The Free Press’s Helene St. James, Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan and The Athletic’s Max Bultman have all weighed in on the Red Wings’ potential free agency options. This afternoon, MLive’s Ansar Khan rounds out the chorus with an assessment of his own as to what the Wings should do, as well as a long list of players that the Wings might want to target come July 1st at 12 PM EDT.
What should the Wings do with their $12 million in cap space? Khan believes that signing players to short-term deals is the answer:
The Red Wings won’t be in the hunt for the elite players and probably not the next level of talent either, given their reluctance to dole out longer-term deals and their rebuilding status.
There are many lower-cost alternatives. It might take a few days after free agency opens to get those players, after they’ve explored options and concluded they won’t get the term they were seeking.
General manager Steve Yzerman will look to plug some holes.
Veteran winger Thomas Vanek has been informed he won’t be re-signed. Defenseman/winger Luke Witkowski could still be a low-cost option on a one-year deal for later in the summer. Yzerman has said he’d welcome back defenseman Niklas Kronwall, who is contemplating one more season or retirement.
The Red Wings also are in the market for an experienced goaltender to split the net with prospect Filip Larsson in Grand Rapids. They made a qualifying offer to Patrik Rybar but don’t expect him to return.
The Red Wings will have more money to spend next summer when several contracts are off the books (Mike Green, Jonathan Ericsson, Trevor Daley and possibly Jimmy Howard). But some of their young restricted free agents will be due for new deals (Anthony Mantha, Andreas Athanasiou and Tyler Bertuzzi) as well.
Khan continues at length, and his list of players that could be possible targets is interesting, but I would barf in my mouth and barf in the toilet of the Wings ever signed someone like Corey Perry to a contract.
What’s so bad about Perry? He’s possibly accept a cheap 1-year deal that can be sold at the deadline. That beats signing Nyquist or Connolly or some of these other guys who will command big dollars and longer terms. Adding Perry would also allow guys like Rass, Zadina, Svech to develop in the AHL. So if your reaction is to barf then perhaps explain why?
The picture that hangs in Pavel Datsyuk’s house.
Perry is a tremendous goal-scorer (still) and talent (still). But I hold grudges.
Sure glad there were no grudges when we acquired Chelios. Or when we re-acquired Dallas Drake who helped win a Cup. Maltby was hated for a cheap shot delivered to a young Fedorov. You don’t let emotion take precedent over what’s right for your organization. And hockey players are very, very quick to forget and embrace a new arrival. But oh well, maybe Yzerman is reading and will cross Perry off his list so you don’t get sick. Haha
I don’t get the weirdly oppositional posts. First it was bashing Glen Merkovsky in two places…after he was already let go. Like insulting the guy on his way out the door is going to make a difference.
Why would Perry want to sign in Detroit? He reportedly and understandably surely prefers a playoff team and maybe a last Cup run. Is Detroit supposed to offer him the sweetest deal so he can pointlessly pull a Wings jersey over his tiny Eddie Haskell head? If Perry were the final piece to get a contending Wings team over the top, maybe you’d get over what a career cheap shot artist he’s been and consider it.
But in context it’s totally unnecessary. There will be many other options among good veteran mentors who might add some tutoring and character while young players ease in. Just because some former villains have become Red Wings in totally different contexts means we need to pointlessly embrace Perry.