1984Echoes

I think Ras is goosed on a line with Nate and Kasper. I think McLellan has been playing those 3 on the 3rd line... a lot recently... Swap Kasper with Finnie and see if we can both fix the top line (a little more strength needed) and keep the 3rd line on an upward swing. I don't think the 3rd line suffers from a Kasper-Finnie swap.

I think it's time to push Kasper back onto the 1st line. And not just because he is bigger/ stronger than Finnie. I just think he needs to be challenged to "step up". And yeah... I'm watching Finnie constantly put on his backside and it's going to get worse the next few months. Challenge Kasper to step it up, IMO. Danielson can center Ras (or the other way around) and Finnie... and maybe we could also get ourselves an effective 3rd line. Just a thought.

Holl is ONLY the answer for dumping Hamonic... I've never said otherwise. I agree that for the playoffs and for the next few months run TO the playoffs that ASP needs to be sheltered even moreso than now so he and Chiarot should be pushed down to 3rd pairing. How do we find a good defensive 2nd pairing (that also adds some offense?)...? Why... Wallinder-Tuomisto OF COURSE!!! (you expected anything different from m'wah?) 😁

Conversely... Let's say Ivey starts to recover in a way where he is, or is very close to, where he was at the beginning of last year. He's a restricted free agent, and I don't believe there will be big contracts offered to him this offseason... too much "prove it" is needed (health/growth/ceiling/defense?), IMO... So... If he actually DID get back to last year, before this season is finished... He and Ausar start as Cade's wingmen, pushing Duncan to the bench? If Ivey is hitting his 3's, we don't lose range, and gain some speed and D and secondary ball-handling... I'm going to guess he signs a 1 or 2 year "prove it" deal this offseason, with Detroit... I have no idea for how much money... but not prohibitive... As he works for another season or two trying to establish his "true" talent level. Which, IMO, we really don't know what that is just yet...

I am absolutely certain, 110%, that there is no god. But I won't quote any scientific fact this or scientific fact that... It's based simply on an understanding of human nature. Humans are curious, creative, and storytellers... so 50,000 years ago they created "The Happy Hunting Grounds" and didn't stop there, creating woodland spirits, animal spirits, river spirits, and on and on... All based on human storytelling. Man created "god" in his own image in order to describe all the things he couldn't understand. Now... Obviously... There is zero evidence there... so... my certainty is quite unconvincing... but I am not trying to convince you or anyone else to ummm... convert. Just a possible different perspective...

And this too... There is probably a breakdown of "unaffiliated" into: 1) Atheist 2) Atheist but afraid to declare so they call themselves agnostic 3) People like yourself who are true agnostics 4) Other...? 5) Per CMR & G2's definition... some call themselves "unaffiliated" even if they are Christian if they've decided to be unaffiliated with a church and therefore... But I wouldn't know what that breakdown is...

Which says PRRI would need to flesh out the definition of "unaffiliated" IE: respondents comments that would shed light on how THEY are defining themselves. You guys may be right... I am looking at it from one direction and not seeing the direction you're describing. I think respondents comments might shed some light...

No. Goalie first, fill in the blanks afterwards. Dude... you've been trying to trade Cossa from the moment we drafted him. This is not new. I mean from your perspective. Although I don't think I've changed on this stance either... I've always wanted to establish a dominant goalie as #1 priority; although I still want the "complete" team... just not at the expense of a potential dominant goalie. So, same answer as always, if Cossa is included... no to Rasmus and no to Hughes. Besides, wouldn't they make ASP redundant? He would be the first guy to consider being included in a trade of that nature... And no goalies until we know which one can dominate in the NHL. THEN I would consider a trade of the "extra" goalie or "blocked by our dominant #1 goalie" guys... IMO.

That doesn't sound very smart at all. He needs to figure out how to be less exposed/ more plate coverage...

And you don't just toss them to the curb searching for a 2nd pairing D'man. IMO.

Right... But you would still call yourself a Christian, right? Not a religiously "unaffiliated"... For example... A best buddy from college (brilliant dude, PHD in Accounting...) is Italian Catholic, his wife Cuban Catholic... And because he prefers discussing issues rather than being preached at, when he moved to PA to teach at University... He became a Quaker. Now I don't know the ins and outs of the Quaker church, I am just guessing based on his description that there isn't so much preaching as much as discussion roundtables (on religion, on issues, etc., etc... again, I don't know how they function exactly...). But he would still call himself Christian even if he is not a fan of church. He would pick one of the dozen choices that he would feel appropriate for himself. IMO, Christian is still Christian, even if not a fan of "church".

And we don't EVEN need to go there... Because if he can't hit adequately better than Mendoza... I believe we have better options. By adequate... I mean, IMO, that he needs to be a .240 plus guy, bare minimum. And an OBP close to or above .330... that, with his defense make him a starter. At least for now...

I wouldn't offer Cossa up. It's just too hard getting a top goalie on the team. Which, obviously, Cossa is NOT... Yet. And that to me is the problem. Until we have a dominant goalie in the crease, I am NOT trading Cossa. Or for that matter, Augustine, Postava, or Gylinder. I'm not saying DON'T trade a goalie... I'm just saying WAIT to trade a goalie (or 3) until AFTER we establish a young, true #1 goalie. Not until we establish our next #1... would I want to make goalie trades. It's almost like QB in football ("if you don't have a true #1 QB... you don't have a QB...). Ideally, I would like Gibson to be pushed over to 1B goalie... which is certainly "not yet". Since we seem to be stacking up decent forwards in the minors (so not counting Kasper or Danielson who are on the Wings) like MBN, Genborg, Plante, and possibly Lombardi...? Buchelnikov... I'm sure there are more... And we also have a few defensemen who are not all going to make it... but some team may want at least one D prospect included in a trade... I would rather deal from a strength, plus draft picks, to get a difference-making forward. Just my 2 cents. PS: Also, a Wing or two might go into a trade to match up salaries (if needed) so... who do we have on an expiring that could be part of a trade...?

