Follow me on Twitter
There is ice and activity Little Caesar’s Arena for the first time in nearly 9 months. That was a promising development, and seems to be an encouraging sign that things are headed in the right direction. Unfortunately, last week’s “due date” to get the NHL/NHLPA stalemate solved has come and gone. I’ve remarked many times that January 1 wasn’t going to fly, and the league is now saying potentially 56 games with a mid January start. (Remember when it was “no less than 68?”). I’m fairly convinced 48 will be the ceiling (with as few as 40). The season and playoffs still need to end before the summer olympics.
The NHL went from a 5 billion dollar league to a 3.5 billion league to projections of 2 billion for the coming year. Allan Walsh continues to try and duke it out with the owners via Twitter. Granted, his job is to get players paid. I’m guessing the fact that if they don’t get paid, he doesn’t get paid is playing a rather large part in his vitriol. He’s threatened lawsuits if the season is cancelled saying that the Force Majeure clause won’t excuse the owners violating the CBA. What he’s neglected to address is how poorly the playoffs did for revenue (didn’t break even) and the fact that the PA is on the hook for a more than billion dollar shortfall already. Each paycheck that goes out before money comes in keeps adding to that. The players could be counter-sued based on the CBA 50/50. While a 20% cap on escrow was agreed upon last June, it was based on fans attending games again. If they went by the original intent, the salary cap could be dropped 40 percent and players could lose nearly their entire check until that shortfall was accounted for. Not a smart time to try and make threats.
Nothing has really changed, and so I’m trying to shift perspective to the hope of having hockey games once again. Whenever things get out of the war room and back onto the ice, there are a few things that Detroit fans can look forward to.
First, the captaincy. Larkin has proven that he’s “bleeding red” (not the same effect since we all technically bleed red). Through the worst season many of us have seen since the 80s, and in some ways worse than those, Larkin still showed up. He had a sense of duty to pull it together and try to win the next shift. Bertuzzi and Mantha want to be part of things as they improve as well. That brings me to the next cause for excitement, LARMANZZI.
With the new personnel Yzerman brought in, it may be tempting to mess with line combinations. In fact, for 3 out of 4 lines it is necessary. The top line of Larkin-Mantha-Bertuzzi needs to be left alone (my opinion). The drop off in performance was painful last year. Larkin is the only NHL caliber center (at least it looked that way). We need at least another version of him. Namestnikov is promising as a second line stand in for this season (Fabbri and Zadina should probably be the wingers). Filppula and Nielsen had rough years. Veleno won’t be back to attempt to secure a spot until after his league (same with Seider) finishes up their season. Berggren (same boat) is showing promise. Someone would have to take a massive step forward to keep from looking like it did last year. Just a mess when the Larkin line wasn’t there.
Next, the overall team. Yzerman made changes to improve offense, defense and goaltending. He wasn’t shy about saying that every zone needed vast improvement. Abdelkader, Daly, Ericsson, Green, and Howard are all gone. Troy Stecher is a very interesting acquisition for defense. Bobby Ryan is excited to come in and have a good run. Svechnikov and Rasmussen are up against the wall and need to either take a spot or move on. I do think Zadina will continue to be a pleasant surprise as well.
Finally, a glimpse at the future. More contracts are going to continue to drop off, and the core is forming. All but 2 Dmen contracts are expiring after this season (Dekeyser and Stecher, Hronek will be RFA). That’s not including Seider who should be up and available for 21/22. Only 6 forwards are currently signed through next season. Larkin, Mantha, Nielsen (one more season), Namestnikov, Fabbri and Zadina. That will open up roughly 46 million in space and probably see Glendening, Helm and Z’s contract all parting ways. Yzerman has setup for another massive changeover as the team gets younger.
It’s been said in the comments that Detroit could be the most improved team in the NHL next year and still finish bottom 5. Many (if not most) fans are anxious to see who Yzerman taps as the next coach. The GMs approach to players is focused on work ethic, intensity, and attitude. Very good prospects were passed over in the draft, and players brought in via trade or free agency are eager to be here. Not everything is going to work out, but that focus is wiping complacency and entitlement off of the roster. (Entitlement may be too strong a sentiment). Buy in or get out may be the new mantra. Even though the coming season will be fraught with difficulty and frustration, I believe it will be a good step in the right direction. Yzerman knows what it takes to build a champion, and you spend a lion’s share of your effort on the foundation.
Detroit Red Wings Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»