On the Wings

Update (9:52 PM): Well, I’m an idiot. As Defenseman pointed out in the comments, Maltby is the only player on the IR right now and Mark Hartigan is in his place, putting the Wings at the roster limit. That means when Maltby returns, Hartigan will go and the team will stay at the limit.

In short, Downey’s job with the Wings is not in danger and the post below is idiotic. Sorry. - Matt

After the Colton Orr hit on Carolina forward Matt Cullen last night, the Hurricanes have expressed an interest in acquiring an enforcer.

You may be thinking, “This is a Wings blog. Why is this relevant?”

Well, when Henrik Zetterberg, Kirk Maltby, and Tomas Holmstrom return to the lineup, the team will be one over the 23-man roster limit. At that point, they’ll have to send someone down to Grand Rapids and the short list of candidates pretty much consists of Aaron Downey.

“So what?” you say. “That’s at least two weeks from now. Surely Carolina will have found a trade partner by then.” That is indeed possible, though I’d call it unlikely, given the stagnant trade market.

“Alright, maybe a trade is unlikely. But what are the chances that the Wings won’t have someone new on the IR at that point?” Yes, the realist in me has to admit that another injury is definitely not outside the realm of possibility. That doesn’t mean it’s a given, though.

Again, if the Wings are healthy in two weeks, Downey’s place on the roster evaporates. When the Wings waived him earlier in the season, it was worrisome, but no team was openly talking about needing an enforcer, so there wasn’t much chance of his actually being claimed. This time, that’s not true. Also, the Wings don’t necessarily have to wait until the team is healthy to waive Downey. In fact, they’re not likely to, as doing so would delay the return of the last injured player (probably Holmstrom). So, you can shave a couple days off the full two weeks time frame.

I think it’s safe to say that few in Hockeytown would be happy to see Downey taken off waivers. I know I wouldn’t. I’d much rather he stay within the organization, where he’s widely regarded as a positive force. That’s why I’m hoping the Hurricanes find their man some other way.  It’s possible that Downey may not represent the right mixture of toughness and skill that the Hurricanes are looking for, but there’s always the chance that they’d be interested in picking him up.

If the Wings do end up needing to send Downey to Grand Rapids and he isn’t claimed, there will remain, of course, the risk of his being claimed on re-entry waivers down the road. Once he’s in GR, though, he probably wouldn’t be the first choice for the call-up, as the team would probably seek to fill another need.