Bob Duff: So, whose fault is it then? Despite missing the playoffs for the second straight season, the Detroit Red Wings are bringing back both GM Ken Holland and coach Jeff Blashill for the 2018-19 NHL season.

Kennys

No surprise here. Illitch didn't do what he should have and get rid of Holland. Holland knows he isn't on the hot seat anymore so he has no reason to can Blashill. He can save that for when he is on the hot seat again and fears getting fired.

They should have cleaned house (GM, coach and scouting staff that can't draft a good defenseman to save their lives). I guess the only good news is another high draft pick in 2019 but the season will be another extremely boring one to watch.

Bob Duff: So, whose fault is it then?
Despite missing the playoffs for the second straight season, the Detroit Red Wings are bringing back both GM Ken Holland and coach Jeff Blashill for the 2018-19 NHL season.
- BobDuff

Yours?

h

Holland owns this trainwreck. The scouting staff are crap compared to when Jim Nill and his top scouts were in Detroit. Blashill should be gone too... but I have to admit that it would be hard for any coach to excel with the lack of depth (especially at defense) to turn this team around. But make no mistake, Blashill will be the fall guy as this team continues to suck the next two seasons.

I'm more excited to watch the prospects in Grand Rapids than watch the Wings. At least I can go to some playoff games soon. I will be interested to see Rasmussen come to GR and play once his playoffs are done in Juniors. Hopefully the Griffins will make a deep playoff run. It's too bad one of their top scorers Lorito is out for the season. Tangradi has been carrying this team on his back (31 goals). I'd still wish the Wings would have at least given him a look in Detroit this year.

Holland is literally responsible for acquiring every player on the roster. He is 100% responsible for this poop show.

I agree with Tumbleweed. Duffs poopty blogging didn’t allow Mantha to reach 50 goals.

I'm more excited to watch the prospects in Grand Rapids than watch the Wings. At least I can go to some playoff games soon. I will be interested to see Rasmussen come to GR and play once his playoffs are done in Juniors. Hopefully the Griffins will make a deep playoff run. It's too bad one of their top scorers Lorito is out for the season. Tangradi has been carrying this team on his back (31 goals). I'd still wish the Wings would have at least given him a look in Detroit this year.

Eric Tangradi has 15 points in 144 career NHL games, and he's 29 years old. And he was a minus player despite playing for some fairly decent teams in Pittsburgh and Winnipeg.

I get what you're saying but I don't think I need to see Tangradi in Detroit. He just seems to be one of those guys (and there are a lot of them) who are pretty good minor league scorers but for whatever reason just don't quite have the chops to make an impact at the NHL level, against the best players in the world.

Not saying he couldn't be an okay fourth liner if he got another shot, but the planet is loaded with guys who could be okay fourth liners. I'd rather give the job to somebody younger.

Speaking of the Griffins, they are of course my hometown team and I hope they make another deep run again. I will do my best to get to at least a couple of games. But from a Red Wings fan perspective it's much harder to get excited about this squad, even if they win it all again.

The 2013 playoff squad had Nyquist, Tatar, Mrazek, Jurco, Sheahan, Andersson, Almqvist, Mursak, Ferraro, and even DeKeyser for the last round. Not all of them panned out obviously, but that's at least three or four guys we thought had future star potential and a few others who looked like they could become solid NHLers, all of them 23 and younger.

Even last year's squad had Svechnikov, Frk, Nosek, Bertuzzi, Hicketts, Coreau, Russo -- a step below the 2013 team in terms of NHL potential for sure, but plenty of guys worth keeping an eye on.

This year it's really just Svech and Hronek I'm interested in. Maaaybe Hicketts and Saarijarvi too. (Coreau and Russo are still there of course, but I think the ship has more or less sailed on them in terms of legit NHL potential.) More than any other team in recent memory, this is a Griffins team that's really dominated by minor league veterans without a lot of (if any) NHL upside left.

As a Griffins fan I really don't care that much; I just want them to win. As a Red Wings fan, I wish there were more players to really get excited about.

Eric Tangradi has 15 points in 144 career NHL games, and he's 29 years old. And he was a minus player despite playing for some fairly decent teams in Pittsburgh and Winnipeg.

I get what you're saying but I don't think I need to see Tangradi in Detroit. He just seems to be one of those guys (and there are a lot of them) who are pretty good minor league scorers but for whatever reason just don't quite have the chops to make an impact at the NHL level, against the best players in the world.

Not saying he couldn't be an okay fourth liner if he got another shot, but the planet is loaded with guys who could be okay fourth liners. I'd rather give the job to somebody younger.

Speaking of the Griffins, they are of course my hometown team and I hope they make another deep run again. I will do my best to get to at least a couple of games. But from a Red Wings fan perspective it's much harder to get excited about this squad, even if they win it all again.

The 2013 playoff squad had Nyquist, Tatar, Mrazek, Jurco, Sheahan, Andersson, Almqvist, Mursak, Ferraro, and even DeKeyser for the last round. Not all of them panned out obviously, but that's at least three or four guys we thought had future star potential and a few others who looked like they could become solid NHLers, all of them 23 and younger.

Even last year's squad had Svechnikov, Frk, Nosek, Bertuzzi, Hicketts, Coreau, Russo -- a step below the 2013 team in terms of NHL potential for sure, but plenty of guys worth keeping an eye on.

This year it's really just Svech and Hronek I'm interested in. Maaaybe Hicketts and Saarijarvi too. (Coreau and Russo are still there of course, but I think the ship has more or less sailed on them in terms of legit NHL potential.) More than any other team in recent memory, this is a Griffins team that's really dominated by minor league veterans without a lot of (if any) NHL upside left.

