Confirmed with Link: Wings acquired D Alex Biega

[Ratatoskr]

Probably better for his development at this point in the season. If they call him up he would be on the third pair behind Hronek and Green. Letting him eat up minutes in GR gives him time to curb the learning curve, so when he is called up he will be ready to out play those guys and move up the lineup.

I tend to agree. More to the point, I think it's interesting that Wings management seems intent on developing Seider at their own pace and rather get an experienced right handed D to fill an immediate need rather than throwing Mo in at the deep end.

Part of me wants to see Seider called up early, but it's probably better not to rush him. I think he could hold his own (Björnfot and Heinola seem to be doing alright so far), but I'm happy the Wings prioritize development over immediate need.

 

[Debrincat93]

without knowing, makes me wonder if daley is hurt more than we know along w ericsson..

 

[Winger98]

Probably better for his development at this point in the season. If they call him up he would be on the third pair behind Hronek and Green. Letting him eat up minutes in GR gives him time to curb the learning curve, so when he is called up he will be ready to out play those guys and move up the lineup.

Also, who would Seider be paired with if he was brought up? One of the vets will be paired with Hronek. They'll want to keep another vet with Green so they can keep giving Green more minutes. Do we want to run a rookie third pairing of Cholo and Seider out there? It's been brought up elsewhere about staggering these kids so they aren't all breaking in at once and the Wings are running rookie after rookie out there. Makes sense to keep guys in GR for now, until at least forty games in if possible, to let other young guys get acclimated a bit.

 

[NickH8]

I've only heard good things about him from Canucks fans. If he can permanently get Daley/Ericsson out of the lineup I'll be the first one cheering in the streets.

 

[Steve Yzerlland]

I liked Pope but he would probably never make the team.. don't know the other guy at all... he is 31...

 

[Winger98]

I liked Pope but he would probably never make the team.. don't know the other guy at all... he is 31...

he looks like purely a space holder until guys get healthy or it's later in the season to pull some more kids up. On the bright side, for Biega, he'll probably get a chance to play a bit more than in Vancouver and showcase himself for another job next summer.

 

[NickH8]

I liked Pope but he would probably never make the team.. don't know the other guy at all... he is 31...

16 points in 41 games, good for 32 over a season

 

[Ghost of Ethan Hunt]

A Canucks fan commented that the availability of RHS depth Dmen who are defensively responsible & could fill in for a Top 4 Dman are "scarce". This alone is value, especially @ TDL. If anything, he replaces Daley/E now, stabilizes our D a bit more than they would & lets Cholo do his thing on the 3rd pair + maybe gets us a 4th or 5th rd.pick ? (the one Daley/E might have got us if healthy).

As an added bonus, our DJ can play "Hey Bulldog" by the Beatles, (once play has stopped) after he scores or makes a big hit.

 

[SCD]

This doesn't speak well for Bowey.

 

[The Zetterberg Era]

This doesn't speak well for Bowey.

Yeah I think he had a good camp, but surprised by this move a little bit for that reason. Biega does have more bite to his game though which might be a part of the reasoning in terms of an area Cholo needs in a partner.

I really do feel for Daley, I know people have varying views on that signing, but dude has had really crummy luck for a couple years now.

 

[ShelbyZ]

This move kind of screams "we would've claimed him on waivers, but didn't want to add a contract".

It definitely has implications for the NHL roster, though. Biega could go to GR, but it wouldn't be ideal since they've already got a log jam of D there and adding him would require them to rotate scratching a vet every game when they're all healthy. I guess that is unless Yzerman is looking to move a D (Saarijarvi?) or an NHL contracted vet in GR (Lashoff, McIlrath, Puempel, Elson or Terry)?

Could be several factors or possibilities at play:
-One of Ericsson's or Daley's injury is more serious than they are letting on and they will miss a lot of time
-Cholowski doesn't have a solid hold on a roster spot (Khan said that he made the 23 man roster "for now") and Yzerman wants him on the super stacked Griffins roster as much as possible this season
-Bowey doesn't have a solid hold on a roster spot
-Biega's going to report to Detroit until Daley and Ericsson are healthy or before he needs waivers again, then go to GR until Yzerman makes some space by either trading a Dman, waiving/demoting Bowey, or sending Cholowski to GR
-They send down Ehn and carry 9 D

This move making Bowey expendable doesn't make a lot of sense to me. He had a pretty good camp, and depending on how his game progresses this season, he could be an easy somewhat cost controlled option to fill a #6/7 spot next season when Daley and Ericsson are likely gone. I'm guess it means Daley or Ericsson are injured long term, or Cholowski eventually ends up in GR.

 

[NickH8]

This move kind of screams "we would've claimed him on waivers, but didn't want to add a contract".

It definitely has implications for the NHL roster, though. Biega could go to GR, but it wouldn't be ideal since they've already got a log jam of D there and adding him would require them to rotate scratching a vet every game when they're all healthy. I guess that is unless Yzerman is looking to move a D (Saarijarvi?) or an NHL contracted vet in GR (Lashoff, McIlrath, Puempel, Elson or Terry)?

