Remember when, 16 days ago, Robby Fabbri joined the lineup against Boston and everything was magical? The power play? Fixed. Scoring? Fixed. For 3 straight wins, and then two OT losses, and now 4 regulation losses. That booster shot seems to have worn off a bit. It is not on Robby Fabbri to make up for every deficiency on this team, but it seemed like that piece pushed the team further down the development road than they had been.
Reality strikes. Mantha is injured. Mike Green (who had some good moments during that streak) is injured. The lines have been shuffled and everything feels out of sync. The newcomer has now seen twice as many losses as victories is just over 2 weeks. All of a sudden, things seem to have come to a screeching halt and thrown into reverse. Perusal of the comments section seems filled with “fire the coach…, “fire the goalies…, “start the fire sale…, “we should have drafted (fill in blank)….
Frustration is natural and venting it is healthy. The “should haves… are the most worthless emotions on the planet. If possible, they just make everyone more upset about a bad situation. On any road to success, honest assessment and and embracing of what is are the only remedy. I’ve had the privilege to sit in on a few Alcoholics Anonymous meetings in support and heard the prayer of serenity. “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference…. And while a hockey forum is far from a 12 step meeting, the emotions are eerily similar.
So what cannot be changed right now? Some contracts are virtually unable to be traded. More than a few contracts will expire after this year so we wait them out. No one can go back and change who has been signed or drafted to this organization. In fact, many of the decisions were made by people no longer here. It’s time to move on.
What can be changed? Coaching, of course. But, is a change for the sake of change always a good thing? Whatever is going on in the locker room and in the offices, Steve Yzerman has his finger on the pulse. Grand Rapids is going well, so there wouldn’t be a mid season change bringing anyone up. Of the available coaches, are any the right long term solution? As much transition as this team is going through, burning through disposable coaches may not help the situation. With 22 contracts coming up, does the front office have any idea of what they want to spend on future goaltending? Is the an upcoming free agent or prospect that has some promise? None of us will know until Yzerman and Co tell us. That’s how Biega happened, that’s how Perlini happened, and that’s how Fabbri happened. No real heads up and boom, the deal was done.
Of the current holders of “No trade or modified No trade…, here is the list: Green (UFA this year), Dekeyser (UFA in 3 years), Abdelkader (UFA in 4 years), Daley (UFA this year), Ericsson (UFA this year), Filppula (UFA 2 years), Helm (UFA 2 yrs) and Nielsen (UFA 3 years). Abdelkader’s clause becomes modified soon. He could also be a buyout candidate.
The trade market, per some GMs, has been clogged with IR and teams with absolutely no space. Until someone gets desperate, things will stay fairly still. In digging around, this press conference with Ken Holland was rediscovered (from July)
It remains plausible that Yzerman could swing another deal and inject some life into this group. Puljujarvi would be an interesting option at the right price. Carolina has some interesting defense options as they seek more forward scoring. Buffalo does as well. It’s all “wait and see…. As great as it would be to get another shot in the arm, there is a feeling it will need to come from within the locker room. A solid game where the goalie is good, not even great, and the scoring steps up can be a powerful remedy.
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