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So I'm going to try to get a new feature going around here, but I'm not sure how it will go over. Occasionally, people send me e-mails. Normally it's my mom, but sometimes.. people ask me questions about hockey.
And I love it. Most people go about this delicately, some think they're bothering me, and this couldn't be further from the truth. The reason I started blogging was to have people to talk hockey with. I don't know if there's a perception that bloggers are busy, but for me, that couldn't be farther from the truth. I blog when I have nothing better to do, hence all the very long and thorough posts. So I've always welcomed questions and comments, and now I want to see if I can take that a step further.
I just want to gauge some interest here. There's definitely a solid group of regulars, and I'm very happy with my following on Twitter, but I'm always surprised that most of the e-mails I get are from readers who have never ventured into the comments section. My concern is that there won't be enough questions to do this regularly, so I'm not sure how often I'll run this. But if I get a few questions, I'll throw them up here. Or if I just get one or two that I can develop a lengthy answer to, I'll do that as well.
Most importantly, this isn't just a "I know a lot about hockey and want to show off my knowledge" feature. It's discussion. It's the offseason, and from these e-mails I've gotten I've learned that everyone has something different on their mind. So I'll accept and respond to questions of any nature -- whether it's to just get my thoughts on an issue, just have me talk about something different for a change of pace, ask a legitimate question (whether you think it's stupid or not) about something you think I might know about -- a player, prospect, maybe just a general question on hockey development. Or maybe something I don't know about. Maybe you want to hear about what a joke I thought the LeBron thing was last night. Maybe you find me intriguing and you want to know something about me. Or maybe you find my knowledge on prospects sad and you want to say something mean. I'd prefer hockey related, but hey, I'll take a stab at anything. It's summer -- I can only write so much about the eight players Detroit seemingly plans to field on their 4th line.
So feel free to get in touch with me through the contact page beneath the banner, or you can scoop up my direct e-mail address on my About Me. Not that it matters -- the contact page goes directly to my main e-mail address. Tweet me. DM me. Send me a message on AIM if you've got it. Text. Facebook. Slorgle. Is that a real thing? I don't know -- why don't you use the contact page and found out?
Last week I actually had a couple questions to answer, which is what inspired me to open up this feature. One of which I mostly summed up in my lengthy Modano novel, so I won't re-post that stuff because that issue is being quickly beaten to death, and in my mind, it's inevitable that he signs on the dotted line next week on Monday or Tuesday.
So the first question is from reader Wojo. For the record, it was from last week, so a few things -- like Modano being a "pipe dream" and my mention that I'd also welcome the now KHL-bound Slava Kozlov -- are a little dated. But I wanted to have some stuff to post with this you can see the kind of things I'm talking about, and maybe discuss the issue that we discussed a little further. Let's roll.
I was wondering what you thought about coach commenting that Justin Abdelkader will center what we hope to be a 3rd scoring line. I love Justin but his style of play has not made it clear in my mind that he can effectivly center Hudler and Cleary. I understand that without being given that chance we will never know for sure, but still i just cant see it. Have I underestimated Justin Abdelkader's offensive upside?
also, i might be totally wrong here, but it seems to me that Draper, Miller, Eaves, Abdelkader, Helm, and Ritola all play a very similar role on this team. I think Eaves has untapped offensive skill, but beyond that, what do you think the purpose is of resigning all of the RFA's? Do you think the table is set to trade a couple pieces?
LAST THING I PROMISE! its a pipe dream to think Modano would take what the wings can offer, but having him center the 3rd line would be incredible!
Wojo
Wojo,
For starters, I'm wondering how much you've seen of Abdelkader. I'm not questioning you or anything, because I totally agree that based on what he's shown at the NHL level, there's not much reason to believe that he's a legitimate scoring line center. However, based on what I've seen from him from the handful of games I caught of him at Michigan State, and more so the few dozen games I caught of him in Grand Rapids, I think he has what it takes. As soon as he got sent down I saw a few games -- completely different player in the AHL. Hands down one of the best offensive players on the team that boasted a lot of young skill (Tomas Tatar, Jan Mursak, Cory Emmerton). At the NHL level, he didn't need to do that. In fact, the only things Babcock ever said about him was that he loves the way he hits. I can guarantee that since he was on the 4th line, those were his instructions. And as a rookie who could have easily been shipped to the AHL at any time, he followed them 110%.
That said, I've got my doubts too. He has smarts and speed but his shot and stickhandling are more average at the NHL level. With that kind of skill set, I think the most you can hope for is a Dan Cleary type player, though playing center between Hudler and Cleary (which sounds like the likely starting option) will leave him as more of the shooter, with Cleary in front. I do think they're very similar, and while I don't expect earth shattering numbers from Abdelkader, I've seen his puck control and patient side with the Griffins. I think there's no reason to think he isn't capable of scoring 15-20 goals a year for most of his career as a guy who can see the second PP in a pinch. Confidence is going to be huge for him though, it's by no means a sure bet.
