jammer2

Hiller outright stunk the first half of the year. Jan and Feb he turned it around big time. His true value is somewhere inbetween. As far as the Flyers go, Halak is not feasable. What could be possible is trading a goal scorer for Elliot. He just signed a 2 year deal for just under 2 mill a year. Guess it would depend on who St.Louis had in the system goalie wise. Would be tough to convince them to deal Elliot though, they have a real nice 1-2 punch. With the return of Andy McDonald, they might not be anxious to make a big move....plus looks like Stewart is finally starting to heat it up after a God awful year. Don't know if anyone has watched the Blues this year, but T.J Oshie is a vastly underrated young talent. Don't know where the goals will come from, but the Blues might make some noise in this years playoffs.....guess you can say the same about Nashville though. Edit....i would credit Hillier's astounding turn around to the coaching change and the new defensive system Boudreau instuited when arriving with the Ducks, much like Hitch drastically altered Halak's season.

This moves gives the Wings tremendous depth on defense. Can run the pp, perfect insurance against a Lindstrom injury...and like Yave stated, allows Kindl (who is a serviceable d-man despite languishing in the minors for 5 seasons) to be some nice trade bait. Smart move by the Wings. Should be interenting to see how Downie fits into the Aves plans. Only thing I'm sure of, it won't be the last time he is traded.

Any Nash deal would have to include Bryz from my standpoint....and NOT Couts....I believe he will be better than Nash straight up.....so no dice if he's included.

Little worried about Kubina's lack of mobility, but at least his presence takes the horrid potential Luke Schenn deal out of the equation....thank the good Lord for that. We got grittier in our own end, not a bad thing. Like the fact it's the Panthers second and a measley 4th rounder. Did not break the bank and got some respectable depth. Curious to see where this all leads, looks like the tip of the iceberg here.

@brelic I remember many, many panic threads during the summer which asked the basic and fair question....where are the goals going to come from? Who will pick up the slack left in the wake of Richards and Carter being dealt? Now, months later we know, it was not JVR and Danny B picking up the slack, it was a NHL leading 38 goals from rookies and career years from Simmonds and Talbot....with respectable contributions from Voracek as well. If you told me at the start of the season Simmonds would outscore Richards I'd straight up laugh at you, but then again, I didn't expect the Kings to be LAST in goals either....lol.

Just watched the ceremony, very nice. I gave the guy tons of flack over the years, but bottom line.....hat's off to Mat's...he didn't have much to work with for many of his Toronto years, but made the best of it. A good solid captain, played the game with more grit as he got older. I respect the guy. Glad he got his night....much deserved.

@WingNut722 Across the river, in Windsor, Ontario. Huge, huge Tiger fan and kinda sorta cheer for the Pistons (not that I really care about basketball....but did care when the Bad Boys were in their hay day). I'm actually a 5th generation Tiger fan....my Great Great Grandfather rooted for them back in the late 1800's before he passed.

@hf101 Loktinov is small enough, I'm not sure he will make it long term in the NHL. One thing I can tell you, he is a special talent, truly a wizard of time and space with the puck. He operated the half wall in Windsor like no one I've ever seen. That's where I see his niche, a power play specialist. He just gets knoced off the puck to easily to be taken seriously....but I saw him do some absolute magic with the puck.....amazing passer, amazing anticiaption.

@WingNut722 Yeah, I read that also, glad it's not as bad as first reported. Saw the story in the Free Press also. Actually, I've read the Free Pres almost every morning for the past 30 years.....lol.

I can't for the life of me see how this deal helps out the Flyers. It's sickening really. I kinda figured Marshall was a bust, but held out hope I was wrong......but to deal a 3rd rounder to move up in the 2nd to select Marshall in the first place....and then move him for a soon to be 28 year old....WTF....BRUTAL. I'm disgusted with lateral moves like this.

I thought it was a Peter Falk reference...."one more thing".....

What a sad story we have here. One of the greatest players and ambassadors to the game ever, falling ill to the same fate that took his beloved wife Colleen in 2009. A perfect example of how life can have cruel twists and turns. I guess his dementia is not really bad at this point, more like short term memory loss, but sadly, it will probably get worse. I met him once at the Windsor Arena....what a nice man.....every bit of the gentlemen he comes off as during interviews. Prayers and thoughts to the family during this trying time. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=386711

NHL is looking into this one. Drew Doughty scored the winning goal with one second left, but time *should* have expired. Apparently the clock *froze* for a second, which gave Drew just enough time to pot the winner. Perhaps a misguided fan working the clock, perhaps the Kings knew nothing about it. Nonetheless, time the NHL looked into just who is working the clock and how they can be made accountable for their actions. This should be interesting....but regardless, the result cannot be over-turned. http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/story/?id=386722

@flyercanuck Agreed, Burke reaached a bit on Luke. If my memory serves correct, didn't he make a deal to move up (or was it a move down?) before selecting Luke?