As a Griffins fan I really don't care that much; I just want them to win. As a Red Wings fan, I wish there were more players to really get excited about.
- Sven22

Portland is currently down 2-1 in their series so maybe they get Cholo for the yoffs.

I agree with Tumbleweed. Duffs poopty blogging didn’t allow Mantha to reach 50 goals.
- RafiDRW

i'm glad somebody else gets it

Holland owns this trainwreck. The scouting staff are crap compared to when Jim Nill and his top scouts were in Detroit. Blashill should be gone too... but I have to admit that it would be hard for any coach to excel with the lack of depth (especially at defense) to turn this team around. But make no mistake, Blashill will be the fall guy as this team continues to suck the next two seasons.

I'm more excited to watch the prospects in Grand Rapids than watch the Wings. At least I can go to some playoff games soon. I will be interested to see Rasmussen come to GR and play once his playoffs are done in Juniors. Hopefully the Griffins will make a deep playoff run. It's too bad one of their top scorers Lorito is out for the season. Tangradi has been carrying this team on his back (31 goals). I'd still wish the Wings would have at least given him a look in Detroit this year.
- Vladdie_Kon1

Who exactly did Jim Nill and his top scouts draft? Most of our successful picks were Hakan picks. Nill may have some decent forwards in there, but basically the only good defenseman(which is our problem now) from 1994 to 2013, Nill left before 2014 draft, were kronwall and jiri Fischer.

Who exactly did Jim Nill and his top scouts draft? Most of our successful picks were Hakan picks. Nill may have some decent forwards in there, but basically the only good defenseman(which is our problem now) from 1994 to 2013, Nill left before 2014 draft, were kronwall and jiri Fischer.
- Zmloste

Agreed that Hakan is mostly responsible for finding most of their awesome Euro's that were drafted, but Nill has been in the front office since 1997. As Assistant GM he also was Head of Scouting and oversaw the work of Hakan Andersson. Wings were drafting very low for over a decade and still managed to draft complimentary players (Martin Lapointe, etc...) to their superstars. Agreed... mostly forwards over the last years (Athanasiou, Frk, etc). I do wish more defenseman were drafted as now the team is hamstrung.

The other thing is they were still winning for that long stretch by getting great veteran defensemen like Rafalski, Larry Murphy, Chelios, Paul Coffey,.. etc via free agency and/or trade.

Eric Tangradi has 15 points in 144 career NHL games, and he's 29 years old. And he was a minus player despite playing for some fairly decent teams in Pittsburgh and Winnipeg.

I get what you're saying but I don't think I need to see Tangradi in Detroit. He just seems to be one of those guys (and there are a lot of them) who are pretty good minor league scorers but for whatever reason just don't quite have the chops to make an impact at the NHL level, against the best players in the world.

Not saying he couldn't be an okay fourth liner if he got another shot, but the planet is loaded with guys who could be okay fourth liners. I'd rather give the job to somebody younger.

Speaking of the Griffins, they are of course my hometown team and I hope they make another deep run again. I will do my best to get to at least a couple of games. But from a Red Wings fan perspective it's much harder to get excited about this squad, even if they win it all again.

The 2013 playoff squad had Nyquist, Tatar, Mrazek, Jurco, Sheahan, Andersson, Almqvist, Mursak, Ferraro, and even DeKeyser for the last round. Not all of them panned out obviously, but that's at least three or four guys we thought had future star potential and a few others who looked like they could become solid NHLers, all of them 23 and younger.

Even last year's squad had Svechnikov, Frk, Nosek, Bertuzzi, Hicketts, Coreau, Russo -- a step below the 2013 team in terms of NHL potential for sure, but plenty of guys worth keeping an eye on.

This year it's really just Svech and Hronek I'm interested in. Maaaybe Hicketts and Saarijarvi too. (Coreau and Russo are still there of course, but I think the ship has more or less sailed on them in terms of legit NHL potential.) More than any other team in recent memory, this is a Griffins team that's really dominated by minor league veterans without a lot of (if any) NHL upside left.

As a Griffins fan I really don't care that much; I just want them to win. As a Red Wings fan, I wish there were more players to really get excited about.
- Sven22

Yeah... I hear what you're saying about Tangradi. The Wings haven't had a big, tough, talented, and effective power forward since Shanahan. But as you said Tangradi is getting past his prime and he's not going to have an NHL career at this point (at least not in Detroit). His contract expires this season and it will be interesting to see if he stays in GR.

I have to admit Hronek and Svech are really the only two players in GR to really watch to see what they can become. Rasmussen or Cholowski may come to GR. Although every person I've ever talked to that's seen Cholowski play in Juniors does not seem at all impressed. Still have doubts about that draft pick and why he was taken as high as he was.

Yeah... I hear what you're saying about Tangradi. The Wings haven't had a big, tough, talented, and effective power forward since Shanahan. But as you said Tangradi is getting past his prime and he's not going to have an NHL career at this point (at least not in Detroit). His contract expires this season and it will be interesting to see if he stays in GR.

I have to admit Hronek and Svech are really the only two players in GR to really watch to see what they can become. Rasmussen or Cholowski may come to GR. Although every person I've ever talked to that's seen Cholowski play in Juniors does not seem at all impressed. Still have doubts about that draft pick and why he was taken as high as he was.
- Vladdie_Kon1

Hronek, Hicketts, Cholowski, Saarijarvi, Sulak, and Sambrook make up an okay D prospect pool imo. No obvious blue chip guy but definitely could see 3 or 4 becoming full time NHLers.

Forward wise is another story. After Rasmussen and Svechnikov it is pretty much a crap shoot. Turgeon, Holmstrom, Sadowy, Smith, etc. are all very meh prospects.

Overall the prospect pool is pretty weak. This years draft needs to be a very good one.