I've had a lot of conversations with friends/ people in a meetup/discussion group/ etc... Who no longer believed... But were terrified to "come out" specifically because of this... They were "Christian (and some Muslims, who have it even worse) in name only".

I don't think there is a fix for this. The injuries are from playing violent smashmouth Dan Campbell football. On both offense and defense. There will be no way to reduce the injury count. And I don't want them to because it's winning football. However.., That also tells me that it will be valuable for Holmes to manage the cap in a way that we can sign multiple inexpensive veterans that both cover key positions as well as reduce some of the drop off in case of injury. This seems wildly prohibitive however, so it seems unlikely to me... But I still say Holmes will need to find a way to add lots of depth that is good enough to cover an injury or several, and inexpensively. So... The last point is: I think Holmes is going to have to figure out how to stockpile 2nd and 3rds and 4th and 5ths... instead of trading them all away... In order to draft and develop lots of competent young talent that can step up. Related to this is: I think he doesn't need to take wild swings on iffy players (injury risks mostly) anymore as the core talent is high enough to always be competitive. The search for any way to add talent (even huge injury or other risks) to a talent-bereft team no longer applies. IMO. Another terribly difficult task I am asking of Holmes but... There it is. The injuries aren't going to stop. Not the way they play. Better "next man up" plans are required because of that... IMO.

Say Ivey is still on the team after we trade for a 3 & D guy. Just for speculative purposes... And let's call him (traded for guy) a small forward. That would push Duncan to the bench and with him and Ivey and Stew coming in, that might just be a pretty dangerous bench... But we would require Duncan's replacement to have range, otherwise Cade will be suffering greatly with the starting 5... and he would definitely have to be better D than Duncan. (Hence 3&D (need)).

No. But maybe a 6th or 7th (draft pick... sorry if unclear...) from a desperate team down a goalie. And I think the team needs to turn over the 1A starting goalie position to Gibson (32 years old) and make that trade of Talbot (38 years old), even though I love what he's done as a Red Wing... to make way for Cossa as a 1B (for now).

"Pretend Christians"? To avoid being ostracized or persecuted...

PS: I have talked to several people who call themselves "spiritual." They could be pagan, or Buddhist without a belief in any god, or a believer in ancestral spirits, or believe that every living thing has a spirit in them, or that there "just has to be something greater than themselves" in the universe. None of these are theistic. Although "greater than themselves" comes close. But no god or gods... equals atheist. "Greater than themselves" I believe are those reluctant to commit one way or the other... But until they do commit I guess they could be classified as "undetermined" (theist or non-theist).

I look at this differently. Agnostic to me means unwilling to admit they are atheists because of family/peer pressure, or just plain fear (of Christian violence). "Religious unaffiliated" to me means non-religious. No religion. No theism. No god. Not even Zeus. Not Christians who are "non-churched" as CMR is asking. Besides, aren't there about 12 Christian categories in there? I'm certain the unchurched can find somewhere that they belong... I'm pretty certain any unchurched Christians did NOT choose religiously unaffiliated... as a guess... And agnostics are atheists IMO, with only fear of retribution or ostracization holding them back. IMO.

I believe when we traded down we got not only Gibbs but Campbell & LaPorta also... Or maybe there was 1 more maneuver to get all 3...? But at least two of them were attributable to the trade down... And yes, Carter had questions on him that I'm going to guess turned off the Lions brass.

28% and counting.... Soon to be a majority.

If the team deems McGonigle ready, Baez will lose his starting SS position. Hinch is perfectly fine, and I believe Baez is on board with this, playing Baez as the backup SS, at CF or 3B wherever and whenever he (Hinch) sees fit. Baez is not that type of concern anymore, and McGonigle has nothing to fear from him. He only has to prove that he's ready for MLB pitching, and that he's capable in the field, nothing more. And then he will be the everyday starter at SS, with Baez and McKinstry backing him up. The person who should be worried, IMO... is Meadows. If he's struggling, or nicked up, in the least... Baez or Vierling are getting the starts out there. He is far too often struggling to stay over the Mendoza line. IMO, I believe there will be less patience for that in 2026... But I'm just guessing.

So let's consider 2022 Top 10: Skubal and Mize had already graduated by then... So in 2022: Greene, Tork and Carpenter all debut. Keith is still waiting. Did Dingler ever break the top 10? This year preseason before he played a full season and lost "rookie" eligibility? 2022 also saw debuts or full seasons for all those pitchers listed (except for Flores). I think Manning had 86 innings the prior year. Keeping pitchers healthy nowadays sure sucks...

That seems like a pretty good guess... Because spring 2022 Top 10 would have had Greene, Tork, Carpenter (I think he broke top 10 before coming up to Detroit?), Keith, Jung & Flores might have been in that top ten but others vying for the back end of that might have been Faedo, Manning, Brieske, Lange and Foley. All of those guys, except Keith, Jung and Flores would have been OFF the preseason 2023, with only Jobe as a high level replacement. I believe...