Detroit Red Wings: Kronwall’s retirement signals youth movement
By Bob Heyrman
Earlier this week Niklas Kronwall announced to the public he’d decided to retire. Kronwall told many of his teammates that he intended to retire at a gathering a few weeks ago. Kronwall is heading into the Detroit Red Wings front office as an advisor to GM Steve Yzerman.
Recently Steve Yzerman promoted his good friend Kris Draper to the role of Director of Ameture Scouting after reliving Tyler Wright of the title. The Detroit Red Wings left Kris Draper’s recently departed position open. Yzerman likely had a hunch he’d be able to fill the role a couple of months later with Niklas Kronwall. Kronwall will transition from the ice to the front office.
All of last season I considered Nik as the unofficial captain of the Detroit Red Wings. I think it’s safe to say Dylan Larkin is the captain in waiting, but last year it was Kronwall who answered all the media questions. Kronwall at times, was brunt with his answers when things were not going well. He always gave credit when credit was due. If you think back, Larkin was made available more often after the Wings won rather than during the stretch in December when the wins seemingly dried up.
While Nik makes the transition to the front office, the organization on the ice will start to transition to a younger leadership regime. Last season the Wings rotated four alternate captains between Kronwall, Larkin, Justin Abdelkader & Frans Nielsen.
More from Detroit Jock City
- Tigers Sign Manager A.J. Hinch to Long-Term Extension
- Lions vs. Bears Week 14 Opening Odds Disrespect Detroit
- Former Tigers Celebrate Jim Leyland Hall of Fame Call
- This Pistons Team Could be the Worst in Detroit Sports History
- 4 Free Agents Tigers Should Sign During Winter Meetings
It’s unlikely the team decides to strip Nielsen of his ‘A,’ but they could consider removing it from Abdelkader. To me, Abdelkader has become a bubble player. You can make a strong pitch that Justin shouldn’t be an everyday player on this roster.
He will have ice-time allocated to him that players like Michael Rasmussen, Evgeny Svechnikov, Filip Zadina and Taro Hirose should receive, amongst others. Justin struggled mightily at times last season, but Jeff Blashill continued to roll him out there, up and down the lineup. In my opinion, 6 goals when you make $4.25 million doesn’t cut it.
The Wings have plenty of players that could wear the ‘A’ left behind by Kronwall. The team recently signed Valtteri Filppula who’s worn a letter ever since he left Detroit. He wore an ‘A’ with both Philadelphia and Tampa Bay. He’d be a prime candidate. Mike Green also has a history of wearing a letter from his time with the Washington Capitals. If the Detroit Red Wings wanted to go with a youth movement, Tyler Bertuzzi would be a perfect option, but I feel he will be waiting a year or two.
The Detroit Red Wings are expected to name Dylan Larkin as the teams’ captain at some point. With Kronwall retiring it leaves the door wide open for Larkin to take over as the face of the franchise. I understand why the team decided to wait before nominating a captain last season after the sudden departure of Henrik Zetterberg. Before you pick that apart; although Larkin already IS the face of the franchise to many, now he’s the primary leader on and off the ice.
Next. Which Defenseman Could Be On The Hot Seat?. dark
The Wings likely understood Kronwall only had a year or two left, and instead of having a temporary captain, they wanted to wait until he called it a career which unquestionably signals a youth movement in Detroit.