Should The Red Wings Renew Ken Holland?

Ken Holland is probably heading for the Hall of Fame. As General Manager he’s won 3 Stanley Cups (plus 1 Cup as an assistant GM) and helped put together a streak of 25 consecutive playoff appearances. He became the Red Wings GM in 1997 and inherited a team that had just won the Stanley Cup, a team he had helped build as an assistant. He may have inherited Lidstrom and Yzerman, but he drafted Datsyuk and Zetterberg. Whatever impact he had on the first 2 Cups of the Lidstrom dynasty, he sure had his fingerprints all over the next 2.

The Red Wings long playoff streak finally came to an end in 2017, and now the team finds itself in a dark hole. Holland's contract will expire at the end of this season and it's still uncertain if he will sign a new deal. Feelings in Detroit are mixed. Fans owe him a debt of gratitude for the team's accomplishments under his tenure, but the current roster is a dumpster fire. Datsyuk is gone, and Zetterberg won't be far behind.

At this point I should mention that I've been a Red Wings fan since the 80s. By 2012 Ken Holland had reached legendary status as a General Manager, and I rarely questioned his decisions. I was pretty sure the man could walk on water if he tried. The moment when I first raised my eyebrow was when he traded a 1st round pick for Kyle Quincey, which came weeks before Nick Lidstrom's retirement. Losing a Hall of Famer near the top of his game is always a devastating blow, and it's hard to replace them in free agency. I'm sure Holland pitched all the big names who became available. 

Where he needed to replace Lidstrom, Rafalski, and Stuart was through the draft...and that's been a problem. In the 4 drafts prior to Lidstrom's retirement, the Wings drafted 10 defensemen, Max Nicastro, Adam Almquist, Nick Jensen, Gleason Fournier, Ben Marshall, Richard Nedomlel, Mattias Backman, Alexey Marchenko, Ryan Sproul, and Xavier Ouellet. None of those guys are a legit top four defenseman, and 2 of them currently make up the Wings bottom pairing. In the 4 drafts after Lidstrom's retirement, the Wings only drafted 6 defensemen, and it looks like they'll all be strikeouts. 

Over 8 drafts surrounding Lidstrom's retirement, they drafted 16 defensemen and have 2 bottom pair D to show for it. That makes some sense. Between 2007 (Brendan Smith) to 2016 (Dennis Cholowski), they did not draft any defensemen in the 1st round. 14 of 16 were drafted after the 2nd round. It's remarkably difficult to land top-4 D after the 2nd round. If you're going to rely almost exclusively on rounds 3+ to pick defensemen for 8 consecutive drafts, you're at serious risk of ending up in their current predicament.

Holland has not done well drafting defensemen. He has tended to use his top picks on forwards, hitting a home run on Dylan Larkin, and to a lesser extent, Anthony Mantha. Evgeny Svechnikov is struggling to score in the AHL this season with 5 PTS in 25 GP. Michael Rasmussen did not even get invited to Canada's World Junior camp. Holland's batting average in the draft has been getting worse.

Now I'd like to grade all his significant trade and free agency decisions. Because when you look at the sum of what he's done post-Lidstrom, it's valid to question if he's an effective re-builder. He made a Hall of Fame career putting the right pieces around Nick Lidstrom, and ever since he lost his horse in 2012, it's been a downward spiral. He did a good job of adding picks at last year's trade deadline when it became apparent the playoff streak was ending. 

He gets an F on drafting defensemen; a grade that re-appears a few times analyzing his individual transactions since Lidstrom's retirement.

Trades

*Feb 2012 Traded a 1st round pick for Kyle Quincey. That pick could have been Olli Maata, Mike Matheson, or Brady Skjei. If you want to argue Quincey was necessary to extend the playoff streak, then maybe it's a C-, certainly in terms of rebuilding, it was an F. Grade: D-

*Mar 2014 traded Calle Jarnkrok and a 2nd round pick for David Legwand. Legwand did little to help the team. Maybe he helped them make the playoffs and this a D+, but he had no PTS in the playoffs and those were two good assets. Grade: F

*Mar 2015 traded a 3rd round pick for Marek Zidlicky. Zidlicky was out of the league a year later. Grade: D-

*Mar 2015 traded a 2nd round pick and Mattias Janmark for Erik Cole and a 3rd round pick. Cole's NHL career was over 11 games later. Grade: F

