Run the Jewels
Make Detroit Great Again
Here is the crew we had in the lineup on opening night on October 2 against the Sabres.
2 B. Smith
4 J. Kindl
8 J. Abdelkader
11 D. Alfredsson
13 P. Datsyuk
18 J. Andersson
20 D. Miller
25 C. Emmerton WAIVED
27 K. Quincey
37 M. Samuelsson WAIVED
40 H. Zetterberg
44 T. Bertuzzi WAIVED
52 J. Ericsson
55 N. Kronwall
65 D. DeKeyser
71 D. Cleary WAIVED
90 S. Weiss
93 J. Franzen
Patrick Eaves injured reserve WAIVED
Jordin Tootoo injured reserve WAIVED
6 of your top 14 forwards ended up being flat out waived or essentially being waived as far not being part of the team until we were in full on desperation mode (read Bert in the playoff series against Boston).
I don't think I've ever seen anything like that before. It just goes to show how much Ken Holland has given up on doing his job. He went into the season with 6 forwards he thought could still play hockey at the NHL level and not one of them could. I don't have time right now to go over his free agent signing but off the top of my head with the exception of Danny DeKeyser - who grew up in the area and was friends with the Nill family - many of those signings look like whiffs too: Ian White, Carlo Colaiacovo, Ty Conklin 2.0, and Kyle Quincey who in his defense can still play hockey.
It's just shocking how badly Holland has given up on doing his job. He has allowed himself to always make the easy decision and in a great majority of those cases it has backfired spectacularly. Add in the fact the last real roster player he traded was Jason Williams and there is no reason to think he'll be able to upgrade the roster on his own. At this rate it is going to rely entirely on the prospects developing and Babcock sticking around to work for a GM who clearly doesn't seem to have a commitment to getting back to the top anytime soon.
2 B. Smith
4 J. Kindl
8 J. Abdelkader
11 D. Alfredsson
13 P. Datsyuk
18 J. Andersson
20 D. Miller
25 C. Emmerton WAIVED
27 K. Quincey
37 M. Samuelsson WAIVED
40 H. Zetterberg
44 T. Bertuzzi WAIVED
52 J. Ericsson
55 N. Kronwall
65 D. DeKeyser
71 D. Cleary WAIVED
90 S. Weiss
93 J. Franzen
Patrick Eaves injured reserve WAIVED
Jordin Tootoo injured reserve WAIVED
6 of your top 14 forwards ended up being flat out waived or essentially being waived as far not being part of the team until we were in full on desperation mode (read Bert in the playoff series against Boston).
I don't think I've ever seen anything like that before. It just goes to show how much Ken Holland has given up on doing his job. He went into the season with 6 forwards he thought could still play hockey at the NHL level and not one of them could. I don't have time right now to go over his free agent signing but off the top of my head with the exception of Danny DeKeyser - who grew up in the area and was friends with the Nill family - many of those signings look like whiffs too: Ian White, Carlo Colaiacovo, Ty Conklin 2.0, and Kyle Quincey who in his defense can still play hockey.
It's just shocking how badly Holland has given up on doing his job. He has allowed himself to always make the easy decision and in a great majority of those cases it has backfired spectacularly. Add in the fact the last real roster player he traded was Jason Williams and there is no reason to think he'll be able to upgrade the roster on his own. At this rate it is going to rely entirely on the prospects developing and Babcock sticking around to work for a GM who clearly doesn't seem to have a commitment to getting back to the top anytime soon.
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