@JackStraw Valid point Straw-man. No matter how obvious things can seem at the NHL level, this year (along with others) has taught me one thing, what you see, is *not* always what you get. For instance, I figured the Flyers got outright ripped off when they acquired Versteeg, this year he is among league leaders in goals. I could have sworn he was a bum. He proved me wrong. This could indeed happen with Luke, stranger things have happened. Yet, he projects (at this point) as a stay at home d-man with limited offense.....but yet, the weakest part of his game is in his own end and involves simple solutions that he over-complicates by brain farts. After 281 NHL games, that worries me. I see a pattern, one that I would prefer to not see re-played on the Flyers.

@AbelMorpheus I've said all along, injuries are a blessing in disguise. Many, many NHL careers have started on the long term injury of established vet. and *somebody* had to do it.....lol.... http://www.google.ca/imgres?q=megan+fox+hot&hl=en&client=firefox-a&hs=Cnf&sa=X&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&biw=1256&bih=841&tbm=isch&prmd=imvnso&tbnid=6uZ3FKHQ5UrYaM:&imgrefurl=http://jaipals.com/hot-megan-fox-2012/&docid=wGM0iz38WzGTJM&imgurl=http://jaipals.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/megan-fox-hot-in-bikini.jpg&w=514&h=799&ei=TrcqT9C3DOPWiAK-5PziCg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=404&vpy=110&dur=972&hovh=280&hovw=180&tx=103&ty=142&sig=112133002012543145192&page=1&tbnh=142&tbnw=87&start=0&ndsp=28&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:0

@jkearse123 Ask any regular watcher of the Leafs and they will tell you, they are hoping and praying he is included in some type of trade deadline deal. The deer in headlights thing is real, happens far to often in his own end. He panics and gives up the puck. While he is still young, he has been around long enough to know, patience and grace under fire is the real mark of a top notch NHL d-man. If I had a dime for every time he threw the puck into the middle, I'd be retired. I watch the Leafs enough to know, he would be eaten alive in Philly. Like fc said, you can find a U-Tube clip of anybody throwing a nice hit or making a nice play. To be honest, when I saw this kid play for Team Canada, I was really, really impressed. I was upset the Leafs got him. Years later, the offense has not come through at the NHL level (played the pp point for Team Canada)....while he is a physical d-man, the hitting is far from consistant, but admittedly, that part may come as he learns when to hit and when not to. I realize it's a learning process for young d-men, but the lack of poise is startling for somebody with 3+ years in the NHL. Sorry, but no go for me.

@hf101 Harts added a lot of life and spunk to a somewhat dreary game. His "triplets" remard to the Sedin twins was hilarious. I very much enjoyed him being miced up............the NHL made a nice call there. You can see how he would be a really cool teammate, somebody you would enjoy hanging out with and passing the time on long flights. A kind of life of the party type.

Totally agree with that WingNut....no way will the Isles part with Okposo.....I can see Parenteau going if the right deal comes along....but Kyle...no way, no how.

Just an FYI, but I read earlier this month that Selanne and Koivu are the only untouchables on the Ducks....simply because they are the only 2 with no trade clauses.

@AlaskaFlyerFan Thanks AFF, grew up reading Spidey, never got sick of the ol' web slinger!

@blocker Yeah block, there is just something really special about playing outdoors. You get the feeling the orginal players got, before all the lights and infrastructures.....just nature and God's great fresh air.

As the article says, very early in the development stages, but the OHL could have a few outdoor games during the Winter Classic weekend.....possibley a different venue, perhaps Comerica Park...home of the Detroit Tigers....could be interesting, will keep you posted! http://blogs.windsorstar.com/2012/01/25/spitfires-could-be-part-of-nhl-winter-classic/

@flyerrod ha ha....still pay'in for that one huh rod? LOL, I still deserve it. Little different though, Harts is actually on pace for a really nice season. Even a bit of slump should still pot him 40.

Should be interesting to see just how many goals Harts can score this year. Ya know, sounds really weird, but if he goes on a bit of a hot streak....50 is looming large. If you told me at the start of the year that 50 was even a *remote* possibility for Harts, I'd tell you to lay off the drugs. Even 40 (which is certainly within reach) sounds downright strange. Congrats Scotty, you deserved this trip to the All Star game!!!!