the Wings would continue being a place other free agents wanted to come, but it looks like this is going to be a long slow painful decline.
Ken Holland has jumped the shark.
I think he is a great representative of the game, he's humble, hardworking, and gives great interviews.
Having said this, based on his lack of production alone this signing should not have happened. The Wings fanbase is irate about this one. Kenny Holland better hope for great things from Cleary and Quincey this year...
Maybe Cleary will prove us all wrong. I'm on the record with my bold (stupid) prediction of him scoring 14 goals this season. LGRW
He is a great guy I agree.
I also love the fact that he went from "great prospect" to a "will never amount to anything" to a "never was" to a solid contributor. However that is where it ends for me.
He just really has no place on this team.
Detroit can't decide if it wants to win now or if it wants to build for the future.
If they want to win now then trading the prospects and taking a risk spending big in free agency (and maybe overpaying) is what you have to do.
If you are building for the future you look to see what you can get in trade from guys like Dats/Zetts/etc. Because (1) you can likely still get a good return from them in the next 1-2 years and (2) those guys deserve a chance to win now.
Yeah, it's tough. But I say win now. I would say no to ALMOST any trade that involved Pavs or Z.
I really don't know what to say. The Wings have slowly been creeping backwards since 2009, and Holland has done jack all to improve the team since then.
It's time for him to go
we havent had any major signing because we dont want to give up any of our prosepects in a trade, and frankly detroit isnt exactly a hotspot that people want to live in with all the econmic struggles that have been going on the last couple years.
honestly with nyquist, tatar, sheahan, probablly jurco up with the wings all season and possibly mantha if he wins a job out of camp we will be fine. Weiss sounds like hes on track to be back healthy and if datsyuk and zetterberg are back to full strength we will be fucking stacked at forward. D is still a weakness but we have a couple prospects there as well. Hell we still made the playoffs last season with datsyuk and zetterberg missing like half the season each.
Mantha is definitely going to be in Grand Rapids for almost the entire season unless we have a load of injuries again and this signing means Jurco is probably going back to GR too. If Alfie comes back that makes everything even more fucked up.
Nyquist, Tatar, Sheahan, Jurco, Mantha...problem is we have to start running some numbers here. Cleary takes up another spot, which is going to leave Jurco and Mantha out since they can still get sent back and forth from GR to Detroit.
Pav, Z, Franzen
Alfie (presumably), Weiss, Nyquist
Tatar, Helm, Abdelkader
Miller, Glendening, Sheahan, Anderson, Cleary
Jurco is an odd man out.
In fairness to Holland, and don't get me wrong I am no happy with him right now, Niskanen reportedly turned down 7 years at $6 million/ea with the Wings. Quiency was picked up at 2 years for $4.25 million/ea.
Quiency is not Niskanen but his deal was way more budget friendly/low risk.
It's really hard to buy the "Detroit is a struggling city where athletes don't want to live" meme when the city has, you know, 3 other professional teams. The Lions, Tigers, and even the goddamned Pistons haven't had as much trouble attracting free agents as the Wings have had.
I mean that argument implies that athletes have to live exactly in city borders, and can't just go live in the suburbs, like the rest of the rich people in SE Michigan.
Second, see the tweet below. Guys like Jurco and Mantha aren't going to be up with the Wings, because of signing over the hill guys like Cleary and to a certain degree Alfredsson. Did you forget that last year Nyquist and Tatar both started the year in Grand Rapids? Imagine where we would have been if instead of Cleary last year (8 pts in 52 games) if we had Nyquist the whole year?
This is a shitty signing, on top of several years of shitty signings and roster management
Tatar started the year in Detroit, he couldn't be sent down to Grand Rapids without clearing waivers (and he certainly would have been taken). That being said, he was a healthy scratch many times during the year when he should've gotten playing experience.
Another blockbuster move, Kenny!
This just infuriates me:
Cleary is waiver-eligible forward #13 on the roster. Alfredsson inevitable return will be #14, making Jurco and Mantha unable to make team.
— The Production Line (@TPLhockey) July 10, 2014
This organization absolutely refuses to give the younger players a chance, and instead we're signing over the hill players who aren't helping the team.
What's that Quincey? You're playing bottom pair minutes and everybody can't wait for you to be out of town? Hahaha nope! How about 2 more years and a raise!
Same for you Cleary. I know you only 8 points in 52 games last year but made 1.75 million, but fuck everything, I said the Wings would take care of you this year, and instead of giving you a scouting job somewhere, I'm going to give you another hockey contract, and give you a raise!
