Welcome to a new summer series on Last Word On Hockey. In preparation for the NHL Expansion Draft on June 21st, LWOH’s Detroit Red Wings Department will be going in depth on every Wing that is eligible to be picked by the newest NHL squad, the Vegas Golden Knights, who will begin play in the fall. The team will likely follow the seven-forward, three-defensemen, and one goalie format of protecting players, and this series will follow suit with that. For a brush-up on the expansion draft rules, click this link. Without further adieu, we will continue this series with defenseman Niklas Kronwall.
Niklas Kronwall
Defenseman, Shoots Left
6’0″, 194 lbs
Age: 36 (Will Turn 37 On January 12)
Cap hit: $4.75 million, two years remaining
Reasons for Protection
Kronwall has done a great amount for the organization, and that will be considered mightily by General Manager Ken Holland when making his list, given recent history. When Brian Rafalski and Nicklas Lidstrom retired in back-to-back summers, he stepped up to the task of becoming the team’s number one defenseman and finished top-15 in Norris voting in the first three years after Lidstrom left, undeniably the power play quarterback scoring ten goals and 64 points on the man advantage when the rest of the defense combined for eight goals and 42 points. Detroit had the fifth best power play through that three-season stretch. Kronwall at even strength himself had the 15th-best corsi-against rate per 60 minutes among defensemen who played at least 2500 minutes at 49.99%. He’s fallen off tremendously as everyone knows since then with various injuries to his knees, but the team reportedly will give him every opportunity to come back and play next year, and that attitude coupled with Kronwall’s tenure could, in management’s mind, lead to a protection.
Reasons for Exposing
The organization must think rationally at this point. Kronwall’s production offensively has not been able to mask his declining five-on-five play, with his Corsi-against per 60 increasing to 54.43% over the past two seasons, 57th among all defensemen. In 2014-15 he had nine goals and 44 points in 80 games, and in 121 since, that total has dwindled to five goals and 39 points, including just 20 points on the man advantage, zero goals. His contract cap hit is still hard to stand, though sitting at just two more years it is quenchable compared to the other defensive prices that are going to be paid over the years. It’s highly unlikely that Vegas takes Kronwall as he’s damaged goods to begin with, rested on occasion last season. There are other valuable assets to protect, however, and Kronwall should not be a waste of a spot out of loyalty.
Verdict
Expose Him.
Kronwall has been a workhorse for Detroit for a very long time and he was tasked with the impossible mission of replacing Lidstrom, which he gave his best effort at. At the moment, he is a bottom-pairing defenseman at best and just cannot log the minutes he once logged due to age and of course, injury. The team will likely not even lose him to the Golden Knights anyway, and if they do, that just means more money off the cap as the team tries to gradually break out of a cap crisis.
Check back tomorrow as Darren Helm, the 30-year old, gets reviewed.
Updated Protection List:
Henrik Zetterberg (May 25th)
Mike Green (May 26th)
Exposed:
Justin Abdelkader
Niklas Kronwall
Main Photo:
