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[son of sam99 10]

Detroit Red Wings February 2014 Results

 

 

 

Detroit Red Wings February 2013-14 Schedule
DATE	OPPONENT	RESULT
Feb 2	vs Washington Capitals	Lost, 3-1
Feb 3	vs Vancuover Canucks	Won, 4-3
Feb 6	at Florida Panthers	Lost, 3-0
Feb 8	at Tampa Bay Lightning	Won, 2-1
Feb 26	at Montreal Canadiens	Lost, 3-2
Feb 27	at Ottawa Senators	Lost, 7-1

 

[son of sam99 10]

March 6th 2014

 

 

 

Wings Stand Pat on Deadline Day

 

Detroit, MI--  Red Wings’ interim General Manager Rick Watkins chose to stick with his current roster through to the end of the 2013-14 season as trade deadline day came and passed without any personnel moves from the team.

“The franchise has the utmost confidence in the roster we have and we believe just getting Abdelkater and Quincey back and healthy will be the best moves we can make at this point.” Watkins said this morning.

 

The Interim GM has a point in that getting two important players back and healthy just before the playoffs can be a big boost, however, the defense has at times shown cracks that speculators believe can’t be filled by Kyle Quincey’s return.

The team has lost their last four consecutive games and allowed an average of six goals over that span. Pundits and fans alike have assumed that performance (or lack there of) would make the Wings buyers on deadline day in an attempt to solidify a recently exposed corps of blue liners.

 

There is still speculation that the team could reach into the free agent market to add to the team, however, the lack of options provides little certainty.

 

For better or worse the Red Wings roster for the balance of the season is set. 

[son of sam99 10]

 

Entry: April 1^st, 2014

 

            Well March was a bloodbath. Just four wins in fourteen games and now the team is in risk of completely missing the playoffs. I knew when I accepted this position that the fan base would be looking to me for leadership and now that the team is struggling everyone is calling for my job since we didn’t make any moves on deadline day. 

 

            I felt that if we got everyone back and healthy it would basically be the same as making additions to the team but for some reason they cant get back the mojo they had in December and January. I’m concerned the guys are gassed after the Olympics but Babs can’t give any games off because now we need every point we can get.

 

            In terms of making the playoffs we’re saved by the fact that our division and the rest of the Western Conference is very poor. None of the teams behind us have shown any pulse since the deadline. However a first round exit from the playoffs is almost as bad as not even making them for this franchise.

 

            Despite the on ice disaster the team has suddenly turned into the front office staff is all in business as usual mode and working hard to prepare for the offseason. The players below have their contracts up and several of which we’ll have to look hard at whether or not we will want to offer them another deal.

 

-          Unrestricted Free Agents:

o   Dan Cleary

o   Todd Betruzzi

o   David Legwand

o   Kyle Quincey

o   Brian Elliot

o   Jonas Hustoffson

o   Mikel Samuelsson

 

-          Restricted Free Agents:

o   Tomas Tatar

o   Danny DeKeyser

o   Riley Sheahan

o   Corey Emmerton

o   Mitch Callahan

o   Landon Ferraro

o   Max Nicastro

o   Louis-Marc Aubry

o   Andrej Nestrasil

 

[son of sam99 10]

Detroit Red Wings March 2014 Results

 

 

Detroit Red Wings March 2013-14 Schedule
DATE	OPPONENT	RESULT
Mar 4	at New Jersey Devils	Lost, 7-5
Mar 5	vs TRADE DEADLINE
Mar 6	vs Colorado Avalanche	Won, 6-3
Mar 7	vs New Jersey Devils	Lost, 3-2
Mar 9	at New York Rangers	Won, 5-2
Mar 11	at Columbus Blue Jackets	Lost, 3-2
Mar 14	vs Edmonton Oilers	Won, 4-3
Mar 16	at Chicago Blackhawks	Lost, 4-3
Mar 18	vs Toronto Maple Leafs	Won, 4-3
Mar 20	vs Pittsburgh Penguins	Lost, 5-2
Mar 22	at Minnesota Wild	Lost, 5-4
Mar 23	vs Minnesota Wild	Lost, 3-2
Mar 24	at Columbus Blue Jackets	Lost, 6-4
Mar 27	vs Minnesota Wild	Lost, 3-1
Mar 29	at Toronto Maple Leafs	Lost, 4-3
Mar 30	vs Tampa Bay Lightning	Won, 3-1

