Jeremy Laura: All apologies, no answers. Red Wings fall to Winnipeg

Detroit should trade Athansiou to Winnipeg for Vesalainen. Seems like you guys are in a major rebuild.

Detroit should trade Athansiou to Winnipeg for Vesalainen. Seems like you guys are in a major rebuild.
- TheUltimateJet

For sure the first real rebuild since the 80s. I’m not sure what Yzerman is looking at for returns at this point. Seems like AA is in play though

Great article, Red Wings poetry. Is Yzerman considering adding a poet laureate? In my opinion every team should have one.

Great article, Red Wings poetry. Is Yzerman considering adding a poet laureate? In my opinion every team should have one.
- 2.0

I really appreciate it! I’d gladly follow Yzerman around in the form of a Monty Python troubadour. However, inevitably, the minstrels get eaten. The blog is much safer.

Really hope Comrie can establish himself with the Wings, he genuinely seems like a good kid and that first goal shouldn't of counted imo, hope he can find some success with Detroit when they turn the corner.

I hope the Wings land the 1st overall pick this summer and the Sens snag the 2nd pick.

Really hope Comrie can establish himself with the Wings, he genuinely seems like a good kid and that first goal shouldn't of counted imo, hope he can find some success with Detroit when they turn the corner.

I hope the Wings land the 1st overall pick this summer and the Sens snag the 2nd pick.
- JetFuel

I really like what I’ve seen of Comrie. As a person, he just seems to be a genuinely good guy. If Detroit can’t land 1st overall this year it may never happen. Lottery is the bane of this team.

For sure the first real rebuild since the 80s. I’m not sure what Yzerman is looking at for returns at this point. Seems like AA is in play though
- Jeremy Laura

If they somehow do decide to move AA i sure as hell hope it isn't for a winger prospect. They need a #2 center or top defenseman prospect and i would hope Yzerman would be getting a 1st round pick to go with it even if he has to add a 2nd rounder to get it.


I would love if the Wings got another 1st and somehow (either he slides down enough or the Wings trade up) and take Askarov with the second 1st round pick to go with either Lafreniere or Byfield...too bad none of this is going to happen though.

If they somehow do decide to move AA i sure as hell hope it isn't for a winger prospect. They need a #2 center or top defenseman prospect and i would hope Yzerman would be getting a 1st round pick to go with it even if he has to add a 2nd rounder to get it.


I would love if the Wings got another 1st and somehow (either he slides down enough or the Wings trade up) and take Askarov with the second 1st round pick to go with either Lafreniere or Byfield...too bad none of this is going to happen though.
- dcz28

The draft feels like an unlucky time for sure. Feels like something is brewing in the D. Zadina, Cholo, and McIlrath all sent down to GR. Mlive (Khan) notes that Yzerman isn’t returning interview requests right now

Five NHL coaches have lost their jobs since the last time the Red Wings won a game. Somehow none of them are Jeff Blashill.

Five NHL coaches have lost their jobs since the last time the Red Wings won a game. Somehow none of them are Jeff Blashill.
- Sven22

It’s all about expectations. Karlsson, Kane, Burns, and a team that was supposed to be better off without Pavelski. Also, now you need to vet every candidate for anything that could bite them or the organization. Blashill’s a stand up guy. A very weird time.

Five NHL coaches have lost their jobs since the last time the Red Wings won a game. Somehow none of them are Jeff Blashill.
- Sven22

It is getting to the point where Yzerman has to consider making disco dan the interim head coach for the rest of the season.

It’s all about expectations. Karlsson, Kane, Burns, and a team that was supposed to be better off without Pavelski. Also, now you need to vet every candidate for anything that could bite them or the organization. Blashill’s a stand up guy. A very weird time.
- Jeremy Laura

Red Wings last season: 32-40-10, 74 points, -50
Red Wings this season (on pace): 18-56-8, 44 points, -159
Projected drop-off based on current pace: 14 fewer wins, 30 fewer points, -109 goal margin

San Jose Sharks last season: 46-27-9, 101 points, +28
San Jose Sharks this season (on pace): 37-40-5, 79 points, -62
Projected drop-off based on current pace: 9 fewer wins, 22 fewer points, -90 goal margin

Despite the extremely low expectations for Detroit this season and cautiously optimistic ones for San Jose, Detroit is still the more underperforming club in absolute terms.

And San Jose's biggest problem isn't coaching, it's the fact that they're getting beer league level goaltending at even strength. Detroit obviously has talent issues -- any coach would struggle to win games here -- but this roster still shouldn't be "worst team in at least two decades" level bad.

Does anybody have any ideas about how Yzerman can get rid of Frans Neilson ? His lack of offensive output is staggering. His contract, with trade protection, runs through 2022. In 28 games this season, he has ... one assist. He's on pace for three points this season. Yikes. Nobody would claim him off waivers. Can't trade him. He was on the wrong side of 30 when Holland signed him to that awful contract just to keep the stupid playoff steak alive.

This is the terrible asset management mess that Holland left us. Neilson (and Abdelkader, etc..) is the poster child for Ken Holland's tenure here after 2009.

So much deadwood to get off this roster... Thank goodness changes are coming.

