Big news out of Hockeytown today as the Detroit Red Wings signed forward Johan Franzen to an 11 year deal worth $43.5 million. The new contract provides a lot of direction for the Red Wings come offseason in terms of trying to resign Marian Hossa and/or Jiri Hudler.
Franzen, 29, has seen his numbers improve every year since joining the Red Wings and has tallied a career high 34 goals this season. The 11 year deal comes months after the Wings re-signed Henrik Zetterberg to a 12 year deal.
The signing of Franzen gives the Wings a definite number to work with an attempt to bring Hossa in long term. Franzen provides great size and has shown incredible improvement with his shooting skills.
