6 replies to this topic

[irishock]

http://www.mlive.com..._medium=twitter

 

 

I think it's the right move. 

 

 

 

Here's a question: Would you lower the expectations for jersey retirements if you were in charge? I know it's more prestigious when only a select few out of so many get to see their names on the rafters, but we don't have to go as crazy as Montreal. That way guys like Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Fedorov can be honored as well.

Edited by irishock, 08 January 2013 - 01:30 AM.

[Wings4Life19]

I think with as many HOFers the Wings have produced only the elite of the elite should get their numbers in the rafters.

And I agree, the lockout would cast a huge shadow over the celebration of one of the classiest athletes ever. I have no problem waiting a year, it will give me more time to get excited about it.

[Crymson]

I think it has been established that Fedorov's acrimonious split with the team will prevent his jersey from being retired. If he wanted that honor, he should have stuck around. He'd almost certainly have gotten it.

[The Axe]

Lids and Stevie only, Im afraid. Dats and Z wont get there, and what Crymson said about Feds.

[Jedi]

Delaying Lidstrom's ceremony is the right thing to do. The lockout has cast a black shadow over everything the league and the teams will do this season, and you don't want that shadow to darken the most prestigious honor a Red Wings player can be given.

56 players in the Hockey Hall of Fame have played for the Red Wings at some point in their careers. Only 6 of them have had their numbers retired by the Wings. That's some pretty elite company. The more numbers you retire, the more you cheapen the honor.

Like it or not, but the standard for number retirement has been set by the careers of Yzerman and Lidstrom. If a player doesn't have a career that even comes close to theirs (notably, entirely in a Red Wings sweater, with Stanley Cups and other hardware to match), then they don't deserve to have their jersey in the rafters.

This is why I think the Wings need a "ring of honor" in the new arena. A place where they can recognize the great players (Fedorov, Shanahan), fan favorites (Grind Liners, Homer), etc, but still reserve the number retirement for the truly deserving players.

[The Axe]

<blockquote class='ipsBlockquote'data-author="Jedi" data-cid="2338447" data-time="1357656970"><p>
Delaying Lidstrom's ceremony is the right thing to do. The lockout has cast a black shadow over everything the league and the teams will do this season, and you don't want that shadow to darken the most prestigious honor a Red Wings player can be given. <br />
<br />
56 players in the Hockey Hall of Fame have played for the Red Wings at some point in their careers. Only 6 of them have had their numbers retired by the Wings. That's some pretty elite company. The more numbers you retire, the more you cheapen the honor.<br />
<br />
Like it or not, but the standard for number retirement has been set by the careers of Yzerman and Lidstrom. If a player doesn't have a career that even comes close to theirs (notably, entirely in a Red Wings sweater, with Stanley Cups and other hardware to match), then they don't deserve to have their jersey in the rafters. <br />
<br />
This is why I think the Wings need a "ring of honor" in the new arena. A place where they can recognize the great players (Fedorov, Shanahan), fan favorites (Grind Liners, Homer), etc, but still reserve the number retirement for the truly deserving players.</p></blockquote>

Feds should be up there.

[shoobiedoobin]

I'd be OK with Pav and Hank as long as long as they finish here and don't do something crazy in the last few years. I don't think we should hold every single player to the standards of Stevie or Nick. They built their legacy partly because the team when they showed up wasn't as good as it is now. And since we're so good, we can afford the opportunity to let our best players ripen so to speak in Grand Rapids, or wherever. We don't have to shoe-horn them in at 18 or 19 years old and won't even if they are ready. Add to that, our playing style is less about individual points and attributes and more about the team. Which makes it almost impossible to have a Stevie kind of career. It's more a testament to how our team has been built for the past decade or so. I think Pav and Hank should go up, and if we have 7 or 8 names, whatever, we've been stacked and this would just be proof of it. What if in the next 20 years we're mediocre? For a good period of time? We're understandably worried about cheapening the honor of going up at the Joe but maybe we should look at the forest a few more feet away from the trees. We could have 8 names in the next 5 years or so but it could stay at 8 for the next 30. We've been pretty lucky as fans to even get to have this conversation.