DBAHO

Only if Uribe was dealt and Ramirez started the season off in AAA IMHO. But I agree that Bourgeois deserves a chance to get on a major league bench. He'd be a decent 2B/CF backup option in the mould of a Chris Burke.

I've heard they'd move Carey back to RT if they drafted Jake Long. And that's probably the best idea IMHO. Carey would be better at RT, he's not exactly a dominant LT. If you draft Ryan, you're basically saying that the John Beck pick was a mistake, and Jeff Ireland liked him in last season's draft. That would have Parcells' influence all over it if they drafted Ryan instead.

Kudos I believe (unless someone else wants to help me out here). I mean, how often do you get to say comuffins in your daily lives? It's just something cool to say when you are drunk.

Just makes you wonder if it's something about the Hawks offensive system, that only really good players can excel in (I don't know what type of system it is compared to other teams). A team such as Carolina that is using Samsonov and Ruutu on their top 2 lines, they don't seem to have any problems. Or whether it just takes a long time to learn. Someone such as Patrick Sharp for instance is only coming into his own now after a couple of seasons with the Hawks. Ladd seems to be the new Mark Bell, prototypical power forward, I would look for similar type of production (and hopefully none of the off-field problems).

The stat I look at for Owens is Post ASB OBP from last season, a .339 OBP. But I get the feeling, the Sox brass look at how he finished in September (.340 .396 .371 .767), and figure that's what he's capable of, if he was given the opportunity. Something around a .350 OBP, would be a best case scenario for me. So that's not too shabby, but I'd still rather Swisher lead-off, Cabrera hit #2, and Quentin hit down lower in the order. Whether that happens, it's 50-50 at this stage.

Haeger had his opportunity last season in Charlotte to be the 1st call up before Floyd, and his numbers didn't warrant the opportunity. He deserves to be back there to start the season, and I figure he's been passed by the likes of Lance Broadway now.

I did indeed. Apparently it's Co muffins though, now that I look at it. Cool word though I figure.

For those who saw the game, how is Barker's game now compared to where he was when he 1st called up this season? Sounds as if (from an outsider's P.O.V) that he isn't as tentative now as he was originally.

When experts were asked who they'd choose b/w Kane and Toews, 9 out of 10 said Toews IIRC. They said that Kane could get over 100 points in a season, but Toews is the type of player (a better offensive version of Rod Brindamour) that wins you a championship. And I don't think it's any secret we've won 7 out of our last 10 with Toews starting to round into form.

The age and contract makes me a little wary of making such a deal. I'd rather give Richar the shot to be honest. He could give you similar offensive production (although Ellis would be better defensively and probably just a little offensively, but that's debatable). Plus he's under our control for at least 5 seasons.

Maybe Richar for Ellis in a cost cutting measure for Billy Beane (with a prospect attached maybe). Not sure what Ellis's contract is. Here are his numbers on the past 3 years; 05 - .316/.384/.477 06 - .249/.319/.385 07 - .276/.336/.441 I suppose out of Oakland and hitting at the Cell, he'd have a decent chance of putting up an .800 OPS for you, with around 20 HR's a season. Is the writing on the wall for Uribe and Richar I wonder?

Maybe it's time they tried Whisler as a 1st baseman again. I think it's safe to say, he's never going to make it as a pitcher for the Sox.

I'd say Huet's likely to stick in Washington now, if he performs well for them also. They need a goalie long - term, with Kolzig likely to retire. And a big win here for the Hawks. A totally dominant performance. Only 6 points back of Vancouver now for that 8th spot.

Well Miami's going to find it very hard to trade down. There's no real #1 pick, and teams don't want to pay a huge bonus for a guy like that. I'd take the offensive tackle Long if I was Miami still. They do a better job at protecting the QB, and that will help improve the offense the most. And Oakland picking McFadden would just be typical of the Raiders. But yeah if he was there for the Jets, I could see them picking him as well.

QUOTE(kyyle23 @ Mar 3, 2008 -> 08:02 AM) ESPN reporting that the Falcons have signed Michael Turner http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3273710 Wouldn't imagine the Falcons will draft McFadden now. But a good signing this is for the Falcons. Turner doesn't exactly have a lot of wear and tear as a running back.

The Hawks really have to take this game to have any hopes of making the playoffs. Let's hope that late Vancouver score in the 2nd doesn't come back to haunt us.

The only WR I could see out there signing with the Bears is Booker. If you're Javon Walker, do you want to go to a team that would have either Orton or Grossman starting, or a team such as the Cowboys who has a far better option at QB? As for Stroud, a couple of years ago he was a very dominant DT. But he's been injured since then, and not really worth the big salary.

Nothing like playing the Knicks for an easy win. Who should the Bulls target for a new coach in the off-season?

Briggs settled for 6/36? Ummm, wow. That's huge for the Bears.

Well aCE YOU GOT YOUR WISH I'M drunk right now, so there's your comuffins.

