Riding The Rails and The Hometown Discount

With a two-hour train tide ahead of me, I find myself with an excellent opportunity to finally talk a bit about Nick Lidstrom's future in more depth.  To my shock and amazement, I should even be able to have this available to you, the reader, immediately.  It seems this rail service has a wi-fi connection I can actually gain access to, which has been a rarity during my stay in the UK.

With time going by quickly as the Conference finals have already begun, the question looms ever closer: Will Nicklas Lidstrom retire?  Some say yes and others say no, but the one thing that seems to be constant is the belief that Lidstrom is certainly -capable- of playing another season should he see fit to do so.  The problem is, what must the Wings do to make returning to the team look like the more appealing option, and what is Nick willing to do to help Detroit make this run more successful than the last four?

As far as the team goes, it all comes down to making the Red Wings look like a true Cup contender.  Making the playoffs is simply not good enough, just being there doesn't leave a player with much sense of satisfaction unless the big silver bowl is lifted over his head.  The Wings' management knows what the team lacked last season and has the money to rectify this.  I think an aggressive stance during free agency will help show Nick that we're not settling for the status quo anymore and that changes need to be made to win.  If Ken Holland and the gang don't show enough drive to improve, they may drive away our captain.

Keep in mind that Lidstrom has played through an entire generation of Detroit Red Wings hockey.  Almost all of the teammates he'd played the majority of his career with have come and gone, the last being Tomas Holmstrom, who I believe will retire this summer.  How strongly this will affect Lidstrom's decision to stay or go is immeasurable, but certainly important.  Detroit needs to make a strong case by going after key players this offseason if we are to see The Perfect Human play one more year.

On Lidstrom's side, however, is another question: If Nick does decide to stay, how much does he sign for?  I feel the best option here is what's been commonly referred to as 'The Hometown Discount'.  Lidstrom made $6.2 Million last year, and I'm not contesting his deserving that amount for an instant.  I do think, though, that this number -must- come down next year.  If Lidstrom re-signs, if absolutely behooves him to help the team by offering up some of his contract dollars to help bring in bigger names to aid in what could possibly be his final run at the Stanley Cup.  I could easily see Nick comfortably signing anywhere from $3.5-$4.5 Million and giving Detroit more wiggle room to bring in a Ryan Suter or a Zach Parise, and reaping the rewards of his decision as he watches his team's potential grow.

Some don't agree with the idea of asking Nicklas Lidstrom to take a hometown discount.  I believe that we must move past the idea that to ask is an insult to him.  Lidstrom has earned his keep, again I am not disputing this, but this is about more than Lidstrom now.  The more money he takes at the contract table, the more he handcuffs his own team and makes it more difficult for them to improve as a whole.  Considering the fact that Lidstrom would only be returning if he felt Detroit had a legitimate chance to play for the Cup, it seems counter-productive to sign a similar contract to the one that just ended.

Perhaps you think I'm way off base, though.  What do you think? Should Nicklas Lidstrom take a 'Hometown Discount' and drop a couple million off his salary to help his team improve? Feel free to comment and let me know your thoughts on the matter.

Thoughts From Abroad: More Off-season Reflection

Originally written May 3, 2012:


I'm currently 33,000 feet above the Atlantic as I write this. I'm going to the place where I first experienced a world that spanned continents rather than merely cities.  The excitement is such that I simply cannot sleep, despite the fact that our flight left Halifax at around 11:30PM and gets into London's Heathrow at just south of 9:00 in the morning.

As I shoot through the sky at nearly 500mph, I try to think of things to distract myself from the exhaustion that should be overtaking me.  If one thing can drive me to distraction, it is my Red Wings.

As the playoffs continue on without Detroit, the Wings, as it has already been painfully discussed, need to address a number of concerns that led to their quick post-season demise. Some of the thoughts I type here may echo my previous article, but again, I do what I must to stave off the thought of how tired I am while not being able to simply drift off.

Detroit's depth did not factor into their match-up with Nashville, and though there were key injuries, that is no excuse for the amount of no-shows who wore the winged wheel.  Changes to the bottom half of the lineup, both forwards and defensemen, would be welcomed.  A team's loyalty to a player can only extend as far as that playe is able to consistently contribute to the club.

As much as I hate how it will affect Nicklas Lidstrom's decision on retirement, I truly feel it is time for Tomas Holmstrom to call it a career.  Age has caught up with Homer and his ability to dominate in front of the opposition goaltender has drastically declined.  The perfect example came in the 1st round as Holmstrom was tossed aside like a cheap Swedish ragdoll by Pekka Rinne during play.  You can use Rinne's size as justification, but most goalies are picked to be big, and Homer is not getting any stronger.

Some players will also see the door, either by their own choosing or not.  Brad Stuart made his choice obvious by his terrible play in the playoffs, and some of the youngsters like Jakub Kindl and Jan Mursak are starting to feel the heat for not meeting expectations. With the projected cap increase and the potential exit of a number of last year's Wings, it could be a more interesting offseason than any of us imagined.  Jimmy Devellano went on radio basically stating that Detroit was looking to be aggressive this summer, and they really need to follow through with that plan of attack if they hope to make the necessary changes needed to compete at the top tier of the new, parity-obsessed NHL.  Whispers of Parise and Suter have already blown through the ranks of Red Wings Nation, but I'm willing to bet there are other names out there that Detroit has its eye on.