*Jun 2016 traded Jakob Chychrun and Pavel Datsyuk's dead contract to Phoenix for Dennis Cholowski. We'll have to wait to see how good Cholowski becomes. Chychrun went directly to the NHL. Grade: D+

*Feb 2017 traded Brendan Smith for 2^nd and 3^rd round picks. Grade: A

*Feb 2017 traded Tomas Jurco for a 3^rd round pick. Grade: B+

*Mar 2017 traded Thomas Vanek for a 3^rd round pick. Grade: B+

Free Agents

*Jul 2012 signed Jordin Tootoo to a 3 year $5.7M contract that was eventually bought out. Grade: F-

*Nov 2013 re-signed Jonathon Ericsson to a 6 year $25.5M contract that expires when he's 36. This may have helped extend the playoff streak, but the contract reached awful status by 2016. Grade: D-

*Apr 2013 re-signed Jimmy Howard to a 6 year $31.8M contract. Grade: F+

*Jun 2013 re-signed Jakub Kindl to a 4 year $9.6M contract. Grade: F-

*Jul 2013 signed Stephen Weiss to a 5 year $24.5M contract that was bought out after 2 years. Grade: F-

*Jul 2015 re-signed Gustav Nyquist to a 4 year $19M contract. Grade: B-

*Jul 2015 signed Mike Green to a 3 year $18M contract. I might have to come back and change this grade after the trade deadline, but currently...Grade: D-

*Nov 2015 re-signed Justin Abdelkader to a 7 year $29.8M contract. He turned 30 years old in year one. This contract will get worse, the offensive production has already slowed. Grade F

*Jul 2016 re-signed Danny DeKeyser to a 6 year $30M contract. Grade: D

*Jul 2016 re-signed Darren Helm to a 5 year $19.2M contract. Grade: F

*Jul 2016 signed Frans Nielsen to a 6 year $31.5M contract that expires when he's 38. Grade: F

*Jul 2016 re-signed Tomas Tatar to a 4 year $21.2M contract. Grade: D

*Jul 2017 signed Trevor Dailey to a 3 year $9.5M contract. Grade: D-

There is an argument to be made that all his bad transactions were more about making it to the playoffs every year instead of re-building, and now the sum of these short-term decisions has created a long-term problem. If ownership was telling him to win at all costs you could argue he's blameless for the current predicament. The fact that Detroit is no longer an appealing destination for free agents has probably compounded the problem and forced him to overpay. That being said, I'm sure Mr Ilitch never told him to do a terrible job drafting defensemen, and draft picks don't get to choose what city they play in.

Thank you for your service Ken Holland. It's been a great ride and you've got your seat reserved in the Hall of Fame. It's time for new blood. Unfortunately, the perfect guy for the job is already employed down in Tampa. There's no guarantee the next GM will do a better job. Being a General Manager in the NHL is incredibly difficult. Looking at the last 5 years and where we currently find ourselves, it’s time to move on. 

Danny Dekeyser Contract Comparables

On July 26, 2016 the Detroit Red Wings signed restricted Free Agent defenseman Danny Dekeyser to a 6 year $30M contract. On the surface it is a lot of money to give to a defenseman with limited offensive upside, but Ken Holland ultimately had no choice. At age 26 Dekeyser was perilously close to unrestricted free agency and was likely comfortable hitting the UFA market to find his long term home run if the Wings wouldn't pay.

The defense is easily the greatest weakness of a Red Wings team that’s been fighting it out the last few seasons to squeeze into playoffs to preserve their impressive post-season streak. Dekeyser has been a very valuable contributor on a team that lacks a true work horse to play against the opponent’s best players, thrusting him into a top pairing role early in his young career. He played the most minutes of any Wings player in the playoffs.

Ken Holland was in a difficult situation with a player close to UFA status. Looking at the age 26 contract comparables below, Dekeyser is getting Seabrook/Byfuglien money (in the $5M AAV range), and more money than recently comparable deals by Vlasic and Muzzin (in the $4M AAV range). He’s not better than any of those guys, which does make his contract look like an over-payment. It is too much money, but he’s too much better than anyone in Grand Rapids to lose him.

For better or worse, he has become their number 1 defenseman. That's not very promising is you are a Wings fan looking into the future. Nobody in the system is anywhere near good enough to be a legit top defenseman. It would have been interesting to be a fly on the wall during the negotiations, because Dekeyser's agent hit a grand slam home run.

