Teams have until Thursday at noon to claim Meech.

I expect this to be the last season for Kirk Maltby. He’s become a fringe NHL player because of the emergence of younger players like Justin Abdelkader, Darren Helm, Drew Miller, and Patrick Eaves.

This signing takes care of all the RFAs the Red Wings had to sign. Abs is expected to start the season on the 4th line with Darren Helm and Patrick Eaves. Abdelkader plays with a ton of grit. He led the Wings in hits before players returning from injury forced him back down to Grand Rapids last season. He has shown some offensive pop in the past, and there is hope that he will start to score at the NHL level.

Tardif served as the captain for the Red Wings’ AHL affiliate the Grand Rapids Griffins last season, and it is assumed he will take on that same role this season.

The Wings now only have Justin Abdelkader to sign.

The Wings have found their #6 defenseman, and they made a great choice. Ruslan Salei is a 13 year NHL veteran who played a few years for Mike Babcock in Anaheim. He’s a gritty, reliable defenseman that plays with plenty of toughness. He’ll be teamed up with Jonathan “Big Rig” Ericsson on the third defensive pairing.

This signing means the Wings will be showing Derek Meech the door in a matter of time. He will be traded.

Cheli played 578 games with the Wings, spanning 10 seasons. He scored 21 goals, 131 assists, 152 points, 613 penalty minutes, and was +158. He never had a minus season. He also won 2 cups with the Wings.

I was hoping for a longer term for Helmer, but it’s smarter for him to only sign for a year or two. His value could very well go up in the next couple seasons. His speed and tenacity are dangerous weapons, and if he ever develops a scoring touch, his value will skyrocket.

This signing makes Justin Abdelkader and Jamie Tardif the only RFAs left to sign (if Tardif gets a contract). The Wings will get Abdelkader signed, and then look for a bargain on a #6 defenseman with some grit.

UPDATE: NHL.com has confirmed that Modano is going to be joining Detroit.

I will admit I’m not the biggest fan of Modano. I can’t really explain it, but there has always been something about him that has rubbed me the wrong way. I find it odd that a team would take the captaincy away from the one player that has long been the face of the franchise. The reason, according to wikipedia, was “The Stars wanted to reward [Brenden] Morrow for his commitment to the team, after he bypassed free agency to sign a long-term (6 year) contract with the team.” It seems to me that a big 6 year contract would be reward enough rather than demoting Modano, unless there was something regarding Modano that prompted the decision. To me the captain of a team is the unquestioned leader, like Yzerman was and Lidstrom is for the Wings. I don’t see how a player just loses that.

As far as hockey goes, Modano is still a good player and will give the Wings a third line center that has the potential produce around 40-50 points if they are lucky (I would expect him to put up at least 15 and 15). Modano can also provide some help on special teams for both the powerplay and shorthanded. I wouldn’t expect him to see much time on the PK considering the wings stable of defensive forwards, but I do expect him to line up on one of the PP units.

From a hockey standpoint I think it’s a good signing. You can never get enough offensive depth and Modano still being a decent defensive player should allow him to fit well into the Wings’ system. This gives me a chance to do something that Anthony and I love to do: Play Coach and make some lines.

Babcock has stated that he wants to get The Euro Twins line back together like they were for the 2008 cup run. So that gives us a top line that looks like

Zetterberg/Datsyuk – Datsyuk/Zetterberg – Holmstrom

By reuniting the band I think the Wings are going to want to put pressure on Fil to put his foot and the gas and show what he can do. Franzen to his right is a no brainer as it gives Fil and his pass first mentality a natural outlet. I would like to slide Hudler in on the opposite wing based on the chemistry Hudler-Fil-Kopecky showed in Grand Rapids, but I expect Bert will get the nod here. He gives opposing teams another big body to deal with on this line and is more wild card in regards to his tendencies with the puck.

Bert – Fil – Franzen

Modano obviously slots in as your center here. Since Hudler is going to be bumped from the 2nd line you have to pair him with Modano. I expect Cleary to get this next spot as he is too good to put on the 4th line and can be the sandpaper for this line while still providing some scoring touch.

