One of the biggest moves the Red Wings made this off-season was bringing back Jiri Hudler after his exodus to the KHL. Hudler was a three-year player at the time of his departure, scoring 15 in his first season in 2006-2007, 13 the following year and 23 during his most recent season in Detroit in 2008-2009. Hudler was never really a goals first type of player though, and it shows in the assist column. He tallied 10, 29, and 34 in his three full seasons as a Red Wing and was a major contributor as a puck distribution guy.
Hudler’s time in the KHL was spent with Moscow Dynamo, where he scored 54 points (19 G, 35 A) in 54 games. The season he spent there benefited the Wings greatly as he was still under contract as their player through the arbitration ruling but it allowed him to continue playing without counting against the salary cap. With the level of talent rising in the KHL (although still not quite the same caliber as NHL) Hudler got the most challenge possible while making good money. The dissolution of Moscow Dynamo allowed Hudler to leave his contract in favor of returning to Detroit. So will Detroit’s prodigal son be a contributor to the Red Wings next season?
Discussion after the jump…
First, let’s define in what sense we are using the word “contributor”. An offensive contributor, in my book, is a guy that puts up 45+ points in a season and is a big part of the success of the team with work on the penalty killing/power play units. He not only shows up in the stat column for points and assists but is disruptive to the opposing team’s offense or defense.
Why he will be a contributor: Perhaps one of Hudler’s most underrated aspects is his speed. He’s a quick guy that is capable of stretching the defense by carrying the puck into the zone. He has excellent passing skills and is very alert on the ice. He also has good hands around the net and has a very good nose for where to go as a play develops.
Why he won’t be a contributor: Most likely, Hudler will be playing minutes primarily on the third line unless he excels well enough in his return to demote Todd Bertuzzi or Valterri Filppula. On the third line, he will probably be joined by Mike Modano and Dan Cleary. With that line combination, there isn’t a real clear-cut scorer that could benefit from Hudler’s passing skills. Also, it might be hard for him to crack the power play units with the skill players ahead of him.
My take: Hudler’s decision to go to the NHL enraged a lot of Red Wings fans but it really shouldn’t. The Red Wings will benefit from the time he spent playing in the KHL. I think that time was well spent and will help him be a contributor to this edition of the Red Wings. However, I think that playing third line minutes and likely on a third line with Modano and Cleary won’t result in a 45-point season so I will side with “False”, but will definitely hope that I’m wrong.
Your turn, will Jiri Hudler be a contributor to the 2010-2011 Red Wings or a guy that just kind of blends in?
Will Jiri Hudler be a contributor for the Red Wings?
| Yes | 812 |
| No | 42 |
