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Forget Hossa that will never happen. Forget Hasek that will never happen. etc. There is always a chance, always.

I could be wrong here, but I think that Brian Rafalski put the Detroit Red Wings ahead of himself today. I think he still wants to play. I think he realized that he was no longer worth the 6mil/season he was being paid. And I think he realized that the organization could make better use of that cap space elsewhere. He essentially donated $6,000,000 to next year's Stanley Cup run (maybe more, as Lidstrom can now take a pay-cut and still be our highest paid defenseman). Not a lot of professional athletes would have done that, especially in this day and age. It deserves serious recognition and applause, imo. He had a he!! of a prime with us, won a Stanley Cup, and always gave it all he had.

spot on.Chris Chelios agrees as well

Agreed!

Keep in mind that Rafalski was 12th in the league in scoring and played only 63 games. Look at his place at the end of the season in total points over the last 5 seasons. 10-11 - 12th 09-10 - 21st 08-09 - 5th 07-08 - 7th 06-07 - 12th People can knock is defensive game, but he is a point producing machine. I see the same upswing from Brendan Smith as he has the same skillset just in a bigger body. On a sidenote, I am pretty disgusted with some of the comments here. The "Don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way out" comments in specific. He helped bring a Stanley Cup to Detroit. He took a hometown discount to come play here. A little respect would be in order.

If true Godspeed Brian Rafalski, thank you for your time in Detroit, your effort, and your play to help win the 2008 Stanley Cup. Feel free to hang around Joe Louis Arena and give the glad hand to fans

I know that at least for me it wasn't an issue of being "happy" that he is retiring -- but despite his point production you knew that his overall health was going to be a serious factor going forward into next season. When he's healthy he's a $6-million defenseman, but when he's not -- and lingering issues this season lead one to believe that he would continue to deteriorate -- he's a major strain on the Red Wings' flexibility. Looking forward to the offseason, it'll be interesting. One new factor to consider too is that Holland won't be saddled with salary-for-salary player trades. He can afford to take on higher salary players due to the cap space. So the answer may not come via free agency, but by trade. It's not. He was offered more than Detroit's $6-million when he hit free agency. (It might've been the Devils to try to keep him at around $6.5-million, but I haven't looked back to confirm.) Regardless, he absolutely took a lower offer to play here. It was a big point made in the press when he signed here.

Amen!

Kaberle needs to stay the f*** away from this team. Markov is to injury prone.

Please, for the love of god not Kaberle.

There has already been a thread started here. He must retire, otherwise LGW will lose it's credibility. Edit: Upon thinking about it further, maybe someone needs to start a "Hudler retires" thread.

by higher end player in Markov you mean, more expensive? Markov hasn't played a full season in two years. Why would we replacing a broken-down aging defenseman (no offense Raffi) with someone who's breaking down and is five years younger?

I don't like this one bit.

Two Words: Shea Weber Believe it folks!!

Pretty sure that those reports have been refuted, by Ericsson himself. I think he will try to keep Ericsson. I just hope it's at the right price. I think hope he can grow into the #4 role. He's still not a $2 million/year player though... I hope he realizes that. If not, we can replace him.

With his knee and back. He was not going to stick around for more than his contract. Thinking otherwise was wishful at best. It may have been a bad move for him to stick around, even if he signed for less. I'm not sure that I see the "don't let the door hit ya" comments. (Albeit, Raffi has his haters.) I do admit to a little excitement to the possibilities that his retirement brings, including the possibility of seeing Smith sooner. His point production will be missed, certainly. He did help bring a Cup here. Much props. A Hometown discount is debatable. I've got nothing but respect for the guy.

Lets be honest here. Rafalski is a elite defenseman in the NHL. If he does decide to retire, that puts the Wings with a BIG hole. It may also influence Lidstrom's decision as well because they will be losing a piece on defense. These things being said, it could have an upside, but I really don't see anyone on the free agent market that is as good or better. The crop of free agents hitting the market now are not as good as Rafalski. I know that Weber has been mentioned, but Nashville isn't going to let him go. The Wings are not going to sign him because of the loss of all the draft picks he will cost. Brendan Smith isn't ready for the NHL yet. I have seen him in Grand Rapids, and while he is a great defenseman, he needs some help on the defensive part of his game. I think he needs at least another full year in the AHL. If he does decide to retire, he is going to be missed by the Wings. I know I will never forget meeting him the year he signed with the Wings. I shook his hand at a meet and greet at Van Andel that season ticket holders got to attend. The Wings swung by and did a practice at Van Andel that day and really put on a good show for the fans. What a nice guy. At the same time though, he has accomplished a lot in his career. Three Stanley Cups and two Olympic silver medals are more than many will have ever accomplished.

Rafalski is a proven winner and I hate to see injuries end careers. A guy like Wisniewski, who has bounced around with four teams in the last three years before getting a lot of points in a contract year, is not a good enough replacement. He's played in 18 playoff games and scored five points. Are we sure he's going to be able to make that crucial outlet pass in a big playoff game? Because for the kind of money that will get thrown his way by other teams that the Wings would in theory have to outbid, he damn well better. As someone said above, there is now no reason not to throw a giant bag of money at Shea Weber, term and everything. I'm certain he's going to be a multiple Norris winner in the coming years. I don't think $40 million/8 years is too much. If we lose a couple of Riley Sheahan, Landon Ferraro-types as compensation, so what? This is one of the best two-way defencemen in the world who would be age 26 at his first Wings' training camp. True. Might as well rename it 'Let's go Eklund'.

Oh, we could... but does he play D?

This has already been discussed. His cap hit comes off the books because he signed his deal prior to age 35. The cap relief you speak of has to do with a contract that is signed after the age of 35.

Pretty sure you get it all back if the contract was signed prior to the player turning 35.

People seem to forget a broken down, one legged Rafalski put up 90 points the past two seasons and had a .75 PPG pace this season. he was the catalyst for our ES. This team needs a smooth puck moving defenseman, a guy that isn't one of the dozen that LGW are throwing around, save for Wiz. Weber, Suter, Doughty, Bieksa, Bogo aren't coming here and nor will they even be given offers because they are going to be the first waved signed. I'll make anyone that bet right now.

I'm thinking Holland will have to go after a higher end player. Maybe someone like Andrei Markov or go crazy and try for Doughty.