 

[son of sam99 10]

 

Entry: 4/14/14

 

            The regular season has concluded and the team qualified for the playoffs by a thin margin. In the end we captured the 42 wins that Illich said he expected out of this team at the beginning of the season so I guess it was a success. I’m still concerned though that it was a big mistake to leave the roster as is at the trade deadline.  I trust our scoring is in good shape but the blue liners have struggled to get the puck out of the zone resulting in several chances for the opposing team.

 

            The first round matchup will be against the Penguins, the second best team in the east. We went 1-2 against them in the regular season and they were all very hard fought games. I have confidence that with a healthy squad we can split the first four games and turn it into a best of three situation. From there we’ll just have to see how the cookie crumbles I guess.

 

            With Pittsburgh there’s no real secret as to how you beat them. You’ve got to shut down Crosby & Malkin and just try to deal with the rest of their roster separately which, of course, is full of talent. I suspect Babs will assign guys to shadow the Pens’ stars in attempts to shut them down while allowing our scorers to worry about doing just that. Pittsburgh goalie Marc-Andre Fleury  

 

            In the Stanley Cup Playoffs anything can happen but I certainly have my doubts about this team’s ability to beat Pittsburgh.

[son of sam99 10]

Detroit Red Wings April 2014 Results

 

 

Detroit Red Wings April 2013-14 Schedule
DATE	OPPONENT	RESULT
Apr 2	vs Boston Bruins	Lost, 4-3
Apr 4	vs Buffalo Sabres	Lost, 3-2
Apr 5	at Montreal Canadiens	Won, 4-3
Apr 8	at Buffalo Sabres	Won, 6-4
Apr 9	at Pittsburgh Penguins	Lost, 5-3
Apr 11	vs Carolina Hurricanes	Lost, 2-1
Apr 13	at St. Louis Blues	Won, 5-2

 

[son of sam99 10]

2013-14 Regular Season Stat Leaders

 

 

NHL League Leaders - Updated: Apr 14, 2014
Goals		G	Assists		A
	1. Z. Parise	40		1. J. Toews	62
	2. S. Stamkos	39		2. R. Nugent-Hopkins	60
	3. T. Hall	38		3. N. Kronwall	57
	4. C. Stewart	36		4. J. Thornton	53
	5. E. Malkin	36		5. R. Getzlaf	50
Points			+/-		+/-
	1. Toews	88		1. G. Nyquist	+31
	2. R. Nugent-Hopkins	86		2. T. Hall	+27
	3. S. Stamkos	83		3. K. Quincey	+26
	4. P. Datsyuk	75		4. J. Franzen	+26
	5. Z. Parise	74		5. A. Kopitar	+25

 

[son of sam99 10]

Detroit Red Wings 2013-14 Regular Season Top Scorers

 

 

Detroit Red Wings Stats - 2013-14
Skaters	GP	G	A	PTS	+/-	GW	PIM	SOG	SPCT
J. Franzen	82	30	30	60
P. Datsyuk	76	29	46	75
H. Zetterbeg	82	28	44	72
G. Nyquist	80	25	35	60
V. Tarasenko	65	21	18	39
K. Quincey	80	19	32	51
T. Tatar	82	16	23	39
T. Bertuzzi	82	15	9	24

 

[son of sam99 10]

Detroit Red Wings 2013-14 Regular Season Assist Leaders

 

 

Detroit Red Wings Stats - 2013-14
Skaters	GP	G	A	PTS	+/-	GW	PIM	SOG	SPCT
N. Kronwall	82	8	57	65
P. Datsyuk	76	29	46	75
H. Zetterberg	82	28	44	72
G. Nyquist	80	25	35	35
K. Quincey	80	19	32	32
J. Franzen	82	30	30	30
J. Kindl	80	11	27	27
B. Smith	82	7	24	31

 

[son of sam99 10]

Detroit Red Wings 2013-14 Regular Season Points Leaders

 