Does anybody have any ideas about how Yzerman can get rid of Frans Neilson ? His lack of offensive output is staggering. His contract, with trade protection, runs through 2022. In 28 games this season, he has ... one assist. He's on pace for three points this season. Yikes. Nobody would claim him off waivers. Can't trade him. He was on the wrong side of 30 when Holland signed him to that awful contract just to keep the stupid playoff steak alive.

This is the terrible asset management mess that Holland left us. Neilson (and Abdelkader, etc..) is the poster child for Ken Holland's tenure here after 2009.

So much deadwood to get off this roster... Thank goodness changes are coming.
- Vladdie_Kon1

Nielsen is making a strong case to be bought out this summer. Normally I’m not a fan of this kind of action but years 3 and 4 would only carry a cap hit of 667k. I would say just burying him in the AHL is an option but I don’t even want him blocking prospects from playing time.

Red Wings last season: 32-40-10, 74 points, -50
Red Wings this season (on pace): 18-56-8, 44 points, -159
Projected drop-off based on current pace: 14 fewer wins, 30 fewer points, -109 goal margin

San Jose Sharks last season: 46-27-9, 101 points, +28
San Jose Sharks this season (on pace): 37-40-5, 79 points, -62
Projected drop-off based on current pace: 9 fewer wins, 22 fewer points, -90 goal margin

Despite the extremely low expectations for Detroit this season and cautiously optimistic ones for San Jose, Detroit is still the more underperforming club in absolute terms.

And San Jose's biggest problem isn't coaching, it's the fact that they're getting beer league level goaltending at even strength. Detroit obviously has talent issues -- any coach would struggle to win games here -- but this roster still shouldn't be "worst team in at least two decades" level bad.
- Sven22

I feel you, but expectations of last place, no matter how far last place, are still what we’re dealing with.

Does anybody have any ideas about how Yzerman can get rid of Frans Neilson ? His lack of offensive output is staggering. His contract, with trade protection, runs through 2022. In 28 games this season, he has ... one assist. He's on pace for three points this season. Yikes. Nobody would claim him off waivers. Can't trade him. He was on the wrong side of 30 when Holland signed him to that awful contract just to keep the stupid playoff steak alive.

This is the terrible asset management mess that Holland left us. Neilson (and Abdelkader, etc..) is the poster child for Ken Holland's tenure here after 2009.

So much deadwood to get off this roster... Thank goodness changes are coming.
- Vladdie_Kon1

With Abdelkader usage is indicative. He may well be moved if possible. Nielsen, I thought he was moving earlier in the year. The team needs some veterans though. Things are fragile

The Wings will be big time sellers at the trade deadline and most likely Yzerman does the draft and develop model the has proven to be successful in the past with teams like the Jets and Leafs.

Another great blog 👍

You make some valid points in regards to Coaches, and why Blashill is still at the realm. But you still have to think there is a “breaking point”. Time will tell.

It’s going to be rough waters for the next 2-3 years, as Stevie is able to get rid of some of the horrible contracts and reshape the entire team. Heck, we still have another year left on the Weiss buyout. For 22/23 season they currently have 2 players signed (Larkin and Abdelkader).

Btw, I’m seeing that McIlrath and Zadina were recalled?

I feel you, but expectations of last place, no matter how far last place, are still what we’re dealing with.
- Jeremy Laura

I understand that dropping from "solidly in the playoffs but not necessarily a top contender" to "solidly out of the playoffs" feels like a bigger failure to meet expectations than a drop from "probably one of the worst teams in the NHL this year" to "probably one of the worst teams in a generation."

But objectively and factually it is incorrect. The distance between where the Red Wings are right now and "ordinary bad, as expected" is greater than the distance between the Sharks right now and where they had hoped to be. For San Jose, literally all they would really need is one good goalie.

Don't get me wrong, I don't have any strong objection to DeBoer getting fired. I'm not defending him so much as I am using him as a convenient point of comparison in refusing to give Blashill a pass.

The expectations for this roster under Blashill were not high, but he is still underperforming them to a staggering degree.

Last year the Red Wings were the fifth-worst team in the NHL on goal differential at -50, and this season they are 1.32 goals per game worse than even that. It's staggering.

Look at it this way. The Red Wings are on pace to be 109 goals worse this year than last (-50 versus -159). To put that in perspective, if you took away 109 goals from Boston last season, you'd move them from 3rd in the NHL (+44) to 31st (-65). It's enough to turn a legit contender into a lottery team.

Giving Blashill a pass because "this team was expected to be a lottery team anyway" is IMO a serious mistake.

Nielsen is making a strong case to be bought out this summer. Normally I’m not a fan of this kind of action but years 3 and 4 would only carry a cap hit of 667k. I would say just burying him in the AHL is an option but I don’t even want him blocking prospects from playing time.
- Feds91Stammer

I'd definitely take the cap hit for that amount and get him completely out of the Wing's system rather than bury him in GR. They have enough veterans in GR now... No need for him taking a roster spot in GR at the expense of a prospect. And I definitely don't want to go to my next Griffins game and see Neilson on the ice... so there's that too.

Tell me about Kaski

Tell me about Kaski
- BINGO!

24 year old fringe nhler

24 year old fringe nhler
- Feds91Stammer

sounds like your boy