Could be several factors or possibilities at play:
-One of Ericsson's or Daley's injury is more serious than they are letting on and they will miss a lot of time
-Cholowski doesn't have a solid hold on a roster spot (Khan said that he made the 23 man roster "for now") and Yzerman wants him on the super stacked Griffins roster as much as possible this season
-Bowey doesn't have a solid hold on a roster spot
-Biega's going to report to Detroit until Daley and Ericsson are healthy or before he needs waivers again, then go to GR until Yzerman makes some space by either trading a Dman, waiving/demoting Bowey, or sending Cholowski to GR
-They send down Ehn and carry 9 D

This move making Bowey expendable doesn't make a lot of sense to me. He had a pretty good camp, and depending on how his game progresses this season, he could be an easy somewhat cost controlled option to fill a #6/7 spot next season when Daley and Ericsson are likely gone. I'm guess it means Daley or Ericsson are injured long term, or Cholowski eventually ends up in GR.

Important to note Biega can play forward so that could mean Ehn or De La Rose out if Biega stays up.

 

[TheClap]

without knowing, makes me wonder if daley is hurt more than we know along w ericsson..

We can only hope...

 

[bearball]

Isn't he a bit like Witkowski in the sense that he is a floater between being able to play defense and as a forward?

I know that there is a "jack of all trades, master of none" argument to be had but I think the potential usefulness of a guy like that is a bit underrated. Particularly when there are constraints on roster sizes.

 

[Solarion]

I don't believe this bodes well for Bowey or Cholowski's ice time with the Wings, but it seems a wise move given Daley's injury.

Cholowski still looks like he's panicking when pressured and he tends to make some poor decisions at those times. I suspect he has only a handful of games remaining before he's sent down to work on it, though that'd put too many Dmen in GR if someone isn't moved. There's McIsaac too, when he's healthy.

Heads up goal denying play here by Biega.

 

[Ghost of Ethan Hunt]

He sounds like the LGD version of a Dman, except for the "excellent shot"

From EliteProspects:
"A diminutive, stocky two-way D-man that makes very good decisions with and without the puck. Very physical and plays a hard-nosed brand of hockey. Positionally sound and has great awareness on the ice. Excellent shot. Not creative by any means, nor can he be relied upon for consistent offence. Still a hard-working player who takes nothing for granted and does all of the little things right."

 

[MS]

Isn't he a bit like Witkowski in the sense that he is a floater between being able to play defense and as a forward?

I know that there is a "jack of all trades, master of none" argument to be had but I think the potential usefulness of a guy like that is a bit underrated. Particularly when there are constraints on roster sizes.

He's played forward for us in a pinch in the past but hasn't since the end of the 16-17 season. But when he did he was a perfectly adequate physical 4th line winger.

 

[PelagicJoe]

I like the idea of having someone who can play defense and hit like a truck.

 

[Henkka]

I don't believe this bodes well for Bowey or Cholowski's ice time with the Wings, but it seems a wise move given Daley's injury.

Cholowski still looks like he's panicking when pressured and he tends to make some poor decisions at those times. I suspect he has only a handful of games remaining before he's sent down to work on it, though that'd put too many Dmen in GR if someone isn't moved. There's McIsaac too, when he's healthy.

What do you mean with McIsaac? He is at juniors already (still rehabing) and can't go to Griffins until after his juniors season will end.

 

[Bondurant]

Biega does not impress on paper and is behind the curve hitting the NHL at 25/26. He has, however, spent most of his time post debut in Vancouver. Canucks fans appear high on the guy. Sounds like a true defenseman and a good team guy. I trust Yzerman.

 

[Oddbob]

So AHL:er at best?

Yeah sorry! He likely isn't making the NHL unless you have major roster depth issues + lots of injuries. Having said that, my honest opinion is they will have roughly equal impact on their current new teams. I think the only way Biega plays regularly for us, is if Ericsson and Daley are both out long term and Bowey is not playing well enough to stay in the lineup. Biega will probably play some games, but unless he plays well above the bottom 5-8 guys on our roster he is probably a short term stop in Detroit/Gran Rapids.

 

[Oddbob]

Yeah I think he had a good camp, but surprised by this move a little bit for that reason. Biega does have more bite to his game though which might be a part of the reasoning in terms of an area Cholo needs in a partner.

I really do feel for Daley, I know people have varying views on that signing, but dude has had really crummy luck for a couple years now.

I liked Daley during his first season with us, as I thought he was good for what he is, a reliable 5th/6th PMD. Last year he just looked slower and of course missed a ton of time with injuries. In the preseason this year and his brief regular season so far, he looked quite slow and didn't seem to be doing much.

 

[The Axe]

Seider?

 

[Gniwder]

Biega does have more bite to his game though which might be a part of the reasoning in terms of an area Cholo needs in a partner.

More bite than this?


If so, I want him to bite Marchand... really hard.

Important to note Biega can play forward so that could mean Ehn or De La Rose out if Biega stays up.

I'd honestly rather see Bowey play wing, he can actually cycle the puck and has a decent slapper. In any case, he seemed to have a good camp and pre-season, does anyone know why he's in Blash's dog house?

 

[DInTheB]

Haven’t seen a second source so take it fwiw