 

Detroit Red Wings Stats - 2013-14
Skaters	GP	G	A	PTS	+/-	GW	PIM	SOG	SPCT
P. Datsyuk	76	29	46	75
H. Zetterberg	82	28	44	72
N. Kronwall	82	8	57	65
G. Nyquist	80	25	35	60
J. Franzen	82	30	30	60
K. Quincey	80	19	32	51
T. Tatar	82	16	23	39
V. Taresenko	65	21	18	39

 

 

[son of sam99 10]

April 20th 2014

 

 

Wings Win Game 3, Datsyuk, Nyquist Out for Season

 

Detroit, MI--  As the Stanley Cup Playoffs get underway every season the pace and intensity of the games kicks up a notch (or three). That’s been more evident for the Red Wings and Penguins than ever as through three games the two teams have gone at each other hammer and tongs laying big hits all over the ice.

 

This type of play has finally yielded expected results as four players left last night’s game three with injury, none of which are expected back for the rest of the playoffs.

 

In the first period Pavel Datsyuk was steamrolled by Penguins defender Matt Niskanen in the offensive zone and had to be helped off the ice by teammates and trainers. Perhaps in response Niklas Kronwall demolished Pens winger Pascal Dupuis at the Detroit blue line resulting in Dupuis leaving the game not to return.

 

After the first intermission, just two minutes into the second period, Todd Bertuzzi squared off with Rob Scuderi for an epic fight wich left the Pittsburgh defender on his back.

 

“We’re not going to stand for cheap shots. If they want to play that way they’ll have to answer for it.” Bertuzzi told assembled media after the game.

 

The second period progressed from there with more hitting until Gustav Nyquist was blindsided in the offensive zone by Kris Letang. Letang was sent to the box for two minutes for charging while Nyquist lay unconscious on the ice before eventually skating off with help from his teammates. 

 

Soon after Letang returned from the penalty Johan Franzen enacted his own brand of justice by hammering the Penguins top defensemen into the corner boards.

 

After the dust settled on the showdown at the Joe the Wings won the game 4-2 but have lost two top scoring line forwards. Pavel Datsyuk has been diagnosed with a separated shoulder and Gustav Nyquist with a concussion, neither are expected to return this season.

 

Criticism has been lobbed at the officials working this series for their leniency to the physical play, however, the league office has stated there will be no suspensions resulting from game three.

[son of sam99 10]

April 26th, 2014

 

Wings Finish Off Pens, Headed to Next Round

 

 

Detroit, MI-    The Red Wings extended their season by at least four more games on Friday night by beating the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-1 and thus winning their first round matchup four games to two.

 

Red Wings goaltender Brian Elliot held strong under heavy attack from the Penguins top scorers while Henrik Zetterberg, Darren Helm, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Brandon Smith all netted goals for the home team.

 

With the series victory the Wings will be off over the weekend as they wait to see if they’ll be matched up against the New Jersey Devils or Ottawa Senators in the next round.

 

 

Series Recap:

 

Game 1: Red Wings 5 – Penguins 3

Game 2: Red Wings 1 – Penguins 4

Game 3: Penguins 2 – Red Wings 4

Game 4: Penguins 1 – Red Wings 3

Game 5: Red Wings 2 – Penguins 4

Game 6: Penguins 1 – Red Wings 4

 

 

 

[son of sam99 10]

May 7th 2014

 

SWEEP!

 

Detroit, MI-  The Red Wings on Tuesday closed out their second round playoff series against the New Jersey Devils with a comfortable 4-1 victory at Joe Lewis Arena.

 

Game four followed a similar script to the rest of the series as New Jersey couldn’t put much offensive pressure together thanks to suffocating neutral zone play by Detroit. The Wings didn’t waste any time asserting their scoring dominance as they closed out the first period with a three to zero lead.

 

The quick four game series was just what the Wings’ doctors & trainers ordered for the many bruises and aching bones on the team’s roster.

 

It’s the first time the Red Wings have won their division since the 2010-11 season and will have a chance to win their conference for the first time since 2008-09, the same season the team last won the Stanley Cup. This will also be their first opportunity to win the Eastern Conference ever.