Dumb, dumb, dumb.
I usually defend Holland's decisions but this is indefensible. I'm hoping beyond hope that they re-signed him to be a veteran presence for the youngsters and a healthy scratch for most of the year. He's gonna take up a roster spot that should be someone else's.
It does make me wonder if Alfie's told Holland that he's not coming back. This move would be *ever so slightly* less dumb.
Dany Heatley - 1 year deal with Anaheim, 1 million flat. No bonuses. 2013-2014 stats
2013-14 | Minnesota Wild | NHL | 76 | 12 | 16 | 28 | 18 | -18 | 11 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 4 |
Danny Cleary - 1 year deal with Detroit. 1.5 million plus 1 million in bonuses. 2013-2014 stats
2013-14 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 52 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 31 | -11 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
Those last few lines, where Cleary has all 0's, are playoff stats. Yet he earns more....
Fire Holland
Yes.
1 million times yes.
I saw that Heatley was available I could not understand why the Wings weren't signing him at 1 year for $2 million.
I know he has lost a step and is not a great skater but your hands don't slow down. Put Heatley on the PP with Getzlaf and Perry and he scores 20 goals by accident. The same thing would have happened with Dats and Z.
I thought, for sure this is going to be a two-way thing. I guess not. What a total waste of money. Apparently they learned nothing from the disastrous re-signing of Samuelsson. Cleary was a useful third-liner, once upon a time.
Season tickets here I come. I was on the fence but not now!! /s
I can't wait for the "I really like our team" from Kenny.
I have a Cleary jersey, and I think he's a great human being - but this is fucking stupid.
Thought this was a joke. wow.
Go with the young kids and let them learn - these are not 19 year olds (well aside from Mantha). Pathetic. Have been a Kenny supporter but this sort of thing really makes me question what the hell is going on.
This is infuriating. Since at least 2011 if not earlier, we've heard every offseason and trade deadline that the Wings won't be making any big moves because the asking price is one or two of the numerous elite (so we're repeatedly told) prospects in GR. Just be patient, they tell us. We're not pulling the trigger on the blockbuster move because these guys are the real deal and once they hit the NHL ice, oh baby, better stand back. Then the chances come to offload wastes of space like Cleary and Quincey and let one of these coveted, jealously guarded kids come up, and they fucking re-up these losers. Or they let them go, wait a few years, and bring them back, ala Samuelsson. Or they give up a prospect and a draft pick to get a 33 year-old for six weeks and then nothing. You either make moves to win a Cup, or you go with the youth. This is just inexplicable. So who will be the next prospect after Jarnkrok to demand a trade while Cleary plays 15 wasted minutes per night?
Cap space. We hear about how precious it is. We hear about how the Red Wings have some and they're going to make a splash with it. In nine days, they've taken $5.75 million of next year's, poured gasoline on it, and flicked a match. Meanwhile Chicago, a team AT THE CAP, adds Brad Richards. The rest of the league is running circles around Ken Holland.
But a bit of a sad panda over this signing
Red Wings have excellent forward depth (especially is Weiss is servicable). If the prospects are so valued, let's get them on the roster and in meaningful situations. If not, let's try to upgrade the defense by packaging Tartar and a few draft picks for Mike Green or Tyler Myers. I have a lot of respect for the Management team but our decisions are not consistent.
Let's go with youth, trade the prospects and try to win now with Z and Datsyuk are the end of their primes, or a middle path of losing a prospect or two to shore up key deficiencies on the team (read defense). The Wings seem to be rudder-less; although, cap space is still a non-issue and a trade may be in the works.
Holland should have let Cleary walk if he really was offered more money from Philly last year. It was a dumb move then and it is a worse one now. Making secret promises about future contracts to your buddies is not a good way to run an organization.
The Quincey signing made some sense after they struck out in the market. He's not good but they had to fill the void. Now the amount of money they gave to Quincey was too much, but they were really out of options defensively. I don't think the prospects are quite ready for the NHL.
The Wings do have enough forwards who are ready for NHL experience or they could have picked up somebody (anybody!) that is better than Cleary for less money. There is absolutely no reasons to resign the worst player on the team last year who is past his prime by 5 years. Last year Cleary blocked Nyquist half the season and this season he will block Jurco/Mantha. It's ridiculous and I'm afraid the Wings will be stuck being a first round exit. Such a shame for players like Zetterberg and Datsyuk.