Evaluating Stays in Motown: Chris Chelios
by Casey Richey on Aug 2, 2009 5:35 PM CDT
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How he came to Detroit: A former Stanley Cup and Norris Trophy winner in Montreal and a key gear in the Chicago defense, he came to Detroit by way of a trade in 1999 that sent Anders Eriksson and two first tround draft picks in exchange for Chris.
Impact of his stay: It would be near impossible to summarize the value that Chelios brought to Detroit in a short paragraph but Chelios was an immediate impact on the team and contributed to the defensive mindset of the club.
Highs in Motown: A stay in Detroit that long is hard to narrow down to a small list of his accomplishments. A short list of accomplishments though would include two Stanley Cup rings, a +40 rating in 2002 that led the league, every single season spent was a + in the +/- column, over 150 points, and oh yeah, two Cheli's Chili Bars. Chelios was a big part of the defense and gladly accepted mentoring responsibilities with young talent.
Lows in Motown: I can't really think of all too much that I can really criticize Chris for during his stay. He may have had some low offensive numbers but defensemen are often given leeway in that department. I suppose the only real low is that he is no longer a Red Wing.
Replaceable? The organization wouldn't have let Chelios go if they didn't think they had a better player waiting in the wings. The unexpectedly rapid maturation of Jonathan Ericsson has developed the situation where the Wings have several young options at the position and would like to keep them there at the expense of the vet. Chelios' numbers were becoming pedestrian but I don't think any of the young players can replace the leadership and experience he had.
Overall "Grade" for his stay: I think it would be ludicrous for me to award Chris with anything less than an "A". He was a stalwart on the blueline and when his skills started to waver in comparison to the developing young talent, he took things in good stride and quietly stepped aside for the better of the team. A great player statistically but probably more impressive was Chelios' selflessness and willingness to do whatever was best for the team.
In the end, Chris Chelios is one of the guys that I feel was truly a crucial asset to the team. He was one of many anchors on the defense and a big part of the Red Wings success throughout his stay. He continually took paycuts (and playing time cuts) to stay with the team and did everything that was asked of him by the coaching and higher ups. Like I said, once his skills were starting to be overmatched by the young guys and the additions of guys like Rafalski and Stuart, Cheli vacated his spot without the noise you'd expect from a guy with his resume. I know I'm not alone in saying that I wish Chris could/would stay but then again I can understand that he wants to still play consistently. I wish him the best of luck if he continues down the NHL path or a happy retirement if he decides that's best.
Let's hear your thoughts on the end of Chelios' career in Detroit.
| Year | Games | Goals | Assists | Points | +/- | PIM |
| 98-99 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 2 | +5 | 4 |
| 99-00 | 81 | 3 | 31 | 34 | +48 | 103 |
| 00-01 | 24 | 0 | 3 | 3 | +4 | 45 |
| 01-02 | 79 | 6 | 33 | 39 | +40 | 126 |
| 02-03 | 66 | 2 | 17 | 19 | +4 | 78 |
| 03-04 | 69 | 2 | 19 | 21 | +12 | 61 |
| 05-06 | 81 | 4 | 7 | 11 | +22 | 108 |
| 06-07 | 71 | 0 | 11 | 11 | +11 | 34 |
| 07-08 | 69 | 3 | 9 | 12 | +11 | 36 |
| 08-09 | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 18 |
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I have to agree. Chelios deserves an A for all he did for the Wings. I really wish he’ll come back as a coach or trainer when he retires. I am sure a team will pick him up for his veteran leadership. He’s only good for 20 games a year now but there is nothing that guy hasn’t seen or done. He’ll be great for a young team, I think
Chris Chelios
I personally hate to see Chris Chelios leave the Red Wings organization, but he’s not nearly as effective as a player as he once was. I heard rumor that Chelios was offered a position in the Red Wings Organization and declined it but that was rumor. Chelios was also very clear that he wants to continue to play even if he received only limited amounts of ice time.
