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Is Jurco trade a concession speech? |
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Is this the Detroit Red Wings’ version of a concession speech, an acknowledgement that the dream of extending their streak of Stanley Cup playoff appearances to 26 consecutive seasons is no longer in the cards.?
It would appear to be so.
With the March 1 NHL trade deadline looming, the Wings made their first transaction and it was a sale - right-winger Tomas Jurco to the Chicago Blackhawks for a 2017 third round draft pick.
Since he returned from offseason shoulder surgery, Jurco was a healthy scratch for all but 16 of 38 games. He was without a point, minus-eight, and seemingly unable to find a fit with the Red Wings, continuing the pattern his career followed in 2015-16.
“He’s frustrated for sure,” Detroit coach Jeff Blashill recently admitted. |He wants to be a full-time player and he believes he’s good enough to be a full-time player. I think with lots of opportunity, he can be a full-time player.”
Unable to get that opportunity with the Red Wings, Jurco requested a chance to do so elsewhere.
“Obviously, things haven’t worked out in Detroit the last couple of months,” Detroit GM Ken Holland told MLive.com. “He’s been very frustrated and requested a change of scenery and his agent has been calling me.”
Jurco is headed for restricted free agent status at season’s end.
“His contract was up and we didn’t know if he was intending on staying with us,” Holland said. “It’s a great opportunity for Tomas in Chicago and we move on.”
Jurco admitted as time wore on and he didn’t often get to wear his skates on game night, the frustration was wearing on him.
“It is hard when you don’t play,” Jurco said. “I’m not going to lie. When I played every game I didn’t feel any pressure and I just played and I had fun. But then when you don’t play for three weeks, you play a couple games and then you don’t play, you’re not used to it, you’re not into the game that much.
“Like I said many times, it’s sport, it’s business. It’s not easy but it is how it is and I just got to work hard and stay positive. I wouldn’t say stressed out but it’s not like you play. All I gotta do is, like I said, just play hockey. Just be positive and play hockey.”
Will he get that chance with Chicago, a much better team than Detroit? That remains to be seen, but the last Tomas to leave the Wings for the Blackhawks, Tomas Kopecky, won a Stanley Cup.
This could be the first of a number of moves the Wings make over the next few days. There’s strong interest from the New York Rangers in defenseman Brendan Smith and the Wings are also fielding calls on forwards Steve Ott and Thomas Vanek.
“I’ve had lots of conversations this week but you never know until a deal is done,” Holland said.
Smith, Ott and Vanek are all unrestricted free agents at season’s end.
“I’ve talked to the agents of all our unrestricteds, just to hear what they’re thinking and let them know what I’m thinking,” Holland said. “We’ll see what becomes of it.”
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Detroit Red Wings Blogger • 
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