Archive for the 'Brad Stuart' CategoryPage 2 of 2

2/27 Notes

Published
by
Matt Saler
on February 27, 2008
in Brad Stuart, Henrik Zetterberg, Injuries, Jonathan Ericsson, Niklas Kronwall, Oilers, Pavel Datsyuk and Valtteri Filppula
. 2 Comments

Update (10:26 AM): The comments on IwoCPO’s response to Drew Sharp are worth reading, as usual. Particularly Baroque’s from 8:36 AM. - Matt

Update (10:04 AM): Brennan at Gloveside has a great discussion on the Wings’ breakout troubles here. The post includes what has to be the line of the week at the end of third paragraph. I won’t spoil it for you.

As for the solution to the breakout issues: Nick Lidstrom, Brian Rafalski, Niklas Kronwall, and Chris Chelios. As talented and impressive as Derek Meech, Kyle Quincey and Jonathan Ericsson have been, they can’t measure up to the masters of that particular art form.  - Matt

Update (8:35 AM): IwoCPO responds to Drew Sharp’s column here. - Matt

… The Wings lost last night in Edmonton, 4-3 in a shootout. They overcame a two-goal lead in the third and then gave up a goal in the final minute of the period as the Oilers forced overtime. Robert Nilsson scored the only goal in the shootout to give Edmonton their 13th shootout win this season.

I was not able to watch the game, but judging from the highlights, it was an exciting one.

… Good news: Valtteri Filppula scored last night and now has two goals in a little over a week. That’s closer to the correct rate of scoring, Fil.

… More good news: Jonathan Ericsson notched his first NHL goal to put the Wings on the board. Hopefully that’s just the first of many, many more.

… Anyone else want to see Pavel Datsyuk shoot the puck like that more often? I love it when he breaks out that rocket snap shot of his.

… It was nice to see Henrik Zetterberg try something a little different in the shootout. That brings the number of shootout moves in his repertoire to a grand total of about 4. Maybe someday he’ll come across a goalie that hasn’t seen the Forsberg Deke™ and he can use that one again!

… Post-game links

… The papers are understandably stocked with stories about Brad Stuart today:

Helene St. James has a straightforward piece about the new defenseman, complete with quotes from Ken Holland. It looks like he won’t join the team until tomorrow, though he is expected to play Friday. The man slated to be his defensive partner, Niklas Kronwall, is expected to return that night as well.

Ted Kulfan’s lede says it all:

The Red Wings found out last season a team can’t have enough defensemen during the playoffs.

Very true.

Drew Sharp, of course, second-guesses the move and wonders why Ken Holland wasn’t able to land a forward when guys like Martin Lapointe and Sergei Fedorov went to the East for a song. Two words Drew: Central Division. Two more: Eastern Conference. Put them together and you have a simple concept: the Wings are in the same division as Chicago and Columbus, and those teams aren’t looking to do the Wings any favors. And vice versa.

The Caps and Senators, on the other hand, are in the Eastern Conference and therefore not immediate threats to the success of the franchise. Do you get it? Sure, it’s disappointing that the Wings were able to bring in some scoring help, but the simple fact that the Jackets and Hawks are in the Central meant the asking price was too high for them.

Also, Martin Lapointe, Drew? You’re upset that they didn’t bring that loser back?

John Niyo has a refreshingly positive look at the move and makes a great point. Whereas teams like Dallas, Colorado, and San Jose are placing their hopes in their new acquisitions,

… teams like Anaheim and Detroit, the presumptive Cup favorites before Tuesday’s wheeling and dealing, are banking on something else: Themselves.

When Jiri Hudler’s turn came up at the shootout last night, Ken Daniels said a goal there would have be a much-needed boost to his confidence. He didn’t score, but you have to think that his not being traded was a boost of sorts. The same goes for the other struggling forwards. The management showed faith in the current squad and that counts for something. Whether the guys will honor that faith remains to be seen, of course, but it’s hard to believe that they won’t.

Niyo also points out that the Wings did not give up any of their “kids.” That will pay off in the future and, with the team they have at the moment,  shouldn’t hamper their chances now.

For another blogger’s perspective on the trade, see Gorilla Crouch.

Brad Stuart now a Red Wing

Published
by
Matt Saler
on February 26, 2008
in Brad Stuart and Roster Moves
. 10 Comments

Update (6:44 PM): For those fluent in Portuguese, Flávio de Moura reacts to the trade at temporarily renamed “Griffins Brasil” (formerly Red Wings Brasil).

Flávio, Humberto Fernandes, and a guy named Marcelo Constatino spent the day buoying up an otherwise pessimistic and down-on-the-Wings email list to which I belong. It’s sad, really, how negative we North American Wings fans can be in contrast to our Brazilian counterparts. - Matt

Update (4:58 PM): George Malik has more on the trade here. - Matt

Update (4:52 PM): Stuart wore  #6 in LA and though that number is not hanging from the rafters, he’s going to have to get a new one as it was retired by James Norris in 1939. He has also worn #7 in his career, but that won’t work either, as it is currently hanging from the rafters at JLA in honor of Ted Lindsay. - Matt

Update (4:27 PM): Lyle Richardson a.k.a. Spector has more on Stuart:

Stuart was once considered a promising young defenseman with all the tools to be a star in the NHL during his years with the San Jose Sharks, but he’s never been the same since the Sharks dealt him to the Boston Bruins in the Joe Thornton trade in the 2005-06 season. …

… He’d struggled in the first half of the season but seemed to show improvement in recent weeks.

… It remains to be seen how Stuart will adjust but playing on a deeper club like the Wings despite their recent struggles could take some pressure off his shoulders and help him regain some confidence. If so he could become a good depth addition for the Wings down the stretch and into the playoffs.

- Matt

Update (4:16 PM): HockeyTownTodd comments on the trade here and George Malik does so here. - Matt

Update (4:09 PM): The commenters at Abel to Yzerman aren’t exactly thrilled with the trade. - Matt

Update (3:50 PM): I should point out that a more immediate answer to the question of who sits depends on who returns for what I assume will be Stuart’s first game with the Wings, the meeting with the Sharks on Saturday Friday. If none of the injured regular defensemen return, Garrett Stafford is the odd man out.

If one of Brian Rafalski, Niklas Kronwall, or Chris Chelios returns, my guess is Kyle Quincey will get demoted. If two of those three make it back, both Quincey and Ericsson will return to Grand Rapids. If all three do (which is unlikely), the two Griffins get demoted and Meech is a likely healthy scratch. - Matt

Update (3:41 PM): Khan reports that the 2nd rounder is a 2008 pick and the 4th rounder is a 2009 pick. -Sarah

Update (3:34 PM): This obviously isn’t a bad deal as it did not cost the Wings a roster player or an established prospect. The added depth and experience is a good thing, though going into the post-season with Meech as the 7th man would not have been the end of the world by any means. Personally, I’d rather have seen a scoring forward come this way in a trade rather than a defenseman, but I’m not going to complain too much.

The question now is, who sits when everyone is healthy? - Matt

Update (3:29 PM): Some more detail on Stuart: he’s a 28-year-old potential UFA making $3.5 million this season. He’s got 5 goals and 16 assists this season. His career high is 39 points - 9 goals, 30 assists - over 77 games in 2003-2004. - Matt

According to Kukla’s Korner, the LA Kings have traded Brad Stuart to Detroit for a second and fourth round pick. More to come.