hughes is vastly overrated as a defenseman. He isn’t physical, and I suspect without Pettersson I don’t think he gets all these points. Hard pass for me as he is more of a liability.
- down_in_a_hole

I appreciate the note, whether the consensus on the board agrees or not, it’s very cool that you took the time to stop in!

Listened ro the game, seemed like a bit of a slug-fest between the teams. We still have a lot of room to improve.....the discussions on some other boards about trading Larkin if they're "so far apart on $$$...." (don't believe it until I see it....) and the possible returns, etc... are getting crazy. I know it'll take time, and there's going to be gamesmenship.

Idon't see a path to the Top3 in the lottery, so any moves we make at the TDL would focus on augmenting the internal draft-boards. We truly need Copp to be consistent. I don't think he's a 2C, I think he'd be a good 3C, Larkin may or may not be a 2C...we need a solid 1C. An elite 1C. Someone who takes an opponents attention which could free Larkin & his line to just destroy opposing d-lines and do the heavy lifting.

Ok, now that I've made a total fool of myself, let's discuss.

Listened ro the game, seemed like a bit of a slug-fest between the teams. We still have a lot of room to improve.....the discussions on some other boards about trading Larkin if they're "so far apart on $$$...." (don't believe it until I see it....) and the possible returns, etc... are getting crazy. I know it'll take time, and there's going to be gamesmenship.

Idon't see a path to the Top3 in the lottery, so any moves we make at the TDL would focus on augmenting the internal draft-boards. We truly need Copp to be consistent. I don't think he's a 2C, I think he'd be a good 3C, Larkin may or may not be a 2C...we need a solid 1C. An elite 1C. Someone who takes an opponents attention which could free Larkin & his line to just destroy opposing d-lines and do the heavy lifting.

Ok, now that I've made a total fool of myself, let's discuss.
- mcmastermike1968

Vegas went to the SCF without a true 1C. Depth of roster, speed, and a good transition game was key to their success. So there are other ways to the holy grail of hockey. Vegas also had an exciting style to watch. They garnered many a viewer in their inaugural year.

Good on Raz and all his effort is paying off. He has an awkward style and seems to hit the ice with his butt a lot, but you cannot knock the effort!
There are still a lot of fans that continually knock him, even when he is successful. I even find myself including him in many trade options. I think if he were to be traded that we would realize more of what a gamer he is and might even miss him....

And Dylan, now is the time to sign the contract. 8 x 8 with DRW is better than 9 x 7 with someone else!

Listened ro the game, seemed like a bit of a slug-fest between the teams. We still have a lot of room to improve.....the discussions on some other boards about trading Larkin if they're "so far apart on $$$...." (don't believe it until I see it....) and the possible returns, etc... are getting crazy. I know it'll take time, and there's going to be gamesmenship.

Idon't see a path to the Top3 in the lottery, so any moves we make at the TDL would focus on augmenting the internal draft-boards. We truly need Copp to be consistent. I don't think he's a 2C, I think he'd be a good 3C, Larkin may or may not be a 2C...we need a solid 1C. An elite 1C. Someone who takes an opponents attention which could free Larkin & his line to just destroy opposing d-lines and do the heavy lifting.

Ok, now that I've made a total fool of myself, let's discuss.
- mcmastermike1968

Larkin is without a doubt a 1C, its just that if we were to rank them he falls in the 20-25 range which likely prevents you from being a contender.

I do believe you are on to something with bumping down Copp to 3C. He would be an "elite" 3C and that is often a luxury that contending teams have.

IMO Yzerman's best options to upgrade the C position come via trade.

Option 1: Go all in on Pettersson and bump Larkin down to 2C and have a Pettersson-Larkin-Copp-Veleno C lineup which would definitely be an elite C core in the league.

Option 2: Acquire a 2C from a cap strapped team that would allow Copp to move down to 3C. Potential examples (not saying they are available): Stephenson, RNH, Cirelli, Gourde, Vilardi, etc.

I like Raz - in fact I saw him kind of just float the past few years under poor coaching and this year - a totally different person. Why someone would say that a coach doesn't make a difference is beyond me. Great game from puck-drop to the end. The boys never gave up.

I like Raz - in fact I saw him kind of just float the past few years under poor coaching and this year - a totally different person. Why someone would say that a coach doesn't make a difference is beyond me. Great game from puck-drop to the end. The boys never gave up.
- BiffPokaroba

I can't stand him. Play consistently dies on his stick and he takes stupid penalties all the time. If he was 6'2" instead of 6'6" he would be in the AHL.

