Red Wings To Target Stamkos, Nielsen And Lucic

By: Will Burchfield
@burchie_kid

With the start of NHL free agency looming, the rumor mill is beginning to heat up around the league. Most of the talk is centered around Steven Stamkos, who just may be the best player ever to hit the open market. But there are a slew of quality options behind the Tampa sniper, which is important and relevant and worth keeping in mind because only one team is going to land his services. For the Red Wings, the danger isn't in missing out on Stamkos; the danger is in failing to put together a good backup plan.

Earlier this afternoon, TSN's Darren Dreger reported that Frans Nielsen and Milan Lucic are two players the Wings are eyeing should they fail to sign Stamkos.

Stamkos - surprise, surprise - is Target A. We examined what it would take to sign him yesterday, but suffice to say the Wings will have to offer north of $10 million per season for at least six years. And even that feels light. It's an idea that leaves some fans trembling and others shaking with rage, and one that GM Ken Holland must seriously consider. With due respect to Henrik Zetterberg, Detroit has an obvious hole at the 1C position, not to mention a dire need for more scoring. Stamkos could fill both deficits with aplomb.

But the Wings are one of at least four teams in the (legitimate) running for Stamkos, and the simple odds say he'll end up somewhere else. In that event, both Nielsen and Lucic would be sturdy recourse measures.

Nielsen, the longtime Islander, is one of the most underrated players in the league. Much of his value is obscured by a lack of chart-topping numbers and the market in which he's played, but the 32-year-old center is an undeniable two-way force. He put up 20 goals and 52 points last season and has settled in as a steady .60+ point-per-game player.

But Nielsen is celebrated most for his ability to drive possession, especially while playing a defensively-responsible game. Despite starting the majority of his shifts in the defensive zone in 2015-16, he was a positive possession player, which stands out even more when you consider the Isles were a middling team in this regard. Nielsen logs power-play time, kills penalties, wins face-offs and does generally everything expected of a player at his position. He would be a worthy replacement to the strong two-way presence of Pavel Datsyuk.

Nielsen has turned down the Isles' initial offer worth a reported $5.5 million per year, and reports say he'll command $6 million per year on the open market. That would feel like pocket change compared to what the Wings are likely to offer Stamkos, without hindering Holland's ability to make improvements elsewhere. Though Nielsen lacks the name recognition of Stamkos or even Lucic, he is certainly a player worth pursuing.

As for Lucic, the bruising left winger would fill a different team need. The Wings are noticeably small up front, especially when it comes to their skill players. There isn't necessarily a lack of talent between Zetterberg, Dylan Larkin, Gustav Nyquist and Thomas Tatar, but there is an obvious lack of versatility. Lucic would add some much-needed size and physicality to Detroit's top six forwards, without detracting from the group's offensive potential. He scored 20 goals and 55 points last season.

Like Nielsen, Lucic is likely to reel in a contract worth about $6 million per season. But Lucic, four years the younger, will be looking for (and receiving) a longer commitment, somewhere in the neighborhood of six years. That shouldn't scare away the Wings, who would undoubtedly benefit from Lucic' unique combination of size and skill.

We'll be keeping an eye on these rumors as they develop in the coming days. Stamkos will likely be the first domino to fall on Friday, setting the rest of the chaos into motion.

In:
• Detroit Red Wings