Clearly Chelios has made the younger defensemen on the Red Wings better through his influence. I know that Brett Lebda was a better player with Chelios barking orders at him when they were a defensive pairing.
My hope is that they would make Chelios a Detroit Red Wings assistant coach but, that’s not my call as I’m only a lowly season ticket holder not an organization insider.
they should have cheli (when he retires) become involved as a rookie developer in traning camps or something, get involved on the D. Great guy, gonna miss him.
Datsyuk is like Iverson....... Breaks ankles all the time!
I thought he turned down the offer...
for the simple fact that he says he wants to play for one more year. If he doesn’t get an offer from a team, I think he’ll consider that offer.
Ok...
what jackass gave him an F?
Good luck Mr. Chelios, Detroit will always love you.
Does he go in the HOF as a Wing or a Blackhawk? Maybe a slight chance he goes in a Canuckistani? What do y’all think?
We asked the same question
On our blog about what team he goes into the HOF from. We loved him here and he is still very well respected, but he is nonetheless seen as a wing. There weren’t even any takers for a play one game and retire a Hawk scenario. He’s had a lot of well deserved success with you guys, the kind we wish he could have had here in Chicago. I think it makes sense to send him to the HOF as a wing. Most of us would love to see him working with our young guys somewhere in the system like some of you mentioned. I certainly wish him well with whatever he does.
He had the same impact with each team, to be honest. He won cups with both Detroit and Montreal. Was the absolute leader of Chicago. I can’t see how you can pick one of the three. He should either go in under all three or just under an NHL logo to show how big a part of the league he was (on and off the ice between his 25+ year career, his involvement in the league front office and player’s union, and his community service). I really don’t care if he goes in as a Wing, so long as he is enshrined as a first ballot as he should be.
by Apocalyptic0n3 on Aug 3, 2009 12:11 AM CDT up reply actions
How about a USA jersey?
Seems to me that it would be the most fitting. His impact on US hockey and the teams mentioned may only be rivaled by the impact of guys like Fetisov and Larionov in Russia. OK maybe a little hyperbole, but what is US hockey without Chelios?
A USA jersey would work, I think. I do have to agree that there may not be another player as important to US hockey as Chelios is/was.
by Apocalyptic0n3 on Aug 4, 2009 6:53 PM CDT up reply actions
Oh and, for what it’s worth, he spent 9 seasons as a Wing, 8 seasons as a Hawk, and 8 seasons as a Canadien minus the season split between Detroit and Chicago.
by Apocalyptic0n3 on Aug 3, 2009 12:14 AM CDT up reply actions
He's made it clear...
That when he enters the HoF that it will be with a Team USA hat on. Reason being, he had great careers in Montreal, Chicago, and Detroit and doesn’t want to have to choose just one team.
Guess I should have read a little further.
But that seems about right.
Does he go in the HOF as a Wing or a Blackhawk? Maybe a slight chance he goes in a Canuckistani? What do y’all think?
Hockey isn’t like baseball, you don’t have to choose a team’s hat to go on your plaque. So he’ll be recognized for his achievements in his entire career.
I think fans will probably remember Chicago as the best individual years of his career but also how he morphed roles into being a mentor and a true team player with all his victories in Detroit.
Pensburgh.com -- it's like the Max Talbot of blogs*
*not just because we only work for 12 minutes a night
Is that true .....
Someone gave him an “F” ? Stinkin Leaf fans, why are they on our site., those jealous pricks, the Leaf franchaise should be disbanded, what a shining example of how to ruin a team.
Anyway Chelios will be in the Hall of Fame, in fact I will go on to say to date he is the best American born player EVER and someday his jersey and number will hang from the JLA and I hope the organization jumps on it the minute he retires.
