Abel to Yzerman

Abel to Yzerman

"It's Starting To Piece Together"

01/17/2019 at 9:47am EST

from Kevin Allen of USA TODAY,

“We’ve got what I call a bus driver,” general manager Ken Holland told USA TODAY Sports. “Jonathan Toews drives the bus in Chicago. Patrice Bergeron drives the bus in Boston. Dylan Larkin drives the bus in Detroit. Those guys are hard to find. He’s not Connor McDavid or Austin Matthews, but he is a bus driver.”...

“What do we respect about Toews and Bergeron? They come to play every day,” Holland said. “Now I have a young player who every day is pushing and pushing to be better.”...

Tyler Bertuzzi, 24, (13 goals and 25 points) is another player who could score 20 on a Red Wings team averaging 2.79 goals per game.

"He’s a junkyard dog. He’s not the prettiest guy going,” Holland said. “But he has great hockey sense, and hands. The feet are getting better.”

Trade speculation has Detroit trading Gustav Nyqvist, Thomas Vanek, Nicklas Kronwall and goalie Jimmy Howard before this season’s trade deadline.

But with the Red Wings' rebuilding plan on schedule, Holland would like to re-sign Howard, 34, who has improved and tightened up his game as he's gotten older.

They have contracts coming off the books this summer, including more than $17 million to four players. More than $12 million could be available in 2020 when the contracts of Mike Green, Trevor Daley and Jonathan Ericsson end.

“It’s starting to piece together,” Holland said.

more plus a look at other teams in a rebuild of some sort...

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