I like the trade. Columbus needs some "D" and Carter totally wanted out. Plus they get a first round pick. Johnson's got some talent, he could work out. He's still young and developing.

I think they got hosed. If Johnson develops more (which I don't see happening) maybe it will have been worth it. He leads the kings Dmen with goals against when he is on the ice...4 years straight..even on the 2nd Defense pairing.

Including the Draft pick (and this looks like a good year to be drafting) it might not even amount to anything because it'll be mid round.

The Ages of both players are about the same, Contracts in range of one another too.

The only difference is Carter is responsible in his own end and will put up 30+ goals a season (assuming he's healthy)..and the kings need the scoring.

Their ages are not close to being the same. The reason is one's a forward and one's a defenseman. If there ages (Carter 27, Johnson 25) were reversed I might be more inclined to agree. Nearly all defenseman take longer to develop into elite players vs. forwards. And the big/tall ones seem to take even longer. There are, of course, exceptions, but it typically takes awhile.

Johnson might not turn out to be much in the end, but he's still got time to develop into a great Dman.
And I'm not convinced Carter is the greatest team player. Maybe he is, but I've got my doubts based on his end in Philly.

2 years? come on dude...

If we were talking 18 and 20, yeah I'd be more inclined to agree with that based on physical development but when your 25, you're pretty much there. Not saying his game won't improve, just saying 2 years isn't that big of a deal.

Most defensemen don't start to get consistently really good until they're about 28 - forwards are much sooner than that.
2 years can make all the difference in the world when you're learning.

To follow up:
Being a forward is about what move can I put on this guy to buy me some space to make a play? It's about instinct, talent and speed.

Being a defenseman is about reading a play and knowing what this guy likes to do, who's dangerous, who's predictable, who shoots, who dekes, who you attack, who you sit back on, where to position yourself to minimize problems, etc. The latter takes WAY more time to figure out than the former.

And no matter how talented you are as a Dman early on, it still takes time to dominate because everyone you're playing is that fucking good. As good as Pronger has been, he wasn't that good until he'd played for awhile. It just takes time.

Which is why Lidstrom is so great. He had the positioning of a 30 year old when he came into the league at 21.

I totally agree. That's what happens when you play for too long. Even Gretzky, his last few years weren't anywhere near his old level, and arguably, Orr's last three years proved that he no longer could play (though his stats, per game, were still very good). Some people actually hold the shortened career against Orr, but I personally don't--he was just that much better than everyone else at that time, and honed the offensive defenseman thing (when no one else was doing it) to a point where no one has still yet matched it.

I'm not drinking the kool aid with that, can word it however you want. Players change throughout their career (obviously).. I don't see this guy developing into this super D-man in another 3 years. I do see the kings making a decent playoff run with some scoring on board now.

But hey, Johnson can prove me wrong. Maybe he'll wake up today in columbus and say to himself.."That shelf would look better with a Norris trophy."

Truth.


Despite my vile hatred for the Wings.


But 2-0 in the first makes me smile...

Malkin's goal (the one that made it 6-1) tonight was insane. Plus, that and three goals and one assist tonight, and I think he may be well on his way to the MVP this season, barring a steep dropoff in numbers/ play, and/ or someone else stepping up that much.

Whew! God damn Wings don't know when to stay down. Great game. Enjoy the playoffs.


Downie is working out well for the Avs with O'Reilly and Landeskog.

Goddammit. I recorded that game because me and the girlfriend went out for my birthday dinner, even though my birthday is tomorrow. FUCKING HAPPY FUCKING BIRTHDAY.

Congratulations, douche-fag. ;) J/K, they played us a tough game, and we didn't take shit seriously until we were down 3-0. Typical Red Wings.

Still hoping for a substantial trade before the deadline, because our on-the-road record, power play, and penalty kill will NOT work in the playoffs. Period.

I think right now the only guy who can compete with Malkin for MVP is Henrik Lundqvist. He is having an incredible season and the numbers he is putting up blows every other goal other than Quick out of the water.

