Red Kelly had a pretty bad ending in Detroit, but a lot of people did under the Norris family. Still most of the honored Detroit numbers went up under Ilitch with him taking down Aurie which is disgraceful. Though no Aurie does make the argument of what it takes to get up certainly different.
What really does in Red Kelly though is he is Leafs royalty that on record identifies himself as a Leafs player first and foremost. Does he deserve the honor? Sure, but there is a reason he was over representing the Leafs in the Winter Classic stuff. That is what he is at heart and we don't put up people that aren't Red Wings at heart.
With that in mind I think you picked the wrong great old time D-man head scratching decision in terms of roster retirement. The fact that Ebbie Goodfellow isn't in the rafters is very hard to understand. He even has the requisite three cups and was a Captain of the team, along with winning the Hart Trophy once.
I think you could hang all of Kelly, Goodfellow and Fedorov. Certainly those are the three most deserving guys not up, well outside of doing the right thing and putting up Aurie's number since his family is clearly incredibly irked over that decision. Then you start talking about Datsyuk and Zetterberg who look like they are coming up short of this honor. Cannot imagine one going up without the other, Pavel is short of the honor and "retiring" and Zetterberg looks like he is going to tapper off to a place where neither guy gets up.
Goodfellow or Kelly going up I could understand. But really I don't want to see anybody hit the rafters until #91 does, at least unless we are debating somebody else like Mrazek or Larkin 20 years from now having possibly surpassed him with nobody having gone up but that seems impossible anyway...
I hope they are just waiting for the new barn on Fedorov or the announce over the summer he will be retired in the final season of the JLA.