Name	YEAR1	TERM	MONEY
Brent Seabrook	2012	5	$29,000,000
Dustin Byfuglien	2012	5	$26,000,000
Keith Ballard	2010	6	$25,200,000
Marc-Edouard Vlasic	2014	5	$21,250,000
Nick Schultz	2009	6	$21,000,000
Jake Muzzin	2016	5	$20,000,000
Mike Green	2013	3	$18,249,999
Dan Girardi	2011	4	$13,300,000
Paul Martin	2008	3	$11,499,999
Jakub Kindl	2014	4	$9,600,000
Carl Gunnarsson	2014	3	$9,450,000
Christian Ehrhoff	2009	3	$9,300,000

Frans Nielsen Contract Comparables

On July 1st 2016 the Detroit Red Wings signed 32 year old Frans Nielsen to a 6 contract for $32M ($5.52M AAV). This is a lot of money and a lot of term to give to a 32 year old. 91% of contracts given out to players of that age (in the salary cap era) are less than 5 seasons long. 75% are 3 years or less. Of the 32 year olds who signed new contracts, 62% experienced a statistical decline in the first year of the contract.

There are very few direct comparables for Nielsen because NHL teams are generally reluctant to give that much term to 32 year old athletes. The hope for the Red Wings is that he does not have a significant injury history and may not decline like many do in their mid to late 30s. It's not uncommon for some Scandinavian players to remain productive older than expected (like Alfredsson, Lidstrom, Selanne, etc). If his Viking blood does not slow down his rate of decline, this could turn out to be a really bad contract.

Here are some comparables.

Name	POS	YEAR1	Term	Money
Kimmo Timonen	D	2008	6	$38,000,000
Marian Gaborik	F	2015	7	$34,125,000
Jason Spezza	F	2016	4	$30,000,000
Lubomir Visnovsky	D	2009	5	$28,000,000
Michael Cammalleri	F	2015	5	$25,000,000
Joe Thornton	F	2012	3	$21,000,000
Andy McDonald	F	2010	4	$18,800,000
Alexandre Burrows	F	2014	4	$18,000,000
Erik Cole	F	2012	4	$18,000,000
Paul Kariya	F	2008	3	$18,000,000

Red Wings Trade Datsyuk and Chychrun for Cholowski

Ever since Nick Lidstrom retired in 2012, the Detroit Red Wings have not drafted a defenseman in the first round of the NHL draft. They have failed to find a legitimate top pairing D-Man through free agency and all their prospects appear to be nothing more than depth players. Eventually this glaring void will come back to bite them. It should have been this year, it will probably happen next year, but that playoff streak ain't going to last much longer.

As a Red Wings fan watching the 2016 draft, I was getting excited as highly ranked defenseman Jakob Chychrun began to fall. Once rated as one of the top players available in this draft, it started to look like he might drop to 16th where the Wings were drafting. Each team that passed him by, I got a little more excited. When the Islanders passed on him at 15, I got up from my seat, raised my hands in the air, and rejoiced! Finally, a defenseman with the possible upside of being a top pair guy. I was expecting Ken Holland to waste no time, race up to the podium, and scoop him up with a loving embrace. Though soon it became clear that Holland wasn't running anywhere. He had a giant smirk on his face and simply appeared to be waiting for something. It turned out that he was waiting for a trade to be announced.

When Gary Bettman went to the podium to announce a trade, my heart sank. They traded the last year of Datsyuk's contract to swap picks with Phoenix. Then of course the Coyotes selected Chychrun, and my dream was crushed. Datsyuk really screwed the Wings by leaving the NHL before his contract expired, and the need to dump the dead money was great. I get it. The Coyotes likely don't make that trade unless Chychrun was available, in which case the Wings might still be stuck with Datsyuk's contract.

The news that the contract had been expunged certainly had to be well received by fans, but it did come at a cost. At the 20th spot, Detroit drafted tier 2 junior defenseman Dennis Cholowski, a long term project bound for the NCAA who could be 4 years away from turning pro. Chychrun could very well have 100 NHL games under his belt before Cholowski plays his first. More specifically, Chychrun has an 18% chance of playing 100 NHL games by age 21. Cholowski has a 0% chance. He might end up being good, but the time frame is way longer. Detroit needs a top pair defenseman NOW! The sooner the better. These players are hard to find on July 1st or by trade.

Ironically Cholowski is a local player in the Vancouver area where I live. I even worked at a hockey rink in Langley while this kid was playing minor hockey in Langley. I never heard anyone mention his name and I certainly never saw any players I thought were heading to the NHL. Last week I heard his coach on the Team 1040 radio and they asked him what advantages there were to drafting his player. His response was that the kid has a long window, that he won't play pro for a while. Right because that should be a huge selling point, that he's going to take a long time.