 

On the other side of the bracket the Tampa Bay Lightning are leading their series with the Columbus Blue Jackets three games to one with game five schedule for tonight.

 

Series Recap:

Game 1:  Red Wings 5 - Devils 1

Game 2: Red Wings 4 - Devils 0

Game 3: Devils 1 - Red Wings 4

Game 4: Devils 1 - Red Wings 4

 

[Nickflyers 16]

Getting hot at the right time it would seem.  Sucks you lost Nyqvist though...

[son of sam99 10]

May 25, 2015

Detroit Takes Game 6, Headed to Finals

 

 

 

Detroit, MI- In a series where it appeared neither team would be able to win a game on their home ice the Red Wings did just that in order to finish off the Tampa Bay Lightning and punch their ticket to the Stanley Cup Finals.

“We’ve met every challenge since the playoffs began; from excellent opponents to dealing with injuries, we’re ready to meet our next challenge in the finals.” Wings captain Henrik Zetterberg said after the game from the locker room. 

“It hurts now… After such a long grind, a long journey through the season and the playoffs it hurts that the season is over. But we’re a young team, we know we’ll be right back here next season with a different result.” Lighting coach John Cooper said in the post-game press conference. 

Detroit will have to wait to find out if they’ll face the Dallas Stars or the Arizona Coyotes in the Finals. Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals is tomorrow night and the Stars lead the series three games to two.

 

Series Recap:

 

Game 1: Red Wings 3 – Lightning 1

Game 2: Red Wings 4 – Lightning 1

Game 3: Lightning 3 – Red Wings 1

Game 4: Lightning 3 – Red Wings 1

Game 5: Red Wings 4 – Lightning 2

Game 6: Lightning 1 – Red Wings 2

[son of sam99 10]

 

 

Hannah Storm: And with the Stanley Cup finals set we bring in NHL guru Barry Melrose to break it down for us, Barry we’ve got the Detroit Red Wings out of the east and the Dallas Stars out of the west. Barry let's talk about how these two teams got here, first the Red Wings.

 

Barry Melrose: Well Hannah the Wings got here by completely changing their game plan once the playoffs began and it's a good thing they did. They entered the playoffs dead on arrival after a terrible March campaign despite being relatively healthy and cruising through the middle part of the season. 

Mike Babcock turned their game plan upside down and got them playing more of a fore checking and neutral zone style of play. The amount that opposing teams are able to skate the puck into the Red Wings zone has drastically reduced and the whole team is playing much more of a two way game.

You know the loss of Datsyuk and Nyquist, no body in their right mind would have had the Wings coming out of the first round much less winning the east with two of their top line guys going down but here they are thanks to a new coat of paint on their strategies and the leadership of guys like Henrik Zetterberg and Niklas Kronwall, have them in the inals.

 

HS: And as the adage goes a hot goaltender can carry a team through the playoffs. Tell us about Detroit’s net minding.

 

BM: Absolutely Hannah as I was going on and on about how the Wings have changed their game and become a more defensive team you can’t leave out Brian Elliott and the way he’s played. Absolutely put up a wall these playoffs. He’s like a man possessed since the end of the regular season… And ya know it's not like these guys don't hear the press and read the papers. You know Elliot saw what the Detroit writers were saying and now he’s out there on the ice proving us media types wrong, challenging the shooters and making good decisions with the puck. 

This series is going to come down to which team can be tighter defensively and allow the fewest scoring chances so if the Red Wings are going to lift the cup for the twelfth time, Brian Elliot is going to have to continue to be solid.

 

HS: Thanks Barry, we’ll have you back later in this episode of Sports Center to preview the Dallas Stars.

 

[son of sam99 10]

June 10 2014

Welcome Home Lord Stanley!

 

 

Detroit, MI- As confetti fell from the ceiling and fireworks rang out inside Joe Lewis Arena the Detroit Red Wings skated with the Stanley Cup held above their heads for the twelfth time in franchise history.

 

In a season of many ups a downs the team was held together by their veterans specifically Niklas Kronwall and Henrik Zetterberg, who fittingly were the first two players to lift the silverware on Monday night; the Conn Smyth trophy for playoff MVP for Kronwall and the Stanley Cup for Zetterberg.

