It’s officially the end of an era in the Motor City, as the Detroit Red Wings officially cut ties with veteran forward Justin Abdelkader.
http://gty.im/505144270
A home grown talent out of Michigan State University, Abdelkader donned the Winged Wheel for over a decade, and racked up plenty of penalty minutes along the way.
Let’s throw it back to 2018 when he threw down with New York Islanders defenseman Johnny Boychuk, resulting in some leakage:
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Several Red Wings included in NBC Sports list of top free-agent signings
Detroit Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman has been busy in free agency, bringing aboard the likes of forwards Bobby Ryan and Vladislav Namestnikov, defenseman Troy Stecher and Jon Merrill, and goaltender Thomas Greiss.
Talk about wheeling and dealing!
NBC Sports put together their list of the top free agent signings, and the Red Wings were represented well. The signing of Thomas Greiss came in at No. 12, ahead of the likes of Jacob Markstrom (Calgary) and Cam Talbot (Minnesota):
“He has very quietly put together an outstanding career for himself, consistently finishing with above average performances across the board. The Red Wings needed a goalie, and they picked up a very good one at a fair price.”
Veteran Bobby Ryan, who was Detroit’s first signing, came in at No. 19:
“Am very curious to see what Ryan is going to do here with this opportunity. The Red Wings got him for basically nothing against the cap and you know he is going to be eager to show he can still contribute in the NHL.”
The signing of Russian forward Vladislav Namestnikov clocked in at No. 21:
“Steve Yzerman made a lot of really smart signings on the first weekend of free agency, and this was one of them. He found some quality veterans on short-term deals that can be flipped at the deadline.”
Red Wings fans, how do you feel about where these signings were ranked?
– – Quotes via Adam Getz of NBC Sports Link – –
