Detroit Red Wings - Kicking the Spending Habit
Mike Mady
August 14, 2006
For the second straight offseason the strict restrictions of the National Hockey League’s salary cap have forced big market teams, with large wallets, to budget more carefully and spend more wisely. A perfect example of this is the Detroit Red Wings.
This offseason the Wings had a few areas of concern on their roster. They wanted to add grit on the blue line, acquire a starting goaltender and add a 20+ goal-scorer. If this was the old NHL there is little doubt the Wings would have filled these voids with top-notch talent. However, this is not the old NHL.
The Red Wings addressed their defense by signing big, but skilled defenseman Danny Markov to a one-year contract. This is a move that may have happened in the old NHL, however here is where the salary cap comes in. In their search for a starting goaltender the Wings were unable to lure Martin Gerber away from the Ottawa Senators. They also were unable to sign Ed Belfour because of finical disagreements over performance incentives. Plus, they can’t even consider trading for goalies such as Anaheim’s JS Giguere or San Jose’s Evgeni Nabokov because they both come with hefty contracts. The Red Wings eventually signed Dominic Hasek to a one-year deal worth around $750 000 and roughly $1 million in playoff based incentives. This is the same team that paid Hasek and Curtis Joseph roughly $8 million dollars each in 2004.
As far as a scoring winger goes, the wings haven’t signed anyone that fits the bill. There has been speculation that they will make a move, however Red Wings General Manager Ken Holland isn’t so sure.
We might even start the way we are,” said Holland
We have six forwards that we think are top six forwards. (Robert) Lang, (Pavel) Datsyuk, (Henrik) Zetterberg, (Mikael) Samuelsson, (Tomas) Holmstrom, and (Jason) Williams. We might save our money for the trade deadline.”
Save money? It’s not that it’s a bad idea, as Holland seems to be doing a good job managing the cap and supplying the team with talent. It’s just how unusual it sounds to hear him say it.
Holland and the Wings will now shift their attention to their young prospects in hopes that one-day they can develop into top six forwards. A few years ago, Holland wouldn’t have hesitated to trade a prospect and/or draft pick to acquire veteran players – knowing that the team had the spending money to replace the hole that prospect might leave in the future. Now, Holland recognizes the value of these prospects.
I’d like to see what they can do for us,” said Holland
In this system you need a steady influx of young kids. We need to find out what (Tomas) Kopecky and (Jiri) Hudler can do.”
So for those of you waiting for the Wings to make a big splash and sign someone like J.P. Dumont or trade a prospect and/or draft pick for that scoring winger, you may be disappointed – at least until the trade deadline.
This offseason the Wings had a few areas of concern on their roster. They wanted to add grit on the blue line, acquire a starting goaltender and add a 20+ goal-scorer. If this was the old NHL there is little doubt the Wings would have filled these voids with top-notch talent. However, this is not the old NHL.
The Red Wings addressed their defense by signing big, but skilled defenseman Danny Markov to a one-year contract. This is a move that may have happened in the old NHL, however here is where the salary cap comes in. In their search for a starting goaltender the Wings were unable to lure Martin Gerber away from the Ottawa Senators. They also were unable to sign Ed Belfour because of finical disagreements over performance incentives. Plus, they can’t even consider trading for goalies such as Anaheim’s JS Giguere or San Jose’s Evgeni Nabokov because they both come with hefty contracts. The Red Wings eventually signed Dominic Hasek to a one-year deal worth around $750 000 and roughly $1 million in playoff based incentives. This is the same team that paid Hasek and Curtis Joseph roughly $8 million dollars each in 2004.
As far as a scoring winger goes, the wings haven’t signed anyone that fits the bill. There has been speculation that they will make a move, however Red Wings General Manager Ken Holland isn’t so sure.
We might even start the way we are,” said Holland
We have six forwards that we think are top six forwards. (Robert) Lang, (Pavel) Datsyuk, (Henrik) Zetterberg, (Mikael) Samuelsson, (Tomas) Holmstrom, and (Jason) Williams. We might save our money for the trade deadline.”
Save money? It’s not that it’s a bad idea, as Holland seems to be doing a good job managing the cap and supplying the team with talent. It’s just how unusual it sounds to hear him say it.
Holland and the Wings will now shift their attention to their young prospects in hopes that one-day they can develop into top six forwards. A few years ago, Holland wouldn’t have hesitated to trade a prospect and/or draft pick to acquire veteran players – knowing that the team had the spending money to replace the hole that prospect might leave in the future. Now, Holland recognizes the value of these prospects.
I’d like to see what they can do for us,” said Holland
In this system you need a steady influx of young kids. We need to find out what (Tomas) Kopecky and (Jiri) Hudler can do.”
So for those of you waiting for the Wings to make a big splash and sign someone like J.P. Dumont or trade a prospect and/or draft pick for that scoring winger, you may be disappointed – at least until the trade deadline.
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