 

At the beginning of the season the Red Wings suddenly lost their general manager and the architect of the team. Since then they’ve had to endure rumors of their coach leaving at the end of the season, numerous injuries to key contributors like Pavel Datsyuk and Gustav Nyquist, and they still stand atop the hockey mountain hardware in hand. 

 

“This is amazing!!” Zetterberg was nearly at a loss of words in post-game celebration on the ice. “All these guys have worked so hard to get here…  We all knew this team was capable of getting to this point and now to be here it’s just amazing!”

 

“Coming here this season it’s been a new experience but this is a top notch franchise and I’m so proud to be a part of it and to have been able to make my mark.” Goaltender Brian Elliot added from the post-game press conference.

 

“That’s it, I’m done! Count me as retired as of right now.” Todd Bertuzzi chose the on ice celebration as the best time to announce his retirement. The big winger will be forty in a month and decided to leave the game on top.

 

Kronwall was selected as the recipient of the Conn Smyth award thanks in large part to his other worldly plus 24 playoff rating. As the offense sputtered at the end of the regular season the leader of the Wings’ blue line rallied his fellow defensemen and they stepped up as a unit. Goalie Brian Elliot finished the playoffs with a sub 2.00 GAA rating thanks in large part to the stellar play in front of him. 

 

“It’s huge, winning the Smyth.” Kronwall said about his latest award. “To now be mentioned along with other greats of this team like Lidstrom and Yzerman… It means a lot.”

 

Before the regular season many projected the Wings’ roster to be a year or two away from competing for a Stanley Cup. Then the team was thrown for a loop when long time general manager Ken Holland stepped aside from day to day operations due to health concerns. Rick Watkins filled in as interim GM but most hockey pundits thought the leadership fluctuation at the top of the club would yield uncertainty throughout the organization. 

 

Watkins though steadied the ship and made his mark when he traded away longtime premier net minder Jimmy Howard for scoring winger Valdimir Tarasenko, goalie Brian Elliot and draft picks.  The move worked out but the interim GM came under fire as the team hit a long losing streak in April after a trade deadline day which saw the franchise choosing not to make any moves. Despite the late season swoon Detroit is atop the mountain again thanks to an amazing playoff run. 

 

Now team owner Mike Ilitch will have a decision to make if he wants to stick with Watkins or search the market to see if there may be a higher profile candidate available for the position of general manger.

 

Series Recap:

 

Game 1: Red Wings 3 – Stars 1

Game 2:  Red Wings 4 – Stars 3

Game 3: Stars 2 – Red Wings 1

Game 4: Stars 2 – Red Wings 3 

Game 5: Red Wings 1 – Stars 3

Game 6: Stars 1 – Red Wings 5

 

 

[Nickflyers 16]

Congrats on the Cup Win!  Kronwall was a BEAST!

[son of sam99 10]

Congrats on the Cup Win!  Kronwall was a BEAST!

 

Thanks for following along! It was a little easier to cruise through the playoff than i had expected (& hoped) so I may bump the difficulty next season. & yes Kronwall was a total beast. I love it when defensemen win the conn smyth since its almost always forwards or goalies.

[son of sam99 10]

 

Entry: June 11th, 2014

 

What an incredible ride the playoff were. Nobody gave us a shot to even get out of the first round much less go the distance to win the Stanley Cup and yet tomorrow we’ll be parading down Woodward Ave with the cup in hand. I’m embarrassed to admit that after Datsyuk and Nyquist went down against the Pens I thought for sure our season would be cut short but fortunately we got a great matchup against the Devils and then somehow gutted out four wins against the Lightning who are so young and talented I’m sure we’ll be seeing them in the playoffs for years to come.

 

As for Dallas and the finals… Well I think the guys were just running on adrenaline at that point. Elliot and our defense were so on point that I think we could have beaten an all-star squad in a seven game series.

 

I think Detroit is no easy town to please and the fan’s relationship with this franchise is special. The city truly embraced this team and never gave up even when Datsyuk & Nyquist wnet down. The style of play got a little uglier but the fans never lost faith in these boys. It’s great to be a part of brining another crown to the city.

