Three down, more to go?
Tuesday, the Detroit Red Wings made their second and third trades in five days, an unofficial white flag from the team that their 25-season run as a playoff team is all but done.
“We haven’t been in this position in 20-plus years,… Detroit GM Ken Holland admitted. “We made the decision in the last few days that if I could get some picks for our players, I was going to make it happen.
First to go was defenseman Brendan Smith to the New York Rangers for 2018 second round draft pick and a 2017 third round draft pick.
“We traded so many picks over the years, looking at the standings, I felt I couldn’t pass up the opportunity for a second and third-round pick,… Holland said.
The Wings sought to sign Smith, who is an impending unrestricted free agent but once Holland realized that wasn’t going to happen before Wednesday’s 3 p.m. EST NHL trade deadline, he opted to pull the trigger with the Rangers, who’d been in on Smith for several days.
“About a week to 10 days ago, I started talking to Anton Thun, (Smith’s) agent, about the possibility of an extension. I told Anton I wanted to be up front, that we traded a lot of picks over the years and that if I got the opportunity before we finalized anything to acquire some assets I couldn’t pass up, I was going to go in another direction.…
Holland then added a 2018 sixth round draft pick from the Montreal Canadiens for forward Steve Ott. Ott was held out of Tuesday's 3-2 overtime win at Vancouver over the Canucks, so it was evident he'd soon be on his way to a new home.
You’d also have to think there will be plenty of last-minute interest in right-winger Thomas Vanek, a scoring winger with skill who doesn’t mind working the dirty areas to get goals.
“Obviously, I’m aware of the situation,… Vanek said. “It could happen any time.
“I’ve been through it before, so it’s no surprise for me.…
Vanek has played for five NHL teams since 2013.
Picking Up Picks Usually, the Wings do a lot of grinning at the NHL entry draft, waiting while other teams exercise their picks.
This June, they figure to be picking - a lot.
The Wings maintain their own selections in the first, second, fourth, fifth and sixth rounds. They possess a trio of third round picks - one from Chicago for Tomas Jurco, the one from the Rangers for Smith and the pick given them by Toronto for coach Mike Babcock.
The Wings also have an extra sixth round pick that they got from Florida for Jakub Kindl.
Follow me on Twitter @asktheduffer