Larkin is without a doubt a 1C, its just that if we were to rank them he falls in the 20-25 range which likely prevents you from being a contender.

I do believe you are on to something with bumping down Copp to 3C. He would be an "elite" 3C and that is often a luxury that contending teams have.

IMO Yzerman's best options to upgrade the C position come via trade.

Option 1: Go all in on Pettersson and bump Larkin down to 2C and have a Pettersson-Larkin-Copp-Veleno C lineup which would definitely be an elite C core in the league.

Option 2: Acquire a 2C from a cap strapped team that would allow Copp to move down to 3C. Potential examples (not saying they are available): Stephenson, RNH, Cirelli, Gourde, Vilardi, etc.
- Feds91Stammer

You can have a nice, shiney Charlie Coyle if you want


EDIT: Also, Suck it Feds

You can have a nice, shiney Charlie Coyle if you want


EDIT: Also, Suck it Feds
- dothedougie

- Feds91Stammer

I don't hate Ras but i don't think there is a lot more to his game. His balance is horrible and i don't think his hockey IQ and hands will make him more than a bottom 6 guy. I think right now he might be worth more in a trade to some team who might still believe he still has potential to be more. He's not overpaid for now but his salary jumps up to 1.9 mil next season which means his qualifying offer will be over that. Still not too much of an overpay but my fear is a coach overplaying him like Babcock/Blashill did with Abdelkader and he ends up with a horrible contract.

I wouldn't trade him just to trade him but if someone was interested in him as part of a package for a top center, i would not hesitate including him. I would prefer trading him over Veleno personally.

I don't hate Ras but i don't think there is a lot more to his game. His balance is horrible and i don't think his hockey IQ and hands will make him more than a bottom 6 guy. I think right now he might be worth more in a trade to some team who might still believe he still has potential to be more. He's not overpaid for now but his salary jumps up to 1.9 mil next season which means his qualifying offer will be over that. Still not too much of an overpay but my fear is a coach overplaying him like Babcock/Blashill did with Abdelkader and he ends up with a horrible contract.

I wouldn't trade him just to trade him but if someone was interested in him as part of a package for a top center, i would not hesitate including him. I would prefer trading him over Veleno personally.
- dcz28

Keep in mind, they can negotiate without matching qualifier. I’ve said it a couple times, but Yzerman let Stamkos test free agency. No one knows when the cap will go up more than a million. The streaming services for Amazon, Disney, Google, Youtube and others (many owned by the above) even Netflix announced losses that they weren’t prepared for. Q3 Disney final numbers were 1.5 billion lost on streaming alone. They own 70% of Hulu as well as ESPN, Nat Geo, Star Wars and Marvel. If you read any of the updates on linked in, about70k jobs in Silicon Valley between about 6 companies have been eliminated as part of a 12 billion dollar recovery. This all announced before Q4 streaming results. Keep an eye on those numbers

Keep in mind, they can negotiate without matching qualifier. I’ve said it a couple times, but Yzerman let Stamkos test free agency. No one knows when the cap will go up more than a million. The streaming services for Amazon, Disney, Google, Youtube and others (many owned by the above) even Netflix announced losses that they weren’t prepared for. Q3 Disney final numbers were 1.5 billion lost on streaming alone. They own 70% of Hulu as well as ESPN, Nat Geo, Star Wars and Marvel. If you read any of the updates on linked in, about70k jobs in Silicon Valley between about 6 companies have been eliminated as part of a 12 billion dollar recovery. This all announced before Q4 streaming results. Keep an eye on those numbers
- Jeremy Laura

Someone on another Wings msg board posted that Bally Sports is going bankrupt.

https://www.nexttv.com/ne...headed%20for%20bankruptcy

Someone on another Wings msg board posted that Bally Sports is going bankrupt.

https://www.nexttv.com/ne...headed%20for%20bankruptcy
- dcz28

Sinclair as well. https://www.bloomberg.com...e&leadSource=uverify+wall

I didn’t realize that Disney bought Fox, Marvel and Star Wars really close together. The IPs (intellectual properties) launched several movies and series and many did very poorly. During lockdown binge watching was huge but the model seems to have taken a hit. ESPN also a Disney property. Disney looks to have invested in the crypto that crashed in November. Waiting for numbers but sounds like they start with a “B”

I don't hate Ras but i don't think there is a lot more to his game. His balance is horrible and i don't think his hockey IQ and hands will make him more than a bottom 6 guy. I think right now he might be worth more in a trade to some team who might still believe he still has potential to be more. He's not overpaid for now but his salary jumps up to 1.9 mil next season which means his qualifying offer will be over that. Still not too much of an overpay but my fear is a coach overplaying him like Babcock/Blashill did with Abdelkader and he ends up with a horrible contract.