Hudler – Modano – Cleary

I think Bab’s will go with whoever works here. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him go with a youth movement for this line with the bulk of the playing time going to Abdelkader, Eaves, Helm, Miller, and Ritola. They are all young guys and they all play at a fast pace with some grit. I think that leaves Draper as the odd man out. I wouldn’t be surprised if they try to move him (pending he waives his NTC) or to see him retire. It wouldn’t make sense to keep him in the press box while eatting up 1.58 million in cap space while all 5 of the other guys currently do or most likely will sign for less than 1 million.

Abdelkader/Helm/Miller – Abdelkader/Helm – Eaves/Miller

Defensively you don’t see anything change giving you

Zetterberg/Datsyuk – Datsyuk/Zetterberg – Holmstrom
Bertuzzi – Filppula – Franzen
Hudler – Modano – Cleary
Abdelkader/Helm/Miller – Abdelkader/Helm – Eaves/Miller
Ritola

Lidstrom – Rafalski
Stuart – Kronwall
Ericsson – Kindl/Smith/Meech/Janik

Howard/Osgood

Downey’s a long shot for the Wings roster, but I think he’d be a great fit for the Griffins. If he is offered a contract, it will most likely be a two-way deal. I hope he earns one. I liked Downey a lot when he was a Wing. He’s a wrecking ball when he gets a shift and will fight anyway. He doesn’t usually win the fights, but that’s not always the point…

Everyone loves this guy in the locker room, which makes him a fit for Grand Rapids. It’s probably a good thing to keep young prospects laughing.

Enjoy my favorite Aaron Downey moment:

Probert was picked in the 3rd round, 46th overall in the 1989 draft. Other solid or hall-of-fame players were nabbed in this same draft by the Red Wings: Steve Yzerman was picked in the 1st round, 4th overall; Petr Klima was picked in the 5th round, 86th overall; Joe Kocur was picked in the 5th round, 88th overall; Stu Grimson in the 10th round, 186th overall.

Bob Probert was at the beginning of the rebuild for the Red Wings. The build that would eventually bring 4 Stanley Cups in recent years.

This was my childhood. I would play hockey outside all day until dinner. After dinner, it was time to watch the Wings. I’d see Yzerman flying around like a water bug, Ray Sheppard slowly by surely getting in scoring position and potting a few home, and of course, Bob Probert policing everything. He was a huge man for his time, standing 6′ 3″, 225 lbs. There was no more frightening man in the NHL. Probert would fight anyone and you could be damn sure he’d beat his poor opponent into submission. And, when all that was taken care of, he could put a few in the net himself.

His most productive season in all categories was in 1987/88 where, in 74 games, he scored 29 goals, 33 assists, 62 points, and 398 penalty minutes. He managed to make the NHL All-Star team with that season.

He was far from consistent when it came to scoring points, but he could always be relied upon to take care of any opponents making… mischief. Whenever he got on a roll (probably due to sobriety at the time), he would score some points.

That sobriety line isn’t a crack at Probert. He battled addictions throughout his career, but he truly made many, many attempts to get clean. Allow me to use this moment to say a cliché line: His battles off the ice didn’t get in the way of his battles on the ice.

Now, let’s get to what we all REALLY know Probert for: the fighting. Probert amassed a grand total of 3,300 penalty minutes, which ranks him 5th all-time in the NHL (4th is Marty McSorley with 3,381 penalty minutes, 3rd is Tie Domi (a frequent fight partner with Probert) with 3,515 penalty minutes, 2nd is Dale Hunter with 3,563 penalty minutes, and 1st is Dave “Tiger” Williams with 3,966 penalty minutes). He had a penalty minutes per game average of 3.46. He was the most feared man in the league. I’m glad he was a Red Wings in my formative years. He made me want to strap on some skates and go.

So, let’s close this post with his career numbers:
935 Games – 163 Goals – 221 Assists – 384 Points – 3,300 Penalty Minutes

Actually, let’s not close this post with his career numbers. Let’s close this post with videos of Probert at work.

Bob Probert v. Tie Domi

Bob Probert v. Marty McSorley

Probert Slaps One Home

Probert Describes His Penalty Shot To Mickey Redmond