Ken Holland must have been listening, because they love big windows. There is no evidence however that leaving players in the minors too long produces better hockey players. People think that Detroit's consistent playoff status is proof this works. What it does is drive down the price of the 2nd contract, which frees up more space for free agency. Ken Holland has maybe started drinking too much of his own Koolaid if he's started targeting players BECAUSE they are going to take a long time to develop. Granted, I don't know that Holland wanted Cholowski over Chychrun. Maybe he would have drafted Chychrun had the Phoenix offer not materialized, and maybe it was his best trade to dump the Datsyuk contract.

Maybe I should wait to see what Holland does with that $7M, because the trade might be Datsyuk and Chychrun for Cholowski and Stamkos Frans Nielsen.

2013 Detroit Red Wings Season Review

By defeating the #2 seed Anaheim Mighty Ducks and pushing the best team in hockey Chicago Blackhawks to seven games in the playoffs, this was a season of exceeding expectations for the Red Wings when many predicted they would take a major fall backwards without Niklas Lidstrom. They had to win their last 4 in a row to barely slide into the playoffs. Their regular season saw plenty of slumps and mediocrity, saved only by the clutch super-human play of Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg when it mattered the most. The critics who were ready to declare Detroit the "dead Wings" likely underestimated how good those two superstars still are, as they put together an impressive highlight reel.

Detroit had among the most man games lost due to injuries this season and struggled through most of it until they got healthy in the playoffs. My 5 year old nephew said it best around week 5 "Detroit is not having a very good season, but Datsyuk has scored some nice goals". Amen. As a Red Wings fan, this season was not about winning a Stanley Cup, but rather about enjoying the magic of Pavel Datsyuk while he's still putting on a show. If you ever get bored, go to YouTube, search "Datsyuk highlights", and guaranteed you will be entertained. This team would probably have ranked 30th out of 30 without Zetterberg and Datsyuk.

Jimmy Howard had the best season of his career and earned himself a lucrative 6 year contract. Anyone who thought that Howard was only good because Lidstrom played in front of him, that was not the case since Howard actually got better after Nick left. If he can sustain the level of play he showed in 2013, the post-Lidstrom rebuild might not be as painful as previously anticipated. As a Red Wings fan, they exceeded my expectations, but failed to fill the biggest hole on their roster with a horse the team could ride deep into the playoffs. Dan Dekeyser is a quality NHL defenseman. Acquiring him at the end of the NCAA season was a significant victory for Holland, but he's still just a role player. The Red Wings need a legitimate #1 defenseman, a rare breed that doesn't exactly grow on trees. If you can't grow them on your farm, they are incredibly difficult to acquire. If Keith Yandle had been on this team, they might have won the Stanley Cup.

Preseason Rank: 13
Midseason Rank: 13
Final Rank: 11
GM Grade: C

1st Star: Pavel Datsyuk
2nd Star: Jimmy Howard
3rd Star: Henrik Zetterberg

UFAs: Valterri Filppula, Dan Cleary, Damien Brunner, Drew Miller, Ian White
RFAs: Joakim Andersson, Gustav Nyquist, Jakub Kindl, Brendan Smith

Best Contract: Niklas Kronwall 6 more years at $4.75M
Worst Contract:

What I said about them in preseason:  As with the Preds, the Red Wings only got worse in the off-season. As we enter the post-Lidstrom era, there are maybe 2-3 years of competitiveness before the bottom falls out completely. As a Wings fan, I'll just enjoy the Datsyuk years while they are left. Would Lidstrom donate his DNA for cloning?

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Ultimately the fact that Ken Holland was unable to fill the big hole on defense was overshadowed by the team's playoff success. The forward group is very strong, but the defense is not adequate to be a legitimate championship contender. Holland will have some difficult negotiations this summer, with a large number of free agents looking for new contracts. There are plenty of role players on the roster and in the minor leagues (with Grand Rapids winning the AHL championship), but this teams needs another superstar or two if they want a chance to win a championship while Zetterberg and Datsyuk are still producing at an elite level. Datsyuk has agreed to a 3 year extension, so he will be around to dazzle people with his hands for a few more years.

