Wings sign D Ian White to 2-year, $5.75m contract

[Number19 159]

decent depth signing especially for the price but we need one or two more moves to be serious contenders.

[wings1110 184]

does anyone beside me think smith is getting screwed out of a roster spot ide rather we would have signed one elite d-men than 2 so, so d-men.

[hockey23 79]

does anyone beside me think smith is getting screwed out of a roster spot ide rather we would have signed one elite d-men than 2 so, so d-men.

It sounds good in theory to sign one elite d-man, but who was available?

[wings1110 184]

It sounds good in theory to sign one elite d-man, but who was available?

get wiz or ehrhoff. or get wiz and ehrhoff, and dont resign ericsson to a ridiculous contract!

also I would prefer smith over kindl, but i dont think kindl would make it through wavers, and i dont wanna lose him. also I believe janik is now an odd man out, as his contract is one way, and im not sure the other details of his contract. (yes I know that one way means you can still be sent to the minors)

Edited July 3, 2011 by wings1110

[Petrafire 8]

White the whipping boy?..How so?

I've seen the guy play since his days as a Maple Leaf; he's a solid 2-way Dman capable of logging 20 min a night, and 30 to 40 pts a season.

Yeah - he's not flashy, nor is he Nick Lidstrom, but he's better/more consistent (and cheaper) than Ericsson.

30 to 40 points a season??? are you crazy he has only had 30+ points once

[PaZel 19]

get wiz or ehrhoff. or get wiz and ehrhoff, and dont resign ericsson to a ridiculous contract!

also I would prefer smith over kindl, but i dont think kindl would make it through wavers, and i dont wanna lose him. also I believe janik is now an odd man out, as his contract is one way, and im not sure the other details of his contract. (yes I know that one way means you can still be sent to the minors)

Wiz and Ehrhoff demanded too much money and too long of a deal. Holland didn't want to handcuff the future of the team with overpayment to overrated guys. The White and even Commodore signings seem very logical and i'm very happy with what Holand did given the situation presented. There will be better options available in the future and Kenny knows that, no need to blow money all over the place just because we have it. And I don't feel like Smith is NHL ready, another year in GR most certainly won't hurt.

[esteef 2,679]

30 to 40 points a season??? are you crazy he has only had 30+ points once

Has he played with Nick Lidstrom before?

esteef

[wings1110 184]

Wiz and Ehrhoff demanded too much money and too long of a deal. Holland didn't want to handcuff the future of the team with overpayment to overrated guys. The White and even Commodore signings seem very logical and i'm very happy with what Holand did given the situation presented. There will be better options available in the future and Kenny knows that, no need to blow money all over the place just because we have it. And I don't feel like Smith is NHL ready, another year in GR most certainly won't hurt.

did you watch him in GR last year? looked like a vet.

[hockey23 79]

get wiz or ehrhoff. or get wiz and ehrhoff, and dont resign ericsson to a ridiculous contract!

also I would prefer smith over kindl, but i dont think kindl would make it through wavers, and i dont wanna lose him. also I believe janik is now an odd man out, as his contract is one way, and im not sure the other details of his contract. (yes I know that one way means you can still be sent to the minors)

Wiz and Ehrhoff never hit free agency so I'm not really upset that we didn't get their rights and overpay. Both of their contracts are pretty bad; not so much this year, but it would hurt us next year when trying to re-sign Kronwall and find a Lidstrom replacement.

The Smith/Kindl/Janik thing isn't a big deal to me. Kindl probably deserves to play full time, Smith could use another year in GR, and Janik is a career minor leaguer.

[PaZel 19]

did you watch him in GR last year? looked like a vet.

Smith's got a world of potential, don't get me wrong. I just would prefer the organization doesn't rush him in if they don't have to. Smith will be up in due time and if he really impresses in training camp he'll be on the team. But in case he doesn't, there's nothing wrong with the current signings to plug the leaks until he's ready...or until the wings have the opportunity to chase an elite defenseman worth a hefty payment.

[Petrafire 8]

I agree he's only had 1 season of 30 plus pts (had 38 pts 2 seasons ago, and 2 seasons of 26 pts)- he'll get his chance on the 2nd pp unit since he's now 1 of 2 Dmen Holland just signed that's right shooting (the other righty being Commodore).