As much as I hate to say it… 24 will never hang from the rafters in the Joe (at least not with Chelios on the back). Don’t get me wrong… he was a huge part of our organization for the last decade. But… if you look at those whose numbers are hanging, they are all lifelong Wings. Yes, Abel played 2 with the Hawks, Lindsay played 3 and Sawchuck played a few away from us but they are all, in the eyes of the hockey world, lifelong Wings. Chelios will be remembered as a Canadien, Hawk, and Wing as well as the face of USA Hockey. But he is no where near being a true Wing, someone who played their entire career with Detroit. That is why he’ll never see his jersey raised.
Only one number has been retired in the last 15 years and only person on the team currently is guaranteed to have a ceremony to see his jersey retired – Lidstrom. He will be the first European to have his jersey retired by the Wings. At the moment, only one other person on the team could be considered worthy of having his jersey retired and, again, is considered by many to be a lifelong Wing (despite playing several seasons with New York and St. Louis) – Osgood. Those two are the ONLY two that have a chance of having their jerseys retired and only Lidstrom is a lock. Who knows what will happen with Datsyuk, Zetterberg, and Franzen (I am sure I will be breathing Helm in that same breath in a few seasons) by the time they retire. They have the potential to see 13, 40, and 93 raised but right now the jury is still out.
As much as it would be cool as I love Chelios (I do. One of the most exciting moments in my life is when I was 9 and watching SportsCenter finding out that we had gotten Chelios from Chicago. I actually ran down the stairs and started doing a dance and screaming “WE GOT CHELIOS!” to my dad), I honestly do not see it happening. 5 will go up, 30 may go up, 24 will not. If Team USA retires his number, perhaps then we will raise a Team USA jersey to the rafters as a sign of respect for the man but it won’t be retired by the Wings.
by Apocalyptic0n3 on Aug 5, 2009 1:07 AM CDT up reply actions
Ilitich is tight with his rafters
There was a time when I was CERTAIN that No. 91 would be up there.
For most teams – across sports – if you have a Hall of Fame player who plays the bulk of his career with you, you retire his number. But that’s not the Wings’ standard, as has been made very clear by the retirement/moving on of the mid-’90s team.
The Joe’s rafters don’t have space for just anybody. And I guess with a franchise like this, one can’t get picky. After all, we already have other players wearing Larionov’s 8 and Shanahan’s iconic 14 (and that considering Shanny will go to the Hall best known for his Wings years). And Larry Aurie’s No. 6, which still isn’t assigned, doesn’t hang, for reasons unknown or understood.
One thing that could make the difference between Datsyuk/Zetterberg and Federov is that their contracts (especially Hank’s) make it very unlikely either will leave the Red Wings before his career is very wrapped up. Pavs will be, what, 35 when his contract is up? At that point I could see him with a Hall of Fame resume. Even then, he’d have to re-sign with Detroit and play out a few more years before 13 hangs. 40, on the other hand, seems to be the more likely to be raised, because we’re stuck with each other for a very, very long time. So long as his skills don’t diminish too fast, Zetts will probably retire on this contract (unless you imagine us carrying a 40-year-old making $1 million with a cap hit of $6 million in 2020-21, which would only happen if we were doing a massive rebuilding).
As for Chelios, I think back on that trade as one of the best in Detroit sports history. At the time, I was a little WTF — trading a young, our-style defender and in the midst of a wholesale unloading of every 1st and 2nd round draft pick from 1999 to Armageddon. Who’d have imagined at that time, when the Blackhawks offloaded a veteran near the end of his career to save on salary, that Chris would end up spending more time in Detroit than either of his previous stops. Oh, the tremmels of a three-peat stirred, but I really wasn’t feeling it in ‘99 — like we were becoming too Yankees-ish. And the other pickups around then — Uwe Krupp, Ulf Samuelsson, Ranford, Wendell Clark — didn’t seem like fits.