Detroit Red Wings Plan B

Nick Lidstrom has retired and Brad Stuart has returned to San Jose. The Detroit Red Wings have lost 2 of their top 4 defensemen and have not replaced them with anybody. They lost out on Ryan Suter and Matt Carle, and now the list of available free agent blue liners has become perilously thin. If they are unable to replace this loss of talent, then this roster will struggle next season. Being on Suter and Parise's short lists handcuffed them from making significant offers to Jason Garrison, Sami Salo, even Sheldon Souray. Kyle Quincy signed a 2 year deal at a fair price, but he's not much better than a 4th or 5th defenseman.

Ken Holland must have a plan B, which has to be bringing in new talent on the back end through the trade market. The team has plenty of cap space to take on big contracts, but hardly the abundant supply of young assets needed to land a big fish. Wings fans must be patient, because the best time to make trades will be immediately after the new Collective Bargaining Agreement. If the cap comes down, there will be a number of teams forced to shed salary, making for a buyers market. I would even go so far as to say that Wings fans should cheer for the cap to come down substantially, but for salaries to remain the same. It would create the optimal conditions for a buyers market, and Detroit has abundant cap space.

In the meantime, Holland could also bear down and sign a few RFA offer sheets on players like Michael Del Zotto, PK Subban, John Carlson, or even Dmitri Kulikov. The offer sheet is not in Ken Holland's playbook, but it is a perfectly legal tool that NHL General Managers should use to help build their roster. We all remember Brian Burke skewering Kevin Lowe for signing Dustin Penner, which serves as an example of how this tactic is perceived among the GM fraternity. It is not a good way to make friends, however it is completely legal and arguably more fair than long term heavily front loaded contracts intended for salary cap circumvention. There is RFA talent available on the blue line, but the offers would have to be pretty high for the other teams not to match.

There was virtually no way they ever had a realistic shot at Shea Weber, unless he went UFA in one year. Anyone suggesting Detroit struck out on Weber, slow your role; Poile was not going to trade him to a heated rival inside the division (and is all but certain to match any offer). It's the same reason why you are unlikely to see Columbus trade Rick Nash to the Red Wings, even if they met Howson's ridiculously high asking price. Calgary is likely eager to move Bouwmeester at the right price, and Keith Ballard could be had in Vancouver if you're simply willing to eat his contract. For Christ's sake the Red Wings might almost be better off with Wade Redden than Jakub Kindl.

Calgary Flames Overpay For Jiri Hudler

Calgary Flames General Manager Jay Feester has signed forward Jiri Hudler (formerly of the Detroit Red Wings) to a 4 year $16M contract. Hudler can be a handy little offensive player at times, but his defensive play is weak at best. If he were a restricted free agent and this were an offer sheet, there is little chance that Detroit would match, choosing instead to let the diminutive Czeck walk. It is unclear how much Ken Holland offered him, if he even made an offer at all. Jiri scored 25 goals, 50 PTS last season and will contribute to Calgary's offense, but he does not make the team better. Is $4M too much to pay for a one way specialist? Well I'm a Red Wings fan and I've been saying for several months that I'm prepared to say goodbye to Jiri Hudler. I'm not the least bit sad to see him go.

Hudler did win a Stanley Cup with Detroit scoring 14 PTS in the 2008 playoffs (tied for 5th on the team) as the 2nd youngest player on the roster (two months older than Filppula), and he must be thanked by Red Wings fans for his service to the organization. Thank you Jiri, now don't let the door hit you on the way out. Many of us remember the year he took off to play in the KHL with Moscow Dynamo in 2010, and he did not return from that hiatus as a better player. His career high of 57 PTS was scored the season before he left; scoring 37 PTS in 73 GP in 2011 after his return. He was better before he left.

Nicklas Lidstrom Retires

Amazing grace, how Swede the sound; that saved a wretch like me

I once was lost but now am found; was blind, but now, I see

As a Red Wings fan, there are no better words with which to say goodbye to a great player like Nick Lidstrom. Those of us old enough to remember the dark days before Lidstrom joined the Wings can better appreciate his impact to this franchise than those young fans born into the dynasty. I was 12 years old when he played his first game in 1991, and needless to say my life as a Red Wings fan to that point could only be described as miserable. From 1970 to 1986 the Wings missed the playoffs 13 times (the "Dead Wings" era). As the 1980's came to an end, Steve Yzerman had already begun to lift the franchise out of darkness. In 1989 the Red Wings drafted Nick Lidstrom, Sergei Fedorov, Vlad Konstantinov, and a dynasty was born. My life as a fan would never be the same.