Until we know more about who is available for free agency, and who is hanging around opposed to leaving, it's hard to guess what direction next year's Red Wings will take, but we'll stil have fun playing armchair GM and analyzing what we think is the best course of action.

My flight will be touching down soon, and my thoughts are coming back to the present.  Next time, I'll be taking a look at a tactic that has been used to aid in Detroit's bid for success--and whether or not it should apply to the decision of a certain perect human.

Looking Ahead: Where do Wings Go from Here?

"Please Kenny bring shooter, we have good time."

It's that time if year again, but this year it has come painfully early.  The Detroit Red Wings have been eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs, dropping their 1st Round series with the Nashville Predators.  It is the first time since 2006 VS the Edmonton Oilers that the Red Wings have exited the playoffs in the opening round.  This loss is exceptionally painful to deal with.  Detroit's play looked stagnant and uninspired, scoring only 9 goals over the course of the 5-game series, at some points barely making Pekka Rinne break a sweat.

There is, however, no single reason for Detroit's failure this postseason.  To me, it was mainly one part coaching, one part lack of team cohesion and one part inconsistency.  Injuries made life difficult for Mike Babcock and his attempts to find some line chemistry.  Many of those same injuries came at the worst possible time, giving guys on the mend little to no time to get back into form for the playoffs.  Team communication in the last stretch of the season and into the playoffs just seemed...off.  This is again something that gets affected by guys coming in and out of lineups from injury, but a general awareness of your teammates is hockey 101, and as The Geek, I have to give them a failing grade in that regard.

So, what does Detroit do from here?  With a long offseason to ponder options and potentially around $20 million to spend, my thought is that GM Ken Holland best get on the phone early and start finding out exactly what all those options are. Obviously a lot rides on that looming decision that comes every year now, I don't even have to name the guy and you know who I'm talking about.  Yes, Nick Lidstrom will make another choice whether to push ahead for another season or skate off into the sunset.  To be honest, if I were Nick, one of the first things I'd be telling Holland is that if I were coming back, I expect some big moves to upgrade this team.  If I knew Kenny was going to do the same thing he did at the deadline, I'd call it right then and there, it wouldn't be worth my time and another year of disappointment.

Three things are needed, in my eyes, to get Detroit past the 2nd Round again: A big grinder to compliment Justin Abdelkader's line, someone more defensively responsible than Brad Stuart, and a certified get-it-done shooter.  By the hockey gods, do we need a sniper.  We have far too many play-makers who can get the play started, but no one who can consistently finish the rush with a puck in the back of the enemy net.

Zach Parise seems an obvious choice for that shooter role.  Let's compare him to our biggest shooter, Henrik Zetterberg:

Zetterberg - GP: 82/G: 22/A: 47/PTS: 69/PIMs: 47/SOG: 267/SHOT%: .082
Parise        - GP: 82/G: 31/A: 38/PTS: 69/PIMs: 32/SOG: 293/SHOT%: .106


That's a HUGE difference in success rate, and Parise doesn't even get penalized as much.  Detroit doesn't have a dedicated shooter like this and it showed how much that hurts them in the series against Nashville when nobody could seem to solve Pekka Rinne.

Ryan Suter is the name most everyone is bandying around for a defensive plug supposing Lidstrom does retire.  I say go for him anyway, Brad Stuart seems like he's making no attempt to hide the fact he wants out of Detroit.  Even without Stuart's gaffes, the Wings needs more solidity in their D-men out side of Lidstrom-Kronwall.  Ian White is serviceable but a second Brian Rafalski he is not.

As for grit, the question becomes: How far to the side of grit do you want to go?  You could always bring a guy like Zenon Konopka in to center Abdelkader's line.  The guy doesn't score, but he's no fun to play against and is willing to drop the gloves for his team.  Oh, and there's also the fact that the guy is a BEAST in the face-off dot.  Take a look at these numbers:

Pavel Datsyuk: FO% - 56.2
Paul Gaustad:  FO% - 57.3
Zenon Konopka: FO% 58.9

Now remember of course that I'm only throwing Konopka's name out there for the grit hole that needs filled, but isn't that an interesting bonus? This guy, although he takes far fewer draws than the other two mentioned above, wins as high a percentage of his draws as they do.  Detroit prides itself on puck possession, why not have a guy that can win the draw, or if not, knock a guy's block off?  I joke, of course, but the fact remains. If Konopka doesn't suit your fancy, there are many other options for grit that come with a more balanced grit-to-offense ratio.

All I know is Kenny H needs to do something significant this offseason, because this team is lacking in a few respects.  We can't keep Lidstrom around forever, much as we want to, and that window closes faster every year. It may even close this summer.  Until Nick speaks, though, we can only hope for the best and push for a deep playoff run next season.

A Simple Message for Detroit's Game 5 Success

Here it is...

Everything WILL be alright.

Alright.

Let's Go Red Wings!!!!