Raise, Fold, or Call?
UPDATE: Detroit Acquires David Legwand from Nashville…but at what cost?
Detroit Red Wings 2014 Trade Deadline Rumors
The Detroit Red Wings trade rumors are flying about, but don’t look for anything significant to go down. Wednesday is the NHL’s season trade deadline, but the market is noticeably lacking in motivated sellers. The Red Wings’ 2013/2014 season has been one to forget so far, with a myriad of injuries to top flight players. Zetterberg is out for the count (Although, Holland is still touting his playoff return…don’t bet on it), Datsyuk is listed as day-to-day again, and Weiss has re-injured his groin (surprise, surprise).
Why won’t the Wings make a move?
The Red Wings have $1,545,167 available under the salary cap. Do you really think that 1.5 mil is going to replace Zetterberg and/or Datsyuk? In addition to the minuscule amount of cap room, the very few teams that are looking to sell, are looking to sell high. Any offer that has been talked about or rumored, has included at least two key players and a future draft pick. There was chatter about the Wings possibly making a play for Ryan Kesler from the Canucks. Kesler would be a desirable addition to the Detroit club, but at what price? Is he worth losing Nyquist and Jurco, or Nyquist and Sheahan…hell no!
Let it ride…
The bright side is that the Wings have looked very solid since their return from the Olympic break. Many fans blame the Olympics for the demise of Zetterberg and Datsyuk, but a total of 5 games across the pond isn’t the reason we are in this position today. The good news is the return of Johan Franzen and the emergence of many quality young guns! Franzen’s first week back in action saw him capture the NHL’s first star, on the back of his hat trick against fellow playoff hopefuls, the Ottawa Senators. The facts are that Holland never rents players, the Wings don’t have the cap space to make a significant move, and this year’s team isn’t worth mortgaging the future. The Red Wings will make it to the Stanley Cup playoffs in 2014, and from there…who knows what happens.
If we can just get to the tournament, we can throw the regular-season records into the garbage. And if we can just make it past that first round, we’ll get Zetterberg back. Suddenly things are different.” ~Ken Holland
2014 will see the Red Wings continue their streak, which will be 23 consecutive playoff appearances. With the surge of youth, perhaps they can make some noise, but at the very least this season will be some much needed experience for the young players, and perhaps we’ll see Lord Stanley’s cup, hoisted at the Joe in 2015.
What’s your take?
Will the Red Wings make the playoffs?
Will Detroit make a deadline move? Why?
Share your thoughts!