The main reason all those RFAs will be re-signed is fairly simple -- asset management. Ken Holland loves talking about "assets," and while I haven't heard him say it this summer, I wouldn't be surprised if a quick search by you would find something not too dated. He doesn't like losing a player with value for nothing. To me, the players you listed are similar in that they're checkers, but they're all different enough to not be redundant. Maltby, I think, was made redundant this year. Draper has leadership and is still a clutch faceoff taker, though Helm is filling that role quickly. Helm has the ridiculous speed and has shown some major big play ability -- clutch at times, though you wouldn't believe that from watching a highlight reel of his breakaways. Abdelkader is a great hitter for his size, and has shown glimpses of both toughness and scoring ability that this team hasn't had a lot of lately. Eaves is a hard worker with a big shot, which I hope to see more of this coming season. Miller is probably the most versatile in that when everyone was hurt, he was the first to move up to the scoring lines. I'd personally take Eaves or Abdelkader there in the long run, meaning Miller could be on the outs of they do sign a guy like Modano (and it sounds like if not Modano, they'll find another veteran). Ritola has promise and I think could be the most offensively skilled of the bunch. Sometimes blends in at the AHL level but I loved what I saw from him in his few NHL games plus pre-season action -- just fits the puck possession system nicely.
Back to the actual "asset" part, I think it's pretty clear that they're going to bring 14 or 15 forwards into camp, plus Meech, plus a few young guys like Tatar, Mursak, etc., who will get a long look as potential early injury call-ups. Given the glut of injuries up front last season, I think the team is likely to take 14 forwards and possibly 7 defenseman, though much of that will have to do with whether or not they're actually going to keep Meech around -- don't see the point when they don't trust him for more than 8 minutes a night in a game with any meaning at all. Niklas Kronwall and Jonathan Ericsson were really the only defenseman who missed a lot of time last season, and with promising youngsters like Jakub Kindl and Brendan Smith on the horizon, they might prefer to only trade one forward and just go with 14.
And like you, I'm on the Mike Modano bandwagon bigtime. I would be fine if Abdelkader got his chance -- much better for the future -- but having a proven scorer like Modano on that 3rd line is certainly very enticing. Also adds that element of veteran leadership which could keep the rest of the team motivated. I don't expect he'll put up great numbers -- he's lost a step or two -- but I think we'll see some flashes of a very smart player who still has the skill to make you say "wow" every once in a while. Other than that, I've heard rumors they might be interested in Slava Kozlov -- my favorite player when I was a kid. Both of them would have to take "hometown" discounts for sure, but if the rumors that Modano only has one offer are true, I think coming to play in his backyard for one final hurrah might be more appealing than retirement, even if his wife prefers to stay in Los Angeles.
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Next, last night I talked to someone for a while about Brendan Smith's future. Since it was just an IM conversation, I won't paste it here, and plus, I've got more to say about it today. A lot of people have been talking about Smith at training camp, and he seems determined to skip the AHL and make the Red Wings roster. Holland has said he'll give him the opportunity to compete, but most fans are assuming he'll start in Grand Rapids because everyone loves the idea that players must pay their dues. I'm a fan of this, but to an extent. I read Jeff Hancock's guest post at The Production Line earlier today, which echoed a lot of what I had to say.
But I did want to take it a little further, because while I am well aware of the defensive issues facing Smith, I think he is a rare case where there is something to gain by not setting foot in the AHL. Certainly, with five returning defenseman and the sixth slot more than penciled in for long-time defenseman-in-waiting Jakub Kindl, who is out of AHL options as he would most certainly get picked off waivers, there is the easy argument of "why keep him around as the 7th defenseman?" I happen to think that playing 50-60 games in the NHL -- rotating with Kindl and occasionally Ericsson and getting regular minutes if and when an older piece gets banged up -- would be more beneficial to his development than a full season of major minutes in the AHL, with, at best, a handful of games from an injury recall, where he plays few minutes because he's not used to the system and Detroit's not used to him. And I have a very simple reason why.
The kid is cocky, in the best way possible. Most hockey players are, but the cockiest seem to be the Americans followed by Canadians who grew up in more suburban, lived in areas. You get the Swedes who grew up in forests like Johan Franzen, and then those "good ol'" Western Canadian boys who grew up in a town of 57 who don't really have the same cockiness off the ice. But Smith grew up in suburban Ontario, so he's more familiar with the limelight, having been considered a top prospect since he was 14 or 15. He's 21 now, having just left Wisconsin, one of the largest and most successful hockey programs in the nation.
He knows he has the talent and it's just a matter of depth. I really think that for a guy like him, the luxury of being an NHL player and not having to ride the bus for a year in the AHL is really going to spark a good training camp for him. His comments are pretty harmless -- of course a prospect is going to say He's had his off-ice issues, but I think that will only motivate him even more. He's getting a clean slate.
Secondly, it's his skill set. I did catch 5-7 Wisconsin games this year, and Smith still needs some work defensively. He always has. He was a forward until the season before his draft year. He went to program in Wisconsin under assistant coach (now Ohio State head coach) Mark Osiecki that is famous for producing quality defenseman. His defense is better, but it still isn't where it needs to be. He's such a good skater that he's too tempted to roam out of position and just use his speed to get back. It's the Mike Green School of Defending (TM), and it works well at the college level. It might even work from time to time at the NHL level. But he has NHL speed and would likely step into the Wings lineup and be their best skating defenseman. He has a big NHL slapshot and he loves to take it. Most importantly, he already moves and thinks the game on an NHL level.
