Abel to Yzerman
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‘Splaining To Do?
by IwoCPO on 02/21/08 at 01:36 PM ET
Comments (20)
Updated at 1455 with Uncle Mike’s comments on Ellis. Thanks, CP, for the pointer.
Matt Ellis, one of the most popular players in Grand Rapids Griffin history, has been claimed by the LA Kings. Don’t be swayed too much by his popularity in GR. Only a reference point, but one to keep in mind when you consider the type of character guy Ken Holland let walk, and the player he kept in his place: Mark Hartigan.
Now…it may be a good idea to give Ken Holland the benefit of the doubt here. There must be something going on behind the scenes that prompted this move, some deal in the works, something to do with the McCarty return.
Because he had to know Ellis wouldn’t pass through waivers. He had to know there would be absolutely no reason for a team like LA not to yank him up.
Was Matt Ellis a difference maker? Nope. Was he going to be? Probably not. But this whole thing’s curious, the timing of it, the selection of Hartigan—not the best guy in the room from what I’ve read—over Ellis, the McCarty thing and the deadline all wrapped up in a nice little bundle of confusion.
I’m going to say we hold off on judgment until the 27th. I’d like to see how this all pans out.
——-
Two completely different points of view from two of the 19 A2Y readers:
“So the Wings lose Ellis on waivers.
Was Hartigan so valuable that we had to lose Ellis?
This is an inexcusable error by Holland.”
Posted by w2j2 on 02/21 at 01:33 PM
“Ellis isn’t worth a draft pick and he was a 14th forward on this team. Holland did Ellis a favor. On the other hand, LA could be doing this as a favor as a precursor to a deal.”
Posted by Heaton on 02/21 at 01:48 PM
Matt Saler, of OTW fame, agrees with W2J2.
Ellis was a real asset to this organization, much more so than Hartigan, and I’m sorry to see him go. The guy built a reputation as one of the hardest-working players in the system and the reward he gets is being cast off. If the Wings did this as a favor to help him get to a team that could use him more, that’s nice, I suppose. You still hate to see the guy have to uproot his young family and move 3/4 the way across the country.
From what Uncle Mike told deposed Digger Captain Ted Kulfan, it sounds like Babcock felt it was the right thing for Ellis.
“(Ellis) was in a situation where I wasn’t using him,” Babcock said. “He wasn’t fitting in on a regular basis. He’ll play in the NHL for a long time because he’s so determined. (But) he was getting less and less opportunity here.”
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Comments
W2, truer words were never spoken. You are at A2Y where snap judgments and overreaction are applauded.
Posted by IwoCPO from Sunny San Diego, bitches on 02/21/08 at 01:55 PM ET
i liked ellis. he was never, in my mind, a wing for life ... i’m sure he would’ve gone somewhere else at some point in his career and i wouldn’t have lost any sleep over it. but this move, on the surface just doesn’t make sense. hopefully, this is a precursor to something, if not BIG, than, Medium Sized.
Posted by ColdWar on 02/21/08 at 01:57 PM ET
Is there some type of rule RE: waivers where a team can only have one player claimed from them within “X” amount of days or something like that? If that’s the case, maybe they sacrificed Ellis to protect McCarty.
Another possible (although unlikely) scenario is that it’s some type of “future considerations” thing (i.e., Dean Lombardi says, “If you expose Ellis and we pick him up, then we can do Blake for ______________.”) If that’s the case though, I don’t know why Ellis wouldn’t just be part of the trade.
Posted by YzermanZetterberg on 02/21/08 at 02:00 PM ET
As much as I like Ellis as well, he’s also signed through next year. With the Wings being at the roster max, and the deadline approaching, I think Holland & Co. realized he wasn’t going to fit into their plans for next year. He deserved more ice time with what he showed us but we didn’t have the room. LA is probably going to have a fire sale considering their standing, and it’ll give Ellis a chance to really prove if he can really stick (in the NHL).
Posted by Z40scores from Davison, MI on 02/21/08 at 02:01 PM ET
The timing of this is just a little suspicious.
According to the standings, on the waiver list, Los Angeles had first dibs.
As far as collusion (future considerations), I seriously doubt that…the risk is too great for an organization as good as the Wings…This is not Hollands first year as GM.
Of course, it may have been a move requested by Ellis. This has happened before, and it takes quite a while for that detail to surface.
On the other hand:
51 games, 2 g, 4 A, 18 PIM
? for a LW….
Kenny, what took you so long?
Unrelated:
I expect Glenn Sather has ordered a
commemorative Coffee Mug
for Tom Renney:“The first NYR Coach to play for a tie with a 5 goal lead”
Posted by HockeyTownTodd on 02/21/08 at 02:21 PM ET
After having watched every game this season, I’ve gotta say that I’ve seen more flashes of potential from Hartigan than from Ellis; although Ellis was solid defensively, I’ve seen some real promise in Hartigan going forward. It’s unfortunate to see him go, though.