I can't believe they left Roloson in for all 8 goals. Give him a mercy pull or something.

I can't believe Vancouver does not have the god damn common courtesy to built Dallas in regulation. Pricks.

What I've heard repeatedly through the years is it takes 3 years in the NHL to learn D.
I suppose another 2 to 3 to really hone it, which seems logical.

of course, i'm a blackhawks fan, so I really couldn't tell you what a decent D man looks like anymore.

I need a playoff bound team to root for when the Hawks miss out. Nashville?

Hawks get Oduya from Wpg for 2 draft picks.

What's the scoop on Johnny, Ryan E?

What a weird deadline. Prices too high and I guess too many teams still vying to jump into the playoff race.

I cannot believe NSH traded a 1st Round draft pick for Paul Gaustad. I understand they're going for the cup, but wow. I'm actually kinda excited to watch some of their games now with their superstacked Dfence and the belarusian brothers playing together again.

I like what Stevie Y did today (and the trades prior) and I think he made the best moves for his franchise. Greg Sherman may not have made a bad choice in swapping with SJ, either IMO.

I'm still confused by the Hodgson and Kassian trade..seems lopsided.

Other than that, pretty YAWN.

Was hoping the Red Wings would pick up some grit, but nothing happened. At least we got rid of Commodore for a draft pick, I guess. I still trust Holland; he doesn't want to overpay at the cost of the future. We'll still have a lot of cap money to spend in the off-season, which I will probably be happy about at the time.

Still, I have my reservations about the Wings' ability to withstand the physical play of the Western Conference and make it to the finals.

I'm not blaming any GM for not pulling the trigger on any players..everyone was asking astronomical prices. I think the wings still have a good shot at the cup despite the physical misgivings, it was only 4 years that basically the same stars carried the team to a cup.

Here in washington the fans are going crazy because they're stupid. They would bitch if our GM didn't make an outrageous trade, then if he did, they would bitch because they'll do a 180 and complain about how it was stupid. It's like the bruce boudreau thing all over again.

Didn't expect the Avs to make any big splashes, when you're tied for 8th (YEAH BOY!) you're not really a seller.

Losing Winnick and Galliardi sucks, but I ultimately like the trade. SJ is going to love Gally for sure.

out of all the names rumored in conjunction with the hawks, Halpern & Erskine were the ones I really hoped were headed this way.

Johnny's a good defenseman--I think that you'll like him...smart with the puck, and although his offensive stats aren't that impressive, he can jump in on the play pretty well and move things along. We have far too many great to decent d-men, so I guess that one had to go, and with salary dumping and the salary cap, I think that the 2nd and 3rd round draft picks are in line with what we're after--building through the draft and making smart transactions.

This trade deadline is one of the worst that I can think of in modern memory, in terms of excitement. Carter seems to be the "it" guy at trade deadline time, and that's not exactly a rep that you'd like to get. Someone like Nash, with today's NHL....I miss the ridiculous blockbuster trades of yesteryear, with guys like McNall throwing money out there like it was Monopoly money, but on the other hand, it forces teams to be smart and not trade for someone who is vastly overpriced to what you get in return. No doubt that Columbus was asking for an arm and a leg, and the fact that Nash is asking to be traded most likely doesn't speak well of his team ethic. That's my reasoning as to why he didn't move.

Parity has changed the deadline deals, additionally the salary cap makes it much more difficult for a GM to fix his "mistakes"

One of the stories floated around the innertron, was that Bowman was specifically told that he could not add any players that did not have an expiring contract.
This (at least to my skewed view) seems to suggest that the Hawks are preparing for a contentious off season. I've said this before... enjoy this season. Next year may see an NBA style situation, or worse.

Thanks, Crutch, for Galiardi and Winnik. They helped out a lot tonight and hopefully will work out well for us, particularly in our penalty kill.

Bummed we lost McGinn. Ginner was shapin' up real nice and was one of my favorites this season, dude works hard, hits harder. Use him well.