Bob Duff: AA stays; Mantha to the 'A' The Detroit Red Wings assigned forward Anthony Mantha to AHL Grand Rapids as Andreas Athanasiou earned the team's final roster spot.

Is Mantha really that bad? (he isn't) Seems like he would slot nicely on the 3rd line and continue his development if Detroit could ever break their addiction to veterans.

Mantha doesn't make the jump Again!?
Brutal.

Mantha isn't ready IMO.

He had a good AHL season last year. He needs to continue development into something more than an offensive 3rd line winger. If he plays on the Wings it will be on the top 2 lines as a player expected to put up 20+ goals and 50+ points.

If he dominates the AHL score board this season I would be surprised not to see him in the NHL next year since Vanek would likely be gone.

Patience is a virtue.

Mantha isn't ready IMO.

He had a good AHL season last year. He needs to continue development into something more than an offensive 3rd line winger. If he plays on the Wings it will be on the top 2 lines as a player expected to put up 20+ goals and 50+ points.

If he dominates the AHL score board this season I would be surprised not to see him in the NHL next year since Vanek would likely be gone.

Patience is a virtue.
- TwoPieceFeed

Mantha is already 22 and basically in his prime. He produced very well in the AHL last season and put up 11 points in 9 playoff games. He is already better than: Miller, Ott, Glendening, Sheahan, Helm, Abdelkader, and Vanek.

What should have happened.

Let Helm, Abdelkader, and Miller walk in free agency.

Don't sign Vanek or Ott

Sign Nielsen

Keep Datsyuk contract and draft Chychrun

Tatar - Larkin - Mantha
Nyquist - Nielsen - Sheahan
Athanasiou - Zetterberg - Pulkkinen
Bertuzzi - Svechnikov - Frk
Jurco

Smith - Marchenko
Dekeyser - Green
Chychrun - Kronwall
Ericcson - Ouellet

Mrazek
Howard

What should have happened.

Let Helm, Abdelkader, and Miller walk in free agency.

Don't sign Vanek or Ott

Sign Nielsen

Keep Datsyuk contract and draft Chychrun

Tatar - Larkin - Mantha
Nyquist - Nielsen - Sheahan
Athanasiou - Zetterberg - Pulkkinen
Bertuzzi - Svechnikov - Frk
Jurco

Smith - Marchenko
Dekeyser - Green
Chychrun - Kronwall
Ericcson - Ouellet

Mrazek
Howard
- Feds91Stammer

I've made it a point to combatively argue anyone who thought that was somehow a "great trade".

Mantha is already 22 and basically in his prime. He produced very well in the AHL last season and put up 11 points in 9 playoff games. He is already better than: Miller, Ott, Glendening, Sheahan, Helm, Abdelkader, and Vanek.
- Feds91Stammer

No.

I've made it a point to combatively argue anyone who thought that was somehow a "great trade".
- snipesydangle

It wasn't a bad trade.

I would've loved to have drafted Chychrun, but that was a good way to get rid of $7.5 million in dead cap space...

It wasn't a bad trade.

I would've loved to have drafted Chychrun, but that was a good way to get rid of $7.5 million in dead cap space...
- TwoPieceFeed

No point in trading the contract if your GM is incapable of effectively managing a cap and utilizing ELCs.

No.
- TwoPieceFeed

I've made it a point to combatively argue anyone who thought that was somehow a "great trade".
- snipesydangle

Freed up that cap space to give out terrible contracts to: Helm, Abdelkader, Miller, Ott, Glendening, and Nielsen. All while losing out on an NHL ready d man for a guy that maybe makes the NHL 5 years from now.

Purely looking at expected value from relative draft positions the Datsyuk trade was magnificent. They improved their expected value by adding picks after trading down just a few spaces, and offloaded an onerous contract to boot.

Now granted if Chychrun turns into a immediate star the trade will look worse in hindsight, but if he was such a sure thing why did he fall at the way to No. 16? Let's give this a few years to play out at least.

As for Ken Holland immediately wasting all the space he created by signing a bunch of stupid contracts and almost certainly making the team's medium-to-long term future even bleaker than it already was? Well, yeah, that did happen. That doesn't make the Datsyuk deal bad, though.