This is the thing I noticed the most when I watched him. In the NHL, you need to make decisions very quickly. That's the number one thing you hear rookies say after their first NHL game -- it was "the speed of it." That's because almost no players are ready to make decisions that quickly. They're nervous enough because of the type of talent that's around them. If you move the puck quickly and always make yourself available as an option, you'll do well. That takes time to learn, and it's very rare for a prospect to have that. I believe that Smith has this ability. Maybe it was the Wings homer in me, but I noticed when I watched Wisconsin that most of the time when he misfired on a pass, it was because his teammates weren't ready for it. He makes decisions quickly and despite his hot dog moves at times, he is an incredible puck mover. He can (and will, eventually) step in and make an impact offensively immediately.
The timing is right. Those 20-30 games that he has to sit in the press box -- do you think he'll be learning nothing? This could be Nick Lidstrom's final season, and I think being in the veteran environment with a player like that will make a bigger impression on him than any of us can comprehend. This is his fourth year at the summer conditioning camp, and it's the fourth year they've sat him at Lidstrom's locker. This year is shaping up to be special -- I'm under the impression it's Nick's last, and I think that's another big reason why they're pursuing Modano. They know that he more than any other player on the market can make a difference off the ice as much as he can on the ice. They want to win for Nick's last year, and Modano is the best player to bring on board to do that. That sounds like an environment I'd like to be a part of, and I'm sure a rookie like Smith is not oblivious to this.
He does need to earn it. If he shows up flat in his first pre-season game, it's over. But he seems motivated, and it makes sense that they'd keep him. I think they've told him as much. I'm saying all this because every game I saw him play this season, I was convinced more and more that he was an NHL player. But up until this week, I didn't think that he was an on player on Detroit. Too deep. Too much owed to Kindl. But the way things are playing out, it just might be the most sensible move. If he brings his A-game and really proves to the Detroit brass that all that's going to happen is he's going to score 12 goals and 50 points in the AHL, I think it makes more sense to get him in the NHL this season and throw him right into the thick of things. He'll make mistakes, I'm sure of it. But he might be just what this team needs to juice the second powerplay unit. His offensive game is very similar to Kindl's, and they'll both probably end up partnered with Niklas Kronwall on that second unit which will only push Kindl to be better. After all, who wants to be scratched in favor of Doug Janik? If someone took my blog away from me and gave it to Doug Janik, I would be so super upset.
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The final topic this afternoon is way overdue. I updated the site's blogroll last night, getting rid of a few inactive blogs but mostly scouring the internet to find new Wings blogs. I've seen a ton of them pop up in the past year and I'm continually surprised at not only the quality of writing, but the originality of most of them -- everyone's found what they like writing about most, and they're sticking to it. I've found that a lot of these already link to BDS, so I wanted to return the favor.
The blog I want you to check out most, because he was kind enough to send me an e-mail about starting up as a blogger a few months ago, and also honor me with his blog's name, is Liam over at Babcock's Fly Hair. So far, his posts are top notch, and I highly recommend you go check him out. Just a few posts so far, but well-written. It's a good looking place with a great name, how could you go wrong?
But I took some time yesterday to go through my e-mails and grab a few of the links people have sent me over the past few months and I've got a couple that I think you should check out if you have the time.
Eight Legged Freaks -- A name you can't forget, I remember seeing that name over at the Winging it in Motown gameday threads when I participated. Written by a Wings fan dwelling in Leaf Nation, I can tell from the few posts I've read that it will always be good for a laugh.
Octopus Thrower -- Brian runs this place, part of the FanSided network. He sent me an e-mail a month ago about swapping links, and I liked his place. I threw it into my RSS feed, but it slipped my mind to add it to my blogroll. Problem solved.
Red Wings Guy -- I'm embarrassed that I didn't have this up sooner, because it's where Joe Burkel hangs out, and he's a friend of the blog as a fellow contributor to The Obstructed View podcast. I've been reading his stuff since I found the place, and I've found that we often see eye-to-eye on the major issues. Like me, he sees that adding Modano feels like the final piece to the puzzle.
The Hole in the Door -- Just stumbled upon this one, another Toronto-resident who cheers for the team on the other side of the border. Apparently named for what happened after Pittsburgh went up 2-0 in Game 7 last year, Graham's been at it a few months but is already churning out interesting stuff.
Word on a Wing -- Just six months old, Word on a Wing boasts some wicked looking graphics as well as stats interesting enough to make a number-idiot and stat-hater like me lose track of time. Very fascinating stuff on top of good, clean writing.
If I missed you, just let me know. There's a lot of quality stuff out there, and I do feel as if I've missed a couple of places.
But more importantly.. let's keep those questions coming. I really hope to make a regular feature of this, so please, don't be shy.
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