The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan penned a lengthy article this afternoon, in which he discusses the fact that all of the Red Wings’ free agent signings spoke glowingly of a rebuilding organization whose culture of persistence has remained strong despite enduring a lengthy rebuild:
“The passion that just comes through for the Red Wings through [Steve Yzerman] is contagious,” [Bobby] Ryan said. “I walked out of the room (after talking with Yzerman) and told my wife, ‘I think we’re signing in Detroit.’ I didn’t feel I needed to hear anything else from anybody.”
Also, in the NHL world of parity, becoming a contender again can happen quickly. As long as an organization drafts well, and can make some shrewd, cost-effective free agent signings to complement the roster construction, a move upward in the standings can happen sooner than in the past.
“I don’t think you’re ever too far from winning,” said [Marc] Staal, who saw his Rangers rebound after missing two playoff seasons. “I wasn’t there (Detroit) last year, obviously, so I can’t speak on what was going on with the team, but everytime we played them, they were a very detailed team that wasn’t easy to beat by any means. They just need to get over the hump where success in winning games becomes a regularity. They have some very good young players.”
[Thomas] Greiss feels the experience he’s had on Long Island, playing for a team that reached the Eastern Conference Finals in the Return-to-Play, can help the Wings. That was echoed by [Vladislav] Namestnikov and Greiss, who both are coming from winning organizations in Colorado and the Islanders, respectively, and have played for several successful teams.
“I’ve been in the league for a number of years now, and played on numerous different teams with different outlooks and successes,” Greiss said. “I know how to navigate a long season, be there for the young guys and help the guys be as successful as we can.”