We watched Lidstrom hoist the Stanley Cup 4 times after a 42 year drought from 1955 to 1997. During a career that spanned 20 years, Nick never once missed the Stanley Cup playoffs, a feat not easily accomplished. He never missed more than 6 games in a season until 2012. He won the Norris Trophy 7 times, including 4 of the last 6. The Swedish D-man also set some firsts for European born and raised players; the 1st European to win the Norris, the 1st to win the Conn Smythe, and the first to be the captain of a Stanley Cup champion. He also won an Olympic gold medal for Sweden. He made our lives better as fans, and there will be an emptiness next season when the Wings return without Lidstrom in the line-up.

He retires as one of the greatest defensemen ever to play the game, and leaves the franchise with an uncertain future. General Manager Ken Holland now finds himself under immense pressure to fill a gaping hole on the blue line while Datsyuk and Zetterberg are still playing at an elite level. Hopefully Mr Ilitch still has some money left after dumping all that cash on the Tigers. Red Wing fans everywhere should unite and eat as much Little Caesars pizza as you can stuff in your mouth. Think of it as buying a new all-star defenseman, one pizza at a time.

Some fans and pundits will say that it was time for Lidstrom to retire. We'll have to agree to disagree. Even though his skills had begun to diminish, he was still an effective player who could make a positive contribution to any team. I'm not one of those fans who wants to see the great players "retire on top", I'd much rather squeeze every last drop of greatness they have left. Then again, I have still not completely recovered from my mild case of post traumatic stress disorder after the abrupt early retirement of Barry Sanders. Nick, if you change your mind and want to come back for one more year, we'd love to have you back...at a discount of course...

2011/12 Detroit Red Wings R.I.P

The first team eliminated from the 2012 Stanley Cup playoffs is the Detroit Red Wings, bounced in five games by the Nashville Predators. They were not exactly outplayed more in the series, but Pekka Rinne was the best player on either team and Detroit made more defensive blunders leading to opposing goals. That was the difference. Zero points for Bertuzzi, Cleary, and Lidstrom; 1 for Franzen. On the other side, Weber and Suter have to be the best 1-2 punch on defense in the playoffs right now. Rinne is unquestionably among the league's top 3 goaltenders. Datsyuk never quite seemed to get his legs back after late season knee surgery, but was still effective.

As a Red Wings fan, I have been saying since February that the team I least wanted Detroit to play in the first round was Nashville (and to a lesser extent, San Jose). I was even openly encouraging the Wings to lose the last game against Chicago to avoid Nashville in the first round. Wings fans have been spoiled with success over the last 15 years, such that it's hard to actually get upset anymore when they lose, but being the first team out is a low blow (next year they should book several events at the Joe in April, bring in Coldplay for a week). The series featured multiple acts of Red Wings pond hockey defense, most evidently when 3 Wings chased Erat into the corner, leaving two Preds all alone in the slot. When David Legwand walked through the whole team and scored 13 seconds into the 3rd period of the last game to break a 1-1 tie, I turned off my television and left the house. That was all that I needed to see.

The series hit a dark cloud at the end of game 1 with Shea Weber slamming Zetterberg's head into the glass with enough force to crack his helmet, and Brendan Shanahan not suspending Weber for the incident (followed by Shanahan going bananas with suspensions across the NHL afterwards). Shea is lucky that Zetterberg has enough Viking blood that he was not more seriously injured, because we have certainly seen many lesser infractions cause far more serious injuries. Had his first swing at the back of Zetterberg's head been half an inch to the right and connected, this could have been a far different story. What happens if 3 weeks from now Zetterberg starts showing post concussion symptoms? Not all head injuries are diagnosable in the early stages. I'd like to call the manufacturer of Henrik's helmet and ask them; based on safety tests how much force is generally required to crack their product? In all likelihood, Shanahan would probably like a mulligan on this one. He certainly made my shit list. Kudos to Bertuzzi for standing up for his teammate.

The offseason will see Hudler ($2.8M), Holmstrom ($1.8M), Lidstrom ($6M), and Stuart ($3.75M) become unrestricted free agents; with Helm ($0.9M), Abdelkader ($0.8M), and Quincy ($3.1M) becoming RFAs. If Lidstrom decides to return he is still a very useful player and the Wings will will him back with open arms, but he is not the player he used to be. He needs to be paired with the right partner, and can't be relied upon for the same number of minutes he's played in the past. Detroit will offer Ryan Suter a king's ransom, but there is a decent chance he stays in Nashville (especially if they go a few rounds in the playoffs, putting extra money in the owner's pockets to pay him market price). Brad Stuart is a good player that I would pay as much as $4.75M, but not more than Kronwall. Brendan Smith should be pencilled into the top 6. Detroit never adequately replaced Rafalski, and need another elite blueliner in order to maintain their status as an elite team.

