I'm not sure that it's necessary to explain the Nicklas Lidstrom signing, for two reasons:
1) Unless you live under a rock, you already know that the Detroit Red Wings captain is coming back next year, signing a one-year deal worth around $6.2 million.
2) I could write the most thorough and insightful essay ever, yet it still wouldn't come close to topping what
The Triple Deke posted today.
It's been a busy day for Lidstrom. He allowed us to breathe a sigh of relief this morning, and tonight he visited with Rod Allen and Mario Impemba in the third inning of the Tigers-Indians game on FSN Detroit. Wings general manager Ken Holland joined the two broadcasters in the fourth as well.
As I expected, the answers were relatively short but it is nice to hear what Nick and Kenny have to say about the signing.
I'll try and keep this simple by posting Lidstrom's responses to Rod and Mario's questions.
Nick on the signing: "I've very excited to be back with the team. I never did leave but I'm very happy to come back for another year."
On his long tenure with the Red Wings and the city of Detroit: "Doesn't seem like it's been 19 years. Time has been flying by and it's been a lot of fun and a lot of success and that's why I want to continue to be with the Wings."
On being voted best defenseman by his peers in a Sports Illustrated poll: "It is special, especially when it comes from players that you face on a daily basis. I think they know you the best, they know your tendencies and what kind of player you are so that means a lot when that comes from the players."
Lidstrom talking about his kids and their hockey careers: "I got four boys and they all play hockey so they're keeping the household busy [laughs]. They love doing it and I've very supportive of what they're doing. If they're going to have success I'll be very happy with that, but if not I'll take that too. I really know that they're enjoying the game."
On what it means to be a Red Wing: "It means a lot playing for the Wings. It means a lot to be part of this organization. Our owners [the Illitches] have been tremendouus and really supportive of the team and help put the best players possible on the ice."
In the next inning, Holland entered the booth and had high praise for Lidstrom, and talked just a bit more than Nick.
He began by talking a little about the signing, saying, "It's a great day for the Red Wings. Obviously, Nick's been the best defenseman of his era and we haven't missed the playoffs since he's been here. I think he was seriously considering his options and we're thrilled to have him back."
Impemba mentioned a quote that Holland gave that talked about how Lidstrom is such a mentally strong player. Holland expanded a little more on what he meant by that. "He makes everything look easy. He lets the game come to him. A lot of people chase the game but he knows how to position himself," Holland said. "He's physical when he needs to be but for the most part he's a quick stick, he knows how to take the puck away, he knows how to play the game, and he makes it look so easy."
Holland ended the question by mentioning something that is perhaps one of Lidstrom's greatest skills: "He wows you by watching him day after day with his attention to detail."
The conversation turned to a discussion about when Lidstrom became the six-time Norris Trophy winning Lidstrom we know and love.
"Nick really became Nick Lidstrom in 1997 when we had the car accident, and Nick knew that he had to take his game to another level," the GM noted. "He started to get lots of minutes against the other team's best players and all of the sudden his confidence took off and he took his game to another level. He was a really, really good defenseman, but from 1998 on he just took it to another level."
Mario and Rod followed up on their question to Nick about his fitness, and Holland added: "The great ones have something special that others don't have. Nick's 40 but he's really only 31, 32, or 33. He works real hard off the ice but [his body] is also a bit of a gift."
Probably the most intriguing part of the interview took place when Holland gave us a glimpse of what he's currently working on and his offseason plans. As previously reported, Holland mentioned that they are in fact talking to Tomas Holmstrom and Todd Bertuzzi.
"We're talking to Holmstrom and Bertuzzi. Ideally we'd like to get them done at numbers they're happy with and we're happy with. We'd like to keep them both."
Holland spoke about his intentions with the young guys on the roster: "We're going to move some kids up. It's time for Justin Abdelkader to be on our team full time. We want to give young players like [Mattias] Ritola and [Jakub] Kindl a chance to make our team. We're trying to move some kids in but at the same time we feel we have a real good core."
He also talked about the Wings' options after free agency begins.
"We find out what the cap is the last week of June and July 1 is free agency, and if we can get some people done and have a little money left over, we'd like to explore, maybe get a little toughness and some kind of secondary scoring," Holland said. "We're going to see how it sorts itself out in June."
The interview closed with the Tigers broadcast duo asking Holland about how the Wings develop their players:
"If you bring kids up too soon, and they start to face some adversity, they lose their confidence and then it just spirals out of control. It's really just how mentally tough they are.
"We try to leave our players in the [American Hockey League] for two or three years. When they come up, they're really mentored by Lidstrom, [Steve] Yzerman, [Chris] Chelios, [Chris] Osgood and [Kris] Draper. We're big on the mentoring and when they're ready, they're ready."
It's nice to know what Holland has planned for his offseason, and of course, very nice to know that our captain will be continuing to wow us night in and night out.
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