Detroit Red Wings forward Luke Glendening is no stranger to seeing his name come up as a possibility to don a different jersey than the one he's worn his entire NHL career.
After all, he's been the subject of trade rumors and speculation for the past several seasons, and perhaps none more so than this most recent NHL Trade Deadline. Though there were a reported handful of teams interested in acquiring the defensive forward, he ultimately stayed put.
He can become an unrestricted free-agent on July 1. However, the Grand Rapids native isn't looking to go anywhere else.
“Wearing the winged wheel has been a dream since I first started playing hockey, and maybe even before,” Glendening said. “I never knew if it was going to be a reality, but it was something I always dreamed of. Every day I come to the rink to and get to put that sweater on, it's a special day for me.
“I'd love to be part of this moving forward.”
As far as this most recent regular season in concerned, it was certainly a season like no other in National Hockey League history due to safety protocols, guidelines and regulations. Glendening was sure to give a shoutout to team athletic therapist Piet Van Zant for making sure all protocols were in place and followed.
“He was in charge of implementing the rules and it wasn't his favorite thing to do, but he did a great job,” Glendening said. “As a group of players and staff, we all knew if we wanted to get through the season, we had to follow these rules. Maybe we didn't agree with every one of them and didn't think they were completely necessary, but they did a great job of making sure everyone was safe.”
Originally signed as an undrafted free-agent out of the University of Michigan in 2012, Glendening has established himself as one of the more underrated defensive forwards in the NHL today. This past season, he tallied six goals with nine assists.
– – Quotes via Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News Link – –