On forward, Hudler is not worth a penny over $3M, and is more reasonably worth $2.5M. I won't miss him if he leaves. Holmstrom is a $1.5M player if he decides to return. Darren Helm proved his worth to this franchise by his absence, and should be paid in the $2M-$3M range. Abdelkader is a $1.5M player at most. Gustav Nyquist and Cory Emmerton have proven worthy of a 4th line role, and both come at a good price. The only major need is for more depth at the forward position, which was not addressed at the trade deadline. Adding a 2nd liner and a 3rd liner would be advised, especially if Patrick Eaves is unable to return. Valteri Filppula exceeded my expectations in the regular season, and fell short in the playoffs.

Jimmy Howard is a good goaltender at a good price $2.25M. The job is to resign a few players, add a top defenseman, and forward depth. They can easily contend for the Stanley Cup next season, provided they're able to acquire a top D man, which is not always easy to do. Ken Holland is among the league's top general managers, so hopefully he'll be able to reload in the offseason. Detroit has more financial flexibility than most teams.

Shea Weber Slams Zetterberg's Head Into The Glass

It would appear that there are two different standards for discipline in the NHL, one for superstar players and one for the less talented majority. At the end of Game 1 against Detroit, Shea Weber grabbed Henrik Zetterberg by the back of the neck and slammed his head into the glass, hard enough to crack his helmet. In this new era of concussion awareness and bring down the hammer on headshots, Shea Weber received no suspension, and a fine roughly equal to one shift worth of salary. Had his name been Byron Bitz, Aaron Rome, or Raffi Torres; he'd have been given 2-4 games. Jeremy Roenick certainly thought this infraction was worthy of supplemental discipline:



As a Red Wings fan myself, I'm quite disappointed that Mike Babcock did not get more upset about this. His team just lost the game, one of his best players just got hit with a wrestling move, and you need to rally your team around this incident. One of the ESPN guys was joking about what we'll see next, perhaps getting a metal folding chair out of the stands and hitting your opponent over the back of the head. When Torres knocked out Seabrook, Chicago turned their series around. When Rome knocked out Horton, the Bruins immediately turned the series around. Why? Because they became angry and channeled their anger into energy.

I'm not suggesting that they send Todd Bertuzzi out for a pound of flesh, but show some emotion man! You'd think having Bertuzzi on the roster would deter others from cheap shots on Red Wing players. Will they unleash the Kraken? That's not going to happen. Perhaps a 4th liner on the Philadelphia Flyers will look at the Weber "punishment" and decide it is worth less than a game's pay to smash Sidney Crosby's head into the glass, or maybe another WWF move like climbing to the top of the glass and doing a flying elbow? Pile-drivers? Sleeper holds? I'm just throwing out ideas Shea...

Datsyuk 1st Pick In NHL All-Star Team Draft

It was fantastic to see Pavel Datsyuk drafted first overall in the NHL All-Star draft by Zdeno Chara, as the Bruins captain chose one of the league's most valuable players. In last year's draft, Eric Staal used the 1st pick to select teammate Cam Ward. It felt cheap and against the spirit of competition to draft a teammate first, so good on Chara for selecting a rival player. While I'm not fan of the All-Star game itself, I do find this draft format to be compelling. Last year it was outstanding to see Phil Kessel drafted dead last, and this year the honour went to Logan Couture.

I haven't watched an All-Star game in 10-15 years. The players tend to give a half assed effort and don't play defense. It is fun to watch when you are a kid, but as an adult the appeal plummets considerably. It may be nice to see one of my favourite players drafted 1st, but generally my position is that I'd prefer no Red Wings play in the All-Star game. The worst part about this whole 5.5 day layoff is that there is no regular season hockey. I'm more pissed off about missing NHL action than I am excited about a skills competition and glorified game of pond hockey. Great, Datsyuk went #1, but the game itself means nothing to me.