Chelios was worth all of that and then some. People point at Lebda, but have you forgotten about some other blue liners that Chelios coached during his time here? Jiri Fischer was a Cheli protege. Dmitri Bykov went to Cheli school for a year. Chelios taught Dandenault how to play the back end. I’m sure Kyle Quincey will drop by Malibu every now and then to thank Chelios for making him the player he is today. And, though his development is probably better credited to Murph, so was Lidstrom himself - it was Chris’s arrival in Detroit that coincided with Nick’s rise from Kronwallian to Orr(well)ian.
CHRIS CHELIOS
A CLASS ACT ALL THE WAY. CHELIOS WILL BE MISSED,NOT JUST HIS SKILLS BUT HIS LEADERSHIP TOO. CHRIS IS THE KIND OF GUY,YOU HATE HIM WHEN HE IS NOT ON YOUR TEAM.LIKE WHEN HE PLAYED FOR CHICAGO,COULD NOT STAND HIM.BUT WHEN HE CAME TO DETROIT AND GOT TO KNOW HIM,HE WAS NOTHING LIKE HE WAS ON THE HAWKS.HE IS A VERY NICE GUY.I LOVED WHEN HE WOULD GO TO OTHER RINKS AND GET BOOED.I KNEW HE WAS DISTURBING THE OTHER TEAM LIKE NASHVILLE AND CHICAGO CLASSIC.
May have to borrow that
for a few trolls if our games aren’t close this year. Man there were some screamers after we lost the WCF to you guys.
Redwings Stupid to Not Sign Chelios
Chelios was the anchor to the defensive corps that was first in the league, until Canadien Mike Babcock pulled the plug on Cheli and went with the blundering Lilja. Lilja’s blocked shot numbers that all of his supporters are quick to give you are high because he is in position to block the shots of players he just gave the puck!!! Lilja is a turnover machine. Look at some game film, hmmm say the 2007 finals. Lilja actually stepped on a puck and turned it over into his own zone to Petr Sykora for a great scoring chance in game two with teh game still in question. If not for hris Osgood bailing out Lilja on that occasion, Lilja would have been the same goat tthat cost the Redwings the season in 2006. Does anyone remember the infamous turnover to Teemo Selanne that led to the game winner for the Ducks against the Redwings. Chelios is still amazing even at his age. Chelios does not turn the puck over ever, looka t the film again. Chelios is not a liability on defense when paired with someone that plays defense, not Lilja or Lebda. Chelios has lower scoring numbers because he has not played on the powerplay since coming to Detroit. If Chelios did play on the powerplay I imagine his statistice for offensive numbers would be closer to Niick Kronwall’s. Sign Cheli damn it!!!
now do
Ty Conklin!!!!! i wanna see one of these for ty conklin!! i miss conks
Datsyuk is like Iverson....... Breaks ankles all the time!
your wish is my command
okay not every wish but i’ll pump out one of these puppies for ty over the next few days
Cheli
I would like to add my tribute to Chris. I am sorry to see him go and I hope he comes back to Detroit when he is finished his career. An outstanding physical specimen and I believe he wants to keep playing to maintain his conditioning. But age will always get us and will get Cheli too, I doubt if he plays this year! I would of like to see Cheli go into some coaching role with the Wings, he has been loyal and can still be an asset to the Wings. I think if he sticks around the rink and coaching he can stay in shape. Money, ha, these guys are set for life, those family guys with wives will always prepare for life after hockey. Cheli would play for free.
Hockey Will Miss Chris
Everyone has pretty much said what has needed to be said about Chelios. He was one heck of a defenseman. I can’t think of too many guys both past and present that could match up with him. Sure there are a few that are long gone from the game, but as far as “recent” players go, there just aren’t many that could hold a candle to Chelios. There will come a time when people will talk about the “greats” and his name will be one that is mentioned right along with Howe, Hull and many others. As far as whether or not his jersey should be raised at the Joe…I think it should be raised at the Joe, but that’s my opinion. Personally I think he will be commonly remembered as a Redwing. He will be remembered as a player who had alot of impact with teams like the Blackhawks, but more so for what he did for Detriot while he was there.
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