Since my return from Detroit Red Wings training camp in Traverse City, Mich., I’ve been bombarded with questions about the Daniel Cleary signing, why it was allowed to become such a prolonged saga -- especially for a player on the downside of his career.
Cleary’s signing has less to do with the hockey player and more to do with the coach, Mike Babcock.
By most accounts, Red Wings GM Ken Holland does everything possible to give Babcock the roster he desires, including the 12th-hour signing of Cleary.
On any given day, Babcock tells the assembled media that the players themselves will decide how the Wings manage to trim their bloated roster, which will alleviate their salary-cap woes.
“We got good depth and it's going to be competitive,” Babcock said last week. “The exhibition schedule should be competitive for us."
When asked to elaborate on the Wings' overloaded forward corps -- if it was a good, yet somewhat unconventional situation -- Babcock doubled down.
“I guess you could say that if you want to say it," Babcock mused. "The other thing you can say is, the best players are going to play.
"That's what we've done every year since I've been here. We're going to do the same thing."
Although that statement sounds good, some observers wonder about its accuracy, considering that two of the Wings' top prospects -- Gustav Nyquist and Danny DeKeyser -- might have to start the season in Grand Rapids for the team to comply with the 23-man roster limit.
It’s hard to argue that Babcock isn’t the best coach in the NHL, but his insistence on bringing Cleary back has compromised Detroit’s plan a bit. Until just before training camp, the Wings seemed perfectly fine with getting younger and letting Cleary walk away.
Now the mantra is, abundance and on-ice competition.
Which is also a sign of how much say Babcock has on Detroit’s personnel.
