Hey, kids, guess what? Hockey's almost here. That means it's time for me to get back into this whole blogging thing that I've neglected during the off-season. Since I lack the creativity to come up with a new gimmick, I decided to continue the Player Profiles series I did last year leading up to the season. I'll be taking a look at a different player (almost) every day between now and when hockey starts. By my count, there are 9 days until the Wings open the regular season. Get excited. Today's subject:
Mike Modano
2009-2010 Regular Season: 59 GP, 14-16-30, +/- -6, 22 PIM
2010 Playoffs: N/A
Season Highlight: The nice farewell treatment he got from fans at the end of the season. Except he didn't retire.
Season Lowlight: I don't really follow the Stars, so I have no idea what to even choose from.
Mike Modano was the Wings' big free agent signing for the summer. The story monopolized Wings coverage for a large chunk of the off-season, so here's hoping he ends up being worth the wait. After tossing it around in my head for a while, I came down on the pro-dano side of the debate that raged amongst Wings fans. I liked the signing for a couple of reasons, including the fact that it reminded me of how the team brought back Dallas Drake for 2007-2008. Not only that, but he brings the Wings unmatched depth.
On the first day of training camp when the Modano-Cleary-Hudler unit hit the ice, I just kept thinking to myself, “holy crap, that's the Wings third line.” If you do a line-by-line comparison with any team in the league, nobody else can compete. We all know Modano's not the same Modano we saw playing a decade ago, but nobody's expecting that from him. This line is going to provide the Wings with the kind of secondary scoring they lacked last season as well as some solid two-way play. He's taking some time to click with his new linemates and the Wings' system, but he'll be just fine.
What he needs to do to make me smile: Make the endless debate this suummer worthwhile.
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