Lidstrom on Jim Rome radio show this morning

[Behind Enemy Lines in CO 11]

Not sure if anyone else has posted this - Nick Lidstrom was on the Jim Rome radio show this morning and said the following:

When asked how long he would consider playing, he indicated that he would be interested in playing as a top 4 defenseman, however he was not interested in playing as a 5/6 defenseman because there is the chance that one would sit an occasional game.

I have never heard him say that before. This tells me that even though he is only signing 1 year contracts, he intends to play as long as he can remain a top 4 defenseman. The wild card here is how his son is doing in Sweden with the family still in Detroit (Nick did say the situation is progressing very well) and also how much the Red Wings are willing to pay him if he is relegated to a 3/4 position defenseman.

[Doc Holliday 1,888]

I guarantee you that as long as Lidstrom is on the Wings and under 50, he will not "sit" a game in the National Hockey League.

[HankthaTank 1,100]

Unless he knows something that we don't on a roster move soon or they plan on Smith or a prospect to pan out to be much better than we really know I can't imagine him being relegated to 3/4 on depth chart ever. I mean we are talking years before that's the case and I hope Nick is still around then too.

Edited March 2, 2011 by HankthaTank

[Konnan511 1,736]

How could one hear anything Lidstrom says over the sounds of Angel's singing and the sound of vast amount of coinage falling around him because of how money he is.

[wings1110 184]

were not the dallas stars we dont f*** over franchise players, legends, faces of the franchise. I think the red wings would have signed Yzerman till he was 50 if he wanted lol

[Heroes of Hockeytown 694]

Considering how well he's playing (early voting efforts have Nick as the front-runner for Norris) it's hard to imagine he'll get busted down to the second, let alone third pairing any time soon.

[lookalive07 251]

I've said this all year long: even though Lidstrom is playing out of his ******* mind, if we win the Cup this year, he's going to retire.

[egroen 384]

I've said this all year long: even though Lidstrom is playing out of his ******* mind, if we win the Cup this year, he's going to retire.

LIAR MOUTH!!!!

[Wings_Toledo 233]

I've said this all year long: even though Lidstrom is playing out of his ******* mind, if we win the Cup this year, he's going to retire.

I really hope he doesn't retire if the Wings win the Cup, but I certainly wouldn't blame him if he did. He deserves to go out on top (Norris + Stanley Cup).

[Theophany 110]

If Nick plays til he's relegated a to a 5/6 defenseman, there's a really good chance he'll be playing if/when his sons get into the NHL.

If he keeps to that statement, he'll be playing at 60.

Edited March 2, 2011 by Theophany

[dropkickshanahans 463]

This is reassuring. With his play-style he could play well into his mid 40's and still be great.

[wingnut40 176]

Like what was already mentioned, if being 5/6 is the only thing that would cause him to retire, Nick would be playing at least 10 more years. I hate when people say he's "one of the best defenseman to ever play the game". No, he is the best defenseman. No one has played as skillfully and perfectly has him. And considering the size, speed, and skill of players in today's game, it makes his grace and longevity that much more amazing.

How could one hear anything Lidstrom says over the sounds of Angel's singing and the sound of vast amount of coinage falling around him because of how money he is.

Just FYI I'm going to steal this. IDK how I will use it, but this is great.

[Smite 399]

Watching the game tonight they mentioned on how his ice time has been cut. Maybe this is how he is complaing about being sit late in the 3rd against LA beceuse we were up by 7. #mindgames?

[Nev 1,085]

Sounds to me he's looked at the Chelios situation and decided he doesn't want to go that route. That is,early 40s Cheli was still a valuable contributor, but as he approached the mid 40s Cheli went into a noticable decline being bumped down the depth chart and even a healthy scratch.

Fact is Lidstrom is already slowing down. The last 2-3 seasons he's made more mistakes than the rest of his career put together. I still can't get over it when I see it, "was that turnover by Lidstrom???" He's still at a Norris level, but he is no longer at the superhuman level he has been the rest of his career. Even unparalelled brilliance is not immune from the aging process.

[chrisdetroit 189]

I've said this all year long: even though Lidstrom is playing out of his ******* mind, if we win the Cup this year, he's going to retire.

I agree with you. We will win the Cup this year, Nick will get another Norris trophy for his mantle and maybe even another Conn Smyth and then he will retire. Nick is a guy that will go out on top.

If we don't win it, he will be back.