Posted by Hippy Dave from Portland by way of Detroit on 02/21/08 at 02:29 PM ET
digger quote from babs on ellis here:
http://detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080221/SPORTS0103/802210485/1128
Posted by christpuncher from Detroit, MI on 02/21/08 at 02:40 PM ET
I like Ellis, love how hard he worked, and hope he gets playing time in L.A. He’s earned it.
Unfortunately, even if Ellis continued to improve his game, the Wings are going to have a log-jam of similar type players.
They’ve already got Draper and Maltby, as well as Cleary (who can play that role, and many others). Hartigan is another guy that’s similar, but has better hands (though I understand the concerns about giving up a hard-working guy for a guy that there have been negative rumbles about). Justin Abdelkader is sort of expected to be another grider, energy type player. Joakim Andersson is another guy that looks like a big body that likes to hit. Clearly, they like the presence that Downey brings to the rink, as well.
So, I’m sure we don’t know the whole story, and either won’t know till the deadline passes, or we will never know. But I don’t think we should overreact to losing a guy that there just wasn’t much room for, no matter how good of a guy and hard of a worker he was.
Posted by Nathan on 02/21/08 at 02:48 PM ET
I’m sorry to see Ellis go to the Kings; there’s goes his chance for a Stanley Cup and that’s something that’s a little hard to set aside. He goes from a Cup contender to a team that’s rebuilding. Unbelievable luck…
Anyway, I think we opted to keep Hartigan because of his play-making abilities and we need a scoring forward for depth.
Posted by SYF from Las Vegas, NV on 02/21/08 at 03:14 PM ET
L.A. has a great core of young players, ellis will fit in great. this might have been a “favor” move, sounds like it anyway. good luck to matt, see you in the fall!
Posted by christpuncher from Detroit, MI on 02/21/08 at 03:15 PM ET
Maybe Hossa didn’t want to take Maltby’s 18, and settled for Ellis’ number 8. Fellas this may be part of some behind the scenes contract negotiations with Hossa. stay tuned.
Posted by Jdunc from Flint, MI on 02/21/08 at 03:18 PM ET
There wasn’t much room for him, unfortunately. He should get a good opportunity in Los Angeles, and I wish him luck.
Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 02/21/08 at 03:23 PM ET
not related, but with Lidstrom out for a few weeks is “Z” gonna get the “C” or are they going to go with 3 “A”‘s like they did when Yzerman was out of the lineup? or does anyone know
Posted by Jay from canada on 02/21/08 at 03:41 PM ET
Jdunc, you sounded like Eklund for a second there!
If it ends up coming true, then I retract that statement.
Posted by Nathan on 02/21/08 at 03:43 PM ET
Jdunc, you sounded like Eklund for a second there!
If it ends up coming true, then I retract that statement.
Posted by Nathan on 02/21 at 03:43 PM
Unless, of course, Jdunc is Eklund!
(cue dramatic organ music)
Posted by YzermanZetterberg on 02/21/08 at 03:48 PM ET
I’d guess they would go with three A’s since he isn’t expected to be out too terribly long. Usually teams go with a substitute C if the injury is long term (especially if the team seems to be struggling without an on-ice captain while he is rehabbing).
Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 02/21/08 at 03:56 PM ET
Good Luck to Mr. Ellis and his family! You’ve been wonderful and we wish you the best of luck in a beautiful new home; hopefully, you’ll be able to stay there for a long time and battle against us.
Sincerely,
A2Y Readers
Posted by srt on 02/21/08 at 06:33 PM ET
At the very least I’m sure Ellis will be glad to get out of this Arctic weather pattern we have been stuck in for what seems like forever.
Posted by John from Michigan on 02/21/08 at 08:54 PM ET
As I see it, what Ellis brought to the table was hard work, the Babcock ethic, and a cheer to the locker room. While it sucks to lose that, we always knew he was expendable. Part of this must be to see him get more ice time elsewhere in the NHL; we all know he deserves it—though as SYF says it’s a shame he won’t get a shot at the Cup. Next year, I think there’s an expectation that there will be a few more Wings roster forwards either with the big club or in GR, guys who didn’t stick this year like Ryno, new guys like Abdelkader, and (try to stifle your laughter) maybe even Grigorenko. So that clears at least one roster spot. Hartigan, while he isn’t as good defensively as Ellis, and not nearly the character that he was, is a better pure offensive player, and has potential. With the lack of scoring somewhat exposed both on the Wings and the Griffs, that’s perhaps what’s seen in Hartigan. As for the waiver wire being used to protect D-Mac and keep him on the farm team for longer, I’d be interested to hear what George has to say; or anyone else who knows the rulebook inside and out.
Of course, if it’s a Hossa number thing or something equally out of left field, my head will probably explode.
Posted by AndrewFromAnnArbor from the wrong side of the morning, need coffee... on 02/22/08 at 03:38 AM ET
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I may be wrong to jump to judgement. But this is A2Y, and that is what we do here. This move stinks!
Posted by w2j2 on 02/21/08 at 01:53 PM ET