We lost Jeff Ireland, who's obviously a great talent spotter. We lost Tony Sparano, but replaced him with Hudson Houck from the Dolphins who argubly has the best reputation going around as an offensive line coach. As for the 3 defensive coaches, Todd Bowles is the big one (although he never got Roy Williams to improve his play). But the replacements we got in Dave Campo, Todd Grantham, the buzz is we think we've actually upgraded there. Most of those guys were Parcells guys, and now Phillips could bring in his own guys.

QUOTE(CWSGuy406 @ Mar 1, 2008 -> 04:23 AM) The word I've read with Yall-mer-son is "raw". Some people even questioned why he was in the A already, so he appears to be well ahead of the curve. And someone please tell me why the Hawks need both a top six winger and a top six defenseman just to 'compete for a playoff spot' next year? The Hawks competing for a playoff spot this year -- sure, they're going to come up short, but they've been completely ravaged by injuries this season. The only other team (I'm sure there are others who've had it bad, mind you, but nowhere near as bad as the Hawks) I can think of is Colorado, who basically had their whole first line decimated for a string of games. Just reiterrating -- that's a ridiculous statement to make. If Tallon lands a legit top-six winger as well as Campbell (without losing anyone extremely crucial from this year's squad), I'd say the Hawks move into that middle tier of playoff teams. As I see it, I don't think the Hawks are over any barrell to land a top defenseman -- I'd be perfectly content going into camp with Keith, Seabrook, Wisniewski, Sopel, Hjalmerson, Barker and Hendry, with the Hawks perhaps bringing in another Sopel-type to compete with Hjalm and Hendry for the sixth spot. In any case, though, Tallon's got a big summer ahead. He's got a bunch of second-line/third-line types who he needs to find spots for. The first thing I'd like to see him do is trade Lang somewhere -- not because I don't like Lang. People have called him lazy this year... whatever. That's what he was in Detroit, too, you should've expected that. He's gonna end up with 20 goals and better than 50 points, that's perfectly acceptable production for what he is being paid -- and put Bolland on the second line, creating a third-line spot for Kontiola. After that, he's got to sort through the keepers. As I see it, these guys are here next season (these are in no way 'first' or second lines, either -- I'm just getting the guys down): Toews - Kane - Sharp Byfuglien - Bolland - Ladd Adams - Burish - Eager/Dowell You have a lot of guys vying for those three spots. Skille should probably be up here -- he doesn't need longer than a year in the A. I left off Havlat, but I'd probably keep him as well -- if you traded him you wouldn't get acceptable value in return and he'll be in a contract year coming off of shoulder surgery. I'd hope he has a big year and cut bait with him either at the deadline or just let him walk as a FA. There's also Jason Williams who's pretty good on the PP. There's also Kontiola and Versteeg as two more guys who have earned a shot at staying up here. Oh yeah, and then there's the draft -- it's supposed to be very deep, so the Hawks look well positioned to add another top prospect. Boy am I winded after this post. Sorry for the length, fellas. Competing was probably the wrong word to use. To make the playoffs more likely. Right now, if this team stayed pat, I don't think we'd make the playoffs next season. And I say that because the other teams around us will probably be better etc. and we're always going to have injuries (it's a case of how many). The defence to me has a lot of guys who would be great #3-4 D-Men on a contending team, but they still need that #1 guy. Would a Seabrook or Sopel for example be a top 2 D-Man on most teams in the NHL? Offensively wise with Kane, Toews and Sharp is a pretty good core to build around. Ladd is a wildcard at this stage, and Williams will produce, but he's never been really healthy for the Hawks. I don't think we can depend on anything from Havlat at this stage. Anything we get from him should be a bonus (unfortunately). Other than that, it's guys such as Bolland who will need to develop quickly and prove they can score in the NHL.

QUOTE(Shadows @ Mar 1, 2008 -> 05:15 AM) Miami keeps raiding Dallas They pick up Jason Ferguson for a swap of 6th rounders this year and a 6th next year.. excellent pick up for our 3-4 NT Raiding, haha you crack me up sometimes Shadows. Realistically, Ferguson's coming off a major surgery, he's old, and he probably doesn't have a whole lot left. You guys have certainly been active today though. Some good signings (Wilford and Pace if you get him), but some I don't really understand (Randy Starks getting $21M for example, although he can thank Al Davis for that).

No I'm pokering instead. Usual Friday Night for me now after work, and after a drink or 2. And I've had to pull out of my triathlon now, I've got a Grade 2 Calf Strain, which requires 3-4 weeks of rest and recovery. So annoyed that I did 4 weeks of swimming, riding and running to get fit, and now it's all for nothing.

Phoenix re-signed Bryz to a 3 year deal IIRC. About $4M a season. Montoya will be the backup from next season, and be the Mike Smith to Marty Turco. Was a great deal by Don Maloney, because they also got Hossa from the Rangers, and they'll target Hossa from the Penguins when he hits FA. For the Hawks to make the playoffs next season, they'd need to sign Brian Campbell (or a similar #1 D-Man) and at least 1 top line winger IMHO. Don't know if they can do that.