 

All good feelings aside the front office will be working major overtime during the next few months to get the roster ready to go for October. The one drawback of deep playoff runs is that the whole franchise is put under pressure to reboot in less time than everyone else. Along with that our veteran players have to put more miles on their legs and have less time to recover before the beginning of the season.

 

Nevertheless we’ve got the entry draft, resigning period and free agent period around the corner so it’s time to buckle down again after a very brief celebration.

[son of sam99 10]

2013-14 NHL Post Season Awards
Award	Player	Pos	Team
Hart Memorial Trophy	Pekka Rinne	G	Nashville Predators
Calder Memorial Trophy	Nikita Kucherov	RW	Tampa Bay Lightning
Vezina Trophy	Pekka Rinne	G	Nashville Predators
Art Ross Trophy	Jonathan Toews	C	Chicago Blackhawks
Rocket Richard Trophy	Zach Parise	LW	Minnesota Wild
James Norris Memorial Trophy	Niklas Kronwall	D	Detroit Red Wings
William M Jennings Trophy	Mike Smith	G	Phoenix Coyotes
Conn Smythe Trophy	Niklas Kronwall	D	Detroit Red Wings
Frank J. Selke Trophy	Patrice Bergeron	C	Boston Bruins
Bill Masterson Memorial Trophy	Braydon Coburn	D	Philadelphia Flyers
Ted Lindsay Award	Pekka Rinne	G	Nashville Predators
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy	Ryan Nugent-Hopkins	C	Edmonton Oilers

[son of sam99 10]

 

Detroit Red Wings Offseason Preview

 

 

As your cousin twice removed from Detroit will surly remind you time and again over the next eight months, the Red Wings are the defending Stanley Cup Champions. While that’s enough to turn the stomach of most hockey fans, those form the motor city are people too and we figured we may as well include them in our off season preview series.

It turns out the defending champs will likely be quite busy this offseason thanks to some retirement as well as several contracts ending, not to mention a hefty need to restock their prospect pool.

 

Departing:

 

Todd Bertuzzi announced his retirement just moments after he lifted the Stanley Cup for the first time. Bravo to him for completing that goal but this leaves a grinder/enforcer shaped hole in their pool for forwards which was already lacking toughness. They’ll HAVE to address this at some point during this off season. 

Bertuzzi is expected to be the only defection due to retirement for the wings this offseason.

 

RFAs:

 

 

Red Wings' Restricted Free Agents
Pos	Player	Notes
LW	Tomas Tatar	Played most of the season in the NHL, decent potential moving forward
D	Danny DeKeyser	Played all season in NHL, good size slow feet
C	Riley Sheahan	Played all season in the AHL, high ceiling two way forward
C	Corey Emmerton	Played all season in the AHL, possibly too old to capitalize on NHL potential
C	Landon Ferraro	Played all season in the AHL, solid leader and defensive forward, no offense
RW	Mitch Callahan	Played all season in the AHL, grinder w' few offensive skills
D	Max Nicastro	Played all season in the AHL, too slow to make impact in NHL
C	Louis-Marc Aubry	Healthy scratch most of year in AHL, decent skills but needs to work on positioning
C	Andrej Nestrasil	Healthy scratch most of year in AHL, is long shot to make contribution in NHL

 

The important names here are Tatar, DeKeyser, Sheahan, and Emmerton who are either already NHL level contributors in the case of Tatar and Dekeyser or are expected to be contributors soon in the case of Sheahan and Emmerton. In the case of all four I’d expect the Wings brass to lock these guys down for multiple years instead of submitting qualified offers.  

