When Ansar Khan of MLive caught up with Frans Nielsen for his latest article, the Red Wings center had a very clear message for the direction of the team: they need Steve Ott. No, not necessarily Ott himself, but more players like him that can open up room for their more skilled forwards by making defenders pay while retrieving a puck.
Every time we’d get the puck down in their end, he’d finish checks on their D. At some point, they’re going to be tired of that and they’re going to back off and that’s going to give our skill guys a little more room. They’re going to give up that four or five feet at the blue line and you can come in and hit guys coming in late.
This is a prevailing theory around the league, that less-skilled players create room for their more talented linemates, opening up space for them to create scoring chances. It’s a tactic that has been used to great success in Toronto, where former Red Wings coach Mike Babcock has strapped Zach Hyman to Auston Matthews’ hip for the entire season, despite his disappointing point totals. Detroit’s new bench boss, Jeff Blashill, is a Babcock pupil of sorts and may want to employ the same strategy.
Ignoring for a moment that the Red Wings in fact had the real Ott for much of the season, only to decide that at 25-26-10 they would sell at the deadline, we’ll take a look at possible options for the team this offseason. Assuming that Nielsen is right, and that the team needs some “more mean attitude” and an ability to back up those defenders, here are some of the options they could have for relatively cheap this summer (along with their age at the start of next year and current salary).
Steve Ott, 35, $800K
They could in fact get the real thing back, though Ott will now be 35 and didn’t work out very well for them the first time. The gritty forward is playing just over 12 minutes in the playoffs for Montreal, and has been that in-your-face presence for the club in their series against the New York Rangers. He’ll likely cost around the same amount next year, if he doesn’t decide to hang up his skates.
Chris Kunitz, 38, $3.55MM
Kunitz isn’t exactly the pest Ott is, but he was among the leaders in the NHL in hits once again and would never be called a soft player. He also provides at least a little bit of offensive upside, though he took a step backwards this season with just 29 points. At 38, he wouldn’t cost very much but also could fall off a cliff in effectiveness.
Ryan White, 29, $1MM
White was traded to Minnesota at the deadline along with Martin Hanzal, and though he was an effective grinder down the stretch hasn’t shown up much in the playoffs. White will be an unrestricted free agent again this summer and will cost around the same amount as this season.
Andreas Martinsen, 27, $640K
One of the other Montreal acquisitions at the deadline, Martinsen was playing very little on Colorado even though they were last in the NHL. The move to Montreal gave him a little more icetime, but he’s been relatively ineffective in the postseason. He’ll be lucky to get a one-way deal this summer.
Roman Polak, 31, $2.25MM
Polak just suffered a nasty injury to take him out for the rest of the playoffs, but should return for next season. An unrestricted free agent, he adds some toughness and a mean streak to the back end. While he started out quite poorly for the Maple Leafs, a late season turnaround and strong playoff debut should get him another contract between $1.5-2MM. If the Red Wings decide to upgrade their grit at both ends of the rink, he could be an option.
Brian Boyle, 32, $2MM
Boyle isn’t exactly a grinder as he can contribute offensively at times, but his physical style fits perfectly into a bottom six that wants to be tough to play against. Add in that he’s a dynamo in the faceoff dot, and can kill penalties and he may be exactly what Nielsen wants on the team. His leadership and playoff success might get him a raise this summer, likely between $2.7-3.2MM per season for several years.