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Athanasiou signs - now what happens? |
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There will be no holdout this season. Heck, there won’t even be the facade of an impending arbitration hearing.
When forward Andreas Athanasiou’s name didn’t appear on the list of 44 players filing for arbitration released Thursday by the NHLPA, it figured that something was up.
That something turned out to be the Detroit Red Wings and Athanasiou agreeing to terms on a two-year contract that will pay him $3 million per season.
A year ago, contract talks between Athanasiou and the Wings broke down and when the regular season started, he remained a holdout. Eventually agreeing to a one-year, $1.3785-million deal, Athanasiou returned in time to play 71 games and finished tied for third on the team with 16 goals. But he was also a team-high minus-15, and Wings coach Jeff Blashill continued to be critical of Athanasiou’s inconsistency and wavering compete level.
“I have to know what I’m getting every single shift,” Blashill said. “The growth in him is going to be to learn to work and compete every single shift. If I’m guessing whether or not he’s going to work and compete, it’s hard to keep putting him out there, because I don’t know what I’m getting.
“I think that consistency level and work and compete is going to be critical for AA.”
The concern is whether that message is resonating with Athanasiou, who too often seems to want to do it his way. That leads to the occasional highlight-reel goal that he produces by getting on the other end of a stretch pass via his world-class speed. But that happens about every 15 games or so, and in between, you often need to organize a search party in order to locate Athanasiou on the ice.
“I think it’s just consistently getting out there and getting the opportunity to do what I can and build as a player,” Athanasiou said of what needs to change in his point of view. “I think with consistency comes opportunity. They go hand in hand.”
Now that he’s locked up for two years - Athanasiou, who will be 24 in August, would still be a restricted free agent when this deal expires in 2020 - the question seems to be what happens next?
Does he buckle down, compete every night and earn the trust of his coach? Or does he keep marching to the beat of his own drummer and become trade bait?
It’s no secret that some within the organization would like to see Athanasiou moved out, and he could prove a valuable bargaining chip in Detroit’s pursuit of a top-four defenseman.
So while Thursday’s contract ensured that Athanasiou would remain in the fold for now, it’s still not a guarantee that will be remain a Wing long term.
Ferschweiler to USA Hockey
Wings assistant coach Pat Ferschweiler will serve in a similar position with USA Hockey’s under-18 select team at the upcoming Hlinka Gretzky Cup.
That tournament is slated for Aug. 6-11 in Red Deer and Edmonton, Alta.
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