Canucks Defeat Leafs, Red Wings As Team Heats Up

Don't look now, but after a mediocre start that saw the team sitting outside of a playoff spot for the first month + of the season, the Vancouver Canucks are quickly regaining their spot as one of the best teams in hockey. Tonight they soundly defeated the Detroit Red Wings, who have been one of the best teams in the league thus far. Beating the Maple Leafs on Saturday was a less impressive accomplishment, but still a punch in the face for Leaf fans. The much hated Alex Burrows scored the game winning goals in both victories. This pundit has a higher opinion of Alexandre than most of my contemporaries. Roberto Luongo made 38 saves against the Wings, and 26 against the Leafs, as the winning goaltender in both contests.

That should quiet the Luongo detractors for the time being, as his GAA has shrunk from over 3 to 2.46 since coming back from injury. Cory Schneider's seat on the bench has been re-established, and order has been restored in Vancouver. The Canucks will almost certainly cruise into the playoffs as the Sedin BROTHERS continue another Hart Trophy calibre season. Canucks fans still calling them the sisters do not appreciate how lucky they are to have the opportunity to watch this talented duo on a nightly basis. Those idiots shouldn't call themselves fans. I'm a Red Wings fan, and even when I'm disappointed, I don't call local talk radio claiming their players have female genitalia. That's bad karma.

The Canucks will make the playoffs and once again lose in magnificent fashion.

Detroit Wins 3 Straight, Force Game 7

What a hockey game! The Detroit Red Wings have accomplished the unlikely and have tied their series with San Jose after going down 3 games to zero. Antti Niemi was incredible, but not incredible enough as Detroit won the game 3-1 after trailing 1-0 with 10 minutes left to play. In their last 3 wins, the Wings scored the game winning goal in the 3rd period leading to exciting finishes. The first star of game 6 was unquestionably Valteri Filpulla who played his best game of the playoffs, with an honourable mention to Dan Cleary.

The Vancouver Canucks have to pleased to see this series go back to San Jose for a 7th game, as both teams are banged up and have taken a physical toll.

Red Wings Come From Behind To Stay Alive

When the San Jose Sharks went up 3-1 in the 3rd Period of Game 5 with a 3-1 lead in the series, the future looked bleak for the Detroit Red Wings. That was until Pavel Datsyuk took the team on his back as the Wings scored 3 unanswered goals en route to a dramatic 4-3 win. Goaltender Jimmy Howard stood on his head making 39 saves as the series heads back to Detroit for Game 6. When the team went down 3 games to 0 their probability of winning the series was about 3%, but now it has risen to about 30%. The smart money is still on San Jose to win one of the next two, but Detroit has momentum and has at least made this series interesting.

Dread The Red, 2011 NHL Playoffs: Day 8

The Detroit Red Wings have ended the season of the Phoenix Coyotes, possibly winning the last NHL game played in that city. It was a good night to sit back, drink a few beers, and watch my favourite team sweep the team I want relocated to Winnipeg. May the Jets fly back to Manitoba. The Penguins continue to defy my expectations, and Buffalo had a giant win. I still can't pick a winner of Ducks-Preds, but this has been a very exciting playoffs.

Detroit beats Phoenix: Dread the Red! As I texted my buddy tonight "Darren Helm is great, he's the next Kris Draper". It is what it is, and they did it without Zetterberg, their regular season most valuable forward. If San Jose wins, they play Detroit. If LA wins, Detroit plays the winner of Anaheim-Nashville. (Det wins series 4-0)

Pittsburgh beats Tampa: This is turning into a big story, the Penguins continuing to win without Malkin and Crosby. Either Dan Bylsma is the greatest coach that has ever lived, or it was often exaggerated how much this team needed its super duper stars. Steven Stamkos is a great young talent, but he's not all that effective right now; Jordan Staal is more valuable. Kris Letang deserves Norris consideration. (Pit leads series 3-1)

Anaheim beats Nashville: The outstanding play of Teemu Selanne has been one of the most under reported story of these playoffs. This series is a 50-50 proposition. (Series tied 2-2)

Washington beats New York: Much like last night's Kings-Sharks game, I changed channels when the Rangers went up 3-0. An hour or so later I switch back and it is heading into overtime. Two unlikely comebacks in as many nights, and both times I changed the channel only to see later on that the favourite came back and won in overtime. Washington will win this series. (Wsh leads series 3-1)

Buffalo beats Philly: The Sabres are still alive, and their probability of winning the series is better now than when the playoffs started. Jason Pominville scored the games only goal, as Ryan Miller shut out the offensive powerhouse Flyers. (Series tied 2-2)