 

UFAs:

 

 

Red Wings Unrestricted Free Agents
Pos	Player	Notes
RW	Todd Bertuzzi	Retired
C	David Legwand	Decent speed and shooting skills, difficult to predict if he'll be pursued
LW	Daniel Cleary	Not a huge impact on the ice but popular among teammates
D	Kyle Quincey	Wings will certainly pay to keep the young skilled defender
G	Brian Elliot	Media darling after an excellent playoff run, Detroit will either sign Elliot or have to test the market
G	Jonas Gustavson	Elliot's backup, I suspect they'll allow Gus to walk in favor of talented prospect Petr Mrazek assuming backup duties

 

Here’s where we can expect some fluctuation, fortunately for the Wings most of their UFAs are considered role players. Legwand will, in all likelihood, get resigned as will Quincey but the team will have to pony up for both of them. Given their age Cleary and Samuelsson (35 and 37 respectively) will probably be given the chance to test the market. The goalie crease is interesting as Elliot will surely be able to command a price tag higher than he’s worth thanks to his heroic playoff performance. Gustoffsen is a capable backup with experience so he may shun the franchise to test the market even if he does get an offer.

 

Needs:

 

Detroit needs to decide if they’re ready to give guys like Emmerton and Sheahan a shot in the bigs and if so they shouldn’t need to make a ton of new acquisitions. If they’d rather stick to the veterans then they’ll certainly have to open their wallets to go after a proven center or possibly add some help to their corps of blue liners.

[son of sam99 10]

June 24, 2014

 

Trades & Snipers for Red Wings

 

Detroit, MI- The Red Wings wasted no time adding to their team on draft day when GM Rick Watkins traded away one of their three first round selections. The Wings’ began the day slotted to make selections at 15^th, 23^rd, and 30^th overall but Watkins saw an opportunity to add some grit to their roster and took it.

“We were very happy to go into the day with three first round selections but our minor league system is already in great shape so we wanted to see if we could turn one of those picks into a player who could step into our lineup on opening night.” Watkins stated.

 

The New York Islanders were happy to oblige as they continue their rebuilding efforts. In the end the deal was a simple player for pick trade as the Red Wings sent their 30^th overall selection to the Islanders for 26 year old winger Cal Clutterbuck.

 

“With Bertuzzi retired Cal will add some toughness to the lineup and should provide a boost in the fore-check. We’re excited to have him on the team.” Watkins said of the deal.

 

Clutterbuck came up through the Minnesota Wild organization before playing last season for the Islanders. He plays the role of grinder and can mix it up in front of the net but also has decent speed. The Red Wings will absorb his full contract through the 2016-17 season at a salary of $2.75 million.

 

 

Once the draft began it was no surprise to anyone in attendance that the Arizona Coyotes took highly touted defenseman Aaron Ekblad first overall. Once the Red Wings were on the clock it didn’t take them long at all to snap up winger Michael Dal Colle with the 15^th overall pick. The eighteen year old Canadian was projected to go in the top ten but slid as several teams opted for goaltenders. Dal Colle played his junior hockey with Oshawa of the Ontario Hockey League and is expected to spend next season in the CHL unless the Red Wings believe he is ready for the AHL and a spot in Grand Rapids.

With the 23^rd overall pick the Wings took another eighteen year old winger in William Nylander who has been playing in the Swedish Hockey League despite calling Calgary home. Like Dal Colle, Nylander is known for his skating ans shooting ability. It is expected that he will be returning to the OHL next season so he can develop a little more physically.

 

Draft Day Review:

Trade:

NYI Receives Detroit 1^st round pick (30^th)

DET receives RW Cal Clutterbuck

 

R1 15^th pick: LW Michael Dal Colle

R1 23^rd pick: RW William Nylander

 

(Full entry draft coverage can be found at freep.com/sports/red-wings)

[son of sam99 10]

 

Entry: June 30^th, 2014

 

            The entry draft was a big success. As is common we won’t know what players were steals or busts for a long time but by the end of the first round we had added Cal Clutterbuck who is a top nine forward at worst plus prospects William Nylander and Michael Dal Colle who appears to have been a steal at 15^th overall.

            Today marks the end of the resigning period so here’s an update:

 

RFAs:

 

 

Tendered Unrestricted Free Agents
Pos	Player	Qualifying Offer
D	Max Nicastro	$925,000
RW	Mitch Callihan	$610,000
C	Louis-Marc Aubry	$625,000

 

 

Each of the RFAs we tendered are guys we’re probably willing to match sheets on but I’m thinking it won’t come to that. Either they’ll step up their games this coming season and make themselves a part of our future or they’ll be supplanted by draft picks down the line.