I wouldn't trade him just to trade him but if someone was interested in him as part of a package for a top center, i would not hesitate including him. I would prefer trading him over Veleno personally.
- dcz28

I think it can't be overstated that Rasmussen wasn't even a particularly good junior player. He was a net-front PP specialist in the WHL. He tapped in a lot of goals on the doorstep, but he relied on teammates to drive play and give him the puck in tight. His even strength primary scoring (goals plus primary assists) was barely above average among draft-eligible WHLers.

His limitations were obvious and his skating, passing, and hockey IQ were all (rightly) questioned from the very beginning. But unfortunately a lot of scouts and GMs still get fooled by "size + goals!!!" and in 2017 that included Ken Holland.

The only way he was ever going to be a scorer at the NHL level was as a net crasher with his linemates generating all of the chances. That strategy is questionable in any case, although if you're Holmstrom and Datsyuk and Zetterberg are getting you the puck it can definitely work. If you're Rasmussen and you're relying on Larkin and Perron (to say nothing of Erne, Sundqvist, Suter, Copp ...), good luck.

I think it can't be overstated that Rasmussen wasn't even a particularly good junior player. He was a net-front PP specialist in the WHL. He tapped in a lot of goals on the doorstep, but he relied on teammates to drive play and give him the puck in tight. His even strength primary scoring (goals plus primary assists) was barely above average among draft-eligible WHLers.

His limitations were obvious and his skating, passing, and hockey IQ were all (rightly) questioned from the very beginning. But unfortunately a lot of scouts and GMs still get fooled by "size + goals!!!" and in 2017 that included Ken Holland.

The only way he was ever going to be a scorer at the NHL level was as a net crasher with his linemates generating all of the chances. That strategy is questionable in any case, although if you're Holmstrom and Datsyuk and Zetterberg are getting you the puck it can definitely work. If you're Rasmussen and you're relying on Larkin and Perron (to say nothing of Erne, Sundqvist, Suter, Copp ...), good luck.
- Sven22

The 2017 draft wasn't great. Suzuki or Robert Thomas would have been better picks at 9. I went back through the last 6 pre-Yzerman drafts and they weren't good. For 2017, Suzuki was taken 4 picks later and Jason Robertson went one pick after Lindstrom. Ras was taken at 9, is 14th in points for his draft class. Not a great pick in a draft where WHL MVP Nolan Patrick went #2.

I don't hate Ras but i don't think there is a lot more to his game. His balance is horrible and i don't think his hockey IQ and hands will make him more than a bottom 6 guy. I think right now he might be worth more in a trade to some team who might still believe he still has potential to be more. He's not overpaid for now but his salary jumps up to 1.9 mil next season which means his qualifying offer will be over that. Still not too much of an overpay but my fear is a coach overplaying him like Babcock/Blashill did with Abdelkader and he ends up with a horrible contract.

I wouldn't trade him just to trade him but if someone was interested in him as part of a package for a top center, i would not hesitate including him. I would prefer trading him over Veleno personally.
- dcz28

Raz's QO is limited to 120% of his AAV, or $1,752,000

The 2017 draft wasn't great. Suzuki or Robert Thomas would have been better picks at 9. I went back through the last 6 pre-Yzerman drafts and they weren't good. For 2017, Suzuki was taken 4 picks later and Jason Robertson went one pick after Lindstrom. Ras was taken at 9, is 14th in points for his draft class. Not a great pick in a draft where WHL MVP Nolan Patrick went #2.
- bluelineenforcer

Vilardi was the consensus best pick at the time. He would be much better than Rasmussen.

Vilardi was the consensus best pick at the time. He would be much better than Rasmussen.
- Feds91Stammer

Dont you love the Raz - Sundqvist - Soderblom line? Its like playing against a small mountain range lol

Dont you love the Raz - Sundqvist - Soderblom line? Its like playing against a small mountain range lol
- dothedougie

I'd prefer if all 3 of them were not on the team so there's that.

I'd prefer if all 3 of them were not on the team so there's that.
- Feds91Stammer

Bummer man.

Is Larkin at least going to stick around? Too bad they didn't use this year to suck for bedard but he is probably destined to go to the habs or chicago or some poop like that.

Can you guys please win in regulation tonight, thank you in advance

Bummer man.

Is Larkin at least going to stick around? Too bad they didn't use this year to suck for bedard but he is probably destined to go to the habs or chicago or some poop like that.
- dothedougie

I don't see a logical path to Larkin leaving but you never know.