Month: November 2023

Evening ramble: about the Mercenary

I’ve been reading the reactions to the Red Wings’ signing of Patrick Kane on social media (generally something I don’t recommend, but it was a weird day), and…

I get it. Patrick Kane was more than a long-time Wing-killer and agitant in Chicago. He’s got an off-ice “history,” to put things delicately, and the so-called “character issues” have long-time Wings fans perturbed about the karmic value of this particular signing.

Put indelicately, let’s be honest regarding the hockey part of the equation: Patrick Kane is, at this point in his career, a 35-year-old hired gun–a mercenary of sorts–and this is a marriage of convenience for both parties.

If Kane’s resurfaced hip holds up (which is a BIG “IF” at this point), and his chemistry with Alex DeBrincat holds true, then this is a no-brainer.

If something goes amiss, physically or otherwise, this is not the Toronto Maple Leafs we’re talking about. The stakes here in Detroit are about making the playoffs and extending the season, not necessarily contending for the Stanley Cup.

Realistically, from a hockey perspective here, if Kane finds some sort of suitable middle ground, in the top-six, and the Wings are in the playoff mix down the stretch, all is well…

And both parties can decide whether this “dry run” for what may be a year-from-now Cup run for Kane (there’s no reason to suggest this will be his last stop if he succeeds here) continues.

And, getting back to the heart of the matter: a 35-year-old on a one-year contract is a lot like the Todd Bertuzzi who the Red Wings acquired from Florida long ago and far away.

Continue reading Evening ramble: about the Mercenary

Still on the mend

I wanted to post about the imminent Patrick Kane signing, but my posting will be somewhat spotty over the next couple of days. I’m finally “on the mend” as I recover from that particularly serious sinus infection, but I feel far from “like myself” right now.

I don’t need to be anywhere near 100% to blog–and, like most of you, I’m usually not having a skip-skippity at-100% day when I work–but I’d like to get to 2/3rds or 3/4ths of feeling like myself again before I sit up and do the blogging thing, and I’m running at 50% right now.

I’ve still got some debilitating sinus headaches going on, and I feel pretty wobbly.

Long story long, I desperately miss doing the blogging thing, but I’m still trying to shake the double-antibiotic funk. I’ll be back on a full-time basis as soon as I possibly can.

X of note: Planes, trains and Kane

From Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli:

I’m all for an “@” noting the person who broke the deal first, and it should not surprise us that the Red Wings’ GM was willing to provide an in-person sales pitch to Kane and his agent, Pat Brisson.

X of note: Friedman, Johnston, Seravalli report the Kane contract is worth $2.75 million

Sounds reasonable…I wonder whether there are performance-based bonuses written in:

Kane to Detroit? Hear me out, because this makes sense

So the various hockey sources are reporting that Patrick Kane, who is 35 years old and coming off hip resurfacing surgery, is going to sign with the Detroit Red Wings, possibly as early as today.

I mean, it could be worse. We heard rumblings from the Chicago Daily Herald’s John Dietz in September that Kane was considering the Red Wings as a spot where he could reunite with Alex DeBrincat, and the Wings remained in the picture ever since.

He’s going to be trying a very difficult thing, especially given that Nicklas Backstrom wasn’t able to successfully return from his hip resurfacing surgery, and, at 35, Kane isn’t going to be quite as dynamic as he once was, even if we’re assuming that the hip holds up.

But I can deal with this. As a Red Wings partisan, obviously, there’s quite a bit of water under the bridge regarding Kane’s time as a Wing-killer with the Chicago Blackhawks, but that’s what happens when you’re trying to build a playoff-worthy team…

And, as a pretend hockey blogger, let’s all admit this:

This Red Wings team definitely needs to add at least one more player who has elite offensive hands (even if his legs aren’t going to be what they used to be) to really remain in the mix for a playoff spot all season long, if not earn a spot outright…

And signing Kane to a one-year, incentive-laden contract (or, Gord forbid, a two-year deal) makes a lot of sense for Steve Yzerman and the Red Wings’ brass, just as it makes sense for Patrick Kane as a no-risk, as-little-pressure-as-possible option.

The Wings have the cap space. The Wings have DeBrincat. The Wings have proven over the last couple of days that the Sweden trip served as something of a hard re-set for a team that’s striving for some consistency under coach Derek Lalonde and the almost half-new roster one quarter of the way into the 2023-2024 season.

So Kane comes to Detroit. If he fits in as someone who can be a primary scorer/assist man, great. If he can fit in as someone who is a secondary scorer in a slightly reduced role, great. If he can fit in as a tertiary scorer with flashes of those fantastic hands and feet, great.

And if he can’t succeed, the Red Wings will have maximized their salary cap space in order to successfully land a player that Buffalo, Toronto and Florida were all looking at signing, giving the Red Wings a *wee bit* more cachet in terms of their ability to attract what this team still desperately needs, and just doesn’t have in the pipeline yet, in elite offensive talent (even if somewhat diminished by age and wear-and-tear).

No harm, no foul, at the very least. And if all goes remotely well, we’ll see flashes of “Showtime” in Detroit, who should at the very least bolster the Wings’ secondary scoring.

Why not, especially with the team trying to establish itself as a legitimately rejuvenated, somewhat consistent outlier for a wild card spot (at the very least) in the East?

Slowing down the antibiotic roll

Hey everybody. I’m just finishing up a week-long course of a second antibiotic this week, something called Doxycycline. The second course of antibiotics really tore me up physically, but it appears that I dodged bronchitis, so the investment appears to have paid off. I’m a wreck today, but I’m a healthier wreck.

I also received a referral to a sinus specialist from my primary care physician, so for those of you who’ve been “sniffly” about me having “just a sinus infection,” know that surgery to correct these dangerously debilitating sinus infections is very likely in the future.

I’m guessing that it’s going to take the weekend to get out of this antibiotic haze that I’ve been in thanks to the courses of Amoxicillin and Doxycyline–I’ve been sleeping a lot thanks to the heavy medication–so I’m hoping to get back to work early next week.

It really sucks that I’ve had to miss the Wings’ Sweden Trip, but I’ll try to be on Twitter/”X” for the games at least.

Aunt Annie and I are struggling to pay the bills after a month without me being able to blog, too, so we’ve got a GoFundMe started. It’s been a difficult financial month for the family, and I know that Thanksgiving is a belt-tightening time for everyone, but we’re trying to get by, and if you can lend a hand, it would be incredibly appreciated.

It’s embarrassing and discouraging to have to go the GoFundMe route again, but one must do what one must do to survive, and that’s where we are at. Trying to get through.

That’s it for me for now. I hope you all are doing well and that we will talk again soon.

On Amoxicillin

Just a quick note tonight: I had a telehealth appointment with my doctor yesterday, and she prescribed a 5-day course of Amoxicillin.

I’m still feeling pretty awful, but I’m hopeful that the antibiotic will kick-start my immune system and help me beat the sinus infection I’ve fought for the last three weeks.

I will return to work as soon as I can sit up regularly. I don’t need to be at 100% to work–at this point, 75 or 80 percent would be wonderful.

Missing hockey and talking with you, and LGRW,

George