 

UFAs

 

 

Released Free Agents
Pos	Player	2013-14 Salary/ notes
RW	Mikael Samuelsson	$925,000 / Added depth last season and really didn’t get to see the ice very much. Hopefully he’ll be able to land somewhere that he’ll get more playing time..
G	Jonas Gustavsson	$1,375,000 / A very serviceable backup but the Grand Rapids staff say Mrzaek is ready for backup duties in the majors so that's who we’re going with there, Gus will certainly land on his skates elsewhere
LW	Daniel Cleary	$550,000/  was a tough decision to let go but we want to free the space for some prospects to have a chance to make an impact..

 

 

-

 

 

New Contracts

 

 

Resigned Free Agents
Pos	Player	Length / Salary/ Notes
C	Landon Ferraro	3 years / $760,000 / Least impressive of our center prospects but we’re not willing to pull the plug yet. Without progress in the next two years we may look to move him
C	Riley Sheahan	3 years / $1,490,000 / A very exciting prospect who is getting pait to make an impact in the bigs next seaso, should turn into top defensive forward
C	Cory Emmerton	3 years / $700,000 / At 25 years old it will take a big jump for Cory to be a full time NHL player, for the price though he adds depth in Grand Rapids and options when injuries strike
D	Kyle Quincy	4 years / $4,470,000 / This is almost Kronwall type money but the market is hot for blue liners and we wanted to keep him
D	Danny DeKeyser	3 years / $1,900,000 / This was a bit of a no brainer. Danny didn’t quite have the breakout we would have hoped for but he’s young and for three years under $2MM the hope (& assumption) is that in year three it’ll be a huge bargain
G	Brian Elliot	3 years / $1,215,000 / We went back and forth on this. Though Brian was a playoff hero playing out of his mind I wasn't sure three years would be wise but the price is ok even if he winds up behind Mrazek
LW	Tomas Tatar	4 years / $1,550,000 /             We asked for an extra year from Tomas’ agent as he also only wanted three years originally. We ended up paying him a little more but it was worth it to me to have him locked down longer.

 

 

Free Agency:

 

            The upcoming free agent class isn’t all too impressive but there are opportunities to better the team. We’ll still be looking to potentially add some bigger forwards but more than anything I’d like to target a top 4 defenseman. We’ll see what happens.

[son of sam99 10]

 

Entry: September 14^th, 2014

 

            The off season is winding down and vacations are coming to an end for players, coaches, and front office staff alike. Training camp is set to begin tomorrow in beautiful Traverse City Michigan with the first preseason game is just nine days away. I would be lying if I were to say it wasn’t a wild off season in terms of player movement as well as celebration with the Stanley Cup.

             Free agency was disappointing as we perused a few players who ultimately didn’t sign with the team. I feel we failed in our goal to add toughness to the roster but in lieu of that we added some solid vets who can put the puck in the net.

 

Signed Free Agents:

 

 

Signed FAs
Pos	Player	Years/ Salary
LW	Wojtek Wolski	2 Years / $2,550,000
RW	Michael Frolik	1 year / $1,630,000
G	Anders Nilsson	3 years / $910,000

 

 

-          Wolski spent last season in Russia after no one was interested in signing him last off season. This is a speculative move and a bit of a risk at the length and price of his contract but the market took a jump and this is the price we needed to pay to beat out two other teams.

-          Frolik has bounced between Europe and the NHL over the last three seasons and there are rumors that he’s too much of a partyer to stick with a premier club. I’m expecting that the leaders in our locker room will set him straight. If he won’t walk the straight and narrow then we’ll ship him elsewhere or just let his contract expire.

-          Nilsson was a steal to be sure in the third week of free agency. At 24 years old I think he’s got a high ceiling and given our goalie situation in Detroit we can let him try to realize that growth in Grand Rapids.

 

 

 

The whole coaching staff is excited for camp to see who comes back in better shape than they were last season, whose game has improved, and which draftees will set themselves apart from the rest.

            If there is any dead time for the front office its now. At this point we’ll be watching the players for chemistry and listening to the coaching staff to see if any changes need to be made. Other than that we’re just getting our ducks in a row for scouting the 2015 entry draft.