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Rating the Red Wings' free agent moves |
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Rating the Detroit Red Wings’ signings on the first day of NHL unrestricted free agency:
Frans Nielsen, C, six years, $31 million
It’s easy to get up in arms about the length of the deal, until you look around and see that’s what everyone was getting, and if you wanted to play the game, you had to ante up.
Nielsen hasn’t played the type of game that abuses his body, so he should have at least a few more good years left in him. The first Danish citizen to play in the NHL, Nielsen topped the 50-point plateau for the second time in three seasons in 2015-16. He plays a 200-foot game, is the all-time NHL leader in shootout goals (42) and as blasphemous as some might find it to say, a healthy Nielsen at 32 might just be a better option for the Wings that a breaking down, 38-year-old disinterested Pavel Datsyuk.
“I always put a lot of pride in working hard and being responsible defensively,” Nielsen said. “I want to be part of the offense to and create offense. Even when you’re not creating offense on the ice hopefully with my game I can still do something for the team defensively, whether it’s killing penalties or getting matched up against other team’s top lines.”
The Wings needed a second-line center. All in all, it’s hard to argue against this move.
Thomas Vanek, RW, one year, $2.6 million
This one is puzzling, to say the least. The plusses with Vanek are that he’s a right-hand shot and will provide net-front presence for a Detroit power play that was lacking far too often last season.
In the negative column, Vanek’s goal scoring has dropped three years in succession (27, 21, 18). The Wings will be his fifth team since 2013. He’s not a fast skater, is known to take shifts off and looks much like too many who cash in at free agent time, a once potent producer now on the decline.
“He definitely has all the talent,” said Nielsen, who played with Vanek on the New York Islanders. “He can score goals, he’s good on the power play. I hope you’re going to see the old Vanek here because he’s a top, top talent in this league.
“He could be the steal of this free agency.”
Or Vanek could prove to be a tremendous bust.
Steve Ott, C, one year, $800,000
Coming off an injury-hampered campaign limited to 21 regular-season games by hamstring surgery, Ott insists he’ll be 100 per cent healthy come training camp and can still be that agitating, annoying presence who tormented the Wings for years when he was with the Dallas Stars.
“I play a hard style of game, obviously I try to compete extremely hard and make others compete,” Ott said. I’ve been in different situations leadership-wise, captain in Buffalo, was an assistant a lot of years in Dallas. I just try to bring my locker room presence as well. Obviously I’m a depth guy later on in my career but I’ve somebody who can play center, take face offs.
“I’ve always been one of the top guys on our penalty-killing team every single year. You add that with the physicality and I want to help push this group and I want to win with this group.”
As Ott points out, he is a depth forward at this point of his career, and yes the Wings have many of those but none bring the type of qualities to the ice that Ott supplies.
Staying Put
When the Wings found out they weren’t in with a chance for Andrew Ladd, they opted to reach out and return forward Darren Helm, who was about to hit the open market, to the fold for five years at an annual salary cap hit of $3.85 million.
As an individual move, it’s not terrible, especially if Helm is returned to the role he is best at filling, that of a checking line center and penalty killer. He’s not a top six forward, a slot he’s spent too much time trying to fill in recent seasons.
Where it becomes curious is when you couple the Helm deal with the Drew Miller signing earlier this week and the addition of Ott. That gives the Wings 15 forwards if you don’t count Anthony Mantha as part of the equation.
Where do they all fit and who will be the odd-men out?
The Wings also signed restricted free agent defenseman Alexey Marchenko to a two-year deal with a $1.45 million AAV and this was a very good move.
Marchenko is vastly underrated and underappreciated. He’ll never be a big point producer, but is that steady, reliable defender every team needs. He played very solidly for Russia during the world championship and with the departure of Kyle Quincey can be expected to play on a regular basis in 2016-17.
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