With the talent on this team he'll get 30 plus pts...That may sound crazy to some, but I'm certain he can do it.

i hope your right then he would definetly be a steal

[KDDRWINGS1 9]

Love it.

First The Commodore, now The Moustache at dirt cheap (for both). Drop Hudler for a 3rd round and we're back to $10 million in cap space.

Next move I would go for the trifecta with Konopka, then go hard after a veteran winger like Langebrunner and back up goalie like Conklin or Turco.

Say what you want about Commodore and White but I think they have the POTENTIAL to be real good additions and there was virtually no risk.

I'm so glad they didn't sign Wisniewski at his ridiculous asking price since we we pretty much got the same player for half of it.

Great job, Kenny!

Edited July 3, 2011 by KDDRWINGS1

[Rivalred 630]

I am happy with this signing, White or Hannan would of done... Focus on trading Hud's and getting a goalie + a forward or 2....

Ben Eager anyone?

[pvilleguru 65]

so, unless commodore or white are in the box, we should expect one of them to be on the ice on the PP?

[KDDRWINGS1 9]

Ben Eager anyone?

He gone.

[Rivalred 630]

He gone.

Thanks...

That's what I get for working 16 hrs the last few days and sleeping...

[Never_Retire_Steve 35]

The one thing that I like about this signing is that it dose improve our speed on the back end which is something that I felt got badly exposed against San Jose's speedy forwards in the playoffs. I would still love to see a speedy top end guy (especially since Lidstrom's future is always so uncertain every offseason)

[KDDRWINGS1 9]

Thanks...

That's what I get for working 16 hrs the last few days and sleeping...

Would have been icing on the cake for sure.....

[kylee 727]

I like this signing as well as the Commy signing. Sure up the d corp without overpaying or giving long contracts. This is exactly what Holland does and wins. This is good news guys.

[Never_Retire_Steve 35]

Who is going to replace Lidstrom though?

[Agalloch93 28]

Who is going to replace Lidstrom though?

Smith + another solid FA unless Suter somehow hits free agency.

[AARedWingFan 13]

Who is going to replace Lidstrom though?

Lidstrom is replacing himself this year. Let's cross that bridge when we come to it. Ian White is DEFINITELY not the guy. Holland knows full well that he'll need a top notch Dman to even come close. He'll work his magic next summer.

[e_prime 1,936]

Who is going to replace Lidstrom though?

No one. Ever.

In the same way that no single player signing this year would have replaced Rafalski.

[Never_Retire_Steve 35]

Smith + another solid FA unless Suter somehow hits free agency.

That won't even come close to replacing Lidstrom

Lidstrom is replacing himself this year. Let's cross that bridge when we come to it. Ian White is DEFINITELY not the guy. Holland knows full well that he'll need a top notch Dman to even come close. He'll work his magic next summer.

This is why I want to see this happening now. I'm sure Holland is thinking about him leaving (at least I would hope so) but we already lost Rafalski and we will be losing Lidstrom sometime in the near future. If we wait to cross that bridge when we get to it, it can be very dangerous. Look at this year's FA pool, not exactly strong for stud Dmen. However, Holland still needs to consider options outside of FA and I really hope that this is a priority the remainder of this offseason and the upcoming season.

No one. Ever.

In the same way that no single player signing this year would have replaced Rafalski.

Yup, no one will replace a 7 time Norris trophy winner but we can get close and we have to consider giving up key guys that are already here.

[LeftWinger 4,936]

Thank You Holland, Thank You! I like this signing...not as much snarl as Wiz, but since when does Holland sign snarl? We all had our hopes, but once again Holland stayed true to his form and signed players that he thinks fit best with this team. Instead of Wiz and Montador, I got Commodore and White, both right handed shots, both good shots from the point, if Commodore can find his meaness back, we'll be sitting pretty. Here is how I hope the lines are:

Kronwall - Stuart

Lidstrom - White

Ericsson - Commodore

Kindl

Holland continues to say he doesn't want to box Smith out of a spot in the lineup, so I believe he and Kindl and to some extent Janik will be battling for that 7th position. I wouldn't be against trading Hudler/Kindl for Nabakov and giving Janik that #7 spot and letting Smith do some split time in GR and Detroit.

Replacing Hudler with a UFA still available....I hear that Owen Nolan wants to come back to the NHL!